The study of visual culture encompasses the production, use, form, and reception of images past and present. It incorporates the painting, sculpture, and architecture traditionally defined by art history, and extends throughout the fields of visual imagery beyond the conventional boundaries formerly drawn by the academy. The History of Art and Visual Culture (HAVC) Department offers courses covering a wide variety of representations from the cultures of Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe, and the Pacific Islands, including areas as diverse as ritual, performance, bodily adornment, oil painting, installation art, textiles, architecture, and photography.

Students of visual culture at UC Santa Cruz (UCSC) investigate complex questions concerning the social, political, economic, religious, and psychological impact of images from the perspective of their producers, users, and viewers. Images play a central role in the formation of values and beliefs, including the perception of gender, sexuality, ethnicity, race, and class. Through attentive historical study and close analysis, students are taught to recognize and assess these systems of value, and are introduced to theoretical and methodological frameworks for future research. Students also have the opportunity to take independent study courses and write senior theses.

Study and Research Opportunities

• B.A. in history of art and visual culture
• Undergraduate minor in history of art and visual culture
• Concentration in religion and visual culture
• Ph.D. in visual studies
• UCSC Programs Abroad provides undergraduate students with many opportunities to study university-level academic programs abroad.

High School Preparation

High school students planning to major in HAVC at UC Santa Cruz need no specific preparation beyond the courses required for UC admission. Writing skills, however, are particularly useful to HAVC majors. Please note that AP courses are not applicable to the HAVC requirements.

Transfer Preparation

Transfer students will find it helpful to complete courses that satisfy campus general education requirements before coming to UC Santa Cruz. As preparation, transfer students interested in pursing HAVC as a course of study are encouraged to fulfill at least three of the lower-division HAVC requirements prior to transfer. Refer to the ASSIST.ORG articulation agreements (between UCSC and California community colleges) for approved lower-division courses. A student may transfer up to six art history courses toward the major, only three of which may be upper division. Upper-division transfer credit is evaluated on a case-by-case basis and must be approved by the Department Chair. Transfer students are strongly encouraged to contact the HAVC Department prior to enrolling at UCSC.

Lower-Division Requirements for the HAVC Major

Four courses, each from a different geographical region:

• 10s Africa and its Diaspora;
• 20s Asia and its Diaspora;
• 30s-40s Europe and the Americas;
• 50s Mediterranean;
• 60s Native Americas;
• 70s Oceania and its Diaspora
• HAVC 80 may be used to fulfill a lower-division requirement for one the following geographical regions: 10 (Africa), 60 (Native Americas), or 70 (Oceania).

Upper-Division Requirements for the HAVC Major

Nine courses, as follows:

• HAVC 100A: strongly encouraged during sophomore year; required by end of junior year.
• Courses numbered HAVC 101-191: eight courses required, including a seminar (190s and 191s) to satisfy the senior comprehensive requirement. (see below)

In completing upper-division course work, students must complete three upper-division courses (courses 101-191) from three different regions; two of those courses must cover the geographical areas not studied at the lower-division level.

Senior Comprehensive Requirement

All seniors must complete one seminar, 190–191, as their “senior exit” course to satisfy the senior comprehensive requirement. Seminars can be taken for senior exit credit only by permission of the instructor. Within the context of this advanced seminar, students will work under the close supervision of their professor to produce a written project that demonstrates a high level of achievement in research, writing, and critical thinking. Students whose performance is outstanding are eligible for honors in the senior comprehensive.

Declaring the Major

To declare the major, students must complete two of the required four lower-division HAVC courses (or equivalent transfer course work), chosen from two different geographical regions. Students are eligible to declare the HAVC minor at any time.

All students considering the major or minor are encouraged to complete lower-division courses early in their studies and consult with the history of art and visual culture undergraduate adviser to develop a plan of study. Students are required to meet with a HAVC faculty adviser to complete the declaration process.  

Double Majors

History of art and visual culture may be studied as part of a double major. The HAVC major is flexible, can be easily completed within four years, and works well when combined with other programs offered at UCSC. Many students choose to combine HAVC with other major/minor programs such as anthropology, art, education, history, and classical and Italian studies.

Minor Requirements

Nine courses, as follows:

• Lower-division: three courses from three different geographical regions
• Upper-division: six courses (HAVC 101-191) planned in consultation with a faculty adviser

Concentration in Religion and Visual Culture

This program is for students who wish to pursue the study of religion in conjunction with studies of visual culture. A student enters the concentration by proposing, in consultation with their faculty adviser, a sequence of upper-division courses to fulfill the religion and visual culture requirements. The declaration of major requirements for the religion and visual culture concentration are the same as those listed in the Declaration of Major section. The faculty adviser for the religion and visual culture concentration is Raoul Birnbaum.

