Art & Art History 204 - American Art

Institution:

Dickinson College

Subject:

Description:

This course takes a chronological approach to the history of art in the United States from the late eighteenth century through the early twentieth century. At the start of the semester, we consider questions of how the newly-formed nation and its citizens were represented in art. We will examine how, during the heyday of Western expansion, the American landscape was variously depicted through photography and painting with the ideology of Manifest Destiny and a growing tourist industry in mind. We also discuss the challenges artists faced in the later nineteenth century in creating commemorative public statuary for the nation following a highly divisive Civil War. By the end of the nineteenth century, during America's "Gilded Age," dramatic shifts in race, class and gender relations account for an unprecedented level of activity in the arts. Finally, we examine the issues at stake in a thoroughly diverse and modern version of America, where homosexuality, race relations and debates about gender take center stage, alongside questions of the nation's place in an increasingly global environment. Students can expect to leave the course with a more complex understanding of what America is and how it has been represented across history, by various artists and in a range of media, while also developing crucial skills in critical reading, writing and visual analysis. Prerequisite: 101 or 102, American studies majors, or permission of the instructor.

Credits:

3.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.dickinson.edu

Phone Number:

(717) 243-5121

Regional Accreditation:

Middle States Association of Colleges and Schools

Calendar System:

Semester

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