Art and Art History (BA)

Program Description

An Overview of the Major

From prehistoric cave art to the digital media of today, human beings across the globe and through the ages have used visual forms to understand and shape their world. Painting, sculpture, and architecture as well as ornament, design, printmaking, and photography have provided rich traditions of visual expression and communication, and the development of new media has greatly expanded this visual repertoire. Different cultures, in different places and at different times, have valued and conceptualized vision and made use of the visual arts in a variety of ways. The visual arts investigate and re-imagine the physical, social, cultural, and spiritual spheres of human existence and offer arguments about and interpretations of these realms. The major in Art & Art History at NYUAD integrates the traditions of historical, critical, and philosophical thinking that characterize the disciplines of art history and aesthetics with practice-based studio art and design. It is grounded in the conviction that thinking about art and making art belong together. Historical and theoretical understandings of art are stronger when they are informed by the direct experience of making art or designing, just as the work of artists and designers is enriched when it is in dialogue with the histories of art and with theoretical debates about the changing meanings and processes of art and design.  Students are invited to study the objects, practices, meanings, and institutions that constitute the visual arts in diverse cultures, from comparative, historical, and cross-disciplinary perspectives. The program equally invites students to explore the historical and cultural diversity of art-making by exploring various modes of art-making themselves. Students have the option of focusing on either art historical studies or on art making and design or they can pursue both in combination equally.

The Art & Art History curriculum is global in its focus and pays special attention to cross-cultural encounters, to an understanding of art in comparative frameworks, and to the dialogues between both art history and the arts practices and the humanities, sciences and other arts. The courses on offer in Abu Dhabi can be supplemented with courses on other traditions, periods and topics at New York University’s other sites.

The arts practice and design courses allow students to explore different media and techniques including drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, printmaking, graphic design, video, and digital media, while at the same time letting them hone their skills in a chosen medium. These courses also require students to reflect critically on the nature of art and design practices and to understand the histories, theories, and contexts that inform and mold these practices.

Courses in the history, theory, and criticism of the visual arts address the major issues and debates that have shaped our understanding of the visual arts. Among the questions we confront are: What is art and the nature of aesthetic experience, and why are they differently understood and valued at different times and in different cultures? What is gained or lost in studying art by focusing on a particular place, time, tradition or genre as opposed to approaching it from a comparative perspective that puts two or more cultures in dialogue? What might it mean to think of art as the product of cross-cultural exchange? How do institutions such as museums, galleries, funding bodies, and universities influence the creation, dissemination and reception of art? How do we explain the experience of the viewer psychologically, culturally, and historically? How can other disciplines help us better understand the visual arts?

The NYUAD Art & Art History program takes advantage of museums in Abu Dhabi, such as the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the Guggenheim and the Sheikh Zayed Museum, as well as the museums and galleries in Dubai and Sharjah. Whenever possible, the major also draws upon the community of practicing artists and scholars resident in, or passing through the Gulf.

The Art & Art History major prepares students for careers, not only as artists or professionals in museums, the arts industries or education, but also for any career where creativity, imagination, analytical ability, conceptual clarity, cross-cultural understanding and a respect for human achievement and difference are valued.

Study Away

Art & Art History majors interested in studying abroad should plan to do so during the spring semester of their Sophomore year or the Fall semester of their Junior year. They must have taken the required courses ARTH-UH 1010 Ways of Looking and ARTH-UH 1718 Ways of Making before taking the semester abroad. All majors should expect to be in Abu Dhabi for the spring semester of their Junior year and throughout their Senior year

The study away pathway can be found on the NYUAD Student Portal at students.nyuad.nyu.edu/pathways. Students with questions should contact the Office of Global Education.

Admissions

New York University's Office of Undergraduate Admissions supports the application process for all undergraduate programs at NYU. For additional information about undergraduate admissions, including application requirements, see How to Apply.