History of Art major

Art is not a singular entity, but changes in time and space as cultures, that produce it, change. The History of Art major introduces you to art within the whole spectrum of our visual experience. It encompasses studies in visual arts, literature, film and new media, architecture, landscape architecture and the impact of other art and design practice on the history of cultures. Learning to experience aesthetic pleasure through emotional intuition and intellectual learning is an essential means of exploring the serious issues of past and present cultures from many parts of the world including Europe, America, Asia and Australia.

Outcomes

Students are able to (1) analyse a range of images, texts and items of visual culture and their social, political, economic, religious or aesthetic contexts; (2) apply the key concepts, theories and methodologies of the discipline of Art History in the study of art; (3) show a good general knowledge of several periods in the history of art as well as more detailed knowledge of particular subject areas studied in the major; (4) communicate by reasoned argument in written texts and general discussion the ideas and approaches of the discipline; (5) undertake independent research in the discipline of Art History; (6) demonstrate understanding of the significance of the visual arts and complex images in the construction of identities, ideologies, social formations and our place in the world; and (7) demonstrate understanding of the key contemporary issues of the discipline and their relevance to the study of art of diverse periods and cultures.

Degree-specific major

History of Art can be taken as a degree-specific major in the following degree courses:

BP001 Bachelor of Arts
BH005 Bachelor of Philosophy (Honours)

Overview of unit sequence

History of Art is a degree-specific single major comprising:

  • two Level 1 units
  • three Level 2 units
  • three Level 3 units
Key to availability of units:
S1 = Semester 1; S2 = Semester 2; N/A = not available in 2020

Note: Units that are indicated as N/A may be available in 2021 or 2022.

Level 1

Degree-specific major units
Take all units (12 points):
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
S1 HART1000 Great Moments in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA1000 Great Moments in Art
S2 HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art

Level 2

Degree-specific major units
Take unit(s) to the value of 18 points:
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
N/A HART2041 The Art of Photography
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
or
ARCT1010 Drawing History
or
LACH1010 History and Theory of Landscape Architecture
or
LACH1020 The Culture of Nature
Incompatibility:
HART3042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
S2 HART2043 Zen Gardens to Manga Mania: A Survey of Japanese Art
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2044 Contemporary Art and Tradition in China
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
HART3044 Chinese Art: Contemporary and Traditional
S2 HART2201 Art and Urban Experience
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2202 Art and Social Justice
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2207 Caravaggio and the Baroque
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2207 Art of the Counter-Reformation
N/A HART2222 Contemporary Art
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2222 Contemporary Art
S1 HART2223 Modernism and the Visual Arts
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2223 Modernism and the Visual Arts
N/A HART2234 Film Noir to the New Wave
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2234 Film Noir to the New Wave
N/A HART2237 Nineteenth-Century British Art
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2237 Nineteenth-Century British Art
N/A HART2243 Imagist Avant-Garde Film
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2243 Imagist Avant-Garde Film
S2 HART2274 Introduction to Museum and Curatorial Studies
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2274 Introduction to Museum and Curatorial Studies
S2 HART2275 Italian Renaissance Art Now
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2275 Italian Renaissance Art and Architecture
N/A HART2283 Rome
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2283 Rome
S1 HART2370 Global Art Histories
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art

