Course Description: This course is designed as an upper-level seminar for any student who has had at least one previous art history course. The modified seminar format will require considerable reading and research. Active participation through class discussions and presentations will be central to the success of the course. The subject for this year's seminar is contemporary art from 1970 to the present. We=ll try to make sense of the confusing array of styles, mediums, and themes by focusing our attention on certain broad categories such as The Body, Identity, Place, Language, Appropriation, and Religion and Politics.

Texts: Our four texts are:
1) Brandon Taylor, Contemporary Art: Art Since 1970 (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005) (the hardback Prentice Hall 2004 edition is also fine)
2) Kristine Stiles and Peter Selz, Theories and Documents of Contemporary Art: A Sourcebook of Artists' Writings (Berkeley: Univ. of California Press, 1996)
3) Jean Robertson and Craig McDaniel, Themes of Contemporary Art: Visual Art after 1980 (Oxford & NY: Oxford Univ. Press, 2005)
4) Linda Weintraub, Art on the Edge and Over: Searching For Art's Meaning in Contemporary Society, 1970s-1990s (Litchfield, CT: Art Insights, 1996)
I will also probably distribute some articles during the course of the semester.

Grades: Each of you will be evaluated on the basis of the following components of the course:
Participation in & leadership of discussion 25%
Short writings 25%
Oral presentation 20%
Research paper (12-15 pp.) 30%

Class Attendance and Participation: Regular class attendance is crucial since we'll be looking at various works of art that aren't illustrated in our texts, and we'll also be discussing points that aren't covered in any of our texts. I believe very strongly that participation is essential to the learning process in all classes, and it=s particularly crucial in a seminar -- plus it makes the class more fun for all of us, so I encourage everyone to ask questions, comment, disagree, elaborate, and otherwise join in the conversation.
Absences for whatever reason after the first two will adversely affect your final grade. I will count off one point from your final grade for each absence after the first two. If you are absent for an extended excused illness or family emergency or school sports, you may be able to make up those absences by doing additional writing assignments (it will be your responsibility to consult with me about this if the need arises).

Oral Components of the Course:
1) You’ll be a discussion leader twice during the semester. You’ll sign up for the days by Tuesday, Aug. 30 (the sign-up sheet’s on my office door). For each presentation you’ll select an artist from the list provided on the course schedule (see below for the lists related to each day’s readings) and do outside research on that artist in order to discuss with the class. Your information should come from at least two books (in addition to our four texts) and at least two on-line sources. For each presentation you’ll make a short handout (about 2 typed pages) that might include such information as key issues, questions, works, primary quotes, and/or controversies associated with the artist. Cite the sources, when relevant, by giving parenthetical notes, and include a bibliography in correct MLA format at the end of your handout. You are responsible for making enough copies of your handout for everyone in the class and for getting digital images of the artist’s work (finding them on ARTstor, taking them on our departmental copy-stand with our digital camera, or downloading them from the internet if you can find any that are large enough). You’ll learn how to create and present your images using MDID and ARTstor (we’ll be talking more about this process in class).
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2) You'll give an oral presentation (about 20 minutes in length) at the end of the semester, based on your research paper, and will prepare a short handout (1-2 pp.) for the class. See comments above for the handout and images.

3) You’ll be expected to participate fully in the class discussions by asking questions, pulling out relevant ideas or passages from the texts that we read, making connections with other images or issues, being an attentive listener, and helping to keep the class lively and focused.

Short Writings: You’ll keep an on-going informal journal responding to ideas from our class readings, issues gleaned from looking at art periodicals in our library or a local bookstore (the library gets Art News, Art Journal, Art in America, Sculpture, and Flash Art, among others), visits to the Lewis Art Gallery exhibitions, visits to local galleries, studios, and exhibitions, and/or conversations with your peers. An A journal would have at least one substantial, thoughtful entry per week (1-1 ½ pp.), based on a range of sources throughout the semester; a B journal would have at least one entry per week, of variable length and thoughtfulness; a C journal would have one short and rather minimal entry per week; and a D or F journal would have fewer entries and ones that I would consider minimal in length and substance. Please bring these to class in a small folder every class and be prepared to talk about issues that you discuss in your entries. I’ll pick them up every two or three weeks.

Research Paper: This thesis-driven research paper, related to some aspect of contemporary art, should be 12-15 pages and should follow MLA guidelines for notes and bibliography. For more information, see the handout "Tips for Writing Art History Papers" (now available at www.millsaps.edu/art/word/PAPERS_TIPS.doc).

Due Dates for Research Paper:
M, 9/5 Paper topic and preliminary bibliography
T, 9/20 Expanded preliminary bibliography and ILL requests
F, 11/11 First draft of research paper to me and peers
Th, 11/17 Peer responses due
M, 11/28 Final copy of research paper

Late Assignments: Short writings (journal entries and oral presentation handouts) will not be accepted late. If you turn in your research paper draft or final copy late, it will be marked down 1/3 letter grade for each 48 hours that it's late unless prior arrangements are made (a serious, legitimate, justifiable reason is needed for me to consider granting a student extra time).

