ARTH201 | PlanetTerp

Information	Review
Tony Cui ARTH201 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/10/2024	I think Cui is an amazing professor. I took ARTH201 for a gen ed requirement, but history is not my favorite subject at all so learning some of the content was tedious. However, I still came out of this course with a deeper appreciation for artworks and art history. He talks for the entire lecture, but you can tell he is definitely passionate about art history. I really like he wants his students to analyze art and value originality instead of only focusing on memorizing artworks' titles and artists (though you may need to memorize for the midterm and final exam). The information and skills I learned from his class were meaningful, especially when I went to the National Gallery of Art in DC and applied what I learned in class. You can also tell he really cares about his students. For our final essay, we had to do essay consultations. I requested to do the consultation at the National Gallery (which he gave the option to do so) and he made the effort to show up and provided extra resources to help me write my essay, which I think is a testament to his dedication and thoughtfulness.
Tony Cui ARTH201 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/05/2024	ARTH201 with Cui is the best class I have ever taken. He makes each lecture so interesting and you can tell that he is so passionate about the subject and cares so much about his students. He is always making fun references to movies and pop-culture that make Renaissance and other art fun and easy to understand. He is always available to help you and give feedback and was so understanding and fair with the grading of every assignment. There were readings and pre-lecture assignments for each class, but they were straightforward and fun. He is very open to originality and hearing your opinion both in class and for assignments. As long as you think about the topics creatively you will get a good grade, for most art there isn't a wrong answer. Even if you are not interested in Art History I would take this class just to gain an understanding of art and how it has shaped the Western World and to have a class with him as your professor.
Tony Cui ARTH201 Expecting a B Anonymous 12/05/2024	I had Cui for ARTH201 during the fall semester, and I genuinely really enjoyed his classes and teachings. You can tell he really enjoys what he does, and he's very knowledgeable on the topics and clearly conveys the information to the class. Theres only 2 exams in the semester, and he gives plentiful resources and study tools to help you succeed. Overall, he's a really nice and understanding teacher, so I really recommend taking one of his classes.
Patricia Ortega-Miranda ARTH201 Expecting a B Anonymous 10/29/2024	she is one of the worst professors i have ever had. she is rude and condescending. her lectures are hard to follow and i learn next to nothing (despite being interested in the topic, and otherwise being a great teacher). avoid taking her class if you are able. i have never really had a strong opinion on a professor before dealing with her.
Joshua Shannon ARTH201 Expecting a B+ Anonymous 12/12/2023	doesn't provide notes or explanations to anything online. slides only have pictures of art and topics arent listed so missing lecture is a huge setback. not to mention the fact that he is so bad at his job
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/08/2023	I wouldn't suggest taking this course unless you have a genuine interest in art history. It's very lecture heavy and can get boring. Prof. Copeman does a good job of giving lots of feedback on work which is helpful. Still don't reccomend taking this unless you are really interested in the subject and want to spend a lot of your week on the work. Final project, final presentation, and final exam was a lot. Not worth the stress.
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/24/2023	I took this course over winter semester, and it was very smooth. Not many assignments, but prepare for a lot of lectures (about 2 hours a day) and a short discussion. She was a very good speaker and always gave lengthy feedback for every single assignment. I do not like art history, but she saved the topic for me and made it bearable.
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 01/11/2023	Not. bad.
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 01/05/2023	Lecture heavy and probably a little complicated for a gen ed. Super thorough lectures and listens to students regarding amount of work (increased amount of assignments that could be skipped). She's very accommodating and helpful.
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A- Anonymous 01/03/2023	Lectures can get a bit confusing at times because Copeman does like to expand on themes.. even though theres already limited notes on the slides as is. Not a harsh grader at all but be sure to have an understanding of the concepts by exam time because there are short essays. This class is honestly not hard to keep up with because everything is posted on elms and the due dates for assignments are repetitive.
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/16/2022	Grading is weird. Has extra credit on her exams but if you get the extra credit wrong then she takes actual points from your score even though it's not required to answer so you basically lose more than you should. Just a complicated class for a gen ed. Don't recommend taking this class unless you really enjoy art or it's required.
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting an A- Anonymous 12/13/2022	Colantuono was a decent professor with a lot of insight in to the world of Art History. The lectures were interesting for the most part, but I feel like there wasn't enough time to dive deeper into information on art pieces. I'm an art major and I believe quality over quantity. I would say Colantuono did his best with presenting information on pieces. I did enjoy his class and I would definitely recommend it, however, do not expect an A if you do not study or open your eyes and mind to art.
Zoe Copeman ARTH201 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/08/2022	Prof. Copeman is very thorough in her lectures, though she does read off a script which can be engaging at times. However, they do their best to make the content interesting and relatable. She also gives a good amount of homework, but she is accommodating if the class comes to a consensus about the workload. Midterms and final are memorization-heavy, but she does allow a single, double-sided cheat sheet for exams. If you like art history, you will be fine.
