What, if anything, makes a work of art or architecture Islamic? Islam has formed an important context for the production and reception of visual and material culture. This course enables students to develop a critical vocabulary in analyzing the arts of the Islamic world. Through the study of a broad range of objects and monuments including mosques, manuscripts, textiles, tiles, and amulets, students learn to hone their formal analysis of both figural and non-figural works of art, as well as their close reading of historical sources that reveal how objects and monuments were made and experienced. As students progress through a chronological and multi-regional overview of works produced from the emergence of Islam in the seventh century to the Early Modern empires, they also gain familiarity with methods for the study of Islamic art and ongoing debates within the field. Throughout the course, emphasis is placed on the ways in which cultural frameworks including politics, religion, ethnicity, science, and gender shaped the production and reception of images, objects, and monuments within the Islamic world.

Units: 1

Max Enrollment: 25

Prerequisites: None. ARTH 100 recommended.

Instructor: Brey

Distribution Requirements: ARS - Visual Arts, Music, Theater, Film and Video

Typical Periods Offered: Every other year

Semesters Offered this Academic Year: Not Offered

Notes: