WMGS 219 - American Women Artists and Cold War Culture

Institution:

Trinity College

Subject:

Description:

Lee Krasner's abstract expressionist painting was praised as ".so good you would not know it was painted by a woman"; Mary McCarthy's best-selling novel The Group was condemned as a "lady book." Such were the terms governing the critical reception of women's art during the Cold War era of the 1950's and early 1960's. This course explores the art practices of six American women (playwrights Lillian Hellman and Lorraine Hansberry, novelist Mary McCarthy, poet/novelist Sylvia Plath, choreographer Martha Graham, and painter Lee Krasner) who achieved prominence in their respective fields while negotiating a "containment culture" that equated women's fulfillment with domestic bliss and promoted norms of womanhood that served to regulate female sexuality, labor, and representation. Course readings and discussions will situate the art of each of these figures against the backdrop of Cold War culture and will encourage students to critically examine the intersection between individual biography, art production, and socio-politi 1.00 units, Lecture

Credits:

1.00

Credit Hours:

Prerequisites:

Corequisites:

Exclusions:

Level:

Instructional Type:

Lecture

Notes:

Additional Information:

Historical Version(s):

Institution Website:

www.Trincoll.edu

Phone Number:

(860) 297-2000

Regional Accreditation:

New England Association of Schools and Colleges

Calendar System:

Semester

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