required texts

Dehejia, Vidya. Indian Art. London: Phaidon Press, 1997.
Rawson, Philip. The Art of Southeast Asia. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1995, reprint.

These books may be purchased at the St. Olaf Bookstore in the St. Olaf Student Center. Please buy and read these texts as assigned. While it is important that you do the assigned readings, it is equally important that you attend the class lectures. Material presented in class will differ from the texts in varying degrees, and images not included in the required texts will be shown.

requirements

I expect you to attend classes, do the required readings, and complete the three exams (2 midterm exams and 1 final exam), MIA essay, and paper assignment. I will not single you out and require you to speak in class regularly, but I strongly encourage you to do so. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to interrupt me during the class. Remember, no question is silly, and if you are unclear about something, chances are that other students are also. Furthermore, I think both you and I will get more out of the course if we actively engage in dialogue.

art department uniform attendance policy 2001-2002

Given that such a large portion of learning in art classes takes place in the actual classroom setting, the faculty has decided to set a uniform attendance policy. It is as follows:

1. The department will not differentiate between excused and not excused absences. In other words, all absences are treated the same. If you feel that your grade is going to suffer unfairly due to a longer absence caused by an extended illness, family emergency, or off-campus college sponsored activity, it is your responsibility to contact the Dean of Students Office and make your case for an excused absence.
   
2. For all art department courses, you will be allowed 3 absences. With the 4th absence, your course grade will drop one full grade level for each absence after three.
   
3. For studio courses, an absence on a scheduled critique day will drop your grade one full level for the assignment being critiqued in addition to counting as an absence as described above.

exams & assignments

Exams: You will be given 3 exams during the semester: 2 midterm exams and 1 final exam. For the two midterm exams, you will be shown slides of several works studied in class. You will need to identify each work as fully as possible, providing the name of the work, the dynasty/period in which the work was created, the date of this dynasty/period, the artist (if known), and the patron (if known). Then you will write a brief essay about the work, in which you discuss the cultural, political and religious significance of the work.

• The first midterm exam will be on Tuesday, March 12, and will cover the material presented since the first day of the course.
• The second midterm exam will be on Tuesday, April 16, and will cover only the material presented since the first midterm.
• The final exam will be on Monday, May 20, 9:00-11:00 and will consist of two parts: the first part will cover only the material presented since the second midterm, and the second part will be comprehensive – that is, it will cover the entire course.

If you would like to include a sketch to illustrate your points, you may do so, but this is not required and will not determine your grade in any way. Please use proper grammar and spelling. I will provide you with additional information and guidance regarding the paper assignment later on. The paper is due on Tuesday, May 7. It must be typed, double-spaced Times New Roman 12-point font with 1” margins, and stapled.

grading

Below is a rough estimation of how I will determine your final grade; however, if a student shows considerable improvement throughout the course, I weigh the student's later work more heavily because I am a strong believer in rewarding improvement.

Midterm Exam 1:	20%
MIA Essay:	20%
Midterm Exam 2:	20%
Paper:	15%
Final Exam:	25%

review

It is important that you review your notes and the images presented in class on a regular basis. Some of the monuments seen in class are in your texts, while others are not. Those that are not in your texts will be put on the web and accessible from the images link on the course homepage. You can also find links to the syllabus, handouts, and related web links on the course website. The URL is as follows:

(1) Come to class regularly. (2) Review your notes daily. (3) Review the images discussed in class, in your texts, and on the web. (4) See me immediately if you are having difficulty with the material, or even if you just want to make sure you are on the right track. (5) If you have a learning disability or any special problems that may affect your performance in this class, please let me know as soon as possible. (6) If you would like feedback on an assignment, bring me a draft before it is due. I will be glad to go over it with you. Please do not wait until the day before an assignment is due to ask for feedback.

tentative schedule and reading assignments

Week 1, Feb. 7: Introduction

Week 2, Feb. 12-14: Harappa/Indus Valley Civilization and Mauryan Art

• Read: Dehejia, pp. 4-48

Week 3, Feb. 19 (No Class Feb. 21 – I will be at the College Art Association conference): Early Buddhist Art

• Read: Dehejia, pp. 51-76

Week 4, Feb. 26-28: Early Buddhist Art, continued, and the Buddha Image

• Read: Dehejia, pp. 103-124 (middle); 79-100

Week 5, March 5-7: Gupta Architecture and Hindu and Jain Temples of North India

• Read: Dehejia, pp. 137-182

Final Exam: Monday, May 20, 9:00-11:00


important dates at a glance

Thursday, March 7: Class Trip to the MIA Tuesday, March 12: First Midterm Exam Tuesday, April 9: MIA Essay Due

Tuesday, April 16: Second Midterm Exam Tuesday, May 7: Paper Assignment Due Monday, May 20: Final Exam, 9:00-11:00