Lectures: TuTh 11:55am–1:20pm, 112 Houghton House
Office hours: W 12:15–1:45pm, Th 1:30–3:00pm, or by appointment, 208 Houghton House

Course description:
Written histories of art before the modern era have too often overlooked or marginalized women artists, even though they worked in the same media as men (painting, printmaking, illustration, calligraphy) and depicted similar subjects (portraits, religious themes, still lifes, and nature). This course examines European and Asian women artists between 1300 and 1750, with particular attention to the cultures of Italy and China after 1500. Topics will include the reasons for women’s omission from the canon of art history; women’s status as amateur or professional artists; and their identities as court artists, members of artistic families, courtesans, or nuns. The course is cross-listed with Media & Society, European Studies, Asian Studies, and Women’s Studies. It addresses two of the aspirational goals of the curriculum: a critical understanding of social inequalities (substantially), and a critical understanding of cultural difference (substantially).

Learning objectives:
One objective is for students to gain practical skills useful in any study of art history, including an understanding of how meaning can be encoded in visual media and improved proficiency in writing and research. More conceptual learning objectives include understanding how works of art operate as historical artifacts that reveal current ideas on politics, religion, and society; as well as broader knowledge of women’s roles in early modern Europe and Asia.

Books (available in the Library):

• Bal, Mieke, ed. The Artemisia Files: Artemisia Gentileschi for Feminists and Other Thinking People. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005.
• Barnet, Sylvan, ed. A Short Guide to Writing about Art. 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson, 2015.—RECOMMENDED for students new to art history.

Supplemental readings (available in the Library):

• Addiss, Stephen. “The Three Women of Gion.” In Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, edited by Marsha Weidner, 241–63. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990.
• Alpers, Svetlana. “Art History and Its Exclusions: The Example of Dutch Art.” In Feminism and Art History: Questioning the Litany, edited by Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard, 183–99. New York: Harper & Row, 1982.
• Brusati, Celeste. “Stilled Lives: Self-Portraiture and Self-Reflection in Seventeenth-Century Netherlandish Still-Life Painting.” Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 20, no. 2/3 (1990–91): 168–82.
• Eck, Xander van. Review of Judith Leyster: A Dutch Master and Her World, by James A. Welu. Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 22, no. 1/2 (1993–94): 105–9.
• Even, Yael. “Judith Leyster: An Unsuitable Place for a Woman.” Konsthistorisk Tidskrift 71, no. 3 (2002): 115–24.
• Fister, Patricia. Japanese Women Artists, 1600–1900. Lawrence, Kans.: Spencer Museum of Art, 1988.
• Gellman, Lola B. Review of Judith Leyster: A Woman Painter in Holland’s Golden Age, by Frima Fox Hofrichter. Woman’s Art Journal 13, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1992): 34–36.
• Honig, Elizabeth Alice. “The Art of Being ‘Artistic’: Dutch Women’s Creative Practices in the 17th Century.” Woman’s Art Journal 22, no. 2 (Autumn 2001–Winter 2002): 31–39.
• National Museum of Women in the Arts. Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque. Milan: Skira, 2007.
• Neri, Janice. “Stitches, Specimens, and Pictures: Maria Sibylla Merian and the Processing of the Natural World.” Chapter 5 of The Insect and the Image: Visualizing Nature in Early Modern Europe, 1500–1700, 139–80. University of Minnesota Press, 2011.
• Russell, Margarita. “The Women Painters in Houbraken’s Groote Schouburgh.” Woman’s Art Journal 2, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1981): 7–11.
• Weidner, Marsha. “The Conventional Success of Ch’en Shu.” In Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, edited by Marsha Weidner, 123–56. Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990.
• Weidner, Marsha, Ellen Johnston Laing, Irving Yucheng Lo, Christina Chu, and James Robinson. Views from Jade Terrace: Chinese Women Artists 1300–1912. Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art, 1988.

Weekly schedule (please note: schedule may be subject to minor changes):

INTRODUCTION.

Jan. 22 (Tu).    Overview of the course.

Jan. 24 (Th).    Women in art histories: Europe.

• Jordana Pomeroy, “Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists from Renaissance to Baroque (Milan: Skira, 2007), 19–22.
• Svetlana Alpers, “Art History and Its Exclusions: The Example of Dutch Art,” in Feminism and Art History: Questioning the Litany, ed. Norma Broude and Mary D. Garrard (New York: Harper & Row, 1982), 183–99.

