History of Photography Course Number: FAH 110 Time: TR 11:30-12:45 Location: Lyons 303

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1 Instructor: Dr. Claire Kovacs Telephone: x2531 Office: Lyons 306A Office Hours: MW 1:00-2:30 History of Photography Course Number: FAH 110 Time: TR 11:30-12:45 Location: Lyons 303 This course will be a semester-long engagement with the medium of photography seen through an art historical lens. The history of the medium will be traced from its pre-photographic origins through present day, through an investigation of the canon. Class format will include lectures and engaged discussions on the assigned readings. Assessment will take the form of weekly quizzes, take-home essay examinations, a critical writing assignment and participation. The course has four primary objectives: Introduce students to the major artists, materials, processes and theories of the history of photography. Enhance students visual literacy through the cultivation of observation skills. Augment students writing skills through writing assignments and feedback. Foster critical thinking skills through discussion of readings and lecture material. In addition, this course reinforces the following Learning Goals and Objectives for Art History: Students will develop and refine the skills needed to understand and analyze works of art. o Describe and interpret works of art using terminology specific to the field to carry out an analysis of a work of art; o Find and analyze information on works of art, artists, periods, and art historical topics using written materials and databases specific to the field; o Communicate these findings in written or verbal format. Students will understand how works of art are embedded in and reflective of specific cultural-historical contexts. o Locate works of art within larger historical developments; o Articulate the interrelationships between art and a range of cultures; o Analyze the importance of the visual arts in societies past and present TEXTBOOK AND MATERIALS Required Text: Marien, Mary Warner. Photography: A Cultural History. 3rd ed. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, ISBN: Recommended Text: Baldwin, Gordon. Looking at Photographs: A Guide to Technical Terms. 2 nd ed. Los Angeles: J. Paul Getty Museum, ISBN: X 1 P age

2 Additional Fees (estimated): $20 field trip to the George Eastman House (transportation and admission) ANGEL: The syllabus and other course materials are available on ANGEL. Your Canisius user ID and password will give you access to the course. There are online tutorials, available on the ANGEL homepage, to help you get started, and you may call the help desk at x8340 with any problems you may be having with accessing your account. Be sure to consult ANGEL on a regular basis for announcements, assignments, review images and other information as the course progresses. Turn-It-In: Most written assignments will be handed in via Turn-It-In. Please enroll in the class via Click on the Enroll in a Class tab, and enter the following information: Class ID: Password: Niepce All written assignments are due via Turn-It-In by 11:59 p.m. on the date that they are due. Submitting papers via Turn-It-In will allow you to see generated originality reports for your assignment, and also will give you the opportunity to revise your paper, ahead of the deadline. COURSE REQUIREMENTS Assignment Percentage of Final Grade Weekly Quizzes* 40% Quarterly Exams (Take Home) 35% Discussion/Participation 15% George Eastman House Reaction 10% Grading scale: =A 92-90=A =B =B 82-80=B =C =C 72-70=C =D =D 62-60=D- 59 and below=f Weekly Quizzes The weekly quizzes, given at the beginning of class on Tuesdays (if there is no class on Tuesday, the quiz will be given at the beginning of the following class meeting), will test your knowledge and comprehension of the material covered in class and in the readings from the previous week. The quizzes will be comprised of five image identifications and a short answer either in the form of a comparison, short essay, vocabulary or unknown work related to the ideas presented in class in the previous week. The review images for the quizzes will be posted on ANGEL in the evening after each lecture. The following identification information will be expected for every image on the quiz: Artist Title Date (± 5 years) Media (e.g. daguerreotype, collotype, albumen print, etc.) * You will be able to drop your lowest weekly quiz score. 2 P age

