ARTS 211 Contextualizing Portraits
This course will be an exploration of historical and contemporary usage of portraits, focusing specifically on painting and drawing. Countering the universal tendencies of a Eurocentric modernity within the arts, Contextualizing Portraits will explore portraiture through a global lens. This means decentering European formal techniques as a universal standard of creative expression.
Students will be introduced to painting practices and techniques found throughout the Americas (e.g. Mayan murals, codices, weavings, etc), India (e.g. Padmapani painting in Ajanta cave), China (e.g. Zhou Jichang second half of 12th century), Egypt (e.g. Egyptian tomb of Huy), and more. This course material will require a sensitive investigation of our aesthetics biases, navigating appropriation, developing our epistemic demeanor, and broadening our tool sets within painting and drawing.
Thematically, we will consider how portraits can be used today to critically investigate contemporary issues found in our society today.