Jan. 29 (Tu).    Women in art histories: East Asia.

• Marsha Weidner, “Women in the History of Chinese Painting,” in Marsha Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace: Chinese Women Artists 1300–1912 (Indianapolis: Indianapolis Museum of Art, 1988), 12–29.
• Patricia Fister, “Introduction: The World of Women in Japan, 1600–1900,” in Japanese Women Artists, 1600–1900 (Lawrence, Kans.: Spencer Museum of Art, 1988), 9–16.

Jan. 31 (Th).    Women artists, pre-1500.

• RESPONSE PAPER due.
• James Robinson, “Attributed to Guan Daosheng,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 66–70.
• Irene Graziani, “Caterina Vigri,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 84–89.

Feb. 5 (Tu).      Sofonisba Anguissola (1532–1635).

• Stefania Biancani and Ann Sutherland Harris, “Sofonisba Anguissola,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 106–21.

Feb. 7 (Th).      Research in art history.

Feb. 12 (Tu).    Diana Scultori (ca. 1547–1612).

• Silvia Urbini and Jordana Pomeroy, “Diana Scultori (aka Ghisi),” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 126–33.

Feb. 14 (Th).    Lavinia Fontana (1552–1614).

• RESEARCH PAPER PROPOSAL due.
• Caroline P. Murphy et al., “Lavinia Fontana,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 134–65.

Feb. 19 (Tu).    A professional artist’s daughter: Miss Qiu (fl. ca. 1576).

• Ellen Johnston Laing, “Miss Qiu,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 70–72.

Feb. 21 (Th).    Courtesan Ma Shouzhen (1548–1604).

• James Robinson, “Ma Shouzhen,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 72–81.

Feb. 26 (Tu).    Courtesan Xue Susu (fl. 1601–33).

• James Robinson, “Xue Susu (Wu),” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 82–88.

Feb. 28 (Th).    A literati wife: Wen Shu (1595–1634).

• RESEARCH WORKSHEETS due.
• Ellen Johnston Laing, “Wen Shu,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 88–91.

Mar. 5 (Tu).     Secondary wife Liu Yin, a.k.a. Liu Rushi (1618–64).

• Marsha Weidner, “Liu Shi (Yin),” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 99–102.

Mar. 7 (Th).     Female subjects in Artemisia Gentileschi’s paintings (1593–1656).

• RESPONSE PAPER due.
• Mary D. Garrard, “Artemisia’s Hand,” in The Artemisia Files: Artemisia Gentileschi for Feminists and Other Thinking People, ed. Mieke Bal (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2005), 1–32.
• Elena Ciletti, “‘Gran Macchina è Bellezza’: Looking at the Gentileschi Judiths,” in Bal, The Artemisia Files, 63–106.

Mar. 12 (Tu).   Artemisia Gentileschi (1593–1656) in art history.

• Mieke Bal, “Introduction,” in The Artemisia Files, ix–xxv.
• Nanette Solomon, “Judging Artemisia: A Baroque Woman in Modern Art History,” in Bal, The Artemisia Files, 33–62.

Mar. 14 (Th).   Giovanna Garzoni (1600–70).

• FIRST TEST due.
• Stefania Biancani, Ilaria Rossi, and Jordana Pomeroy, “Giovanna Garzoni,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 220–39.

[Mar. 16–24, Spring Break]

Mar. 26 (Tu).   Elisabetta Sirani (1638–65).

• Fiorella Frisoni, Nathalie Strasser, and Jordana Pomeroy, “Elisabetta Sirani,” in National Museum of Women in the Arts, Italian Women Artists, 241–55.

Mar. 28 (Th).   17th-century Dutch artists.

• ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY due.
• Elizabeth Alice Honig, “The Art of Being ‘Artistic’: Dutch Women’s Creative Practices in the 17th Century,” Woman’s Art Journal 22, no. 2 (Autumn 2001–Winter 2002): 31–39.
• Margarita Russell, “The Women Painters in Houbraken’s Groote Schouburgh,” Woman’s Art Journal 2, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1981): 7–11.

Apr. 2 (Tu). Clara Peeters (1594–after 1657).

• Celeste Brusati, “Stilled Lives: Self-Portraiture and Self-Reflection in Seventeenth-Century Netherlandish Still-Life Painting,” Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 20, no. 2/3 (1990–91): 168–82.

Apr. 4 (Th).     Writing workshop.

Apr. 9 (Tu). Judith Leyster (1609–60).

