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Art History and Visual Culture Field Study for Blended Learning

Module description

The Art History and Visual Culture field study module is an essential part of your degree programme at Exeter. It culminates in an intensive one-week field trip in 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 virtual and real-world environments and to view and interrogate a variety of museums, objects and spaces in a single urban environment. The module consists of three main parts:

1)    Firstly, it addresses a range of thematic and methodological approaches to Field Study, introducing you to a range of ways of approaching and thinking about culture, broadly conceived, and the urban environment, exploring relationships between places, people and objectsSecondly, through applied group work and project development (usually involving a digital component), you will develop key skills and knowledge identified  in term 1 work

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

Teaching in terms 1 and 2 will involve a mix of lectures, workshops, projects and self-directed study that provide you with the necessary background information to successfully undertake the field  trip. Work in term 1 will culminate in an essay. Work in term 2 culminates  in completion of group projects and presentations . In term 3, the field trip will be accompanied by completion of a field journal with critical commentary, both submitted following the trip itself. .

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

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 fieldtrips 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)

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

Key words search

Art History, Visual Culture