Abigail Upshaw ARTH201 Expecting an F Anonymous 06/09/2022	one of the harshest critiques I have ever had. If your paragraph structure doesn't fit her bill, or if you don't use "her" evidence automatic deduction to your grade. Highly recommend any other class!!
Kathleen Altizer ARTH201 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 02/20/2022	Professor Altizer is a really great professor. Attending class is super important, otherwise you miss a lot of content that is necessary to do well on the quizzes and exams. There were also extra credit opportunities which were easily doable. Prof. Altizer is incredibly well-versed in the subject and is super warm and nice if you show that you put forth effort. It is a history class, so expect a lot of raw memorization; however, if you're interested in art and/or history this shouldn't be a miserable class. I would definitely take more classes like this.
Kathleen Altizer ARTH201 Expecting an A+ Anonymous 12/03/2021	Really nice! The quizzes can be tricky but her extra credit and easy grading on writings makes it not a big deal. Tests are straight forward, just memorize your notes.
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/24/2020	Professor Mansbach is great, but the class organization (at least online) has led to quite a difficult time. Mansbach is a lovely professor with a fantastic voice, and he has a beautiful passion for art history. I really enjoyed listening to his lectures. On the other hand, at least online the class was not organized well. It was entirely run by the TA's, and I often felt that grading could be arbitrary (and often took over a month). I ended up with an A, but I know a lot of people did not but probably deserved one. In general, quality of writing is a huge deal on the midterm and final exam, so keep this in mind if you're considering taking the class as a gen-ed. If you cannot write well you almost certainly will not get an A in this class. Getting an A requires a strong understanding and memory of important compositional elements and to be able to apply them to various time periods and styles well. This class is not easy but it is very rewarding. I know so much more about art now, and I am very thankful to Professor Mansbach for that gift.
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2019	Professor Mansbach was an awesome professor whose passion and knowledge are evident in his lectures. Like others mentioned, he's quite eloquent and poetic in his descriptions of paintings, but they only help the student in remembering specific phrases and vocabulary for those specific paintings. This class is only graded on 5 factors: participation in discussion, two midterms, a paper (you have to go to the national gallery of art to view a painting), and a final exam. He gives around 40 paintings to memorize per midterm, but most of the content consists of understanding the context/history of what was going on at that time and how that affected art, so the textbook is key for that. I don't know if it was like this for other semesters, but he was pretty lenient on grading, especially if he saw improvement in the student's work. I usually studied by just memorizing the paintings dates/names and reading the textbook a few days before. His TA Tony was also super cool. He was always available to help students and constantly encouraged us to do our best. Take this class if u wanna broaden ur mind ahahha
Abigail Upshaw ARTH201 Expecting a B Anonymous 05/30/2019	Abby is really sweet and knows her material very well. If you need any additional help on exam reviews or final paper, just go to her office hours and she is glad to help. However, this class requires too much memorization for a Gen Ed course(dates, artists, name of the piece and its significance) and it's also test-heavy. Also, the lecture could be intense at times because she speaks pretty fast. If you aren't interested in Art History, I would suggest you choose another Gen Ed course.
Abigail Upshaw ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/13/2019	She was a good professor, very nice and clear about topics. She even let us send her rough drafts of our final paper to look over. But ngl, the class content itself sucked. It was so boring and pointless, and it was a pretty hard class for a gen ed
June Hargrove ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 01/27/2014	Professor Hargrove's a good lecturer! She really cares about the subject and about teaching. They tell you to read the book, but honestly you can probably get an A as long as you go to every lecture and take good notes. You memorize a crap load of paintings, but the test only covers a few--pay attention to the ones she goes on about the most in class, she's more likely to pick those. Grade comes down to two midterms, an essay that involves a visit to the Gallery, participation in discussion, a few quizzes, and the final. Very reasonable workload if you want to get rid of a GenEd. TA's (Abby and Kathleen) are good
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Expecting a B wombat 05/15/2012	Great professor. Tremendous speaking voice that can hold your attention for the entire class period. He does have a tendency to use vocabulary which might be unfamiliar to some, as well as get a bit poetic with his descriptions of works, to the extent that it becomes confusing what one ought to write down / commit to memory and what one ought to simply let soak in. However, he balances that out by making it crystal clear which artists / works are peripheral and which ones you should probably remember. Nine times out of ten, those are the works you will see on the exams, especially on the final. That's not to say you shouldn't remember the others, because being able to recall lesser-known but no less relevant works in your essays is always a plus. As another reviewer mentioned, the professor / TA's place emphasis on knowing the socio-political context in which the various Western art movements formed and flourished, and not at all on rote memorization of slides, dates and whatnot. There were all too many exam essays where I couldn't recall the name of the work, nor the artist, nor the date - heck there were even paintings that I had never seen before because I had missed that particular class - but I never received anything less than a "B" on an in-class essay (they grade to the "C" as being average) simply because I talked about the work in the context of its time period / art movement and the stylistic trappings of that era. So, if you're not good with names, dates, etc, don't sweat it and take Steven Mansbach's class! I guarantee it will be an interesting and enriching experience.
