Art History

This seminar-based course examines major developments in artistic practice and theory from the mid-1960s up to the present day, situating them in their social, political, and economic context. It considers art produced after the exhaustion of modernism and the failure of the (neo-)avant-garde. This period is characterized by the disappearance of conventional historical movements and the emergence of looser categories of practice such as Performance, Installation, Video and Relational art. The course compares and contrasts the earlier discourse of “the postmodern” and the more recent discourse of “the contemporary” as accounts of art after modernism. Particular attention is paid to the multifarious, increasingly globalized nature of art since the 1960s and the methodological challenges this presents to the discipline.

By introducing the basic elements of traditional Chinese opera and the influential opera types (Peking Opera, Kunqu Opera, Huangmei Opera, Sichuan Opera, etc.), international students experience the richness and diversity of Chinese culture. In the opera analysis, students learn the essence of opera culture and qualities of opera characters.

The course is about Dutch art – with an emphasis on painting. Ever since the Middle Ages the Netherlands has played a pivotal role in the history of European art and culture. Dutch and Flemish artists were the first to use oil paints, the first to visually document the lives and cultures of ordinary people, and the first to produce art for a free market. Painters such as Van Eyck, Brueghel, Bosch, Rubens, Vermeer, Rembrandt, Van Gogh, and Mondriaan are counted among the great masters of history. Their art embodies qualities that are believed to be typical for the country, such as a devotion to truthfulness, attention to detail, and love of textures. But there were many more artists whose works are still considered among the most important in history – if only because they were the first to notice the mundane things nobody else had paid attention to, such as the beauty of a still-life or the wonders of a cloudy sky. From the late Middle Ages through the Renaissance and the Baroque to the modern era, Dutch artists have tried to come to terms with ever-changing principles and conceptions regarding the world around them and have been constantly improving techniques to visualize it. The results of their efforts are the subject of this course. The course mostly follows a chronological order. In the first lecture the (religious) significance of art in the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and the Baroque are introduced. In the following lectures students are given an overview of the development of Dutch art from the Middle Ages to the modern era. The course includes field trips to various museums in Amsterdam, the Hague, or Arnhem to view the original works.

This course begins with the origins of pop art in the UK before turning to more famous proponents, such as Warhol. It explores major post-war developments in visual culture, including minimalism, land art, and conceptual art. It also explores new media such as installations, performance art, and moving image art. In architecture and design, the late 20th century reaction to modernism, expressed through the pop movement and postmodernism, is a key focus.