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Art History and Visual Culture Field Study

Module description

The Art History and Visual Culture field study is an essential part of your degree programme at Exeter.

The trip is undertaken in week 6 of term 1 and is an intensive one-week study visit to a location in continental Europe. During the visit you will participate in a range of staff-guided and self-managed visit options, including architectural/urban studies, visits to permanent galleries/museums and temporary exhibitions.

The module provides an opportunity to develop and apply research skills in real world environments and to view a variety of museums and objects in a single urban environment. It normally consists of three parts:

1) Pre-trip preparation, involving a mix of lectures, projects and self-directed study that provide you with the necessary background information to successfully undertake the field class.

2) The trip itself, which lasts 5-6 days and consists of a series of staff-led days and individual/group project exercises.

3) Workshops and seminars on return, including group presentations, during which you will analyse and research the material collected during the field trip.

This is a compulsory core module for all Art History and Visual Culture SH, CH and FCH students. No other students may take this module.

Module aims - intentions of the module

The field trip has three main aims:

• To gain an understanding of how art history and visual culture function in location-specific contexts, through lecturer-led visits, and student-focused presentations.
• To provide you with an opportunity to apply the knowledge gained through lecture-based modules to 'real-world' study in an intensive and continuous way.
• To provide further in-depth training that will contribute to your independent research dissertations building on skills developed in stage one.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate an understanding of the history of art, visual culture and museum culture of a European city
• 2. Demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of urban/cultural identity
• 3. Demonstrate familiarity with the history of various forms of cultural expression in the context of a European city: art and architecture, urban design, tourism, museum studies
• 4. Identify/formulate and evaluate questions or problems with limited guidance
• 5. Discuss specific case studies and examples relevant to specific themes relating to the fieldclass (e.g. museum studies, issues of patronage, context, visual media and representation)

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 6. Identify a diverse range of approaches to the generation of knowledge and understanding
• 7. Explain the significance of spatial relationships of architecture, sculpture and art in the built environment
• 8. Conduct your own research and prepare a good argument both in verbal discussion and in written assignments

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 9. Communicate ideas, principles and theories effectively and fluently by written, oral and visual means
• 10. Explore available resources to find useful texts and materials
• 11. Undertake independent/self-directed study/learning (including time management) to achieve consistent, proficient and sustained attainment
• 12. Gain a competence in presenting and speaking in a public place about works of art and/or visual culture

Syllabus plan

Details of specific locations, activities, and content of the fieldtrip will be issued during the previous term.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Deferral – if you miss an assessment for certificated reasons judged acceptable by the Mitigation Committee, you will normally be either deferred in the assessment or an extension may be granted. The mark given for a re-assessment taken as a result of deferral will not be capped and will be treated as it would be if it were your first attempt at the assessment.

Referral – if you have failed the module overall (i.e. a final overall module mark of less than 40%) you will be required to submit a further assessment as necessary. If you are successful on referral, your overall module mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Reading lists appropriate to each fieldtrip will be issued during the previous term.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE page - http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=4644

Key words search

Art History, Visual Culture