Art History

Art history is the study of the rich heritage of visual arts produced by human societies. This production, ranging from painting, sculpture, architecture, design, photography, and applied arts to costume and body art, has found expression in human cultures from the earliest times and has been determined by a range of functions. The art historian is concerned with the formal appreciation of these works and the understanding of their meaning within the culture that produced them, as well as the relationships between one culture and another. Visual literacy is particularly relevant in an age when we have unprecedented access and exposure to images. As part of the IB Diploma programme, art history forms an option in group 3, individuals and societies. The discipline is fundamentally about how individuals and social groups have responded to and represented aspects of their world and experience, creating a visual response that is simultaneously that of the individual and their society. The works produced may have meaning for different sections of that society. Works are studied from a variety of approaches, which comprise the core curriculum of the syllabus. Interpretations of the art of the past are constantly changing as new evidence comes to light in art historical research, as cultural values change, and as developments occur in contemporary art. The subject requires a critical analysis of documentary and theoretical sources. To some extent, our view of the art of other cultures is necessarily conditioned by our own cultural attitudes, but by trying to understand how these works were originally intended or how societies have viewed other cultures, those societies are brought closer to us, and our own appreciation of the works is enhanced.