Level 3

Degree-specific major units
Take the following unit:
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
S2 HART3330 Art Theory
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA3330 Art Theory
Degree-specific major units
Take unit(s) to the value of 12 points:
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
N/A HART3040 Breaking Art
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
HART2040 Breaking Art
N/A HART3042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
or
ARCT2010 Parallel Modernities in Art and Architecture
Incompatibility:
HART2042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
N/A HART3044 Contemporary Art and Tradition in China
Prerequisites:
At least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence.
Incompatibility:
HART2044 Chinese Art: Contemporary and Traditional
S2 HART3276 Prints from Dürer to Toulouse-Lautrec
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2276 The Art of Printmaking: a Cultural History, HART2276 Prints from Dürer to Toulouse-Lautrec
N/A HART3282 Rome
Prerequisites:
at least one level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence: HART2201 The Art of Modern Life; HART2222 Contemporary Art; HART2207 Caravaggio and the Baroque; HART2243 Imagist Avant-Garde Film; HART2234 Film Noir to the New Wave; HART2275 Italian Renaissance Art Now; HART2042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City; HART2274 Introduction to Museum and Curatorial Studies; HART2202 Art as Politics: The Rise of Realism in the Nineteenth Century; HART2043 Looking East: Envisioning the Orient in Western Art; HART2223 Modernism and the Visual Arts; HART2237 Nineteenth-century British Art; HART2041 The Art of Photography
Incompatibility:
VISA2283 Rome, HART2283 Rome
S1 HART3301 Manet and the French Avant-Garde
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major
N/A HART3302 Michelangelo
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
N/A HART3310 Art and Games: from Dada to Data
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2210 Art and Games: from Dada to Data, VISA3310 Art and Games: from Dada to Data
S1 HART3331 Visual Culture and Art in America: 1900–2000
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2248 American Visual Culture; VISA3331 Special Unit: Visual Culture and Art in America: 1900–2000
N/A HART3333 Picturing the Self: Portraiture in Nineteenth-century Europe
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA3333 Special Unit: The Shifting Subject: Portraiture in Nineteenth-century Europe
N/A HART3340 Materialist Avant-Garde Film
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA3340 Materialist Avant-Garde Film
N/A HART3361 The Dutch Golden Age and the Art of Exploration
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
OR
MEMS2001 Classical Traditions and Transformations in Medieval and Early Modern Europe
Incompatibility:
VISA2208 Art of the Reformation VISA3320 Art of the Reformation VISA3361 The Dutch Golden Age and the Art of Exploration
N/A HART3371 The Northern Renaissance
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2297 Special Unit: Studies in the Renaissance, VISA3371 The Northern Renaissance
N/A HART3375 Twenty-first Century Art
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2265 Twenty-first-century Art, VISA3375 Twenty-first-century Art
N/A HART3666 Australian and Aboriginal Art
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2266 Aboriginal Contemporary Art, VISA3300 Australian Art, HART2266 Aboriginal Contemporary Art, HART3300 Australian Art, HART2666 Australian and Aboriginal Art

Choosing your degree-specific major

You must satisfy the requirements of a degree-specific major before you complete your course. The flexible structure of an undergraduate course allows you to try out a number of different subjects to see what interests you before nominating your degree-specific major. You have the choice to either nominate your degree-specific major when you first enrol in the course or delay nominating it until your second year.

To plan the first year of your study without nominating a degree-specific major, you are advised to choose units that will pave the way to two or more degree-specific majors that are of interest to you. For examples of the choice of units available in first year, search the first-year study plans .

To fully understand the structure of an undergraduate course, read the course structure information and the Undergraduate Degree Course Rules.

The following example illustrates how the History of Art degree-specific major can be included in the Bachelor of Arts course.

Example: Course Study Plan: CSP001-HYART

There are more choices open to you. For more examples, search the study plans .

Choosing a second major

You also have the option to choose a second major from those available in the Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Biomedical Science, Bachelor of Commerce, Bachelor of Design Only available to re-enrolling students. or Bachelor of Science course, giving you the opportunity to pursue your interests no matter how different they are.

The following example illustrates how the History of Art degree-specific major can be combined with a second major in the Bachelor of Arts course.

Example: Course Study Plan: CSP001-HYART-Generic

For more examples of combinations of majors, search the study plans .

History of Art can also be taken as a second major.

Second major

History of Art can be taken as a second major in the following degree courses:

Overview of unit sequence

The History of Art second major is a single major comprising:

  • two Level 1 units
  • three Level 2 units
  • three Level 3 units
Key to availability of units:
S1 = Semester 1; S2 = Semester 2; N/A = not available in 2020

Note: Units that are indicated as N/A may be available in 2021 or 2022.

Level 1

Second major units
Take all units (12 points):
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
S1 HART1000 Great Moments in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA1000 Great Moments in Art
S2 HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art

Level 2

Second major units
Take unit(s) to the value of 18 points:
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
N/A HART2041 The Art of Photography
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
or
ARCT1010 Drawing History
or
LACH1010 History and Theory of Landscape Architecture
or
LACH1020 The Culture of Nature
Incompatibility:
HART3042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
S2 HART2043 Zen Gardens to Manga Mania: A Survey of Japanese Art
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2044 Contemporary Art and Tradition in China
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
HART3044 Chinese Art: Contemporary and Traditional
S2 HART2201 Art and Urban Experience
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2202 Art and Social Justice
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
N/A HART2207 Caravaggio and the Baroque
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2207 Art of the Counter-Reformation
N/A HART2222 Contemporary Art
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2222 Contemporary Art
S1 HART2223 Modernism and the Visual Arts
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2223 Modernism and the Visual Arts
N/A HART2234 Film Noir to the New Wave
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2234 Film Noir to the New Wave
N/A HART2237 Nineteenth-Century British Art
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2237 Nineteenth-Century British Art
N/A HART2243 Imagist Avant-Garde Film
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2243 Imagist Avant-Garde Film
S2 HART2274 Introduction to Museum and Curatorial Studies
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2274 Introduction to Museum and Curatorial Studies
S2 HART2275 Italian Renaissance Art Now
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2275 Italian Renaissance Art and Architecture
N/A HART2283 Rome
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art (formerly VISA1000)
or
HART1001 Art, Technology and Society (formerly VISA1001)
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art
Incompatibility:
VISA2283 Rome
S1 HART2370 Global Art Histories
Prerequisites:
HART1000 Great Moments in Art
or
HART1003 Ways of Seeing: Themes and Theories in Art

