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Art History Major/Minor

Class Photo:  ARTHIST 208B: The Art of Medieval Spain: Muslims, Christians, Jews

(2014) ARTHIST 208B: The Art of Medieval Spain: Muslims, Christians, Jews

Art History Major

Suggested Preparation For The Major

Students considering a major in art history should take either  ARTHIST 1A Introduction to the Visual Arts: Prehistoric through Medieval  or ARTHIST 1B Introduction to the Visual Arts: History of Western Art from the Renaissance to the Present, during their freshman or sophomore year.

Fields Of Study and Degree Options

Students who wish to declare the major in Art History do so on Axess. Concentrations within the major are approved by the faculty adviser and are not declared on Axess. Sample concentrations include:

  • Topical concentrations: art and gender; art, politics, race, and ethnicity; art, science, and technology; urban studies
  • Genre concentrations: architecture; painting; sculpture; film studies; prints and media; decorative arts and material culture
  • Historical and national concentrations: ancient and medieval; Renaissance and early modern; modern and contemporary; America; Africa; Asia; the Americas
  • Interdisciplinary concentrations: art and literature; art and history; art and religion; art and economics; art and medicine (with adviser consent a maximum of two concentration courses may be taken outside the department).

Degree Requirements

For the most up to date information about requirements for the Art History major, please click the link below to the Stanford Bulletin. 

BA Art History Degree Requirements


Art History Minor

A student declaring a minor in Art History must complete 25 units of course work in one of the following four tracks: Open, Modern, Asian, or Architecture. Upon declaring the minor, students are assigned a faculty adviser with whom they plan their course of study and electives. A proposed course of study must be approved by the faculty adviser and placed in the student's departmental file. Only one class may be taken for credit outside of the Stanford campus; this includes courses taken in the Overseas Studies Program. Minors are required to attend an orientation session presented by the professional staff of the Art and Architecture Library, which introduces the tools of research and reference available on campus and through the Internet. This requirement should be completed no later than the quarter following the declaration of the minor.

Degree Requirements

For the most up to date information about requirements for the Art History minor, please click the link below to the Stanford Bulletin. 

Art History Minor Degree Requirements