June Hargrove ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/26/2011	If you like art &/or history this is the class for you. As a CORE, it is a reasonable amount of work, while maintaining its integrity as a very interesting and engaging class. Keep in mind there is a lot of memorization- if you aren't interested in art, this part can get old very fast. Hargrove is great though- and TA's are, for the most part, great. ps-DO NOT let your phone ring/ open cans of soda/ open the door at the front of the hall during lecture. Lecturer will not be happy.
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/28/2011	There is a LOT of memorization and a LOT of Christianity in this class -- perhaps even more so than in other Art History classes! I don't like either one of those things, but I still enjoyed the class because Dr. Colantuono is such a wonderful professor. His lectures complement the textbook quite beautifully and it's always fascinating to hear him talk. (He is a dynamic speaker and uses just the right amount of humor.) This class has also helped me understand and appreciate literature and philosophy. If you're intellectually curious then you can't do any better than Dr. Colantuono!
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting a B Anonymous 04/28/2011	Professor was enthusiastic and definitally knew the material, but for a CORE HA requirement, I would NOT recommend this class. There is massive amounts of straight up memorization, and overall far too much effort for an HA requirement. For art majors, however, this class was appropriate.
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Expecting an A- Anonymous 01/17/2011	Dr. Mansbach is hands down the best professor I have had so far. He is a great lecturer and the class material is really interesting. He and the TA's do a lot to help you out and get a good grade. The hardest part of any art history class is slide id's, especially for a course that covers so much material like this one. Dr. Mansbach, however, puts almost no emphasis on actually knowing the name and date of a painting (I got A's on all of the exams and correctly identified maybe half of the art works). The only slide id's we had to do were in discussion, and they were broken into a few weeks worth of lecture material at a time, so they weren't that bad.
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Anonymous 12/29/2010	He is easily one of the best professors and lecturers I have had so far that I actually looked forward to coming to lectures. He has a nice voice and is very clear and organized. However, the class requires a lot of work for a 200 level course and you will have to work hard for a good grade.
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/21/2010	Take. This. Class.
Steven Mansbach ARTH201 Expecting a B rose11 12/20/2010	Professor Mansbach is one of the best professors I have taken at Maryland. He is so enthusiastic; it was enjoyable coming to lecture and listening to him. The course is difficult. There are A LOT of paintings to memorize and it is difficult to remember all of the information about each stylistic time period. Assignments consisted of two exams, three quizzes, one paper, and the final. Lyndsay Bratton was a great TA. She was helpful in clarifying the concepts and wanted her students to do well. This was a very interesting course for a HA core, but it involves work so be prepared to study.
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 04/09/2010	I like Dr. Colantuono. He talks pretty fast and it is important to take notes during the lectures. So be awake! It is also helpful to read the textbooks because one part of the exams is writing a comparative essay between two given art works. You need to include stuff from both the textbooks and the lectures. It is VERY annoying to memorize all the dates. There are a lot of paintings to remember. But it is an interesting class. I think TA is also important because I think I got A because of the discussion section.
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 12/09/2009	He is an amazing lecturer really eloquent stuff. its always interesting listening to him talk and he obviously knows art history like the backside of his hand. He'll talk about the history and context behind the painting and then go in to analyzing the painting itself which he'll tie into the philosophy of the artist or art of that time. The class is not too difficult but i though it was interesting which helped. If you go to lecture and take good notes and study before exams you'll do well. Its annoying memorizing dates and patrons and stuff but not too difficult. Besides the exams there are quizzes in discussion and a 3 page paper.
June Hargrove ARTH201 Expecting a B kvizzle321 12/20/2008	Lectures are extremely boring. Gives a guideline of the painters and terms that you need to know. TA (Suzy) was great. Go to discussion for the valuable stuff. Grade comes down to 2 tests, a few quizzes, participation in discussion, and one paper where you have to go to the National Gallery. If you study well for the tests and cram in memorizing the paintings you will do well. The book is helpful but Hargrove is a very dry, annoyng lecturer. Very nice lady though. I rarely went to lectures and will get atleast a B (an A if i do well on the final)
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting an A Anonymous 11/06/2008	I disagree with the poster below. Dr. Colantuono was really a really good lecturer and really knew his stuff. He made Art History interesting for someone who only had to take it for an HA. Don't take it for an easy A though...you gotta put in the work, go to class, take notes (all the tests came from lecture, hardly used the book at all), study. There's a quiz in discussion every other week too which is annoying.
Anthony Colantuono ARTH201 Expecting an F Anonymous 04/04/2008	He is a tough cookie. I do not like the his exam style. And he is really specific about his term paper. If you have a great TA then you can probably do well and enjoy the class, I had Adam and he was a jerk unless you talk to him 1 on 1. So... do not take this class unless it is mandatory. And if you do, make sure its Majorie Venit or ... anyone but this dude!

