Global Arc

A broad study of European painting and sculpture from the French Revolution to 1900 with special attention to art's relationship to social and cultural changes. Lectures will explore a range of themes including art and revolution, the rise of landscape, shifting conceptions of realism, and the birth of "modernism" and the avant-garde. Emphasis on major figures including David, Canova, Goya, Ingres, Turner, Courbet, Manet, Monet, Degas, Rodin, Van Gogh, and Cézanne. For department majors, this course satisfies the Group 3 distribution requirement. Two lectures, one preceptorial.

Thematic introduction to the role of painting in Chinese cultural history, with attention to the interaction of stylistic standards, materials, and techniques; the impact of regional geographies on landscape painting; the influence of class, gender, and social behavior on figure painting; the engagement of art with traditional philosophies and 20th-century socialism; and the shape of time in art-historical development. For department majors, this course satisfies the Group 2 distribution requirement. Three lectures.

In twelve weeks this course will examine major art works from the twelve centuries (300-1500 CE) that encompass the European Middle Ages. Presenting works from Europe and the Middle East, the course will introduce students to the art of Catholicism and Orthodoxy, Judaism and Islam; the great courts of the Eastern- and Holy Roman Empires, and the roving Vikings, Celts and Visigoths. Students will not only be invited to consider how art can represent and shape notions of sacred and secular power, but will also come to understand how the work of 'art' in this period is itself powerful and, sometimes, dangerous.

An introduction to African art and architecture from prehistory to the 20th century. Beginning with Paleolithic rock art of northern and southern Africa, we will cover ancient Nubia and Meroe; Neolithic cultures such as Nok, Djenne and Ife; African kingdoms, including Benin, Asante, Bamun, Kongo, Kuba, Great Zimbabwe, and the Zulu; Christian Ethiopia and the Islamic Swahili coast; and other societies, such as the Sherbro, Igbo, and the Maasai. By combining Africa's cultural history and developments in artistic forms we establish a long historical view of the stunning diversity of the continent's indigenous arts and architecture.

This course acquaints students with the art, architecture, and archaeology of ancient Mexico and Central America. The course considers a wide range of cultures spanning from the first arrival of humans at the end of the Upper Paleolithic period through the 16th century Spanish invasion. Major culture groups to be considered include Olmec, Teotihuacan, Maya, Zapotec, and Aztec. Precepts will include theoretically-focused discussions, debate regarding contested scholarly interpretations, and hands-on work with objects at the Princeton University Art Museum. For department majors, this course satisfies the Group 1 distribution requirement.

Celebrating Rembrandt Year, this class surveys painting, sculpture, architecture and the graphic arts of the Low Countries (Belgium and the Netherlands) from 1580-1750 in relation to art elsewhere in Europe and the world. Dutch art is seen in relation to its historical circumstances, including cross-cultural developments in Europe, Asia and Americas. Extensive use of the Princeton University Art Museum with visits to New York.

Goal: introduce undergraduate engineering students to: (a) infrastructure and food system innovations that can advance the triple outcomes of decarbonization, climate resilience and social equity (b) city scale decarbonization pathways and linkage to larger scale national zero carbon pathways (c) fundamentals of inequality and equity (d) hazard risk resilience framework (e) data analysis and systems models for tracking urban zero carbon emissions including material flow analysis sand life-cycle assessment, measuring inequality to inform equity and introductory analysis of resilience pathways.

This course draws upon core anthropological studies of law to investigate conceptions, operations, and transformations of law across Western and non-Western societies. The course also draws upon legal theory and exemplary court cases to probe diverse forms of judicial reasoning and activism. How do legal concepts and categories--such as rights, duties, obligations, liabilities, risks, injuries, evidence, redress, and even personhood--come to appear as fundamental, natural, or universal? How are seemingly essential natures of law, in fact, constructed and produced and to which social and political effect?

This course will explore inequality in India, addressing linkages between social inequality and inequality in access to basic services; exposure to environmental pollution and climate risks; participation in governance; and, overall outcomes related to health and wellbeing. The topic of inequality will be grounded in the overarching topic of sustainable development. And, inequality in India will be discussed in a comparative manner with other countries and global trajectories.

This class develops the basic structures and vocabulary for understanding, speaking, writing, and reading in French. Classroom activities foster communication and cultural competence through comprehension and grammar exercises, skits, conversation and the use of a variety of audio-visual materials. Prerequisites: Princeton French Language Placement test.