History, Philosophy and the Social Sciences
An interdisciplinary liberal arts department, History, Philosophy and the Social Sciences (HPSS) offers a wide variety of courses on the nature of human life—past and present—in its psychological, social, political, intellectual, philosophical and cultural contexts and manifestations. Courses in world history, philosophy, psychology, anthropology, political science, sociology, religion and American and cultural studies are designed to help students broaden their knowledge while developing stronger critical thinking, reading and writing skills.
HPSS concentration
As an HPSS concentrator you support your degree studies with liberal arts coursework in one of nine tracks, with focuses including environmental studies, belief systems, gender, sexuality and race, and more.
In (and out of) the classroom
RISD’s Kyobo Fund supports the development of innovative new courses that are team-taught by liberal arts and studio faculty. As a result, HPSS continues to offer an ever-evolving array of interesting interdisciplinary courses such as The Art of Scientific Communication (with Illustration), The Witness Tree Project (with Furniture Design), Aqua Incognita (with Photography), Representing the “Real” (with FAV) and Producing Meaning: Theories of Technology Since 1850 (with Architecture).
Featured stories
Witness Tree 2022 Examines Conservation
Students in this year’s Witness Tree Project studio-seminar create objects out of beetle-infested maple from Vermont’s Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park.
Five Questions: Jameka Hartley
A brief interview with one of RISD’s recently hired Schiller Family Assistant Professors in Race in Art and Design.
Recasting the Dutch Golden Age
SEI Fellow Jane’a Johnson studies violence, visual culture and how race is reflected in archives and museums.
HPSS also offers a growing curriculum of science courses available as Liberal Arts electives. Developed for art and design students interested in biology, ecology, cognitive science, mathematics, physics, geology and the natural world in general, each course emphasizes science literacy and encourages connections to studio work where possible. Increasing numbers of students now welcome classes such as Concepts of Math for the Visual Artist, Investigating the Botanical World, Urban Ecology and Visual Perception.
