Southwestern offers multiple international travel opportunities to Art History majors, including a summer study in Stabiae, where Professor Thomas Howe is the Excavation Director at the Garden of the Great Peristyle of the Villa Arianna. Others study in Peru, China, Russia, Europe and more. Southwestern also partners with national organizations to help students secure internships and placement in nationally renowned programs such as the New York Arts Program. 

The senior capstone at SU also provides a true interdisciplinary learning experience, where students choose their topics and teach a class of senior citizens as part of the “Senior University” partnership. By taking on a subject, researching, developing curriculum and presenting it to others, students have the opportunity to see learning firsthand. They prepare for and answer questions, which exposes them to other viewpoints and provides yet another opportunity to examine things from different perspective.

Art History majors at Southwestern have unique opportunities to learn from and travel with some of the top, most well-respected experts in the field. All our faculty are multilingual and have extensive international connections. For more information about our faculty, click here.

Study Abroad

Southwestern students get the chance to do archaeological fieldwork at Stabiae near Pompeii, Italy with Professor Thomas Howe during the summer their junior and senior year. 

In addition, Southwestern University, in collaboration with IES, has created a program in London, England specifically designed for Southwestern students. The SU London Program is a fifteen-week, sixteen-credit program for students who have attained at least sophomore status at the start of the program. 

Internships

Through association with the New York Arts Program, Southwestern has regularly been able to place qualified students in internships in the studios and offices of some of the most prominent artists, architects, museums and galleries in New York. 

The semester provides students a rare opportunity to serve in apprenticeships and to gain experience in the world of the established professional artist and/or arts institution. Participants spend a semester sharing the experiences of professional writers, performers, artists, and media groups representing all fields of fine and commercial art.

Each student has a faculty advisor in New York who teaches an Area Study course and works closely with both the student and the student’s apprenticeship sponsor. Professional artists conduct specially designed courses dealing with current issues in the arts. Applicants should plan to visit New York City for interviews to secure an apprenticeship. Students reside in the program’s five-story dormitory/office town house in Chelsea, a residential area of Manhattan.

In addition to the New York Arts Program, Southwestern’s Career Services department helps place students in internships across the country. Learn more about internships specific to art history. 

Organizations

The Student Art Association promotes interest in the visual arts and provides artistic growth for students of the arts. u do not have to major in the arts to be a member of this association. This group meets to show art films, plan for trips to exhibitions, discuss theories of art, and hold events that promote the visual arts. In the past they have organized bus trips to see major exhibitions in Dallas, Ft. Worth, and Houston, Texas.

For more information, contact faculty advisor, Patrick Hajovsky.