Professor Tashcian is a bit all over the place when it comes to lectures, so it can be hard to take notes. Readings are mandatory as you have weekly summaries.

As a professor and teacher, Helen was wonderful. Very intelligent and eager for class discussions, as well as responsive outside of class. There are lots of readings per week, but most of them you can just scan over or skip completely. The lectures very loosely relate to those readings, if at all. Papers due every week + a long research paper final

She gives helpful feedback on the weekly assignments, they consist of 2 big 4-5 page essays for the midterm and final, and the weekly 2-3 page essays. It can be overwhelming so don't wait and do the writing last minute lol

I was confused on why people thought this was a heavy workload class. 2 pages each week is very easy and the material we write about is interesting and easy to watch or read. Helen is an amazing professor and proved multiple times that she does care about her students. Reaching her outside of class is very easy and she offers support where she can

prof taschian is a great professor and very passionate but this class is a lot of unnecessary work. do not take it if you're not taking it for a major class. there are 2-page papers due every week, which aren't super hard, but the material tends to be pretty boring. class is also mandatory but she's understanding about absences.

Super nice and caring prof, was really understanding about covid, getting sick, and was really nice to everyone. Grading is 1/2 weekly writing assignments (mini papers ~2 pages) and the other half a big research paper (due halfway through the quarter, ~8 pages). Attendance and section and lecture is tracked, and you can't miss more than 5.

Prof. Taschian claims that the class is hard, but it's definitely not that bad. 8 page research paper is worth 50% of your grade, and the other 50% is weekly writing assignments. Reading isn't necessary except for what is required in the writing assignments. Lectures can be boring, but attendance is taken. TAs graded all assignments. No tests.

Taschian's lectures get very rambly, and the readings are intense to start (one/two page papers due on the readings every week) but the class gets easier as time goes on. Readings were very interesting, and Taschian is super accessible + kind outside of class. No final for this class, and the readings get less dense/hard as the class progresses

Art 1A with Professor Taschian was a wonderful experience. Weekly reading assignments, very in-depth and enjoyable lectures, and an 8-page research paper. No final! Very generous in grading, cares for her students and was always open to questions, and took time to prepare you for your paper. Would highly recommend!

An introductory course that felt like an upperdivision in regards to assignments,grading, and expectations. I liked how challenging it was because it never felt particularly unfair. I loved the professor and the material. My major doesn't have anything to do with art but I still enjoyed this class very much

For Visual Literacy, there were 9 2-page writing assignment worth 50% of the grade and 1 formal research paper worth the other 50%. The lectures don't relate to the writing assignments so I never paid attention in class. I am a pretty bad writer but still got a decent grade. There are definitely easier classes for the art GE/writing requirement.

I really enjoyed this class. She assigns weekly summaries with reading, which was very interesting. Two papers, one midterm paper and a final paper only 4 pages. Really sweet and easy going.. I loved this class. She also doesn't use canvas which at first was weird but I ended up enjoying the straightforwardness of the class. 10/10.

prof taschian was super understanding of covid and interacted with everyone who spoke up in class and validated their ideas, creating a great learning environment. however, the lectures didn't really match up with the weekly writing assignments or the 8 pg research paper, making them kind of silly and easy to tune out of.

Helen is THE best. The way she shows support and enormous amount of care for her student is truly amazing. Especially during such a challenging time, she created this amazing and supportive environment in her class where we can all express ourselves, sharing support, and learn. Overall, 10/10. Amazing class and amazing professor. Hands down.

Professor Taschian is one of my favorite professors at UCSB- she's one of the only professors I've had that been understanding with students during the pandemic. Lots of readings but encourages group work/discussion so it's not too bad. Participate and ask questions and you'll be fine. Weekly reading journal and one 12 pg final paper. no exams.

This class was so easy. All you had to do was listen to an artist talk once a week, then leave a paragraph-ish comment about the talk under an Instagram post.

I took this class winter 2020 to take a GE. She's a fascinating teacher, but the amount of work that you need to do is insane: 2 8-page essays and weekly 1-2 page papers. I'm not interested in contemporary art, but it gave me a sense of understanding of it. You have to go to two museums (one of them being LACMA).

This class was super easy. All you had to do was attend lecture and leave a comment on the UCSB art Instagram commenting on the lecture.

Easy A. This was the online class due to COVID so all you have to do is show up once a week and listen to guest artists. Graded only on Instagram comments that you post once a week about the artist talk.

2 papers, each worth 35% and short weekly writing assignments worth 30%. Essays are on an artists and there is no prompt. You may choose to relate it to the readings or not; its up to you. I personally did on one and not the other. I know nothing about art and passed. She offers extra credit to make up for absences and weekly assignments.

I'm not sure why someone with a PhD thinks it makes sense to assign essays that aren't related to the reading, but Helen certainly thinks it makes sense. The structure of the class is nonsensical and the subject matter is complicated. Don't take this class unless you have to. This class has potential, but the professor is awful.

This class was focused on two essays, both with open ended prompts. There is no final which is nice, but your whole grade is based off of two essays that have little to nothing to do with the lectures, summaries of the readings due every week and attendance in both section and lecture. Attendance is mandatory even though we arent tested on it.

The lectures are useless. I don't think I have learnt anything from this class. The TA makes the experiences even worse. Never take this class

Do not take this class. It's waaaaay too hard, especially for a GE requirement. The grading is really hard, you have to write two 8-10 page papers that you won't be ready for, you have to go to class or you miss points, and you have to read long articles and write four summaries a week. This is the first B I've ever gotten in my whole life.