Object-oriented teaching at university – an example with the art historical collections of the University of Graz

Who practises object-based teaching and learning at the University of Graz?

Humanities programmes such as the B.A. in History and in Art History currently offer object-based teaching and learning (OBTL). In particular, the B.A. of History offers a “Museology” module, as well as an optional specialisation in “Applied Cultural Studies and Cultural Management”, which also includes a “Museology” module made of three courses – Historical, Theoretical and Applied Museology. The B.A. in Art History contains “Exercises” and “Study groups” in the module “Working with originals/Museology”. This article takes a closer look at the module “Working with originals”.

Practising OBTL with the art collections of the University of Graz

In the Summer Semester 2021, the course  “The art collections of Grazer Art History – selected aspects of museum documentation” could be chosen by B.A. students in Art History, within the module “Working with originals”. Twenty-four students took part in this seminar, in which they first developed a question and a thesis on the object of their choice. They later used their results as the basis for a scientific paper and a presentation at a “mini conference”.

The objects under review were from the art history collection of the Institute of Art History, and were to be transferred to the Seventh Faculty in 2022. Students had to measure, photograph and prepare the selected objects for storage. Since the collection had not yet been systematically inventoried, each object was given a serial inventory number.
The handling of the actual objects took place in a single session and under strict safety precautions, due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Working with objects – a series of minutious steps

After a review of the available data lists about the objects, the following actions were taken on the objects:

• Assignment of inventory numbers according to the newly developed system;

• Photographs (including scale);

• Measurement of dimensions;

• Description of the object's conditions.

This enabled the students to practise handling and manipulating objects in accordance with conservation standards – including the proper unpacking and packing of the objects, using appropriate materials (gloves, acid-free paper). 

Subsequently, all metadata was recorded in a structured Excel list, the photo files were named according to a previously defined pattern and stored on an internal university SharePoint.

Beyond recording the respective object data, the course participants also wrote a final paper on their selected object. Taking the attribution to an artist and the date of acquisition into account, they had to research the current state of art historical and historical research on the object, as well as carry out a first iconographic analysis of the object.

Developing a theoretical framework

Students not only developed practical skills in handling collection objects, they also received specific training in art historical museology. The analysis and interpretation of the works of art relied on Erwin Panofksy's iconographic-iconological approach (see Panofsky 2009) and standards of object documentation were taught with appropriate references (see Institut für Museumsforschung). Aspects of provenance research were taught as well when examining the objects (see Zuschlag 2022). 

In addition, the pandemic context brought many social challenges for students. Most meetings took place online, except for one session in presence – in compliance with the hygiene requirements – to work with the objects. Students had to coordinate each step as a group – first to book a time slot for the on-site session, second for the actual unpacking and packing, measuring and photographing of the object. They also trained their digital skills, structuring the data on online university platforms such as Moodle and SharePoint, as well as their presentation skills, presenting their results at a small online conference at the end of the semester.

The value of object-based projects

Despite the limitations due to the coronavirus pandemic, the students’ presentations at the end of the semester and the metadata they collected attest to the course’s achievements. The participants fed the object's database with their research, and this excel list now forms the basis of a pilot project being carried out on ALMA, the library software of the University of Graz. This course also laid the foundations for a set of rules concerning the processing and registration of three-dimensional objects (see Regelwerk). Moreover, the students’ final papers showed how research on an object could uncover so far unknown information, such as its provenance or its biography.

Overarching issues arose for the handling of collections within the University of Graz: among others, the need for the development of collection guidelines and for enabling appropriate conservation conditions. Moreover, students expressed the wish for more object-oriented courses in their curricula, with an emphasis on the practical handling of objects.

This seminar was followed by a two-semester course at the Institute of Art History, in the academic year 2022/23, offering an in-depth examination of the artworks from an art-historical and museological perspective. Students were encouraged to develop new perspectives on the art-historical examination of the objects, to ask the objects new questions and address them in the form of written assignments.