This class was pretty easy but Professor Cohen can be pretty boring at times. Her lectures she just goes off the PowerPoint but also her PowerPoints do not give a lot of information, it is only the (picture, time period, and location) for the meaning you really have to pay attention to what she is saying.

Class break down
Assessment 1 20% (in person)
Assessment 2 20% (in person)
Précis worksheets 25%
ArtTok project 25%
Section participation 10%

During discussion you have to complete a total of 5 precis worksheet which is basically a 1-2 page paper discussing the thesis and meaning of the art pieces. A textbook is required but if you do the section reading and go to lecture you really do not need the book.

For the midterm it is taken in the class during class time. It is multiple parts of (identifying images, vocabulary words, maps, and comparing & contrast of two images) it is pretty easy if you study and really know (the name, era, location, and meaning of the art). Professor Cohen provides a study guide of just images and you have to search for the meaning and names. After the in class test you have to do a take home test that is a "short essay" due by the next lecture.

For the final it is very similar the only difference is that on top of (identifying images, vocabulary words, maps, and comparing & contrast of two images) there is a short essay portion because the take home is the Arttok.

The arttok is a 5 min video you have to create based of a medieval item from the book for section readings that was not mentioned in lecture. It is pretty easy takes about 1 day to complete but do not wait till last minute.

Don't enroll in this class unless you are willing to spend most of your time memorizing dates and names. The midterm and finals were hard with both consisting of having to memorize more than 30 art pieces but only being quizzed on 2, vocab words, a map, and essay portions. Her slides are not very helpful, so I highly recommend attending/watching the lectures. She goes over a lot so it can be quite a drag but she uploads her lectures on bruin cast. Also, the book isn't necessary. Overall, this is not an easy GE, so I only recommend taking it if you are highly interested in art.

The professor was a very good and engaging lecturer. However, I do have problems with the overall layout of this course.
The course itself is ostensibly focused on finding trends and patterns throughout medieval art history over time. However, due to the content of the midterm and final exam, there is a LOT of pressure put on pure memorization. By that I mean that if one had the names, dates, appearances, places, and terms memorized, that person would only have to study for 15 additional minutes total in order to ace the exams. There is barely any insight required in this class. Because of this, studying for the class is very frustrating. When the professor brings up an example of an artifact it just feels like "great, more stuff to memorize."
(By the way, this means you don't need the textbook. At all.)
Speaking of the exams, despite the professor promising that they were just like quizzes and that we shouldn't stress out about them, they are extremely unforgiving and brutally written. For example, for the technical terms, rather than being given terms to define, we have to provide the specific terms provided their definition, of which there are a lot, most of which are not even in English.
The assignments also don't give an opportunity to show off one's knowledge and insight, except for I guess the ArtTok project. There's also literally no reason whatsoever to do any of the readings that you aren't doing a precis worksheet on, because they don't help you at all in the class.
It's a shame because the professor really is good at making clear and interesting lectures, but I feel stopped from enjoying and learning from them due to the overall content of the course.
TLDR: I would recommend taking this class, if you're good at and want to memorize tons of names and dates, as well as technical terms. Otherwise, give it a pass.

The professor was a very good and engaging lecturer. However, I do have problems with the overall layout of this course.
The course itself is ostensibly focused on finding trends and patterns throughout medieval art history over time. However, due to the content of the midterm and final exam, there is a LOT of pressure put on pure memorization. By that I mean that if one had the names, dates, appearances, places, and terms memorized, that person would only have to study for 15 additional minutes total in order to ace the exams. There is barely any insight required in this class. Because of this, studying for the class is very frustrating. When the professor brings up an example of an artifact it just feels like "great, more stuff to memorize."
(By the way, this means you don't need the textbook. At all.)
Speaking of the exams, despite the professor promising that they were just like quizzes and that we shouldn't stress out about them, they are extremely unforgiving and brutally written. For example, for the technical terms, rather than being given terms to define, we have to provide the specific terms provided their definition, of which there are a lot, most of which are not even in English.
The assignments also don't give an opportunity to show off one's knowledge and insight, except for I guess the ArtTok project. There's also literally no reason whatsoever to do any of the readings that you aren't doing a precis worksheet on, because they don't help you at all in the class.
It's a shame because the professor really is good at making clear and interesting lectures, but I feel stopped from enjoying and learning from them due to the overall content of the course.
TLDR: I would recommend taking this class, if you're good at and want to memorize tons of names and dates, as well as technical terms. Otherwise, give it a pass.

The lectures were so long….BUT The TAs and professors really love art so discussions were fun and interesting. I got new perspective about old buildings and objects that I’m so excited to apply when I travel!