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ARTHIST

Art History

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The department at a glance

All recorded grades
average GPA
A / AB grades
letter grades

How grades break down

Grades over time

Red: department · Gray: UW–Madison

About these statistics

GPA and percentages are weighted by recorded letter grades. UW comparisons use the same terms. Cross-listed courses count once within this department and once across UW; department totals should not be added together. Grade counts are not unique students. Offering counts reflect captured records, not a complete historical schedule.

Fall 2026

Recorded this term
courses with offerings
instructors recorded

Grades have not been recorded for this term. Historical results remain in the overview above.

Find your next class

40 courses

Historical grades cover up to five years through the selected term. Grade sorting prioritizes courses with at least 100 letter grades.

Introduction to Afro-American Art is a historical survey examining the evolution of African American art from African heritage to the 1970s.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

Requirements include one midterm with slide identification, three short reading summaries, and two longer analysis papers, with reading responses taking longer than expected.

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026

Explores fundamental knowledge, theories, and methods in the transdisciplinary field of Visual Cultures.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sample

ARTHIST 202 examines European and North American arts from the Renaissance to the present, analyzing masterpieces and their cultural contexts.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

The course requires significant memorization and includes two tests, two essays, and a virtual exhibit. Reviewers note that the discussion section is mandatory but less valuable, and essay clarity is important.

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2023–Fall 2025

ARTHIST 227: THE MODERNIST REVOLUTION covers the emergence and development of modernism in the visual arts from 1880 to 1970.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2025–Spring 2025 · limited sample

Explore ancient Greek life and imagination through painted pottery imagery, mythology, and everyday subjects using the Chazen Museum collection.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Spring 2024 · limited sample

ARTHIST 303 surveys arts and visual culture across different regions, periods, and cultures based on the specific topic selected.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2026

Examines Western European art and architecture from 1000 to 1350, focusing on connections to theology, ritual, and courtly culture.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2023–Fall 2023 · limited sample

ARTHIST 350 covers the history of European painting from 1800 to 1900.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

The course is described as easy if students read the textbook and attend lectures, though one review notes it is challenging.

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2023–Fall 2024 · limited sample

ARTHIST 403 is a variable topics course in art history.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2025 · limited sample

ARTHIST 411 examines special topics in Asian art across South, East, Southeast, and Central Asia.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sample

Examines cultural and historical forces shaping arts of specific peoples or sites in Africa and the African Americas.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2025–Spring 2025 · limited sample

Covers major developments in global visual art from the 1960s to the present.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2025–Fall 2025 · limited sample

ARTHIST 500 is a proseminar covering advanced, variable topics in Art History across diverse media, geographies, and cultures.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sample

This course covers advanced topics in Ancient Art History through a seminar-style format.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Fall 2024 · limited sample

ARTHIST 600 is a variable-topic course in art history covering diverse media, geographies, cultures, and time frames.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Fall 2025 · limited sample

ARTHIST 603 is a Curatorial Studies Colloquium exploring theoretical and practical curatorial strategies, exhibition design, and audience engagement across diverse media.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

No recorded grade history

ARTHIST 682 is a mentored individual research course for students completing a thesis in an Honors program.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample

ARTHIST 692 is a mentored individual research and study course for students completing a senior thesis.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

No recorded grade history

ARTHIST 699 is a directed study course for advanced projects arranged with a faculty member.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample

ARTHIST 701 is a graduate practicum focusing on critical analysis, research methods, and historiography in art history, including source work in the Elvehjem collection.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Fall 2022–Fall 2024 · limited sample

ARTHIST 707 covers topics in specific aspects of 19th-century visual culture.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample

ARTHIST 715 explores various themes in the art, architecture, and visual culture of medieval Europe and the Mediterranean.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

No recorded grade history

ARTHIST 776 is a graduate-level course covering topics in Chinese Art History.

Offering recorded · Fall 2026

historical GPA · grades

Spring 2022–Spring 2022 · limited sample

Across course levels

Recorded this term

No released grades for this term.

Recorded offerings over time

Offering snapshots currently cover Fall 2026. Earlier grade records do not provide a complete offering history.