Author: The Crusader Staff Writer, Reagan Cullen

Belmont Abbey prides itself in providing their students with a great education that will open many doors for students in the future. One way in which their education exceeds expectations is the provided options of majors and minors, despite how small the program is. Along with a lengthy list of majors, the school offers around fifty minors. One minor provided by the college is Art History. Although I am not studying this field myself, I have heard great things about the Art History minor, and therefore would like to shed some light on it.

This program is coordinated by Linda Pastryk, along with student Brianna Sroka as President. Art History studies art, infrastructure, buildings, sculptures, etc. in history, taking into consideration its historical and cultural context to understand its connection and effect on society. The Art History minor requires 15 credit hours. Some of the courses that it entails are Prehistory through the Middle Ages (AR 101), Renaissance to Modern (AR 102), and The Art, Architecture, and Religion of India, China, and Japan (AR 300).

After sitting down with the Art History minor’s president, Brianna Sroka, I was able to learn more about the minor. She shared how the classes open your eyes to how art and architecture can reveal so much information about Earth’s history. Sroka also shared that her favorite experience was when she visited the Mint Museum in Uptown Charlotte with her professor, Linda Pastryk. Sroka commented on the beautiful art that she was able to observe, recalling how excited she was when she discovered there was a section dedicated to fashion throughout history.

While it is encouraged students choose a minor that is specific to their interests and possible career choice, the Art History minor is one I highly recommend if you find yourself short of a minor and are interested in the subject. Through this program, you will be allowed to understand art from the past that has impacted historical and modern society, and even be provided with the opportunity to attend festivals, museums, and art shows firsthand.

This article was originally posted in the Spring of 2023, Issue 1 of The Crusader Newspaper. Download the full issue here.

Author: The Crusader Staff Writer, Amil Werr

Just yesterday I was walking up the steps from the grotto towards the monastery and basilica. I noticed facilities personnel had one of the manholes open. Curious, I peeked inside the manhole and noticed old brick walls surrounding what looked like a water main valve, all underneath the asphalt driveway. I was then much more aware of the ground beneath my feet.

I thought to myself, “Wow! Are those part of the old monastery walls? Was it part of a cellar, a monk’s cell, a refectory? How far do those walls go down?”

Memories of Art History class with Dr. Pastryk returned as images of Basilica di San Clemente with its 1st century structures underneath its 4th century basilica underneath its now standing, above ground, 12th century basilica. I had previously thought Art History only involved looking through frames of paintings or glass cases of coins, pottery, and sculpture. I was wrong. The windows through which we can peer into different times are myriad, beyond museum walls, kind of like that open manhole in the asphalt driveway. It was helpful for me in furthering my understanding of the nuance and depth of Art History to know that it can also be called “Material Culture.”

When I think of the word “culture,” I think of wine, beer, cheese, bread, yoghurt. I think of each culture, each community of beings endowed with distinct capacities to take material and, through it, express themselves. I think of beings, too small to see with bare eyes, partaking in expressive and transformative action. Those old brick walls underneath that manhole were built by beings I cannot now see.

However, if I am curious or perceptive (or lucky?) enough I can see, study, and appreciate how some ancestors expressed themselves and transformed their world. Though I still forget, I have been aided in my remembrance that, more often than not, we tread unawares right on top of the transformations our ancestors partook in. Having participated in Art History class, it seems as though I’ve received tools of perception that facilitate just enough awareness and interest that I can stop and wonder in wonder, for at least a few seconds, “In what kind of world and with what kind of people were those old brick walls not underneath a manhole in an asphalt driveway?”

This article was originally posted in the Fall 2022, Issue 1 of The Crusader Newspaper. Download the full issue.