Holger Klein

He's great if you like the period and Christian-driven narrative. Very knowledgeable, easy to understand, and in some ways funny. Personally, I was plumbed by boredom in the classroom and didn't care for the Art or anything he talked about. It got much better in the second half of the semester though as we started doing museum trips. Overall, deserved nugget, but an acquired taste.

Definitely the professor to take for Art Hum (perk: Director of Art Hum). When I had taken Holger (Fall 2007) he had just come back from some random but awesome "sabbatical"...I believe he was at an excavation site somewhere in Europe and was also a curator at a couple of museums. Back to the course, I left that class with a greater appreciation for art, and also considered taking another class (preferably with Holger) but was unable to fit it into my schedule. He is a very kind, down to earth, and passionate about sharing his art knowledge and appreciation with his students.

Professor Klein is AMAZING. He LOVES medieval art, and his enthusiasm is catching. Ive never been in a class with so many oppurtunities to go and view the actual art with the professor. Every class is interesting and I love it, and Im sorry its coming to an end.

Holger Klein is a-ok. He's not fabulous, but he's not so bad either. He's friendly, he's got a sense of humor, he's not too old yet, and he knows his stuff. He was understanding about late assignments. I tended to be bored when he actually lectured; he droned a bit and his voice is a little monotonous. My biggest problem with him was that he often seemed to have very set opinions about very open questions. He didn't try to force his opinions on others, but neither was he interested in exploring ideas he didn't gel with. I wouldn't seek him out again, but neither would I take measures to avoid him.

Klein is a nice, reasonable professor, but he is extremely repetitious in his lectures and constantly runs late. If you have a good deal of patience and are interested in Byzantine art, then you are ready for this class. Please note that this class has a discussion section, in which you regurgitate what has already been said by Klein in class. For that reason alone, his class is worth avoiding. He takes attendance for the sections seriously--if you miss one, you have to write a one page summary of the weekly reading. I kid you not.

Professor Klein deserves a CULPA gold nugget, he is amazing! I had never taken any art history before this course and I am now registered for two art history classes next semester and considering Art History as my second major. Professor Klein presents material very clearly and his discussions are always interesting. He encourages students to participate at all times, answers any and all questions patiently and only calls on those people he thinks have something to say, not on those who are not talking. Everyone in my class spoke several times, even people who usually do not talk in class at all. Professor Klein took us to the Met and invited us for tapas and chocolate covered strawberries at the Met terrace wine bar afterwards. I loved every class and was sad that it was over so fast. My only criticism is that although he is the art hum director, we didn't get through large parts of the syllabus.

2 papers (5 & 10 page minimums), 2 presentations, 1 exhibit review

Typical art history moment. I'd say his midterms are miles ahead of everyone's in the department in the way their format though: civil pace, interesting questions, and little use of blue book.

Holger is extremely pleasant and though he is the director of Art Humanities, dont let this scare you! The workload is small, the papers aren't bad, and the tests are really fair. He really allows even amateurs (like myself) gain an appreciation for art! HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

two short 5-6 page papers, mid-term, final, weekly discussion section, weekly reading