Art & the History of Art 187 - Native American Contemporary Art

The course will examine works of art created by Native American artists in the 20th and 21st
centuries. Overdue recognition by museums, galleries, scholars, and critics of contemporary arts includes the Whitney Museum of American Art’s first-ever Native artist’s 2023 retrospective for Jaune Quick-to-See Smith (Confederated Salish and Kootenai Nation). We will study major movements and institutions, including the Institute of American Indian Art, National Museum of the American Indian, Studio School, Kiowa Six, Native Abstract Expressionist, Pop, and Neoexpressionist artists, and photographers, sculptors, textile and installation artists, as well as performance art and theater. The Boundless exhibition at the Mead Art Museum (Aug. 29-Jan. 4) features work by Native American writers and artists, grounded in but not contained to the Northeast, moving across generations and geographies, and expanding conversations about kinship, presence, resistance, and history. Our course will engage with the exhibition and the artists and writers included. The course will count toward the Five College Native American Studies Certificate.

Limited to 35 students. Fall semester. Visiting Professor Couch.

How to handle overenrollment: Priority would be given first to seniors, second to majors, and third to students working toward the 5 College Native American Studies Certificate.

Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Not applicable.