ARTH 387 Modernism, Visual Culture, and the Avant-Garde

This course will focus on modernism and the avant-garde in the United States and Europe in the 20th century. Definitions of modernity, the avant-garde, and visual culture will frame our analysis of painting, sculpture, photography, architecture, and film. We will investigate these forms of visual media, paying close attention to the ways in which they engage with, critique, and negate the traditions of western art history. Issues of gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, and the politics of art will underscore our work together in this course. We will also explore how cultural and social revolutions, emerging theories of modernism, and the important role of art criticism and art exhibition have shaped not only 20th century visual culture, but also the discourse of art history itself.