Module Information
Module Identifier
AHM0740
Module Title
Artworld: Contemporary Practice in Context (for Students of Art History)
Academic Year
2019/2020
Co-ordinator
Semester
Semester 1
Mutually Exclusive
Other Staff
Course Delivery
| Delivery Type | Delivery length / details |
|---|---|
| Tutorial | 11 x 1 Hour Tutorials |
| Seminar | 11 x 2 Hour Seminars |
Assessment
| Assessment Type | Assessment length / details | Proportion |
|---|---|---|
| Semester Assessment | Literature review(15 souces), 2000 words Review of current/ recent literature, including up-to-date bibliography of secondary sources relevant to one of the seminar topics, to be shared with class and used as foundation for research essay | 20% |
| Semester Assessment | Powerpoint/prezi presentation, 25 minutes Presentation on one of the seminar topics (during weeks 3-9), initiating class discussion | 20% |
| Semester Assessment | Research Essay on one of the seminar topics, 3500 words Essay, 3500 words, plus Works Cited and appendix with captioned figures (illustrations), formatted in accordance with MLA style | 60% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Resit literature review Review of current/ recent literature, including up-to-date bibliography of secondary sources relevant to one of the seminar topics, to be shared with class and used as foundation for research essay | 20% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Resit recorded presentation Presentation on one of the seminar topics, 30 minutes, scripted | 20% |
| Supplementary Assessment | Resit Essay Essay, 3500 words, plus Works Cited and appendix with captioned figures (illustrations), formatted in accordance with MLA style | 60% |
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this module students should be able to:
1. situate the production, curation, distribution and reception of contemporary art in a cultural, political, and socio-economic context.
2. identify, define and debate key concepts of contemporary art discourse.
3. access, review and document a broad range of subject-specific literature in print and on line.
4. establish, sustain, test and support a position on contemporary art practices in a critical essay informed by research and rooted in theory.
5. create case studies to explore contemporary art practices to demonstrate their conceptual foundations and debate their cultural relevance.
6. generate and moderate group discussions through modes of presentations that are developed and debated in weekly workshops
Brief description
Delivered as a series of weekly seminars and workshops, this module offers a discussion and study forum for MA Art History students during their first semester at the School of Art. Themed seminar sessions situate the production, curation and distribution of contemporary art in a cultural, political, and socio-economic context.
MA Art History students are taught alongside MA Fine Art students, which provides an opportunity to contrast the intentions and concerns of practitioners with the critical reception of their work.
Using a variety of assigned readings (e.g. artist statements, exhibition catalogues, reviews, theoretical/philosophical journal articles and art history essays) as a starting point, seminar members gather primary and secondary sources to explore whether/how a given theme or topic manifests in the practice of contemporary artists. The selection of sample artists and sources is negotiated in individual tutorials.
The research is shared with fellow students during the seminar and subsequently via Blackboard, providing all seminar members with an overview and review of specific aspects of contemporary art, as well as with a foundation for debates on current developments in the artworld. The research also serves as a basis for the final essay.
Key terminology to be defined, tested and contested in the seminars include ‘visual culture,’ ‘material culture,’ ‘new media,’ ‘postmodern,’ ‘altermodern,’ ‘identity politics,’ ‘globalisation,’ ‘trauma discourse,’ ‘institutional critique,’ ‘artivism’ and ‘relational aesthetics.’
MA Art History students actively shape the content and delivery of the module by giving one 30-minute presentation on contemporary artistic practices in relation to history and theory. Each MA Art History student generates and leads one of the seminar discussions.
Modes of presentation and delivery of content are developed, debated, refined and reviewed in weekly workshops in which MA Art History students participate in addition to the seminars.
MA Art History students are taught alongside MA Fine Art students, which provides an opportunity to contrast the intentions and concerns of practitioners with the critical reception of their work.
Using a variety of assigned readings (e.g. artist statements, exhibition catalogues, reviews, theoretical/philosophical journal articles and art history essays) as a starting point, seminar members gather primary and secondary sources to explore whether/how a given theme or topic manifests in the practice of contemporary artists. The selection of sample artists and sources is negotiated in individual tutorials.
The research is shared with fellow students during the seminar and subsequently via Blackboard, providing all seminar members with an overview and review of specific aspects of contemporary art, as well as with a foundation for debates on current developments in the artworld. The research also serves as a basis for the final essay.
Key terminology to be defined, tested and contested in the seminars include ‘visual culture,’ ‘material culture,’ ‘new media,’ ‘postmodern,’ ‘altermodern,’ ‘identity politics,’ ‘globalisation,’ ‘trauma discourse,’ ‘institutional critique,’ ‘artivism’ and ‘relational aesthetics.’
MA Art History students actively shape the content and delivery of the module by giving one 30-minute presentation on contemporary artistic practices in relation to history and theory. Each MA Art History student generates and leads one of the seminar discussions.
Modes of presentation and delivery of content are developed, debated, refined and reviewed in weekly workshops in which MA Art History students participate in addition to the seminars.
Content
1) Art/Visual Culture
2) History/Theory
3) Tradition/Revision
4) Self/Representation
5) Creativity/Technology
6) Production/Consumption
7) Identity/Otherness
8) Markets/Institutions
9) Activism/Relational Aesthetics
10) Practical Theories/Theorised Praxis
2) History/Theory
3) Tradition/Revision
4) Self/Representation
5) Creativity/Technology
6) Production/Consumption
7) Identity/Otherness
8) Markets/Institutions
9) Activism/Relational Aesthetics
10) Practical Theories/Theorised Praxis
Module Skills
| Skills Type | Skills details |
|---|---|
| Application of Number | |
| Communication | |
| Improving own Learning and Performance | |
| Information Technology | |
| Personal Development and Career planning | |
| Problem solving | |
| Research skills | On completion of this module, students should be able to: 1 situate the practices of contemporary art in wider cultural contexts 2 consider art historical writings in relation to these contexts 3 discuss key ideas in an informed way through an acquaintance with recent and formative literature 4 present images and offer informed arguments and interpretations using Powerpoint and/or other presentational methods 5 formulate discussions about visual art and theory in written texts accompanied by suitable research apparatus |
| Subject Specific Skills | |
| Team work |
Notes
This module is at CQFW Level 7