ARTS 390 Art in Los Angeles

Art in LA will explore the shifting roles of the contemporary artist, art writer, and curator in today's diverse and globalized art world. Students will put theory into practice by engaging in art making, curating and writing about contemporary art in Los Angeles with the goal of creating an expansive critical space for their thoughts to flourish. The course will ask, "What are exhibitions?” investigating conventional and alternative curatorial practices that question the cultural, political, economic, regional, and social contexts shaping the exhibition of contemporary art.  Students will collaborate to mount an exhibition of their own design, and will be encouraged to question the boundaries of the "white cube gallery," pushing art into surprising public and private spaces. 

Art in LA will feature behind the scenes visits to Los Angeles area exhibition venues and artists' studios, enabling students to learn about the range of art practices and the practical exigencies of bringing art and its exhibition to fruition. This course will serve as the required advanced exhibition methods course for junior studio art majors, modeling the myriad of ways it means to be an artist in the world, and readying rising seniors for a robust comprehensive experience. Scheduled at the same time as the Studio Art Senior Seminar, the course is designed to facilitate collaboration between junior and senior art majors. Students in ARTS390 will participate in the ARTS490 senior comps critiques, provide feedback to senior's artist statement drafts, and collaborate with the senior art majors in the installation of their comprehensive exhibition.