Tony Cui
ARTH201

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/10/2024

I think Cui is an amazing professor. I took ARTH201 for a gen ed requirement, but history is not my favorite subject at all so learning some of the content was tedious. However, I still came out of this course with a deeper appreciation for artworks and art history. He talks for the entire lecture, but you can tell he is definitely passionate about art history. I really like he wants his students to analyze art and value originality instead of only focusing on memorizing artworks' titles and artists (though you may need to memorize for the midterm and final exam). The information and skills I learned from his class were meaningful, especially when I went to the National Gallery of Art in DC and applied what I learned in class. You can also tell he really cares about his students. For our final essay, we had to do essay consultations. I requested to do the consultation at the National Gallery (which he gave the option to do so) and he made the effort to show up and provided extra resources to help me write my essay, which I think is a testament to his dedication and thoughtfulness.

Tony Cui
ARTH201

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/05/2024

ARTH201 with Cui is the best class I have ever taken. He makes each lecture so interesting and you can tell that he is so passionate about the subject and cares so much about his students. He is always making fun references to movies and pop-culture that make Renaissance and other art fun and easy to understand. He is always available to help you and give feedback and was so understanding and fair with the grading of every assignment. There were readings and pre-lecture assignments for each class, but they were straightforward and fun. He is very open to originality and hearing your opinion both in class and for assignments. As long as you think about the topics creatively you will get a good grade, for most art there isn't a wrong answer. Even if you are not interested in Art History I would take this class just to gain an understanding of art and how it has shaped the Western World and to have a class with him as your professor.

Tony Cui
ARTH201

Expecting a B
Anonymous
12/05/2024

I had Cui for ARTH201 during the fall semester, and I genuinely really enjoyed his classes and teachings. You can tell he really enjoys what he does, and he's very knowledgeable on the topics and clearly conveys the information to the class. Theres only 2 exams in the semester, and he gives plentiful resources and study tools to help you succeed. Overall, he's a really nice and understanding teacher, so I really recommend taking one of his classes.

