Art History and Museum Studies

About this opportunity

The BA program in art with a concentration in museum studies focuses on the most prescient themes and issues at the forefront of the contemporary museum. These include various ethical and institutional issues, such as decolonization, activist curating, gender and race equity, accessibility, social justice and cultural diversity, and the role that institutions can play in fostering an imaginative museum practice that is inclusive and relevant to the future of society. To reflect the breadth of the sector, students pursuing museum studies select from a large pool of approved subjects and, in consultation with their advisor, their own focus areas, such as art history, liberal studies, education, global studies, justice studies, anthropology and other areas. These courses offer a range of learning opportunities led by scholars and museum practitioners from across the ASU campus and around the globe.

Thesis

The thesis can be about any project related to the history of art or to museum studies, such as exhibitions, focus on an artist or a work of art, or issues such as restoration of art works, images of the body in art, gender and race represented in art and historical issues in the production or reception of art in criticism or the art market, but students are not limited to these suggestions.

Academic Preparation

Students with a minor or major in art history or museum studies can write a thesis, so students need to be on track for a major or a minor. Students should have at least one semester of a basic introductory course (e.g., ARS 101, 102, 201, 202, 250) and 2-3 upper division art history or museum studies courses (300 and 400 level) and fulfill the requirements for a minor or a major. Requirements: Students must also complete Honors Thesis Prep Requirement, an online workshop, before beginning their honors thesis work. Students will identify a thesis director and create a thesis proposal, called the Thesis Prospectus. Once approved by the thesis director students can enroll in ARS 492 and ARS 493 to complete their thesis work. Each of these courses is one semester long.

Recommended Timeline

Students should start thinking about a thesis during their junior year and can contact the FHA to discuss their interests in an artist, a period style, an art work or group of works, and any other relevant topics. They should have a topic and the FHA can recommend an appropriate faculty member in the field in which students are interested (e.g., Renaissance, modern art, etc.) to serve as thesis director or second committee member. Students are welcome to choose their director and their second reader, as well. 

Then at the end of their junior year or the very beginning of their senior year they need to meet with their thesis director and create a prospectus within the first few weeks of their senior year at the latest. In their senior year, in the fall, students participate in ARS 492 under the name and supervision of the faculty  who will direct the thesis and spend the fall doing research on their topic. They will sign up for ARS 493 for the spring to write their thesis and schedule their thesis defense.

Honors Thesis Project Funding: Students can apply up to $1000 for support of their thesis or creative project and up to $1500 for an external reviewer to be part of their defense. Apply for this funding online.

Other Honors Opportunities

Honors enrichment contracts and projects take a wide array of forms; the key element is that the student and the professor interact independently of classroom hours. Honors contracts can include images. Any honors student can contract with any full-time faculty member of any rank in any course in art history or museum studies. We have an internship program as well and students can apply for an internship in the Valley and across the US.

Visit our honors art page for more information.