• Yael Even, “Judith Leyster: An Unsuitable Place for a Woman,” Konsthistorisk Tidskrift 71, no. 3 (2002): 115–24.
• Xander van Eck, Review of Judith Leyster: A Dutch Master and Her World, by James A. Welu, Simiolus: Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 22, no. 1/2 (1993–94): 105–9.
• Lola B. Gellman, Review of Judith Leyster: A Woman Painter in Holland’s Golden Age, by Frima Fox Hofrichter, Woman’s Art Journal 13, no. 1 (Spring–Summer 1992): 34–36.

Apr. 11 (Th).   Maria Sibylla Merian (1647–1717).

• RESEARCH PAPER DRAFT due.
• Janice Neri, “Stitches, Specimens, and Pictures: Maria Sibylla Merian and the Processing of the Natural World,” Chapter 5 of The Insect and the Image: Visualizing Nature in Early Modern Europe, 1500–1700 (University of Minnesota Press, 2011), 139–80.

Apr. 16 (Tu).   A Qing official’s mother: Chen Shu (1660–1736).

• Marsha Weidner, “Chen Shu,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 117–20.
• Marsha Weidner, “The Conventional Success of Ch’en Shu,” in Flowering in the Shadows: Women in the History of Chinese and Japanese Painting, ed. Marsha Weidner (Honolulu: University of Hawai‘i Press, 1990), 123–56.

Apr. 18 (Th).   Daughter of a Qing artistic family: Yun Bing (fl. ca. 1747).

• Marsha Weidner, “Yun Bing,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 122–29.

Apr. 23 (Tu).   Daughter of a Qing artistic family: Ma Quan (fl. ca. 1723–46).

• Marsha Weidner, “Ma Quan,” in Weidner et al., Views from Jade Terrace, 130–36.

Apr. 25 (Th).   Seventeenth-century Japanese women artists.

• RESEARCH PAPER due.
• Fister, Japanese Women Artists, 25–46.

Apr. 30 (Tu).   The Japanese courtesans Yamazaki Ryūjo and Ōhashi.

• Fister, Japanese Women Artists, 47–52, 69–71, 76–77.

May 2 (Th).     Kaji, Yuri (1694–1764), and Tokuyama Gyōkuran (1727/28–1784).

• RESPONSE PAPER due.
• Stephen Addiss, “The Three Women of Gion,” in Weidner, Flowering in the Shadows, 241–63.
• Fister, Japanese Women Artists, 69–90.

May 10 (F).      SECOND TEST due, 10:00pm.

Communications:
I am happy to meet with you outside of class during my office hours (see top of syllabus), or at another time that is convenient for you, in 208 Houghton House. The best way to reach me to set up an appointment is by e-mail, but please note that I regularly read e-mail only between 9:00am and 4:30pm. If I need to contact students, I generally will do so via HWS e-mail and through Announcements on Canvas (see Websites below). You should develop the habit of checking both on a regular basis (I recommend doing so daily).

Attendance policy:
I consider attendance at lectures to be mandatory. That said, if you have a reasonable excuse for missing a class (including celebration of a religious holiday, athletic participation, a field trip for a different course, or illness), I expect you to notify me as soon as possible—preferably in advance—and to turn in a one- to two-page essay on the topics covered on the day of your absence, within a week of your return to class. Not doing so will directly impact your participation grade. If you are absent three times or more, you should be prepared for me to notify the Deans about your performance. I will be taking attendance regularly.

Course requirements:

1.         Class participation (15%). This includes regular and punctual attendance (see Attendance policy above) and participating in discussions in class or on the Canvas discussion board. I grade participation on a daily basis, as follows: check-plus-plus (95) for thoughtful commentary in class or on the discussion board that is analytical in nature or synthesizes material from readings and/or other classes; check-plus (85) for speaking up in class or on the discussion board on a topic relevant to the course material (even to ask a question or to answer one of my questions incorrectly); check (75) for showing up to class but not speaking; check-minus (65) for not paying attention, coming in late, or being disruptive or disrespectful; zero (0) for not coming to class at all.

2.         Response papers (15%). Throughout the semester you will write several 300–600-word papers responding to some of the assigned secondary sources. More details to follow.

3.         Research paper (30%), due Thursday, Apr. 25. In this paper (1500–2100 words) you will focus on a single woman artist from the period 1300–1750. More details to follow.