Level 3

Second major units
Take the following unit:
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
S2 HART3330 Art Theory
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA3330 Art Theory
Second major units
Take unit(s) to the value of 12 points:
Availability Unit code Unit name unit requirements
N/A HART3040 Breaking Art
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
HART2040 Breaking Art
N/A HART3042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
or
ARCT2010 Parallel Modernities in Art and Architecture
Incompatibility:
HART2042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City
N/A HART3044 Contemporary Art and Tradition in China
Prerequisites:
At least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence.
Incompatibility:
HART2044 Chinese Art: Contemporary and Traditional
S2 HART3276 Prints from Dürer to Toulouse-Lautrec
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2276 The Art of Printmaking: a Cultural History, HART2276 Prints from Dürer to Toulouse-Lautrec
N/A HART3282 Rome
Prerequisites:
at least one level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence: HART2201 The Art of Modern Life; HART2222 Contemporary Art; HART2207 Caravaggio and the Baroque; HART2243 Imagist Avant-Garde Film; HART2234 Film Noir to the New Wave; HART2275 Italian Renaissance Art Now; HART2042 Living Paris: Experiencing and Representing the Modern City; HART2274 Introduction to Museum and Curatorial Studies; HART2202 Art as Politics: The Rise of Realism in the Nineteenth Century; HART2043 Looking East: Envisioning the Orient in Western Art; HART2223 Modernism and the Visual Arts; HART2237 Nineteenth-century British Art; HART2041 The Art of Photography
Incompatibility:
VISA2283 Rome, HART2283 Rome
S1 HART3301 Manet and the French Avant-Garde
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major
N/A HART3302 Michelangelo
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
N/A HART3310 Art and Games: from Dada to Data
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2210 Art and Games: from Dada to Data, VISA3310 Art and Games: from Dada to Data
S1 HART3331 Visual Culture and Art in America: 1900–2000
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2248 American Visual Culture; VISA3331 Special Unit: Visual Culture and Art in America: 1900–2000
N/A HART3333 Picturing the Self: Portraiture in Nineteenth-century Europe
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA3333 Special Unit: The Shifting Subject: Portraiture in Nineteenth-century Europe
N/A HART3340 Materialist Avant-Garde Film
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA3340 Materialist Avant-Garde Film
N/A HART3361 The Dutch Golden Age and the Art of Exploration
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
OR
MEMS2001 Classical Traditions and Transformations in Medieval and Early Modern Europe
Incompatibility:
VISA2208 Art of the Reformation VISA3320 Art of the Reformation VISA3361 The Dutch Golden Age and the Art of Exploration
N/A HART3371 The Northern Renaissance
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2297 Special Unit: Studies in the Renaissance, VISA3371 The Northern Renaissance
N/A HART3375 Twenty-first Century Art
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2265 Twenty-first-century Art, VISA3375 Twenty-first-century Art
N/A HART3666 Australian and Aboriginal Art
Prerequisites:
at least one Level 2 unit from the History of Art major sequence
Incompatibility:
VISA2266 Aboriginal Contemporary Art, VISA3300 Australian Art, HART2266 Aboriginal Contemporary Art, HART3300 Australian Art, HART2666 Australian and Aboriginal Art

Choosing a second major

The flexible structure of an undergraduate course allows you the option of including a second major. You have the choice to either nominate your second major when you first enrol in the course or delay it until your second year. For a major to be recorded on your academic record it must be nominated before the requirements of the course are completed.

To fully understand the structure of an undergraduate course, read the course structure information and the Undergraduate Degree Course Rules.

The following example illustrates how History of Art can be included as a second major in an undergraduate degree course.

Example: Course Study Plan: CSPGeneric-DSMGeneric-HYART

For more examples of combinations of majors, search the study plans .

History of Art can also be taken as a degree-specific major.