Art & Design Courses

Explore Chinese history and culture from the perspective of the individual through philosophical texts, literary works, and art.

Learn how to read William Shakespeare's plays through his biography, Elizabethan and Jacobean history, and modern performance.

An exploration of the magnetic and ambivalent character of Shylock in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice.

An exploration of the haunting figure at the heart of one of William Shakespeare’s most famous plays.

Explore acts of storytelling in Shakespeare’s Othello alongside world-class artists who interpret Othello’s story in new forms and contexts today.

Study Japanese scroll art as text and as "little movies" that immerse the viewer through visual narration. 

Study Baroque and Classical opera through Handel’s Giulio Cesare and Mozart’s Don Giovanni

Learn the music and cultural impact of three canonical operas from the 1800s: Les Huguenots, Das Rheingold, and Otello.

Learn about Claudio Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo, one of the first operas ever written.

Learn about Hector Berlioz’s Symphonie Fantastique, an iconic Romantic symphony that ushered in an era of narrative “program music.”

Discover Handel’s Messiah in this installment of First Nights, which will explore five masterpieces of western music.

Learn about Beethoven’s monumental 9th Symphony and forms of orchestral music.

Learn the fascinating history of Igor Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring, one of the most challenging and rewarding ballets ever written.

Learn fundamental principles of architecture — as an academic subject or a professional career — by studying some of history’s most important buildings.

Design Thinking and Innovation from Harvard Business School (HBS) Online will teach you how to leverage fundamental design thinking principles and innovative problem-solving tools to address business challenges.