3 Essay Examinations (take home) The essay examinations (3-5 pages each) will be take home, open book and open notes. They are designed to apply, synthesize, analyze and evaluate concepts presented in class both in the lectures and the readings. Cite information as necessary using Chicago Manual of Style notation (see CMoS handout). The assignments will be due by 11:59 pm in the Turn-it-In dropbox on their due date. The essays will be graded on both form and content. I strongly encourage you to take my written comments, included on the rubric into consideration to improve your analytical writing. More information will be provided on the specifics of each essay a week advance of their due date via ANGEL. Due: 24 September; 29 October; 26 November; TBD (Final Exam Day) Discussion/Participation: In addition to regular class attendance, you will also be expected to partake in active, informed participation in class discussions and other related activities on course material and readings. Keep in mind that speaking up in class once per week will earn you a C-level participation grade for that week In addition to discussion, participation points will be made up of various exercises throughout the course of the semester. Due: Ongoing George Eastman House Critical Reaction Paper This assignment is related to our field trip to the George Eastman House in Rochester, NY on 13 September. After the field trip, you will write a 5-page critical reaction to the presentation in the Archives and the exhibition, The Gender Show, seen in the galleries. This critical reaction will describe what you have seen, how it fits into topics discussed in the course, and your critical reaction to the works and their presentation. Due: 19 September Extra Credit Extra credit can be earned through attending various art-related events in Buffalo (see the blog ARTemis: the Extra Credit Edition for a listing of relevant events) and writing a 2- page critical summary of the event (describe the event and your critical reaction to it). Clearly note, in the header information, the name of the event. The critical summaries are due, hard copy, on Fridays of the week following the event. Each critical summary can earn you up to 5 extra points towards your overall weekly quiz grade. A maximum of 20 points of extra credit is possible. Only events listed on the Extra Credit Calendar are fair game. No other extra credit will be given for the course. It is possible to earn over 100% on your overall weekly quiz grade. 3 P age

4 COURSE POLICIES: Format for Written Work: All written work should be submitted as a Word document, double-spaced in Times New Roman 12-point font with one-inch margins all around. Place your name, the course, the date and my name in the upper right hand corner of the first page (single-spaced.) Please number pages. Late Assignments: All writing assignments will be docked a full letter grade for every day that they are late even if it is submitted only a minute late. Please budget your time to get your work finished in a timely manner. There will be no make-ups for missed reading or discussion assignments. The last day to turn in class materials will be the day of the final examination (TBD). Attendance: It is imperative that you attend class in participate in our activities. You are expected to be on time for each class period and remain until the class is finished. If you need to leave early or arrive late, please notify me in advance. You will be responsible for obtaining lecture notes that you have missed due to absences. Lecture notes will not be available online or in any other format. Missing large chunks of class time will have a negative effect on your performance. I do not need written excuses or doctor s notes. You may miss up to two class meeting without penalty; however, more than four missed classes may result in a grade of FX. Communication: I encourage you to communicate with me and to work out difficult questions or problems. I am always approachable, so please do not feel or assume that I am too busy to talk with you. If I am too busy at that particular moment, I will tell you and offer an alternative time. I may advise tutoring if you need extensive assistance. Let me know if you are going to miss a class or if you are having trouble completing an assignment. I am available during office hours and via telephone and . I check regularly during the week (M-F; 10:00 am 4:00 pm), and I encourage you to utilize if you wish to set up an appointment or notify me about an absence. Discussions about your progress in class, clarification on assignments or readings, or general questions relating to the subject material are best done in person. Office Hours: I encourage you to visit me during my office hours. If you would like to speak with me and are unable to do so during the designated times, I suggest that you me to set up an appointment. Student Support, Accommodations and Assistance: The Office of Disability Support Services serves as the college's advocate for students with disabilities and it responsible for arranging necessary support. Any student who needs academic accommodations should contact the office at x3748. For more information about the DSS Office or academic accommodations, please visit Students who are registered with Disability Support Services should introduce themselves to the professor during the first week of class. Every effort will be made to accommodate students who face challenges in successfully mastering the coursework. If any student experiences difficulties completing the course work for any reason please come see the professor at any point during the semester. 4 P age

