Iowa Idea Track Overview
In the 1920s, the groundbreaking "Iowa idea" of bringing artists and scholars together in an academic context was born at the University of Iowa.
The Iowa idea became the model for numerous art and art history programs across the nation, training artists and art historians within a united studio and liberal arts environment. In 1940, Iowa became the first university to award the Master of Fine Arts degree, and in the same year, Elizabeth Catlett was the first African-American woman to receive the MFA. The Iowa idea eventually led to the inception of the famous Iowa Writers’ Workshop.
The Iowa Idea Track to the art history major requires 33 semester hours of coursework in art history and 6 semester hours of coursework in studio art.
Course requirements
- ARTH:1050, From Cave Paintings to Cathedrals: Survey of Western Art I, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:1060, From Mona Lisa to Modernism: Survey of Western Art II, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:1080, How to Write About Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:4999, Capstone Seminar in Art History, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2020, Western Architecture from Prehistory to the Present, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2030, American Architecture: From Log Cabins to Skyscrapers, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2120, Art and Architecture of the Islamic World, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2150, Art and Life in Africa, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2220, Introduction to the Art of China, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2250, Introduction to the Art of Japan, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2320, Ancient Art from the Great Pyramids of Egypt to the Colosseum in Rome, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2330, Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2420, Medieval Art from Constantine to Columbus, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2520, Italian Renaissance Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2530, High Renaissance Art and Mannerism: Michelangelo to Caravaggio, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2730, Transformations in Nineteenth-Century European Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2740, Art of the Northern Renaissance: Jan van Eyck, Hieronymus Bosch, Albrecht Durer, and Beyond, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2820, Introduction to Twentieth-Century Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2920, Introduction to American Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3000, Digital Approaches to the Study of Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3010, Fakes, Frauds, and Forgeries: The Dark Side of Art History, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3020, Paris and the Art of Urban Life, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3090, Contemporary Architecture, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3160, Themes in African Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3197, Themes in Modern and Contemporary Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3225, Modern and Contemporary Art in China, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3250, Brushwork in Chinese Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3255, Copy and Paste: Methods of Reproduction in Asian Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3270, Themes in Asian Art History, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3275, Garden Culture in East Asia, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3310, Celtic and Viking Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3320, Egyptian Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3325, Kings, Gods, and Heroes: Art of the Ancient Near East, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3330, Classical Greek Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3340, Greek Vase Painting, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3350, Art of Early Rome: Patrons and Politics, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3360, Art of the Ancient Roman Empire, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3370, Life and Death in Ancient Pompeii, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3375, The Great Collision, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3390, Early Medieval Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3400, Romanesque and Gothic Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3420, Gothic Architecture, 3 semester hours.
- ARTH:3550, Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo: Rivalry and the Rise of the Artist in the Italian Renaissance, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3560, Art in Renaissance Venice, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3570, The Marginalized in Renaissance Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3580, A Renaissance of Beauty, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3700, Rococo to Realism: Making Art Modern in an Age of Revolution, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3710, Fantasy and Seduction in Venice: The Renaissance Art of Bellini, Giorgione, and Titian, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3720, The Romantic Revolution, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3730, Impressionism and the Visual Revolution, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3740, Manet to Matisse, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3750, Muses, Models, Artists, and Patrons: Women in the Visual Arts, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3820, Modern Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3840, Contemporary Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3850, Pop Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3860, Minimalism, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3870, History of Photography, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3930, American Renaissance and the Gilded Age, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3950, Modernism and Early Twentieth-Century American Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3955, Art and American National Parks, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3980, American Print Culture, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3985, Honors Research in Art History arr., 3 semester hours (requires honors standing)
- ARTH:3990, Topics in Art History, 3 semester hours.
- ARTH:3995, Independent Study in Art History arr. , 3 semester hours (requires honors standing)
- ARTH:4081, The Art Museum: Theory and Practice, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:4891, Big-Shouldered City: Chicago Architecture, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:4941, American Art and the Environment, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:1040, Arts of Africa, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:1070, Asian Art and Culture, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:1095, Native American Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2120, Art and Architecture of the Islamic World, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2220, Introduction to the Art of China, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2250, Introduction to the Art of Japan, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:2330, Introduction to Egyptian and Ancient Near Eastern Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3103, Art of the Pacific Islands, 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3120, The Art of Ancient Mexico, 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3150, Art of West Africa, 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3151, Art of Central Africa , 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3160, Themes in African Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3220, Chinese Art and Culture, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3225, Contemporary Art and Culture in China, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3230, Chinese Painting I: Pagodas and Palaces, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3250, Brushwork in Chinese Art, 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3255, Copy and Paste: Methods of Reproduction in Asian Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3260, Japanese Painting, 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3270, Themes in Asian Art History, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3275, Garden Culture in East Asia, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3280, The Materialization of Sexuality in China and Beyond, 3 semester hours*
- ARTH:3320, Egyptian Art, 3 semester hours
- ARTH:3325, Kings, Gods, and Heroes: Art of the Ancient Near East, 3 semester hours
- ARTS:1510, Basic Drawing (required prior to second studio course), 3 semester hours
Choose any additional studio course from the following:
- ARTS:1520, Design Fundamentals, 3 semester hours
- CERM:2010, Ceramics I: Handbuilding, 3 semester hours
- DRAW:2310, Life Drawing I, 3 semester hours
- DSGN:2500, Graphic Design I, 3 semester hours
- INTM:2710, Introduction to Intermedia, 3 semester hours
- MTLS:2910, Introduction to Jewelry and Metal Arts, 3 semester hours
- PHTO:2600, Photography I, 3 semester hours
- PNTG:2410, Painting I, 3 semester hours
- PRNT:2610, Introduction to Printmaking, 3 semester hours
- SCLP:2810, Undergraduate Sculpture I, 3 semester hours
- TDSN:2210, Introduction to 3D Design, 3 semester hours
The Bachelor of Arts in Art History requires a minimum of 120 semester hours, including 39 semester hours of work for the major. Students must maintain a grade-point average (GPA) of at least 2.00 in all courses for the major and in all UI courses for the major. They also must complete the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences GE CLAS Core.
Students may count a maximum of 56 semester hours earned in art and art history courses toward the degree; they must earn at least 64 semester hours of credit in courses outside the School of Art and Art History in order to graduate.
BA students with a double major in the school (e.g., a major in art history and a major in art) or a major and a minor in the school (e.g., a major in art history and a minor in art) must earn at least 56 semester hours of credit in courses outside the School of Art and Art History in order to graduate.
Note that the requirements can and do change as deemed necessary by the school. However, once you have begun your program, your requirements will not change. Always refer to your degree audit as the official record of your requirements.
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