ARHA350 - Humor as a Transgressive Strategy in the Contemporary Visual Arts, 1960-Present

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Academic Year 2002/2003

Humor as a Transgressive Strategy in the Contemporary Visual Arts, 1960-Present
ARHA 350 SP

Late 20th century artists have used humor as a strategy to critique society. This course will consider artists from pop art, Fluxus and early conceptual art to the present, emphasizing the past three decades. We will consider a full range of media, from traditional painting, sculpture and photography to performance, video, installation, public and Internet art. The course will also include selected writings on the nature of humor (Bergson, Freud, Koestler and Hyde) and a consideration of such traditions as carnival, The Trickster, and the Signifying Monkey to provide a foundation for our inquiry. Among the artists to be discussed: Ed Ruscha, Robert Arneson, Vito Acconci, Bruce Nauman, Hans Haacke, Robert Colescott, Komar and Melamid, Sandy Skoglund, William Wegman, Adrian Piper, Louise Lawler, David Hammons, Krzysztof Wodiczko, the Guerrilla Girls, Carrie Mae Weems, Andrea Fraser, Fred Wilson and RTMark.

MAJOR READINGS

Primarily selected readings from museum exhibition catalogues, monographs and periodicals. Also selected readings from:

Sigmund Freud, JOKES ADN THEIR RELATION TO THE UNCONSCIOUS (1905)
Henri Bergson, LAUGHTER, AN ESSAY ON THE MEANING OF THE COMIC (1911)
Arthur Koestler, THE ACT OF CREATION (1964)
Lucy Lippard, GET THE MESSAGE? A DECADE OF ART FOR SOCIAL CHANGE (1984)
Nina Felshin, ed., BUT IS IT ART? THE SPIRIT OF ART AS ACTIVISM (1995)
Suzanne Lacy, ed., MAPPING THE TERRAIN, NEW GENRE PUBLIC ART (1995)
Lewis Hyde, TRICKSTER MAKES THIS WORLD, MICHIEF, MYTH, AND ART (1998)

EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS

Journals in response to readings and class discussions: 2-3 pages every week; to be reviewed three times during the semester for check, check minus, or plus. One 4-5 page research paper focused on a specific topic, due mid-semester. List of topic choices to be assigned. Letter grade. Final research paper, 15-20 pages, on topics mutually agreed upon. Letter grade.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS

Some awareness of the history of twentieth century art is much preferred. Would welcome students interested in art history, ethnic and cultural studies, sociology of humor, and/or political activism.

Unless preregistered students attend the first class meeting or communicate directly with the instructor prior to the first class, they will be dropped from the class list. NOTE: Students must still submit a completed Drop/Add form to the Registrar's Office.

The instructor of this course will not be using the on-line wait list. If you are interested in this course, please contact the instructor directly.

COURSE FORMAT: Seminar

REGISTRATION INFORMATION

Level: UGRD Credit: 1 Gen Ed Area Dept: HA ART Grading Mode: Graded

Prerequisites: NONE

SECTION 01

Instructor(s): Miller-Keller,Andrea

Times: ...W... 01:10PM-04:00PM; Location: DAC300

Reserved Seats: (Total Limit: 14)

SR. major: 4 Jr. major: 4

SR. non-major: 3 Jr. non-major: 3 SO: FR: X

Special Attributes:

Curricular Renewal: Reading Non-Verbal Texts

Links to Web Resources For This Course.

Last Updated on MAR-18-2003