4.         First test (18%), due Thursday, Mar. 14. This take-home test covers material through Tuesday, Mar. 5.

5.         Second test (22%), due Friday, May 10, 10:00pm. This take-home test covers material from Thursday, Mar. 7 through Thursday, May 2.

Format for written work:
Please follow these guidelines when you write your papers and tests.

1. Type all work in a 12-point font.
2. Double-space.
3. Leave one-inch margins on all sides.
4. Number your pages.
5. Put your name and the date on the first page.
6. Check that your spelling, grammar, and punctuation are correct—these are crucial to effective communication of your ideas. Your grade will drop if you have excessive errors.
7. If you cite another source, you must use a.) parenthetical references or footnotes, as well as
   b.) a list of works cited, as explained in The Chicago Manual of Style (http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html), the documentation style typically used by art historians. (See A note about cheating and plagiarism below.)
8. Include pictures (with captions) of works of art that you discuss.

You can submit written work via Canvas. Please upload a Microsoft Word document (.doc, .docx) or a Portable Document Format file (.pdf): these are the only formats that Canvas will accept. Alternatively, you can turn in a stapled hard copy during the class period. PLEASE NOTE: I do not accept papers via e-mail.

A note about cheating and plagiarism:
I will not tolerate any form of academic dishonesty. It destroys the trust that I have in you to do your best, it is unfair to the other students, and you will not learn anything if you resort to cheating. If I find that you have cheated on a test or on a written assignment, you will receive a zero for the assignment and I will contact the Deans and/or the Committee on Standards about your case. If a case goes to the Committee on Standards, I follow the Committee's recommendation; if it also finds evidence of cheating or plagiarism, the recommendation is usually failure of the course at a minimum.

Grading:
Tests and the research project assignments receive numerical grades. Class participation, response papers, and make-up written assignments will receive a check-plus-plus (95), check-plus (85), check (75), check-minus (65), or zero (0). If you are unsatisfied with a grade, please prepare a written statement explaining what grade you think you should have received and why, and submit it to me along with the assignment for review.

I mark down three points for each calendar day that an assignment is late. If you think you will need an extension, you should talk to me as early as possible before the assignment is due.

My grading scale is as follows:

The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL):
At Hobart and William Smith Colleges, we encourage you to learn collaboratively and to seek the resources that will enable you to succeed. The Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is one of those resources: CTL programs and staff help you engage with your learning, accomplish the tasks before you, enhance your thinking and skills, and empower you to do your best. Resources at CTL are many: Teaching Fellows provide content support in twelve departments, Study Mentors help you manage your time and responsibilities, Writing Fellows help you think well on paper, and professional staff help you assess academic needs.

I encourage you to explore these and other CTL resources designed to encourage your very best work. You can talk with me about these resources, visit the CTL office on the 2nd floor of the library to discuss options with the staff, or visit the CTL website at http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/index.aspx.

The CTL resource that will be most essential in enhancing learning in this course is the Writing Fellows program. Writing Fellows help students develop their writing by providing feedback on essay drafts, offering strategies for the writing process, and enhancing students’ understanding of what good college writing means. In this class, Writing Fellow assistance with our research paper will be extremely helpful to you, and I suggest that you make an appointment via StudyHub on the CTL website by Thursday, Apr. 4 to begin work on the research paper draft.

Disability accommodations:
If you are a student with a disability for which you may need accommodations, you should self-identify, provide appropriate documentation of your disability, and register with Disability Services at the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL). Disability-related accommodations and services generally will not be provided until the registration and documentation process is complete. The guidelines for documenting disabilities can be found at the following website: http://www.hws.edu/academics/ctl/disability_services.aspx.

Please direct questions about this process or disability services at HWS to Christen Davis, Coordinator of Disability Services, at ctl@hws.edu or x3351.

Websites:
There are two websites for this course: one at my homepage and one at Canvas. This syllabus, paper assignments, and links to online resources can be found at both. The Canvas site also has a course calendar, daily handouts, discussions, and an online gradebook;I plan to post image presentations used in class there as well.

To use Canvas, log in with your campus username and password. Once you have logged in, you should see, at the left of the screen, a link for Courses you are enrolled in, as well as links for your Account, Dashboard, Calendar, Inbox, Commons, and Help.

It is essential for you to get in the habit of logging into Canvas regularly, as one way I will communicate with the class is via Canvas announcements, and I will post assignments and other course materials there. If you click on the Account link and then on Settings, you can set up Canvas to notify your e-mail or your cell phone about recent activity. I strongly recommend that you set Canvas to send you notifications of announcements ASAP.