Art History Minor

For questions or to sign up for the Art History minor, contact finearts@kean.edu.

1. As a Fine Arts Major you are already required to take three (3) Art History courses: AH 1700 (Prehistoric through Medieval Art), AH 1701 (Renaissance through Contemporary Art), and AH 3740 (Modern Art).  And there are only 6 courses total required for a Minor in Art History.  So you will have already completed half of these 6 courses.  So for only an extra 3, you can gain an extra degree for your resume.  Furthermore, if you look on the left side of your Fine Arts Guide Sheet, you will see a further spot for Art History, so a 4th Art History course could go there on your Fine Arts Major Guide Sheet.  This would mean that you would need only 2 more courses to Minor in Art History.  That is a no brainer in order to get a whole extra degree on your record. 

2. With any new professional art project, there have been artists in the past who have solved similar problems.  For instance, if you are hired to make someone seem important, there are countless examples from Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance, and Modern art in which artists have already come up with ways to depict someone as important... or beautiful, or cool, or valuable, or any other number of characteristics.  In your own future projects, you do not need to re-invent the wheel.  There are many models from the past that would help guide your own designs -- but only if you know about them from studying the History of Art.  And referencing past artworks is also smart, and make you look smart.  

3. With a degree in Fine Art, you will be qualified to apply only for jobs that have the word "artist" in the job description.  However, you live near New York City which is the center of the international art world.  Here, there are many many many more jobs with the word "art" in them than with the word "artist" in them.  There are hundreds of museums and galleries that employ thousands of "art" people.  Also, every large business (hospitals, banks, investment firms, department stores, etc.) have their own art collections and they need to hire people to manage them, give tours of them, write about them in pamphlets, help buy artworks, help store artworks, travel with the artworks when they go on loan to other locations, register and keep track of them, sell them, and another other aspects connected with having an art collection.  In relation to the number of "artist" jobs, there are many many many more "art" jobs.  With a Fine Arts degree, you are not qualified to apply for most of them.  But with an Art History Minor, you could apply.  You should have access to these many more positions, and you can with an Art History Minor.

4. Many of the art professionals of the older generation who will be hiring you have graduated with a degree in Art History.  Professory Stonberg has one friend who designs the Christmas window displays for Macy's (a huge project) and his degree is in Fine Arts, but the job is listed not for artists but for Art Historians.  Another friend has won an Academy Award for his work on designing special effects for film and his degree is in Art Fines but he also studied Art History.  Another friend designs fabrics for Fendi bags, and her degree is in Fine Art and she also studied Art History.  So many people who will be hiring you, they themselves value an Art History education which may make you seem more qualified in their eyes if you do too.

5. Assuming love art and have developed aesthetic tastes, taking three (3) extra art history courses would be a pleasure in itself. 

AH 1700 Prehistoric through Medieval Art

AH 1701 Renaissance through Contemporary Art

AH 3275 History of Photography

AH 3700 American Art

AH 3710 Renaissance Art (With permission of Design advisor, this may be an acceptable substitution for the Design requirement Modern Art History)

AH 3740 Modern Art

AH 3741 Contemporary Art

AH 3760 Medieval Art and Architecture

AH 3770 Greek and Roman Art and Architecture

AH 3771 Byzantine Art and Architecture

AH 3792 History of Western Architecture

AH 3793 Sacred Spaces

AH 3796 Modern American Latin American Art

AH 4000 Independent Study in Art History

AH 4200 Internship in Art History

AH 4700 Research Seminar in Art History

Internships in the arts are an excellent means of entering the multi-million dollar arts industry in the New York metropolitan area.  Kean students can receive 3 credits for their off-campus experience, by registering for AH*4200*02 (73465) ART HISTORY INTERNSHIP, which also counts as an elective toward the AH minor.  In some cases interns are also paid a salary or stipend. 

In the recent past, Kean students have interned at the Newark Museum, Alexander Gray Gallery, Visual Arts Center, Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum and more. For further information, contact Professor Lewis Kachur lkachur@kean.edu

Internships and Volunteer Opportunities

• Montclair Museum Summer Internship, Deadline: April 2, 2019
• 2019 Paid Summer Internship with Kreëmart , Deadline: April 1st, 2019
• Social Media Internship at Collective 131, Hoboken NJ, Deadline: March 31, 2019
• City Internships (Multiple available)
• The Morris County School of Glass Internship, 2 year, Paid, No glassblowing experience required
• please email ashukeyl@kean.edu for details
• City Internships, NY, NY (multiple available)
• Prospectus here, Application here
• Newark Museum Internship, Newark, NJ
• One River School  Internship
• Rubin Museum Job, Intern and Volunteer Opportunities (multiple available)
• The Jewish Museum Internships (multiple available)
• MoMA Internships Seasonal and longer 
• Volunteer or Intern at MANA Contemporary
• Volunteer at Grounds For Sculpture
• Guggenheim Internships  

Art History Alums in Current Internships

Art History student Jennifer Zuniga received a sponsored externship for 10 weeks in Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville, A