Columbia College Core · Columbia University
One of the most ineffective and disengaged instructors at Columbia, she frequently relies on students to deliver 50-minute group presentations based on material they find on Google, instead of actively teaching the course herself. I would estimate that 75% of the classes in the semester had these presentations, making it easier for her, because she hardly had to teach. During these presentations, her contributions were minimal and lacked depth, often consisting of superficial comments that anyone could have made about the artwork, regardless of expertise. For the final paper, she offered a choice of prompts. I selected one that involved connecting classical music to artwork from the course (baroque, romantic, impressionist, etc.). As someone with professional experience in music and having performed with major professional orchestras on several occasions, I felt well-qualified to approach this assignment. Despite submitting the paper on time, she initially claimed it was missing. After finding it, she scrutinized it excessively, despite its clarity and organization—qualities that lacked in her own communication, which often included misspelled words in e-mails and poor grammar. Ultimately, she gave me a low grade on the paper, arguing that I did not sufficiently describe the music or its connection to the artwork, despite my expertise and the paper’s thoroughness.
Professor Mims is wonderful! She has an encyclopedic knowledge of art history but truly just care about instilling a practice of analyzation and appreciation of art - she wants to teach you how to offer an opinion. Strong emphasis on in-class participation, but no judgment or pretension. As she said in class one day, "It's art... how wrong can you be?". She does a great job of instilling the fundamentals of the discipline while also challenging preconceptions, schemas, etc. I really felt like she raised a lot of interesting thoughts in me about what makes something art, what value art has in modern society, the lenses through which we view things, and more.
Excellent course and instructor. I learned so much about how to view and interpret art after taking this class. Professor Mims is extremely understanding and knowledgeable. She is kind and structured and makes the class engaging. Take this class with her if you can!
She has a thick accent, making my brain hard to work actively to perceive information. This course has presentations and she asks the students to draw sketches. I dropped after the first class.
Super chill professor, really kind and tries to engage the entire class in discussion, lenient grader, what more can I say
Martina Mims is by far the best professor that I have had in Columbia. I wonder why she hasn't had a golden nugget here. I took Arthum with her last year, and she was very encouraging, but she also commented on what is right/wrong in people's comments, making you learn a lot in a relaxed atmosphere. She genuinely cares about her students. It's been over a year and she keeps asking how we're doing when some of us from that class run into her sometimes, and has written rec letters for a few of us. In fact, at the beginning of the my Arthum class last year when I told her that I felt sort of intimidated because I had no background in art, she took me to a cafe on campus, bought me water, sat down with me outdoor, and encouraged me with really sincere words. I became very involved in that class. She has that attitude towards all of her students, and obviously knows well about them: when someone doesn't talk in class, she will call on that person by pointing our his/her previous experience or probable expertise on this matter and invite him to comment on this. Everyone gets to participate in some way, and actually enjoys the class.
I LOVE MARTINA MIMS! Seriously, I've been recommending her to everyone who has yet to take ArtHum. She's really great at facilitating class discussions - I have no background in art/art history/analysis whatsoever, but I found it easy to say something of value in class. It's really relaxed, but I also learned a lot that I didn't think I was going to retain..and then I went to Italy and was able to pull from what she had talked about. Her grading is lenient, and she makes sure you know what to expect for the tests and papers so you're well prepared. Martina is great. She's understanding, intelligent, friendly, approachable, and great at teaching the subject. Take her if you can. If I could go back and take this class again, I would!
This was the best class! Professor Mims is extremely knowledgable on all things art, but she also creates a wonderful atmosphere that I have yet to experience in any of my other classes at Columbia. She lets her students discuss the art in whatever terms you feel comfortable with rather than lecturing, which was really interesting. It also let everyone feel welcome to add to the conversation regardless of how fluent you were art terminology. Professor Mims definitely lead the class and steered conversation, but everyone would talk to each other rather than just spouting off information at her. We also went on two "field trips", which were extremely interesting and informative! We went to St. John of the Divine and got an extremely comprehensive and unique tour of the cathedral (we even got to see parts that are off limits to the public tours). Almost everyone in the class did well and I don't think anyone got below a B (the majority of students got A-'s I think). If you want to learn about art, how to discuss art, but mainly how to interpret art using the skill set you already have then definitely take art hum with Professor Mims!
Weekly journal entries, a (inconvenient) museum visit during the weekend outside of class hours, a group presentation, and a final paper. The work load was not terrible. It was the teaching that left a lot to be desired. She would be better suited for teaching at a community college or NYU. Not Ivy League material.
Mid-level workload. Everyone has to do an in-class presentation (30+ minutes), there are multiple class trips, and sporadic journal entries (analysis of something around the city) or reading/discussion boards. Approx. 10 page final project.