Art Appreciation Course Reviews

Nuschke Van Rhyn

Secunda, Mpumalanga

My course in the Art Institute not only expanded my knowledge in art and art history; but made me fall more in love with art and the history behind all the emotions, ideas, workmanship and influences behind those who created great art.

The assistance with the student support system and the feedback and relations formed between the students and professors will be the reason that I will pursue my career within the art world. If I could, I would do this course all over again.

What a mind-blowing and heartwarming experience!

Conrad Louw

Betty's Bay, Western Cape

Coming from a strictly commercial and pharmaceutical background, I have always loved the arts, yet I knew nothing about it, hence my quest to want to study a little bit in art history.

Not really knowing what I had signed up for, I took on this challenge with mirth and gusto. But reality stepped in, and I found myself totally out of my comfort zone. This course is not designed to be an “iffy” course. It is comprehensive and authentic. It challenged my understanding of art, yet at the same time, enlightened the extremely limited views I had of art.

For example, I have always merely been a Renaissance and Impressionist art lover and thought that Cubism (to name but one “ism”) was truly NOT art and a waste of time and paint. I can now seriously declare that Cubism is my new “go-to” discipline in art. I am a converted Cubist follower and can honestly say I really appreciate and value it. The same can be said for every module.

Thanks for this amazing course. My eyes had opened to a whole new marvellous, and rich world. I never realized how art had influenced religion, politics, design, and social issues as much as it did. I have certainly invested in an amazing facet of my life.

Thank you, Art Institute, for broadening my horizons!

Lesley McAllister

Stellenbosch, Cape Town

I hesitated before I enrolled in this Art Appreciation Course. I was concerned that I would be out of my depth. I am so glad I made that leap of faith in myself.

The last 10 months have flown by, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every module. They have all been interesting, covering amazing periods, artists and their works, and a joy to read.

The tutors, especially Stephen Farthing, are helpful, encouraging, and always give useful advice on improvement.

I used to enjoy visiting Art Galleries and museums, but now I feel I have enough knowledge to look further than the painting or work itself.

Genéva Nell

Swakopmund, Namibia

The Art Appreciation course is perfect for anyone who would like to expand their knowledge of the history of art and how it continues to have an influence over our present and future.

It challenges your ability to form a condensed thought over extensive topics and encourages your own voice over what you’ve come to understand about each module. The feedback from the tutor(s) is individually catered to make sure you approach every module to the best of your abilities.

It’s time-flexible and enlightening and overall highly recommendable to anyone interested in polishing their understanding of art (and how to write about it).

Lize Jacobs

kraaifontein, Cape Town

This course is an excellent choice for anyone wanting to learn more about the history of art and its influence on the world.

I've loved every moment of the journeys that each module took me on. I've learned so much more about all my favourite artists and about artists that I've never even heard of.

I highly recommend this course to anyone like me and has a deep appreciation for art and learning. It has been a welcome challenge and has helped open my mind to many new things within the art community.

Madeleine Gerlize Du Plessis

Kosi Bay, KwaZulu-Natal

I found this course to be stimulating and very fulfilling. It did not only improved my art history knowledge but help me grow as an artist. I will recommend this course to anyone who appreciates art and art history.

It also inspired me to further my career as a contemporary artist and hope to find something in the art history field.

Ewald Human

Touwsrivier, Western Cape

I came from a background with some art history knowledge.

But this course really helps you develop a sense of understanding of the works of art you are covering. And how to summarize the most important parts from a vast amount of data.

This course was very well made. And I loved my tutor as well as the support team. They were so fast to answer you and help you with whatever it is you may be struggling with. It is an overall great experience and I doubt you could do much better than this wonderful course. All the best to the people at the Art Institute.

Christine De Kock

Houghton, Johannesburg

Empower yourself - the course is intimately enriching, exceptional value in the course content and tutor feedback (Prof. Stephen Farthing) made me grow in self-confidence.

Wonderful to have had the opportunity to complete the course in my own time. Well-organised and well-written course modules.

Highly recommended and immensely enjoyable.

Megan van Huyssteen

Bedfordview, Gauteng

I would recommend this course to anyone who is interested in learning more about art history. I loved every minute of it, and learnt more than I could ever have imagined.

The modules are comprehensive and interesting, exploring art from the Renaissance all the way to Contemporary Art. Handing in the assignments online is very straightforward, and my tutor always gave me great feedback.

I loved the fact that I could complete the course at my own pace, because it allowed me to work at the same time.

I really enjoyed this course, and I highly recommend it!

Adri Reyneke

Johannesburg, Gauteng

The course in Art Appreciation is everything that one can hope for. The very comprehensive modules are excellently written by respected people in the art world. Each module provides further reading lists and other resource material. I found the modules to be very integrated and well-rounded.

My knowledge of art has rocketed, and by answering the assignments, I have developed my art writing skills. My tutor, Professor Stephen Farthing, was extremely encouraging and helpful and always provided extra information and arguments for further consideration. The process of submitting assignments is very simple, and assignments are marked promptly.

I would recommend it to anyone who is interested in the history of art as well as the contemporary art world. It opens one’s mind to the art world!

Daniela Grdseloff

Umzumbe, KwaZulu-Nata

This course was the best thing I did in my life. And I really did a lot of things. I did enjoy every single moment and I am sad, that I am finished now - only the advanced module to do! I would love to go on and go on.... there is so much to learn!

And the best things where the assignments - a real challenge - and if you have done it, you are familiar with the artwork and the artist you talk about! I can recommend this course 100 %!

Elizabeth Magdalena Badenhorst

Bloemfontein, Free State

The Art Appreciation course of The Art Institute is a very interesting and informative course. Doing this course was an eye-opener for me because I've learned so much about art worldwide. It showed me how to evaluate artworks and think about it in a new way. It also gave me a good idea of the worth of artworks and leads me to how to do an evaluation of an artwork. It also gives very much information about many artists.

I am Afrikaans speaking and It was not too difficult to do the course in English. It was easy to do it online through the internet, because the tutor is leading you the whole time with messages and tutor remarks on how you should answer the questions and how you can improve your answering of the questions of the assignments. This helps you to think in the right direction. They also understand when you have some kind of problem and are always willing to accommodate and assist you. Another advantage is that you can communicate with other students on The Art Institute's webpage on Facebook. I enjoyed doing this course and I have definitely no regrets doing it!

Tristan Drewry

Port Elizabeth, Eastern Cape

My experience with this course and these modules were really awesome to read and the questions were interesting and challenging to answer. Taking time to do these modules were really worth it and you never get bored of them.

Thanks to The Art Institute for sharing this experience in the history of the art world. These modules gave me some ideas for my future career as an artist who is influenced in Old Masters techniques.

Grady Zeeman

Swellendam, Western Cape

I studied Fashion Design before I married and had children. Since 2008 I have participated in numerous international art exhibitions.

Since 2011 I am also the owner of the Kunstehuijs Art Gallery in Swellendam.