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一、专业概述
艺术史将各种审美对象（aestheticobjects）和视觉表达（visualexpression）置于它们的历史或风格流派语境中进行研究。艺术史的研究对象可以是世界各民族在其历史的各个时期出于宗教、哲学、纪实、装饰或使用目的制造的各种物品。传统上，艺术史学科主要关注绘画、素描、雕塑、建筑、陶瓷和装饰艺术等艺术形式；但随着学科发展，当代艺术史学者将目光投向了视觉文化（visualculture）的方方面面。
作为一门学科，艺术史有别于艺术批评（ArtCriticism）和艺术理论（ArtTheory）。艺术批评致力于确立在风格上具有可比性的不同艺术作品的相对艺术价值，并对风格本身进行定义；艺术理论则更关心对艺术的本质的定义。研究美的本质的美学（Aesthetics）就是艺术理论的一个分支。而艺术史学者一般用历史学的方法研究艺术作品的技法、赞助人、受众，影响作品风格的社会文化因素，以及艺术家的师承、门徒、影响。
由于艺术史学科的研究对象十分驳杂，大部分学生会将自己的研究重点放在某个时期（史前艺术、文艺复兴时期艺术、当代艺术等等）、某个区域（东亚艺术、东非艺术等等）、某种艺术形式（雕塑、摄影等等）或某种风格（印象主义、立体主义等等）上。当代艺术史学者还从批判理论（criticaltheory），特别是文学批评中汲取了养分，将马克思主义、女性主义、批判性种族与性别研究等理论引入了艺术史学科。
二、学位设置
艺术史专业本科阶段的学位为BachelorofArts，即文学学士。
三、专业课设置
绝大多数美国高校的艺术史专业对学生选课的深度（depth）和广度（width）都有一定要求。我们以塔夫茨大学（TuftsUniversity）为例：
课程分类与数量 | 可选课程参考 |
两门必选导论课 | FAH 0001 Introduction to World Art I. Introduction to the major works and themes of world art and architecture from ancient times to early modern. FAH 0002 Introduction to Western Art, 1500-Present. (Cross-listed as PJS 2 and VMS 2). Thematic survey of major artists, monuments, and materials from the Renaissance to the present. FAH 0003 Introduction to Contemporary Art. (Cross-listed as ILVS 0003) Art since the postwar era with a particular emphasis on the present. Who is making contemporary art, where is it being made, and why? FAH 0004 Introduction to Arts of Africa. (Cross-listed as AFR 4) Survey of the diverse arts of Africa from antiquity to the present. Each class is devoted to a single civilization, emphasizing the ways the visual arts function with respect to larger cultural issues. Within this context, students consider the relationship of art to religion, cosmology, gender, identity, and political power, as well as the representation of the "other." Offered in alternate years. |
一门理论课 | FAH 100: Theories and Methods of Art History |
七门专业自选课，其中一门必须为高阶论坛课 | FAH 0104 Greek Art And Archaeology. (Cross-listed as ARCH 164 and CLS 164.) The development of Greek art from the Geometric Age through the fourth century B.C., studied in architecture, sculpture, pottery, painting, and selected sites. Museum trips will be part of the course. FAH 0122 Iconoclasm And Iconophobia: Threat of the Image. The proscription of representational images in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic ideologies, and resulting iconic modes of expression (signs, symbols, architectural forms) at various times in the first millennium; the avoidance or removal of images, and motivations for and the effect of the art which it produces. FAH 0148 Nature Into Art. From the Garden of Eden and caves of Lascaux to contemporary art responding to climate change, the natural world has been a constant source of inspiration—and foil—for art. Survey of ways in which nature—the land, environment, flora, and fauna—has been filtered through the artistic imagination for our edification and pleasure. FAH 0156 History Of Photography. Issues and developments in photography from its inception with Daguerre in 1839 to the present in Europe and the United States. The interaction of art and technology in photography, relationships of photography to painting, development of genre and themes in photography, the effect of photography on ways of seeing. FAH 0160 Museum History and Theory. Development of the art museum from its origins in private collections to the present. Issues will include the evolution of museum design; the symbolic values of collections of art for individuals and societies; and the sociological and art historical implications of the display of art objects. Problems facing the contemporary museum: corporate funding, the blockbuster exhibition, revisionist art history. FAH 0164 Who Owns the Past? Art, Heritage, and Global Conflicts. (Cross-listed with ILVS 164 and CVS 119) Cultural heritage as a subject of identity and ownership. History of museum collections and preservation programs in the context of nationalism and colonialism and the aftermath of these developments on the basis of selected case studies from different parts of the world. From heritage and the process of nation-building to the debate on heritage in the Anthropocene era. |
四、就业选择
绝大多数艺术史专业毕业生进入了策展、设计、艺术品交易行业或者在艺术博物馆任职。
职业 | 全美从业者年平均收入 |
专栏作者（Journalist） 艺术领域的专栏作者向大众介绍艺术界的动态（如画廊开幕、主题展览等），或者讨论装饰艺术、家居装饰和时尚等泛艺术类话题。 | $42,602 |
博物馆技术人员（Museum technician） 博物馆技术人员帮助保护博物馆藏品的安全，包括藏品投保、评估与搬迁相关的风险并有意向借件的博其他物馆进行沟通。 | $49,850 |
展览设计师 (Exhibit Designer ) 展览设计师根据艺术展的主题和受众确定展品、设计展览布局、监督展览装置的安装并确保展厅正常运转。 | $48,970 |
采购经理/代理（Purchasing Manager, Buyer, and Purchasing Agent） 采购代理管理艺术品的买卖，包括确定值得信赖的卖家、决定定价、起草合同并保存交易记录。 | $69,600 |
艺术总监（Art Director） 艺术总监帮助客户设计设计舞台场景或出版物外观。他们负责制定预算、监督其他设计师并就项目的视觉呈现做出决策。 | $94,220 |