Patricia Ortega-Miranda
ARTH201

Expecting a B
Anonymous
10/29/2024

she is one of the worst professors i have ever had. she is rude and condescending. her lectures are hard to follow and i learn next to nothing (despite being interested in the topic, and otherwise being a great teacher). avoid taking her class if you are able. i have never really had a strong opinion on a professor before dealing with her.

Joshua Shannon
ARTH201

Expecting a B+
Anonymous
12/12/2023

doesn't provide notes or explanations to anything online. slides only have pictures of art and topics arent listed so missing lecture is a huge setback. not to mention the fact that he is so bad at his job

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/08/2023

I wouldn't suggest taking this course unless you have a genuine interest in art history. It's very lecture heavy and can get boring. Prof. Copeman does a good job of giving lots of feedback on work which is helpful. Still don't reccomend taking this unless you are really interested in the subject and want to spend a lot of your week on the work. Final project, final presentation, and final exam was a lot. Not worth the stress.

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/24/2023

I took this course over winter semester, and it was very smooth. Not many assignments, but prepare for a lot of lectures (about 2 hours a day) and a short discussion. She was a very good speaker and always gave lengthy feedback for every single assignment. I do not like art history, but she saved the topic for me and made it bearable.

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
01/11/2023

Not. bad.

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
01/05/2023

Lecture heavy and probably a little complicated for a gen ed. Super thorough lectures and listens to students regarding amount of work (increased amount of assignments that could be skipped). She's very accommodating and helpful.

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
01/03/2023

Lectures can get a bit confusing at times because Copeman does like to expand on themes.. even though theres already limited notes on the slides as is. Not a harsh grader at all but be sure to have an understanding of the concepts by exam time because there are short essays. This class is honestly not hard to keep up with because everything is posted on elms and the due dates for assignments are repetitive.

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/16/2022

Grading is weird. Has extra credit on her exams but if you get the extra credit wrong then she takes actual points from your score even though it's not required to answer so you basically lose more than you should. Just a complicated class for a gen ed. Don't recommend taking this class unless you really enjoy art or it's required.

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
12/13/2022

Colantuono was a decent professor with a lot of insight in to the world of Art History. The lectures were interesting for the most part, but I feel like there wasn't enough time to dive deeper into information on art pieces. I'm an art major and I believe quality over quantity. I would say Colantuono did his best with presenting information on pieces. I did enjoy his class and I would definitely recommend it, however, do not expect an A if you do not study or open your eyes and mind to art.

Zoe Copeman
ARTH201

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/08/2022

Prof. Copeman is very thorough in her lectures, though she does read off a script which can be engaging at times. However, they do their best to make the content interesting and relatable. She also gives a good amount of homework, but she is accommodating if the class comes to a consensus about the workload. Midterms and final are memorization-heavy, but she does allow a single, double-sided cheat sheet for exams. If you like art history, you will be fine.

Abigail Upshaw
ARTH201

Expecting an F
Anonymous
06/09/2022

one of the harshest critiques I have ever had. If your paragraph structure doesn't fit her bill, or if you don't use "her" evidence automatic deduction to your grade. Highly recommend any other class!!

Kathleen Altizer
ARTH201

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
02/20/2022

Professor Altizer is a really great professor. Attending class is super important, otherwise you miss a lot of content that is necessary to do well on the quizzes and exams. There were also extra credit opportunities which were easily doable. Prof. Altizer is incredibly well-versed in the subject and is super warm and nice if you show that you put forth effort. It is a history class, so expect a lot of raw memorization; however, if you're interested in art and/or history this shouldn't be a miserable class. I would definitely take more classes like this.

Kathleen Altizer
ARTH201

Expecting an A+
Anonymous
12/03/2021

Really nice! The quizzes can be tricky but her extra credit and easy grading on writings makes it not a big deal. Tests are straight forward, just memorize your notes.

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/24/2020

Professor Mansbach is great, but the class organization (at least online) has led to quite a difficult time. Mansbach is a lovely professor with a fantastic voice, and he has a beautiful passion for art history. I really enjoyed listening to his lectures. On the other hand, at least online the class was not organized well. It was entirely run by the TA's, and I often felt that grading could be arbitrary (and often took over a month). I ended up with an A, but I know a lot of people did not but probably deserved one. In general, quality of writing is a huge deal on the midterm and final exam, so keep this in mind if you're considering taking the class as a gen-ed. If you cannot write well you almost certainly will not get an A in this class. Getting an A requires a strong understanding and memory of important compositional elements and to be able to apply them to various time periods and styles well. This class is not easy but it is very rewarding. I know so much more about art now, and I am very thankful to Professor Mansbach for that gift.

