Seeking Advice for Classical Greece Art & Archaeology Programs....with just a hint of Italian Renaissance

[LorenzoilMagnifico]

Hello all! I am an undergrad senior currently looking around for potential MA or PhD programs to apply to for the Fall 2014 school year, in the areas of Classical Art and Archaeology (mostly pertaining to Classical Greece and the Ancient Aegean), or Italian Renaissance/Mannerism. Ideally, I would love to end up in Johns Hopkins' Classical Art and Archaeology PhD program, but I was wondering if anyone had any ideas of schools that are strong in both Italian and Ancient Greek art history, and any professors that make these schools particularly worthwhile.

 

Thanks for any advice you can send my way, as it will help this rather overwhelming search!

 

 

 

 

 

[JosephineB]

You will need to narrow your focus A LOT by choosing one area over the other. The span of time and language between these two subjects makes it impossible to study both. One option you might look into though would be to combine your interests and look at something along the lines of "survival of greek antiquity in the Renaissance" (or similar..).  

[condivi]

You will need to narrow your focus A LOT by choosing one area over the other. The span of time and language between these two subjects makes it impossible to study both. One option you might look into though would be to combine your interests and look at something along the lines of "survival of greek antiquity in the Renaissance" (or similar..).  

There's no reason this person couldn't do a secondary field in Italian Renaissance with a major field in Ancient Greece. In fact, I think those two fields go nicely together. "Lorenzo" is not saying, as far as I can tell, that he wants specialize in BOTH! But it's true, Lorenzo--if you want to study Classical art, pick a school that's strong in that area--they're rare enough--and then think about your options for doing some work in the Renaissance.

[JosephineB]

There's no reason this person couldn't do a secondary field in Italian Renaissance with a major field in Ancient Greece. In fact, I think those two fields go nicely together. "Lorenzo" is not saying, as far as I can tell, that he wants specialize in BOTH! But it's true, Lorenzo--if you want to study Classical art, pick a school that's strong in that area--they're rare enough--and then think about your options for doing some work in the Renaissance.

A (potential) issue here, IMO, is that Renaissance is such a popular, flooded field. A secondary concentration in Renaissance Art is unlikely to be an asset on the job market in the same way that something such as African or Asian might be. It doesn't matter though, because there isn't a reason for the OP (at this stage in the game) to be thinking about what he wants his quals to be on. He needs to be admitted first.  

 

Also, it doesn't matter how genuine your focus in each area is - an SOP that states an interest in two fields that are so far apart will only make you look green and unfocused. You don't want to hand the adcom a reason to discount your application!

 

My advisor has told me that she gets about 5 applications a year that she barely even has to read because the SOPs are so sprawling and unfocused that they would never be seriously considered by the adcom. 

 

OP, strong Renaissance art historians are a dime a dozen, whereas hellenists are not. If you are serious about studying ancient greek art you need to tailor your applications to that field. Do you read Attic Greek? 

[Shelley Burian]

Emory University has (as far as I can tell, I barely survived my Greek art seminar here last fall) an excellent Classical program, although the professor, Bonna Wescoat is more an architectural historian. She runs the excavations on the island of Samothrace. We also have a large focus on Baroque/Renaissance Italy, especially Rome.

[LorenzoilMagnifico]

Thanks to everyone who has responded thus far!

 

Condivi was right in their reading that I would like to do my emphasis on Classical Art. The fact of the matter is that, like everyone else, I hold a particular fondess for the Italian Renaissance, and I would like to take some quality classes and possibly minor in the subject if I so desired. Overall though, my heart lies in Greece.

 

A (potential) issue here, IMO, is that Renaissance is such a popular, flooded field. A secondary concentration in Renaissance Art is unlikely to be an asset on the job market in the same way that something such as African or Asian might be. It doesn't matter though, because there isn't a reason for the OP (at this stage in the game) to be thinking about what he wants his quals to be on. He needs to be admitted first.  

 

Also, it doesn't matter how genuine your focus in each area is - an SOP that states an interest in two fields that are so far apart will only make you look green and unfocused. You don't want to hand the adcom a reason to discount your application!

 

My advisor has told me that she gets about 5 applications a year that she barely even has to read because the SOPs are so sprawling and unfocused that they would never be seriously considered by the adcom. 

 

OP, strong Renaissance art historians are a dime a dozen, whereas hellenists are not. If you are serious about studying ancient greek art you need to tailor your applications to that field. Do you read Attic Greek? 

 

JosephineB, I really appreciated your comment - I should present myself as focused and serious on my applications, so that is a valuable piece of advice. I do in fact read Attic Greek, as the language itself was one of the reasons I decided to study its contemporary art.

 

Again, thanks for everyone's advice!

 

[fullofpink]

https://services.collegeart.org/eweb/DynamicPage.aspx?WebCode=CAA_Dir_SearchDir

 

The CAA directories has made their list searchable; it's very easy to navigate and find a particular program you are interested in! A bit of a cost, but definitely poss to gather names