Art Historian Judy Scott Feldman challenges us “to think about the way an artist responds to the immediacy of his time, as well as to the big questions.”

She recalls her eventual introduction to the world of art history. “When I was a child, I was drawing and painting all the time. My parents had the good sense to get me into classes to learn more, but when I went off to college, I thought “(art) is not a life,” so I changed to general humanities. Soon, however, there was this “new-fangled” thing called computer science, which was interesting and new to me, and I changed majors again. Yet it was quite new in 1970-71, and I became disillusioned with its rote learning.”

“At the time, my older sister Ellen was also in college, and she recommended art history. I didn’t like the idea, but took a class anyway, and was mesmerized. I realized that the history of art was a way to see philosophy, culture and ideas.”

“Prior to this discovery, history to me was wars, kings, queens, and memorizing a lot of dates. Yet, when I looked at the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, realizing that it was built in 526 during the time we’re told was the Dark Ages, I saw one of the most magnificent architectural wonders in the world. Suddenly, my entire concept of progress in civilization shifted.”

Judy is excited to share her perspective on art history with her students. “I want them to look at art, from no matter what era, as an expression of the human mind and spirit, the human inquiry into the nature of being and meaning.”

“Art is about meaning. You look at a tree and copy it, but you don’t just copy it. You are always interpreting it somehow. What is valuable in teaching a class is getting people to use their own interpretation, because it will mean something to them individually, as opposed to memorizing someone else’s point of view.”

Check out Judy’s upcoming Oasis classes!