Art and Architecture of Pilgrimage

6 credits · Undergraduate

(3 hrs Lecture/Seminar) This course is an introduction to the history of pilgrimage art and architecture from the Middle Ages to the Modern era. Medieval and Post-Medieval pilgrimages are used as a laboratory for investigating the topic of the journey to a shrine for the realization of spiritual benefits or the fulfilment of personal motives. Class discussions and lectures on the experience of pilgrimage and its visual ways of expression might include: the major pilgrimages to Christian, Muslin, Hindu and Jewish sites, and the later pilgrimages to North-American shrines. HIST-3825 (3 or 6) Theories and Methods for Art History (3 hrs Lecture/Seminar) This lecture/seminar course explores various art historical and critical approaches to the study of visual art and curatorial practice. Students investigate various theoretical approaches, for example, Indigenous curatorial practices and methodologies, race, gender, queerness, concepts of diversity and inclusion. Issues around accessibility, difficult knowledge, visual analysis, biography, iconography, the art market, as well as techniques and conservation may be considered. Students put into practice art historical research methods, visual methodologies, embodied knowledge, and contemporary curatorial theories through written assignments, experiential assignments and, whenever possible, field trips to local sites and exhibitions that take place during class time.