Donald Anthony Preziosi (born January 12, 1941) is an American

art historian Art history is the study of artistic works made throughout human history. Among other topics, it studies art’s formal qualities, its impact on societies and cultures, and how artistic styles have changed throughout history. Traditionally, the ...

. He is Emeritus Professor of Art History at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

. In August 2007, he was appointed the MacGeorge Fellow at the

University of Melbourne The University of Melbourne (colloquially known as Melbourne University) is a public university, public research university located in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1853, it is Australia's second oldest university and the oldest in the state ...

.Donald Preziosi: Enchanted Credulities: Art, Religion and Amnesia
/ref> He also served as president of the Semiotic Society of America (1985). In his writing he combines disciplines as diverse as intellectual history,

critical theory Critical theory is a social, historical, and political school of thought and philosophical perspective which centers on analyzing and challenging systemic power relations in society, arguing that knowledge, truth, and social structures are ...

and

museology Museology (also called museum studies or museum science) is the study of museums. It explores the history of museums and their role in society, as well as the activities they engage in, including curating, preservation, public programming, and ed ...

. His 1998 book ''The Art of Art History: A Critical Anthology'' is considered 'the most widely used English-language introduction to art history'. At UCLA, Professor Preziosi developed the art history critical theory program and the UCLA museum studies program. At Oxford, he held the Slade Professorship of Fine Arts in 2001, where he delivered a series of lectures entitled ''Seeing Through Art History''.

Education

Preziosi received his bachelor's degree from Fairfield University and his master's degree in Linguistics and a Ph.D. in art history from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

.Distinguished alumnus returns to Fairfield University for lecture and honor
/ref>

Bibliography

* ''LABRYS'' (Charlton Press, New Haven), 1970) * ''Architecture, Language, and Meaning'' (Mouton, The Hague), 1979 * ''The Semiotics of the Built Environment'' (Indiana Univ Press, Bloomington & London), 1979 * ''Minoan Architectural Design'' (Mouton, Berlin), 1983 * ''Rethinking Art History: Meditations on a Coy Science'' (Yale University Press, New Haven & London), 1989 * ''The Ottoman City and Its Parts: Urban Structure & Social Order'', Irene Bierman, Rifa'at Ali Abou-El-Haj & Donald Preziosi, eds.1992; o-Editor and two introductory essays* ''The Art of Art History: A Critical Anthology'' (edited, with two essays and 10 introductory essays; Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York, 1998) * ''Aegean Art and Architecture'' (with Louise Hitchcock; Oxford University Press, Oxford & New York, 1999) * ''Brain of the Earth's Body: Museums & the Fabrication of Modernity'' (Minnesota University Press, Minneapolis & London, 1999) * ''In the Aftermath of Art: Ethics, Aesthetics, and Politics'' (Routledge, 2005) – essays on visual culture and art history, 1988-2003, with a Critical Commentary by Johanne Lamoureux

External links

Dictionary of Art Historians Profile

References

American art historians American semioticians Fairfield University alumni Harvard University alumni University of California, Los Angeles faculty Living people 1941 births Slade Professors of Fine Art (University of Oxford) Historians from California Presidents of the Semiotic Society of America {{US-art-historian-stub