Duke University Department of Art, Art History & Visual Studies Assessment Plan
Mission | Goals | Outcomes/Objectives | Action Plan
The mission of the undergraduate program in the Department of Art, Art History & Visual Studies is to provide students with an historical and interdisciplinary understanding of art works, visual experience, and material objects, drawing on models from the humanities, social sciences, and the sciences that provide varied means of assessing the production, circulation, and reception of the visual in past and present cultures. Our mission is to offer students a dynamic model for critical, interdisciplinary analysis of a broad field of images, enabling them to interpret social and cultural constructs that shape and are shaped by the visual, to consider global shifts in visual codes, and to be aware of how symbolic constructions organize how one sees, understands, and participates in the natural, cultural, and built environments.
Students can pursue training in four Majors – Art; Art History; Art/Art History; and Visual Studies. We offer one Concentration in Architecture and four Minors: Art; Art History; Visual Studies; and Photography. We provide studio practice, lectures, small group formats, and one-on-one independent study experiences, all of which encourage the development and application of critical and technical skills in real-world settings. top
G 1: Basic analysis skills
Students in all majors will develop skills for basic analysis of works of art from structural, historical, cultural, and aesthetic perspectives, and will be able to deploy these proficiencies comprehensibly and succinctly.
G 2: Historical and Critical Understanding
Art History majors will show an historical and critical understanding of traditional and non-traditional art forms and visual practices in survey courses and seminars. Art History majors with a Concentration in Architecture will develop foundations that allow them to pursue careers in architecture or urban planning through a selection of historical and theoretical courses enriched by experience in math, engineering, and other disciplines. Art History/Visual Art majors will show an historical and critical understanding of traditional and non-traditional art forms and visual practices in survey courses and seminars. Visual Art majors will demonstrate competence and technical skill in the use and application of a variety of media, and critical judgment.
G 3: Interdisciplinary grasp of the study of Visual Art
Art History majors will demonstrate an interdisciplinary grasp of the study of visual art. Concentration in Architecture majors will display a broad-based understanding of space and the built environment through courses in art history, architecture, visual studies, math, engineering and other ancillary disciplines. Visual Studies majors will demonstrate and understanding of the visual world from mental conceptualizations to macro and micro imaging, from everyday images to the cultures of photography, and from various disciplinary approaches to perception and the psychology of vision. Art History/ Visual Art majors will demonstrate an interdisciplinary grasp of the study of visual art; will demonstrate an interdisciplinary approach to learning, working across traditional and new media, and exploring interactions among forms and subjects. They will develop skills necessary for effective preparation of artwork for public presentation, using a variety of materials and techniques. Students in Visual Art will demonstrate an interdisciplinary approach to learning, working across traditional and new media, and exploring interactions among forms and subjects.
G 4: research methods, writing, and presentation skills
Students in all majors will display independent critical judgment, analytical insight, research methods, writing, and presentation skills through verbal, written, and constructive exercises. top
O 1: Demonstration of Skills (M: 1, 2)
Students will demonstrate an effective knowledge of visual vocabulary appropriate for careers in the visual arts, architecture, visual studies, and the media.
O 2: Recognition and analysis (G: 2) (M: 1, 2)
They will recognize and understand major monuments, artists, methods and theories, and be able to assess the qualities of works of art and architecture in their historical and cultural settings.
O 3: Research, writing and presentation (M: 1, 2)
Students will construct a portfolio of works that demonstrates their writing, and presentation skills through verbal, written, and constructive exercises.
O 4: Theoretical and Methodological Approaches (M: 1, 2)
They will use innovative theoretical and methodological approaches to generate new approaches to the history of representation understood within broader socio-cultural perspectives. They will demonstrate skills necessary for effective preparation of artwork for public presentation, using a variety of materials and techniques. top
Assessment portfolio
All students will accumulate a portfolio of five papers/and or art projects. Each faculty will be responsible for evaluating the individual works. A committee selected in the Department of Art, Art History & Visual Studies will tally and offer the final assessment in the student’s senior year. All graduating seniors will also participate in an exit interview with the assessment committee. This process of assessment is to determine how effective the goals and objectives of the department have been for each major. It is NOT a further process of grading students.
The guidelines for each major are as follows:
Art History majors will keep a portfolio comprised of five papers from 100-level courses or above in Art History, including one from a 200-level course.
Visual Studies majors will keep a portfolio of five papers and/or projects from 100-level courses or above in Visual Studies, including one from the capstone course.
Art History/Visual Art combined majors will keep a portfolio comprised of two papers from 100-level courses or above in Art History; two projects from two different media in the visual arts; and one 200-level art history seminar or visual art project from the capstone course.
Visual Art majors will keep a portfolio of five works of art or visual projects, four from 100-level or above courses, and one from the capstone. top