San Francisco History & Art

This course is a field study of San Francisco history and art. Organized by theme, the course requires substantial time “in the field” examining the rich historical and artistic life of the San Francisco Bay Area including public art, murals, and architecture. The themes/units that have been covered in the past include: Sacred San Francisco, Green SF, The “Cultured” City, A City on the Move, and Sex and the City.  Students will be expected to maintain a written journal of their observational and analytical work in the field, serve as a unit leader, and complete a midterm and final project. Unlike other traditional courses, this field study rethinks both the role of the classroom and the use of class time and requires students to be teachers of the material as much as learners.

 Meeting requirements (pending COVID restrictions):

  • We will have summative face to face meetings at the end of each unit.   
  • Two mandatory all-class field trips will take place in early January and early May. 
  • Students can expect to conduct field research independently or as part of their group at least once every two weeks.   
  • Weekly virtual classes will either be full class discussions or time for individual project check-ins.

About the Instructors

Rachel Damian – SF University High School
Rachel has been teaching at San Francisco University High School since 1999. She teaches Western Civilization: History of the Arts, Art History AP, and San Francisco History and Art: A Field Study. Rachel believes strongly in interdisciplinary studies and has been brought in to English and History classes to connect other disciplines to Art History. At her time at UHS, Rachel has sat on numerous committees and has also served as the Arts Department Chair and Class Dean. Outside of UHS, Rachel served on the SFMOMA Teacher Advisory Committee and is an active member the Historical Fictions Research Network. She earned her BA in Art History from New York University and her MA in Art History from the University of Chicago.

Chris Martin – SF University High School
Chris has been teaching at San Francisco University High School since 2008. He studied political science at UC Berkeley and earned a PhD in history at the University of Rochester. He currently teaches Western Civilization: History of the Arts, Honors U.S. History, American Lives: Asian America, and San Francisco History and Art: A Field Study. He also alternates teaching American and Comparative Politics. Outside of the classroom, Chris serves on a number of UHS committees and enjoys cycling, cooking, and traveling–in no particular order.