Creativity, a passion for hands-on work and a drive to cross boundaries and explore cultures— an Art and Art History major or minor will give you the skills to take these interests to new levels, whether as a form of personal expression or to enrich other fields of study. In an ever-increasing visual world, our Studio and Art History programs provide crucial tools for understanding the power of images, exploring why works of art are made and why art has played such a significant role in cultures and societies throughout history. Our students love their work here and have gone on to prosper in various jobs and graduate programs, whether it be in Art Therapy, museum work or street art.
This course introduces students to the rich and diverse visual cultures of African diasporic and African American art history. We will begin our study in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when African populations throughout the Atlantic world began to create new vibrant cultural practice in response to slavery and continues through the dynamic and self-affirming visual expressions created during the 20th and 21st centuries. We will encounter a broad set of visual practices including photography, painting, sculpture, and performance as we build a history of African diasporic visual arts.
ARTH 214 Methods in Art History
Students become curators in Art History Methods. Every year, students enrolled in Art History Methods curate an exhibition in Schmucker Art Gallery. They select objects from Gettysburg College’s fine arts collection, write catalogue essays, design, and install the exhibition. Students apply their newly-developed expertise in art-historical methodologies and theories to this engaged hands-on experience in the Gallery. See images from the “Methods of Nature.” Student publication:
Flora and Fauna in East Asian Art
ARTS 267 Special Topics: Intermediate Ceramics on the Wheel
Form innovation using the potter’s wheel is explored in depth. Visual design, aesthetic concept, and refining technique are emphasized within the functional and expressively non-functional form of pots.
Meaningful Pre-professional Student Roles
Work as a Gallery Attendant
Student Gallery Attendants have the opportunity to assist with community outreach and programming, including giving tours and facilitating workshops for local school groups and after school programs. They also assist in the installation and de-installation of exhibitions, publicity and social media announcements, and serve as docents. Contact gallery@gettysburg.edu for more information on applying for this position.
Become a Student Curator
Students enrolled in select art history courses, including “Methods of Art History,” “Art and Public Policy,” and “Wonders of Nature and Artifice: The Renaissance Quest for Knowledge,” have the opportunity to curate exhibitions in Schmucker Art Gallery. Recent exhibitions include The City: Art and the Urban Environment, Wonders of Nature and Artifice, and Flora and Fauna in East Asian Art. Students may also propose individual curatorial projects related to their research interests.
Exhibit Your Artwork
Students enrolled in Studio Art courses at Gettysburg College are invited to submit artwork to the annual Juried Student Exhibition. Email gallery@gettysburg.edu for Juried Student Exhibition entry forms or stop by Schmucker Art Gallery. Senior Studio Art Majors present their advanced capstone work in Schmucker Art Gallery each spring under the direction of Gettysburg College studio art faculty. All artists are also welcome to submit work to the Adams County Arts Council Juried Art Exhibition held in partnership with Schmucker Art Gallery each summer.
From curating shows to exhibiting your own work, we promote dynamic student research and creative activity by engaging the diverse and rich world of artistic expression. Working with objects first-hand is key, with numerous field trips to major museums in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. as well as an extended visit to New York City.
Schmucker Art Gallery provides students the chance to learn the ropes behind Gallery and Museum work, whether as student workers, part of a class or as curators themselves.
West Gallery
West Gallery provides a convenient and flexible exhibition space near the Painting and Drawing Studios, used for works that range from introductory classes to professional artists and where students can also serve as curators.
Art House
Art House is a College House centered around celebrating the arts on campus. Its mission is to promote art programs and establish a stronger artistic community on the Gettysburg College campus as well as local Gettysburg.
ARTEM
Artem is an art and art history club focused on community interaction with the arts. Artem seeks to connect students to art opportunities on campus and offers a creative space for students to meet.
From curating shows to exhibiting your own work, we promote dynamic student research and creative activity by engaging the diverse and rich world of artistic expression. Working with objects first-hand is key, with numerous field trips to major museums in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. as well as an extended visit to New York City.
Schmucker Art Gallery
West Gallery
Art House
ARTEM