any ideas on what i could base my 'history of art' dissertation on for my degree course?

Question

any important or interesting issues in art history that should be discussed, talked or debated about? any chance i could compare and contrast issues of past times to present in i.e. paintings or design wise. i am a graphic design student by the way so rather than paintings, i would be more focused on design, product design and graphic design or typography that piantings etc. any ideas? thanks.

Answer 1

surely having done two years (at least) of the course you should have a better idea than us?

Answer 2

Product design would be a fun one. I ran across a couple of books in the library the other day -- kind of coffee table books -- that showed all the packaging of popular American products for about the last 200 years. No idea what the titles were, but you could ask a librarian to help you track them down. They were surrounded by other pop-culture books, so there must be a section for that kind of thing.
You could flip through some old magazines/newspapers and look at how ad design has changed, too.

Answer 3

If you want to go way back, then art started as long ago as when cave men painted pictures on cavern walls.
They didnt know that thousands of years later when it was discovered, it was going to be called "art", to them it was just a way of expressing their everyday life.

Art comes in many forms.. its not just pictures or paintings, it can be in the form of modelling,sculpture, even buildings design .
Its the way people view different aspects of life. Its the way people view their aspects of being who they are as an individual.
You can look at a picture painted by Van Gogh and one by Bob Ross. They have their own style, their own way of painting. and also in the way of painters moods change how the interpret life as well. If you look at Picasso,s work you can see the way his work changes as he grew older and his life and all around him changed.
If you look at pictures of the Queen, for instance, some of those are downright aweful, but are art non the less, as the person who painted them did it in their own creative style.
These days, anything weird or out of the ordinary, if it is put on show, is called "art". to me, personally, its not, I think sometimes its just a way to try and gain recognition
You can look at the "exhibits" they put in the museums, some of which are so odd its not very clear how they can call it art,(i.e. the dead cow upside down in a glass case, or the bricks set up in an oblong) but art it is to the person who made it.
.
If you look at some of the architecture around you, they have all been designed according to the designers attributes. The Eiffel Tower, the Sydney Opera House etc.
Even designers of clothes haf to have an artistic view otherwise everything they do would be the same year in year out,
so you see art has many different guises.
Take a look around you, Art is everywhere.

Hope this helps.
.

Answer 4

I have always been interested in how artists in ancient societies were often the great sages and seers in a community. People went to them for answers. The cave artists and people who carved totem poles held a place of high esteem in a community. What has happened to that notion? We (maybe I should say some) are now more likely to worship Britney S, Tom C. and Howard Stern, not the struggling artist who creates sculptures, or paintings or drawings.

Answer 5

You will need a section addressing how technology has advanced the world of graphic design. I say this as a general area, but there are many smaller sections that can be added to the paper, such as computer programs used, etc.

Answer 6

Development of art movements in America compared to Europe after the WW1. Artist that went to America develop different movements styles (why) William De conning etc.. To artists that stayed in Europe Picasso etc.. Why there where so many Artists in America at that time, what were the government doing. What was happening in Europe after impressionism.

Answer 7

Derek Riggs.com He is the artist who developed Eddie, Iron Maidens Mascot. Eddie is nothing more than a picture yet millions of fans have developed some type of affinity with him. also look ironmaiden.com. Give you good slant on art in the modern era

Answer 8

You could write about how Japanese art influenced French impressionist painters in the late 19th Century. I visited Monet's Normandy house in Giverney and he had collected many Japanese artwork in his life time and was greatly influenced by the sparse style. Also Monet wasn't the only impressionist influenced by Japanese art.

Answer 9

Well, as you are a Muslim, why not do it on Muslim art? There's a wide range of styles and colours there, that's what I'd do mine on (if I was in your position)