Theory/Criticism: Global Art Worlds (2022SP)

This course builds from Contemporary Art History and Theory from Fall. Through readings, discussion, research and writing, this seminar course examines broad, ecological questions about the global nature of art production and distribution, the scope of artistic and curatorial agency and the politics and ethics of representation. It explores less well-known narratives and alternative genealogies in modern and contemporary art, featuring instances where artists, curators, institutions, and even nations, have attempted to reframe the discourse, invert hierarchies and call into question traditional structures of power. Using case studies often drawn from the so-called Arab world, as well as Asia, Europe and the US in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, we will think through trenchant questions about art, culture, politics and social realities that have urgent importance for new practitioners today.