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Art & Art History

Art stands at the intersection of culture, politics, religion and philosophy, making it an ideal place from which to understand the liberal arts and the world at large.

At Dickinson, the Department of Art & Art History offers students two tracks for study: studio art and art history. Both concentrations foster rigorous, critical investigation through active processes of learning in which students connect historical discourse with an engagement of art from multiple contemporary perspectives.

The senior year capstone experience allows studio and art history majors to pursue intensive, original research in their respective concentrations. Senior studio majors, benefiting from individual studio spaces, each create a body of work for an exhibition in The Trout Gallery accompanied by a museum catalog they create.

Senior art history majors undertake advanced scholarly research in co-curating and producing a published museum catalog for an exhibition in the Trout Gallery drawn from works in the college's permanent collection or from work lent by established galleries and museums.

Contact Info

Chair

Melinda SchlittProfessor of Art History

Department Coordinator

Michele Karper

Phone

717-254-8705

Fax

717-245-1937

Social Media

Location

Rm. 226 , Weiss Center for the Arts Mailing Address

Department Gallery

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Student Outcomes

Where Our Students Go From Here

Jobs

  • One River School of Art + Design  
  • American Folk Art Museum 
  • New York Public Library 
  • Children’s Museum of New York 
  • The Pennsylvania State University 
  • Philadelphia Museum of Art 
  • National Gallery of Art  
  • National Museum of American History 
  • Michener Museum of Art 
  • Barnes Foundation 
  • Museum of Modern Art 
  • Sotheby's  

Graduate Schools

  • Columbia University 
  • SUNY Purchase 
  • Lewis & Clark  
  • University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 
  • Cranbrook, Academy of Art 
  • SAIC (School of the Art Institute of Chicago) 
  • University College of London, Slade School of Fine Art 
  • Virginia Commonwealth University 
  • New York University, School of Law 
  • McGill University 
  • University of Toronto 
  • Yale University 
  • Harvard University 
  • Rhode Island School of Design 
  • Boston University 
  • MICA (Maryland Institute of Contemporary Art) 
  • PAFA (Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts) 
  • University of Delaware 
  • UPenn 
  • Temple University 
  • The Courtauld 
  • University of Maryland, College Park
  • Cardiff University
Where Our Students Have Interned
  • Atlantic Records 
  • The Biscuit Factory 
  • New York Arts Practicum 
  • Metropolitan Museum of Art 
  • Whitney Museum of Art 
  • Philadelphia Fabric Workshop and Museum  
  • Princeton University Art Museum 
  • Wadsworth Athenaeum 
  • Philadelphia Mural Arts 
  • State Museum of Harrisburg  
  • Brandywine River Museum of Art 
  • Hirschl & Adler Galleries, Inc. 
  • Christie’s  

Department Features


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Study Abroad
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Current Courses
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Artist in Residence

Artist in Residence

Warith Taha is a visual artist from Oakland, Calif. Working primarily through the medium of painting, Warith creates work that addresses his Black queer relationship to time, space and material.


Student Perspective

"Art history is the ultimate liberal art. Through studying art, we are able to learn about history, politics, economics and trade, religion, culture, philosophy, languages, architecture, environmental studies, music and more! All of the art-history faculty have different concentrations, and the variety of courses in the major gives students exposure to diverse art forms spanning numerous continents and millennia. The faculty also have high expectations and push students to produce their best work."

—Xenia Makosky ’24


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Art & Art History News

All News Department News
Bold Stories, New Perspectives, Lasting Impressions

Bold Stories, New Perspectives, Lasting Impressions

Our fall arts lineup includes a whimsical trip to the attic, boundary-bending dance, acclaimed Indigenous art, music inspired by protests, a Pan-African flute, an augmented film screening and more.

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Smithsonian American Art Museum Internship With Abigail Allport

Smithsonian American Art Museum Internship With Abigail Allport '26

The art history and Chinese double major gets an inside look at curatorial work in one of the country’s most prestigious museums.

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The Impact of Multiple Forces and Ideas

The Impact of Multiple Forces and Ideas

Professor of Art Todd Arsenault ’99 drives his students to make disparate connections and bring what they discover to the studio.

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Dickinson Faculty Collaborate on Award-Winning Documentary

Dickinson Faculty Collaborate on Award-Winning Documentary

A powerful new documentary is earning film festival honors for its insider's perspective of the global refugee crisis and the war in Ukraine.

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How Community Shapes Student Art at Dickinson

How Community Shapes Student Art at Dickinson

"It's a very rewarding feeling, seeing all of our work displayed and knowing that we are all proud of what we put together," says Catarina Acosta '25. The secret sauce? A strong sense of community.

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Near at Hand: A Second Look

Near at Hand: A Second Look

Have you checked out the 2025 Senior Art History Methods exhibition yet? Here’s a closer look at this unique showcase of student research and faculty work.

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