5 Conduct, Plagiarism and Cheating: Students are responsible for reading and understanding the Canisius College Statement on Academic Integrity ( ). Violations of the Statement may result in instructor and/or college level sanctions ranging from failure on the assignment or course through dismissal from the college. Special note on plagiarism: When students turn in assignments or exams to satisfy the requirements for this course they are indicating it is their own work. The failure to properly acknowledge use of another s work is plagiarism. All references must be cited according to proper formatting guidelines [please see the CMoS handout, available on ANGEL]. Plagiarism of any kind will result sanctions and a report of the violation as per the notification procedures outlined in the Statement. Course Content: Due to the nature of art history, notice is hereby given that presentation of the ideas, cultures and art studied in this course may, from time to time, touch on aspects of human sexuality and other complex material and themes. The intention of this course is to present information and objects from a standpoint of intellectual inquiry, and provide a forum for critical and civil consideration of the presented materials. Principles of Civil Discourse: The following principles have been modified from those used by the National Endowment for the Humanities, and apply to all aspects of discourse, both in and out of the classroom: The course is intended to extend and deepen knowledge and understanding of the humanities by focusing on significant topics, texts, and issues; contribute to the intellectual vitality and development of participants; and foster a community of inquiry. I expect that all students will take responsibility for encouraging an ethos of openness and respect, upholding the basic norms of civil discourse. All discourse related to the class should be: Firmly grounded in rigorous scholarship, and thoughtful analysis Respectful of divergent views Free of ad hominem commentary Devoid of ethnic, religious, gender, sexual orientation, or racial bias. Classroom Conduct: Successful students conduct themselves in a professional manner because college is a professional environment; it is just like a job. Successful students are ready to start class at the appropriate time and have their notebooks open and their pens ready to take notes because diligently taking notes and being attentive during class shows a professor that the student is a serious student who wants to learn and because most students need to move the material from the ears and eyes through their brain and hand in order to absorb it more effectively. Notes also provide a reminder of what was discussed and can serve to flag material that is unclear to you. If you get home, reread your notes, and cannot remember or understand what you wrote, ask about it at the next class meeting, via e- mail, or during office hours. Successful students ask questions about anything in class they do not understand, but they do not engage in side conversations and whispering because this is disruptive and distracting to others around them. Many 5 P age

6 students have made huge personal sacrifices to come to college; do not disrupt their class. I may ask students who are engaging in side conversations to leave the class if they persist in distracting those around them. Successful students are attentive during class; they do not doze off, do homework for other classes, organize their bags or purses, or compose s or texts to friends. They are also aware of those around them and are sensitive to what might offend, so they do not engage in personal relationships during class, and they choose language that will not be considered offensive. Also, please turn off (or set to silent, not vibrate) all cell phones before coming into class; they are a serious distraction in college classes and will not be tolerated. Please instruct relatives or friends to call campus security in case of an emergency. Security will look up the class in the system and then send someone to the class Text messaging during class in not allowed under any circumstances. Not only is it rude, it is distracting for you and disruptive to me and to those around you. If I see you texting in class, or a cell phone goes off, there will be a pop quiz. Please see me if you intend to use a laptop to take notes. WHAT SUCCESSFUL STUDENTS SHOULD EXPECT TO DO IN THIS COURSE: Responsibilities: Successful students follow both oral and written instructions. The syllabus and assignment sheets are the primary sources of instructions in any college course; so successful students read them carefully and refer to them regularly. Successful students write down any instructions given orally by the professor; they also are careful to make sure that they have taken accurate notes and ask questions before due dates. Successful students look up information first so that they ask informed questions, not questions they already have the answers to. If they cannot find the answers, they contact the instructor after class, via telephone or , or during office hours. Successful students pay close attention to how they can best and most easily learn the material in a particular subject area. If you have difficulty figuring out how best to learn the material in this class, please make an appointment to see me. Planning Time: Successful students, those that get A s, B s, and C s, use their time wisely. The standard formula for college coursework is that every one hour of class time will result in two to three hours of homework, so a three unit class will do an average of six or more hours of homework (reading, research, studying) per week. As a result, successful students plan their time wisely so that they keep up with assignments. They also meet with the instructor during office hours so that they can get much needed feedback on their work. Some Suggestions as You Read: Scan the reading quickly before you begin and note any headings or subheadings. These will give you a quick overview. 6 P age