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2019

Professor Mansbach was an awesome professor whose passion and knowledge are evident in his lectures. Like others mentioned, he's quite eloquent and poetic in his descriptions of paintings, but they only help the student in remembering specific phrases and vocabulary for those specific paintings. This class is only graded on 5 factors: participation in discussion, two midterms, a paper (you have to go to the national gallery of art to view a painting), and a final exam. He gives around 40 paintings to memorize per midterm, but most of the content consists of understanding the context/history of what was going on at that time and how that affected art, so the textbook is key for that. I don't know if it was like this for other semesters, but he was pretty lenient on grading, especially if he saw improvement in the student's work. I usually studied by just memorizing the paintings dates/names and reading the textbook a few days before. His TA Tony was also super cool. He was always available to help students and constantly encouraged us to do our best. Take this class if u wanna broaden ur mind ahahha

Abigail Upshaw
ARTH201

Expecting a B
Anonymous
05/30/2019

Abby is really sweet and knows her material very well. If you need any additional help on exam reviews or final paper, just go to her office hours and she is glad to help. However, this class requires too much memorization for a Gen Ed course(dates, artists, name of the piece and its significance) and it's also test-heavy. Also, the lecture could be intense at times because she speaks pretty fast. If you aren't interested in Art History, I would suggest you choose another Gen Ed course.

Abigail Upshaw
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/13/2019

She was a good professor, very nice and clear about topics. She even let us send her rough drafts of our final paper to look over. But ngl, the class content itself sucked. It was so boring and pointless, and it was a pretty hard class for a gen ed

June Hargrove
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
01/27/2014

Professor Hargrove's a good lecturer! She really cares about the subject and about teaching. They tell you to read the book, but honestly you can probably get an A as long as you go to every lecture and take good notes. You memorize a crap load of paintings, but the test only covers a few--pay attention to the ones she goes on about the most in class, she's more likely to pick those. Grade comes down to two midterms, an essay that involves a visit to the Gallery, participation in discussion, a few quizzes, and the final. Very reasonable workload if you want to get rid of a GenEd. TA's (Abby and Kathleen) are good

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Expecting a B
wombat
05/15/2012

Great professor. Tremendous speaking voice that can hold your attention for the entire class period. He does have a tendency to use vocabulary which might be unfamiliar to some, as well as get a bit poetic with his descriptions of works, to the extent that it becomes confusing what one ought to write down / commit to memory and what one ought to simply let soak in. However, he balances that out by making it crystal clear which artists / works are peripheral and which ones you should probably remember. Nine times out of ten, those are the works you will see on the exams, especially on the final. That's not to say you shouldn't remember the others, because being able to recall lesser-known but no less relevant works in your essays is always a plus. As another reviewer mentioned, the professor / TA's place emphasis on knowing the socio-political context in which the various Western art movements formed and flourished, and not at all on rote memorization of slides, dates and whatnot. There were all too many exam essays where I couldn't recall the name of the work, nor the artist, nor the date - heck there were even paintings that I had never seen before because I had missed that particular class - but I never received anything less than a "B" on an in-class essay (they grade to the "C" as being average) simply because I talked about the work in the context of its time period / art movement and the stylistic trappings of that era. So, if you're not good with names, dates, etc, don't sweat it and take Steven Mansbach's class! I guarantee it will be an interesting and enriching experience.

June Hargrove
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/26/2011

If you like art &/or history this is the class for you. As a CORE, it is a reasonable amount of work, while maintaining its integrity as a very interesting and engaging class. Keep in mind there is a lot of memorization- if you aren't interested in art, this part can get old very fast. Hargrove is great though- and TA's are, for the most part, great. ps-DO NOT let your phone ring/ open cans of soda/ open the door at the front of the hall during lecture. Lecturer will not be happy.

