HKUB00827U Kunsthistorie: Valgfag med formidlingsprojekt: Decolonizing Exhibitions

Årgang 2017/2018
Engelsk titel

History of Art

Kursusindhold

Kurset skal tages sammen med den fælles undervisning i skriftlig formidling.

The end product of this course will be a “formidlingsprojekt,” and the course theme will provide specific examples of how to communicate art historical themes and methods to a broader public. Through this thematic course the students will gain knowledge and inspiration for their exam projects. The exam can be made in English or Danish, as the examination will be joined between Mette Højsgaard and David Winfield Norman.

 

In spite of its pointed opposition to the status quo of Eurocentric life, postcolonial critique has become increasingly imbedded in arts institutions and academia. Within and against this development, artists and curators have turned the borders between theory, practice, aesthetics and the lived politics of decolonization into contested ground. In attempting to address the colonial past and present of arts institutions, are we creating more inclusive representations, or a form of disguise?

 

This course provides a broad overview of postcolonial and decolonial theories while studying how these theories have been applied in exhibitions, curatorial interventions and artworks, drawing from historical and contemporary case studies in a global context. It places emphasis on examining how artists, historians and curators practice theory in light of the political and social consequences of colonialism and the role of art to respond to them. As such, the readings combine theoretical and scholarly texts with catalogue essays, reviews, interviews and new media. The course will combine lectures and seminar discussions with exhibition visits, guest lectures and practical writing exercises.

 

We will study and debate core concepts at the intersection of art and colonialism – hybridity, subaltern, ethno-aesthetics, land, Indigeneity, contact zone and decolonization – by posing questions such as: What are the consequences of memorializing colonialism and institutionalizing decolonization? How have colonialism, postcolonialism and decolonization been visualized, staged and choreographed? How can discourse and practice work together and to what extent have they worked against one another? How are place-based decolonization and postcolonial critique navigated in Europe, in settler colonial states like the U.S. and Canada, in former colonies and beyond – and how can they be carried forward in site-specific art/curatorial practice? How do racialized, gendered and sexual dynamics complicate postcolonial studies, particularly in relation to issues of representation? Where does the “ethnic” end and the “aesthetic” begin, and vice versa?

The course structure will generally take the form of two hours of lecture – occasionally to include guest lectures, film viewings, exhibition visits and practical exercises – followed by one hour of guided discussion. Each student will be responsible for leading one discussion based on the week’s readings.
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Point
15 ECTS
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