| Unit name | Art and the Natural World |
|---|---|
| Unit code | HART30054 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Ann Matchette |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of History of Art (Historical Studies) |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
The relationship between art and the environment is hardly a recent phenomenon. This unit is rooted in the early modern period, when the expansion of global trade networks and the development of scientific fields of enquiry facilitated greater interest in and knowledge about the natural world. We will explore how this impacted on art, material culture, and the wider landscape. Developments in the fields of plant and animal humanities and colonial botany and zoology have contributed a great deal to our understanding of how imperial projects led to the collection of foreign specimens, the exploitation of colonial landscapes, and the erasure of indigenous knowledge. By turning our attention to how this was visualized, we can begin to uncover how natural materials and forms were appropriated by the West and recontextualized into European homes and collections as natural curiosities and novel objects, blurring the boundaries between the foreign and the familiar. We will also address the products and consequences of extractive processes. While stones, metals, and fossils were valued as raw materials for artists and as evidence of the creativity of nature, mining also prompted concerns about the fragility and exploitation of the environment.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
This unit introduces you to an array of visual and material culture over a broad chronological period that extends the field of enquiry well beyond the traditional confines of art history. By taking a cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural approach, it builds on the global frameworks adopted by units in year 1 and 2 of the programme. The unit will also expose you to key conceptual, historiographical, and methodological issues related to studying the intersection of art, history, and the natural world. As a result, you will gain confidence in evaluating critical models and challenging traditional historical narratives as you develop your independent research.
An overview of content
From paintings of rare plant and animal species to objects made of ‘exotic’ hardwoods, shells, and precious stones, and from the landscapes shaped by the cultivation of crops such as tea and spices to the vessels designed for their consumption, the natural world has inspired a vast range of cultural production. This unit will trace these developments in the early modern era and beyond, when new modes of observation, representation, and dissemination fostered wider circulation of botanical, zoological and geological knowledge. We will consider how European expeditions to distant lands and the collection of specimens not only introduced new materials for innovative objects and artistic expression but also ways of seeing and understanding the world. We will additionally consider the shaping of landscapes, from colonial incursions on indigenous lands and environments scarred by mining to the development of gardens, botanical collections, and public parks as spaces of sociability and articulations of power.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
You will be taught in interactive settings that allow you to develop your knowledge and understanding through critical reading and extensive discussion that engages with current debates in art history. You will develop your analytical skills, building confidence and competencies that will help you in the approach to the assessments and provide a foundation for specialist units in Year 3.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
Classes will involve a combination of long- and short-form lectures, class discussion, investigative activities and practical activities, which include visual analysis. Students will be expected to engage with readings and participate on a weekly basis. This will be further supported with drop-in sessions and self-directed exercises with tutor and peer feedback.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Essay, 3,000-words (50%) [ILOs 1-5].
Timed assessment (50%) [ILOs 1-5].
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the format or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are confirmed by the School/Centre shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. HART30054).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