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/28/2011

There is a LOT of memorization and a LOT of Christianity in this class -- perhaps even more so than in other Art History classes! I don't like either one of those things, but I still enjoyed the class because Dr. Colantuono is such a wonderful professor. His lectures complement the textbook quite beautifully and it's always fascinating to hear him talk. (He is a dynamic speaker and uses just the right amount of humor.) This class has also helped me understand and appreciate literature and philosophy. If you're intellectually curious then you can't do any better than Dr. Colantuono!

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting a B
Anonymous
04/28/2011

Professor was enthusiastic and definitally knew the material, but for a CORE HA requirement, I would NOT recommend this class. There is massive amounts of straight up memorization, and overall far too much effort for an HA requirement. For art majors, however, this class was appropriate.

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Expecting an A-
Anonymous
01/17/2011

Dr. Mansbach is hands down the best professor I have had so far. He is a great lecturer and the class material is really interesting. He and the TA's do a lot to help you out and get a good grade. The hardest part of any art history class is slide id's, especially for a course that covers so much material like this one. Dr. Mansbach, however, puts almost no emphasis on actually knowing the name and date of a painting (I got A's on all of the exams and correctly identified maybe half of the art works). The only slide id's we had to do were in discussion, and they were broken into a few weeks worth of lecture material at a time, so they weren't that bad.

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Anonymous
12/29/2010

He is easily one of the best professors and lecturers I have had so far that I actually looked forward to coming to lectures. He has a nice voice and is very clear and organized. However, the class requires a lot of work for a 200 level course and you will have to work hard for a good grade.

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/21/2010

Take. This. Class.

Steven Mansbach
ARTH201

Expecting a B
rose11
12/20/2010

Professor Mansbach is one of the best professors I have taken at Maryland. He is so enthusiastic; it was enjoyable coming to lecture and listening to him. The course is difficult. There are A LOT of paintings to memorize and it is difficult to remember all of the information about each stylistic time period. Assignments consisted of two exams, three quizzes, one paper, and the final. Lyndsay Bratton was a great TA. She was helpful in clarifying the concepts and wanted her students to do well. This was a very interesting course for a HA core, but it involves work so be prepared to study.

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
04/09/2010

I like Dr. Colantuono. He talks pretty fast and it is important to take notes during the lectures. So be awake! It is also helpful to read the textbooks because one part of the exams is writing a comparative essay between two given art works. You need to include stuff from both the textbooks and the lectures. It is VERY annoying to memorize all the dates. There are a lot of paintings to remember. But it is an interesting class. I think TA is also important because I think I got A because of the discussion section.

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
12/09/2009

He is an amazing lecturer really eloquent stuff. its always interesting listening to him talk and he obviously knows art history like the backside of his hand. He'll talk about the history and context behind the painting and then go in to analyzing the painting itself which he'll tie into the philosophy of the artist or art of that time. The class is not too difficult but i though it was interesting which helped. If you go to lecture and take good notes and study before exams you'll do well. Its annoying memorizing dates and patrons and stuff but not too difficult. Besides the exams there are quizzes in discussion and a 3 page paper.

June Hargrove
ARTH201

Expecting a B
kvizzle321
12/20/2008

Lectures are extremely boring. Gives a guideline of the painters and terms that you need to know. TA (Suzy) was great. Go to discussion for the valuable stuff. Grade comes down to 2 tests, a few quizzes, participation in discussion, and one paper where you have to go to the National Gallery. If you study well for the tests and cram in memorizing the paintings you will do well. The book is helpful but Hargrove is a very dry, annoyng lecturer. Very nice lady though. I rarely went to lectures and will get atleast a B (an A if i do well on the final)

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting an A
Anonymous
11/06/2008

I disagree with the poster below. Dr. Colantuono was really a really good lecturer and really knew his stuff. He made Art History interesting for someone who only had to take it for an HA. Don't take it for an easy A though...you gotta put in the work, go to class, take notes (all the tests came from lecture, hardly used the book at all), study. There's a quiz in discussion every other week too which is annoying.

Anthony Colantuono
ARTH201

Expecting an F
Anonymous
04/04/2008

He is a tough cookie. I do not like the his exam style. And he is really specific about his term paper. If you have a great TA then you can probably do well and enjoy the class, I had Adam and he was a jerk unless you talk to him 1 on 1. So... do not take this class unless it is mandatory. And if you do, make sure its Majorie Venit or ... anyone but this dude!

Reviews for ARTH201