Art History and Architecture
- Affords Visits to NYC Museums and Galleries
- Examines All Media
- Explores Style, Movements, and Forms
These courses provide a forum for exploring the world of art—from ancient artifacts and ruins to contemporary painters and photographers. You will tour New York City’s renowned museums and galleries with art historians and museum professionals, as you develop an understanding of the history, cultural context, and aesthetics of art movements and trends.
This Summer, study from anywhere in the world in the safety and comfort of your home through online or remote instruction.
Art Styles Through the Ages
Develop your eye for and your understanding of painting, sculpture, and architecture by building a foundation in the history of art.
Artists of Black Mountain College: From Merce Cunningham to the de Koonings
Learn about the artistic movement inspired by Black Mountain College in North Carolina and the experimental school’s impact on famous artists.
From Rembrandt to Richter: A Million-Dollar Odyssey
Go behind the scenes and learn secrets about the legendary Rembrandt to Richter auction at Sotheby’s.
Imagining the East: From Architecture to the Decorative Arts
Explore Middle Eastern influences on fine art, decorative art, and architecture.
Islamic Art History
Join us for a visual journey into the riches of the arts of the Islamic world.
It Couldn't Have Happened Without Them: Women Who Shaped the Course of Modern Art
Learn about the women directors, collectors, and patrons who helped to shape modern art.
The Art Scene
Explore New York City’s museums and galleries virtually to gain insight into the meaning of and inspiration for today’s art.
The Art of Presentation: Portraits of (Famous) Women
Explore how artists have depicted women in art, from Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa to contemporary photography.
The Modern City: Art in New York, 1900-1950
Take a fresh look at New York City through the eyes of America’s greatest artists.
The Radical Strangeness of Philip Guston
Explore the work and life of Philip Guston in advance of his controversial retrospective Philip Guston Now.
Behind the Scenes in New York: Preserving a City of Historic Neighborhoods
Gain a community-based view of how neighborhoods use the New York City Landmarks Law to determine the future of their communities.
Understanding Traditional Architecture
Learn to identify architectural styles, to put a rough date on any building you see in New York, and to name the parts and details of buildings.
Understanding the Art Market: Will Art Survive?
Gain an understanding of how the global art market operates and examine how business is conducted.
American Women Artists: The Rise to Professionalism, 1845-1945
Explore the art and careers of extraordinary American women artists from 1845 to 1945.
Art Deco New York: Architects in Their Own Words
Learn about art deco architecture in New York City with an insider’s look at the work of three architects.
Art and Architecture of Morocco and Muslim Spain
Explore the art and architecture of Morocco and southern Spain, formed by a fusion of Berber, Arab, Portuguese, French, Roman, and Spanish culture.
Contemporary Figurative Painting: From Lynette Yiadom-Boakye to Luc Tuymans and Kerry James Marshall
Get to know the artists who are leading today’s figurative painting movement.
Dishing the Dirt on Artists: From Renaissance to Modern Art
Learn about artists’ lives and famous artworks in this entertaining trip through art history.
Forever Young: Great Artists Who Left Us Prematurely
Explore the masterpieces, legacies, and mysteries of famous artists who died young.
Frozen Time: The Art of Still Life
Explore the development of the still life genre and some of history’s greatest still life masterpieces.
Rembrandt, van Gogh, Kahlo: Masters of Self-Examination
Explore the art of self-portraiture through the works of Rembrandt van Rijn, Vincent van Gogh, and Frida Kahlo.
The History of Interiors: From Classical to Contemporary Design
Learn about the history of interior design and its evolution over time.
Venice Through the Eyes of Artists
Explore Venice through the eyes of the famous artists who lived and visited there.
Women Artists from the Renaissance to the Pre-Raphaelites
Learn about notable women artists from the Renaissance to the Pre-Raphaelites.
Seeing Things Our Way: Art as Propaganda
Explore how art has been used as propaganda from early Greece to the United States in the 20th century.
The Art and Architecture of Sicily: Byzantine, Islamic, and Northern European Influences
Explore the multicultural history, art, and architecture of Sicily.
Nazi-Looted Art
Learn about the systematic looting of art by Nazis across Europe from 1933 to 1945, especially of Jewish collections as a mechanism of persecution.
Surrealism: The Women Artists of Mexico and Latin America
Learn about the surrealist women artists of Latin America and their impact on 20th-century art.
Preservation Planning and Practice
Receive a comprehensive introduction to preservation planning in New York City.
Ancient and Islamic Jewelry
Explore the history of jewelry, from Neolithic times to the Persian shahs of the 20th century.
Connoisseurship: Behind the Scenes
Deepen your knowledge of the art world by exploring the physical qualities of artworks and famous art scams.
Contemporary Architecture, 1990 to Present
Explore the most important developments in architecture since the 1990s—ideas, ideologies, projects, buildings, and cities.
Friendships and Rivalries in Modern Art
Explore the roles that friendship and rivalry had in inspiring modern art’s greatest masterpieces.
Great Architecture of 20th-Century New York
Explore important architectural styles and buildings of 20th-century New York City.
Modernism: From Expressionism and Fauvism to Abstract Expressionism
Explore major movements that defined and shaped art in the 20th century and still influence art produced today.
Monet's Cities: Paris, London, Venice, and Giverny
Explore Monet’s art and the locations that inspired him.
Pivotal Early Works by Great Artists
Explore the early works of famous artists that would change art history.
The Bauhaus: Modernism in Art, Architecture, and Design
Explore the historical, aesthetic, and ideological background of the Bauhaus.
The Met at 150
In honor of its 150th anniversary, learn about the history of The Metropolitan Museum of Art from its founding in 1870 to present day.
The Russian Century: Art from 1917 to 2017
Explore the history of Russian art from the avant-garde movement of the early 20th century to the nonconformist art of the later Soviet era.
Velázquez, Rembrandt, Vermeer: The Golden Age of Painting
Learn about the artistic achievements of Spain and the Netherlands and discover unexpected affinities among its legendary artists.
Contemporary Photography: From Markus Brunetti to Mickalene Thomas
Learn about prominent contemporary photographers and the stylistic approaches they use to depict the human body, architecture, and other subjects.
Islamic Art History: A Focus on Cairo
Explore the history, architecture, and artistic importance of Cairo.
Changing Standards in Historic Preservation
This course examines what we seek to preserve and why, including the ever-changing standards in historic preservation.
Reading and Interpreting Construction Documents: Architectural
Learn the fundamentals of reading construction documents, as well as specific symbols and features used in architectural construction documents.
The Changing City: Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
In eight illustrated lectures, see how New York neighborhoods change with the times, and how the look of the City itself changes.