7 Review what you have read after each page what were the main points? If the reading is a particularly difficult one, you may need to review after each paragraph. Think about what you are reading and read for content, structure, and underlying assumptions. Be an analytical reader and use your critical thinking skills. Read with a dictionary handy (print or online) so that you can look up words you are unfamiliar with or uncertain of. Write the word and its definition so you will have a reference at hand. YOUR PROFESSOR: What to expect from me outside the classroom: In order to meet all of my professional obligations, I plan my schedule carefully. While I might wish to be available for your questions 24/7, that is simply not possible. Please be advised that I regularly check my phone and messages on Monday-Friday between 10:00 AM-4:00 PM. I am also available to speak with you during my office hours. If these do not work in your schedule, feel free to set up an appointment. What you can expect when you submit papers or projects for grading: I make every effort to return papers and projects within one week. Occasionally, other professional obligations make this impossible. I will advise you of this when the work is submitted and let you know when you can anticipate return. I make comments and suggestions via the review functions within Word. Should these comments and the rubric be insufficient for you to understand your grade, please make an appointment to discuss the assignment. For those of you who would like additional (ungraded) feedback, I would also be happy to re-read revised papers and make more comprehensive comments. Questions about course content, related issues, grading, study habits, and so forth are welcome. Every reasonable effort will be made to assist in a student's success, especially when that need is expressly communicated. 7 P age

8 CLASS SCHEDULE: All readings should be completed BEFORE class on the assigned day. WEEK 1 27 August: Introduction 29 August: Proto-Photographic Vision WEEK 2 3 September: The Origins of Photography (to 1839) Marian, September: The Second Invention of Photography ( ) Marian, WEEK 3 10 September: Popular Photography and the Aims of Art ( ) Marian, September: Imaging of the Social World ( ) Marian, September: GEORGE EASTMAN HOUSE FIELD TRIP (Noon-6 pm) WEEK 4 17 September: Science and Social Science ( ) Marian, September: The Macchiaioli and Photography GEORGE EASTMAN HOUSE CRITICAL REACTION PAPER DUE WEEK 5 24 September: Postmortem Photography QUARTERLY EXAM I DUE 26 September: The Great Divide ( ) Marian, WEEK 6 1 October: Modern Life ( ) Marian, October: Eadweard Muybridge, Étienne-Jules Marey and Stop-Motion Photography 8 P age

9 WEEK 7 8 October: Edgar Degas and Photography 10 October: Art in the Age of Mass Media ( ) Marian, WEEK 8 15 October: NO CLASS Fall Holiday 17 October: Social Science, Social Change and the Camera ( ) Marian, WEEK 9 22 October: The Human Family ( ) Marian, October: The West and the Cold War ( ) Marian, WEEK October: Globalism, Technology and Social Change (1975 to the Present) Marian, QUARTERLY EXAM II DUE 31 October: NO CLASS SECAC Conference WEEK 11 5 November: The Postmodern View (1975 to the Present) Marian, November: Into the Twenty-First Century Marian, WEEK November: Photography and Ethics 14 November: NO CLASS in lieu of GUEST LECTURE/ArtsCanisius: Dr. Laura Watts Sommer, The Pull between Nationalism and Regionalism in Nineteenth-Century Italian Painting SC Grupp, 2:30 pm. WEEK November: Contemporary Directions in Photography 21 November: Make-up Lecture I 9 P age

10 WEEK November: Make-up Lecture II QUARTERLY EXAM III DUE 28 November: NO CLASS Thanksgiving Recess WEEK 15 3 December: NO CLASS In lieu of field trip 5 December: NO CLASS In lieu of field trip FINAL EXAM: TBD QUARTERLY EXAM IV DUE Updated: 22 August P age