Unit name | Using Visual Culture |
---|---|
Unit code | CLAS12368 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | C/4 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Dr. Hales |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of Classics & Ancient History |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
The people of the ancient world lived in an exceedingly visual culture. Ancient audiences responded to a wide variety of visual stimuli - from formal works of art and architecture to performance and ritual. Successful participation in religious, political and social life relied on the ability to interpret visual information. Using a number of different methodological approaches and a series of case studies from the Roman world, this unit equips students with the tools needed to study these visual aspects of ancient culture. In providing both the practical skills of 'reading' images and the theoretical issues involved in studying visual material, we will ask: What questions can we ask of visual evidence? How does art communicate meaning? The ultimate aim of this unit is to enable students to use visual culture with confidence in their wider studies of the ancient world.
Aims:
On successful completion of this unit, students should:
22 Lectures/Seminars (including traditional lectures, seminars, small-group work, informal student presentations, visit to local museum/gallery)
1. Personal Reaction (500 words) (20%)
2. Visual Criticism (1,500 words (30%)
3. Group Project (2,000 words) (50%)
All three assessments will assess ILOs 1-4.
M. Beard & J. Henderson, Classical Art (2001)
J. Berger Ways of Seeing (1983)
B. Borg ed. A Companion to Roman Art (2015)
J. Elsner, Imperial Rome & Christian Triumph (1998)
T. Hölscher, The Language of Images in Roman Art (2004)
R. Howells, Visual Culture (2003)