Concentration Requirements

Four lower-division courses, each from a different geographical region listed above.
Eleven upper-division courses, as follows:

• HAVC 100A: strongly encouraged during sophomore year; required by end of junior year.
• Courses numbered HAVC 101-191: six courses required, including a seminar (190s and 191s) to satisfy the senior comprehensive requirement. (see above)
• Four relevant upper-division courses in the study of religion from programs on campus such as anthropology, history, literature, philosophy, and sociology. (The department maintains a current list of approved courses.)

Languages

All majors are encouraged to study at least one foreign language. Graduate programs in visual studies, art history, and other related disciplines generally require competence in another language besides English. Students are encouraged to consult with their faculty adviser to discuss an appropriate course of language study.

Study Abroad

UCSC Programs Abroad provides undergraduate students with many opportunities to study university-level academic programs abroad.  Students are encouraged to explore these options on the International Education Office website, oie.ucsc.edu/index.html.  Students may receive transfer credit for a maximum of three upper-division art history courses taken through UCSC Programs Abroad. Many programs require competency in a language besides English (see Languages above). Students should consult with a faculty member about their course of study before going abroad.

Faculty Recognition

Professor Martin Berger was awarded the Marta Sutton Weeks Faculty Fellowship at the Stanford Humanities Center (2008-09), and was a Clark Fellow at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute (fall 2009). Associate Professor Elisabeth L. Cameron was appointed the Patricia and Rowland Rebele Endowed Chair in History of Art and Visual Culture (2008-2013). Dr. Cameron also received an American Council of Learned Societies grant for 2009-2010. Professor Carolyn Dean was awarded the Franklin Pease G. Y. Memorial Prize (2006) for the best article published in Colonial Latin American Review in 2003-04, and gave the 2010 Elizabeth Warnock Lecture in Art History at Northwestern University. Assistant Professor Maria Evangelatou was the recipient of a post-doctoral research fellowship at Dumbarton Oaks in 2009-2010. The book Subject to Display: Reframing Race in Contemporary Installation Art by Associate Professor Jennifer González (MIT Press, 2008) was a finalist for the CAA Charles Rufus Morey book award. Associate Professor Stacy Kamehiro received the Office of the President Research Fellowship for academic year 2007-08.

Careers

The preparation students receive from the baccalaureate of arts degree in history of art and visual culture provides skills that can lead to successful careers in law, business, and social services, in addition to a more specific focus on museum curating, art restoration, studies in architecture, and studies in art history leading to a graduate degree. Many history of art and visual culture students have gone on to careers in the following fields:

• Architecture
• Art book publishing
• Art criticism
• Art history
• Art law
• Art restoration
• Artist representation 
• Arts administration
• Auction management
• Curatorial work
• Exhibition design
• Freelance writing
• Gallery management
• Historic preservation
• Interior design
• Marketing and appraisal of antiques
• Museum education
• Museum exhibition installation
• Museum reproduction/retail
• Print trade
• Publishing
• Teaching and research
• Urban and landscape design
• Visual resource librarian

These are only samples of the field’s many possibilities.

Alum Focus

Karen Moss (B.A. ’77) is curator at the Orange County Museum of Art; Dr. Janet Grossman (B.A. ’85) is the associate curator of antiquities at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles; Carolyn Gray Anderson (B.A. ’89) is an editor at Architectural Digest; Dr. Kelly Donahue-Wallace (B.A. ’90) is associate professor and chair, Division of Art Education and Art History, School of Visual Arts, University of North Texas; Delia Cosentino (B.A. ’92) is Assistant Professor of Art and Art History at DePaul University; Dr. Ondine Chavoya (B.A. ’92) is Assistant Professor of Art at Williams College; Celeste DeWald (B.A. ’92) is Executive Director of the California Association of Museums; Dr. Aaron Kerner (B.A. ’94) is associate professor of cinema at San Francisco State University; Dr. Roberto Lint Sagarena (B.A. ’95) is Associate Professor of American Studies at Middlebury College; Jaimey Hamilton, (B.A. ’95) is Assistant Professor of Modern and Contemporary Art, University of Hawaii; Lisa B. Dorin (B.A. ’96) is assistant curator of contemporary art, Art Institute of Chicago; Jennifer A. Garpner (B.A. ’96) is assistant registrar of exhibitions at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA); Jennifer J. Harbster (B.A. ’98) is a digital reference specialist in the Science, Technology and Business Division of the Library of Congress.

More Information

HAVC undergraduate adviser:
(831) 459-4564
havc@ucsc.edu
Office hours:  9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m, 1:00 p.m.–4:00 p.m., M–F