Black Art in a White Context: Display, Critique and the 'Other' (Level 2)
| Code | School | Level | Credits | Semesters |
| HART2043 | Cultural, Media and Visual Studies | 2 | 20 | Spring UK |
- Code
- HART2043
- School
- Cultural, Media and Visual Studies
- Level
- 2
- Credits
- 20
- Semesters
- Spring UK
Summary
This module explores the work of Black visual artists, displayed or produced in Europe and America. It begins by considering Victorian attitudes towards African objects and culture, before exploring the influences of ethnographic studies on artists working in the twentieth century, such as the Surrealists. The module then considers how contexts such as the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movements impact the work of American artists like Aaron Douglas, Dindga McCannon, and David Hammons. Finally, the module examines how contemporary artists, such as Lorna Simpson, Kara Walker, Sonia Boyce and the BLK Art Group, re-present histories of enslavement and colonisation through photography, painting, installation, and performance.
Target Students
Only available for International Media & Communication Studies students, Film and Television Studies (SH) students, History of Arts students, Liberal Arts students and Exchange students
Classes
- One 1-hour seminar each week for 11 weeks
- One 2-hour lecture each week for 11 weeks
Assessment
- 100% Coursework: 3,000 words portfolio of written work and equivalent
Assessed by end of spring semester
Educational Aims
To become familiar with a variety of Black artists from the nineteenth century to the present day.To understand the contextual and historical influences on art production and display in relation to the module’s themes.To gain an understanding of key theories relating to art produced by Black artists in a Western context.To understand the historical (social, economic, and cultural) influences on racialisation and its impact through visual arts.To gain a good knowledge of chronologies of African American and Black British art histories from the twentieth century to the present day.Learning Outcomes
Knowledge and Understanding:
• Knowledge of key artists and works in twentieth and twenty-first centuries in Europe and America.
• Understanding of the results and influences of the introduction of African art into Europe and America in the nineteenth century and beyond.
• Ability to consider diverse artworks and artists in relation to their historical context and its related theoretical and cultural discourses.
Intellectual Skills:
• Ability to analyse visual and textual sources.
• Ability to locate ideas and works within cultural and historical contexts.
• Ability to use sources from various intellectual disciplines.
Professional/Practical Skills:
• Independent research.
• Ability to engage with diverse materials in order to compose an argument.
• Confidence in group discussion and debate.
Transferable (Key) Skills:
• Ability to read texts and images critically and contextually.
• Ability to work independently and with others.
• Ability to construct and articulate an argument.