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Learning Disabilities: If you have a learning disability and need special arrangements you must discuss it with the appropriate person in Student Affairs and also with each of your instructors. In order for me to be able to accommodate your needs you must inform me within the first week of the semester and we must both sign a written contract clarifying any changes in the expectations and requirements for the course.

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If you're having problems of any sort that are affecting your work in this course or as a student at Millsaps, please feel free to come talk to me about it, or write me an e-mail message. I would be happy to talk with you about any questions or concerns you might have.

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PLAGIARISM - A Reminder
Always be careful about plagiarism, even in short writing exercises and take-home exams. Plagiarism, as you know from Liberal Studies and/or your other core courses, is the use of another person's ideas or words without proper acknowledgement.
Two of the most common forms of plagiarism are defined by Diana Hacker in The Bedford Handbook for Writers (Boston: St. Martin's, 1994) as
" (1) borrowing someone's ideas, information, or language without documenting the source and
(2) documenting the source but paraphrasing the source's language too closely, without using quotation marks to indicate that language has been
borrowed" (477).

When should you document a source? In addition to citing the source of a direct quote, you should give a citation when you refer to an idea, opinion, hypothesis, or conclusion from one of your sources, or when you summarize or paraphrase a section of your source, or when you rely on one of your sources for a fact that would not be considered common knowledge for the audience of your paper (Hacker 477-78). The point of all this is to help the reader (and yourself as writer) to distinguish between your own ideas and those with whom you are entering into scholarly conversation.

What is meant by paraphrasing a source too closely? This is probably the kind of plagiarism that I most often see in student papers. It has often been considered "unintentional", but is nonetheless clearly recognizable as plagiarism. With the Honor Code now in place at Millsaps, and with a concerted effort being made by faculty and students alike to clarify the boundaries of academic dishonesty, you will no longer be able to plead lack of understanding but will be turned in to the Honor Council. If you're uncertain about plagiarism, I encourage you to read Hacker, pp. 467-79, on the process of taking notes in order to properly paraphrase your sources and on constructing and writing your essay in order to maintain a strong, clear voice.

HONOR CODE: The honor pledge signed by all students upon entering the College is as follows:
As a Millsaps College student, I hereby affirm that I understand the Honor Code and am aware of its implications and of my responsibility to the Code. In the interests of expanding the atmosphere of respect and trust in the College, I promise to uphold the Honor Code and I will not tolerate dishonest behavior in myself or in others.
Please pledge all your written work for this class with the written pledge: "I hereby certify that I have neither given nor received unauthorized aid on this assignment [Signature]." The abbreviation "Pledged" followed by your signature has the same meaning and is acceptable on assignments other than final exams.

COURSE CALENDAR (subject to change)(readings are listed on the day they=ll be discussed)

Week 1 Introduction; Reality and Abstraction

T, 8/23, READ: Robertson Ch. 1, Taylor 22-24

Aug. 22-Sept. 22 , Lewis Art Gallery, “Cosmos Circus,” Mixed media by John
Siblik (Upper Iowa University): “These works on paper and wood . . . are about relationships; starting with the individual and moving out in concentric rings to the greater community. What greater venue to stage this lyrical and whimsical drama than the universe?” (Siblik)

W, 8/24: Workshop on ARTstor and MDID

Th, 8/25, READ: Taylor 59-89, Weintraub 242-47

List of Artists for Reality and Abstraction (Weeks 1 & 2):
Gerhard Richter, Julian Schnabel, Anselm Kiefer, Lucian Freud, Georg Baselitz, Cy Twombly, Frank Stella, Elizabeth Murray, Sigmar Polke, Keith Haring, Joyce Kozloff, Valerie Jaudon, Philip Pearlstein, Photorealism (Richard Estes, Audrey Flack, Duane Hanson, Ed Ruscha, Vija Celmins)
Sign up for Discussion Leader topics before next Tuesday (sign-up sheet on my office door)

Week 2 Reality and Abstraction, cont’d.

T, 8/30, READ: Stiles & Selz 61 (1st 7 paragraphs, up to ‘In 1968'), 154, 219-21,
229-32, 237-41, 314-18, 369-71
DUE: Sign up for Discussion Leader topics before class

W, 8/31: Workshop on taking & downloading digital images

Th, 9/1

Week 3 Land and Environmental Art

M, 9/5, DUE: Paper topic & preliminary bibliography

T, 9/6, READ: “Survey” chapter from Kastner & Wallis, Land and
Environmental Art, Taylor 9-19, Weintraub 39-50

W, 9/7: Discussion of graduate school & careers
DUE: List of 5 places you might attend or work after graduation (graduate
or professional schools, internships, jobs, etc.), with brief explanation about what attracts you to those possibilities. You’ll want to go to the Career Center and research on-line (check out our departmental web site, http://www.millsaps.edu/art/index.shtml, for help! Go to the Art History page and click on the ‘Graduate School’ link, and go to the Opportunities page and click on the ‘Internships’ link)

Th, 9/8, READ: Robertson Ch. 3; Stiles & Selz 527-33, 547-56, 563-66

List of artists for Land and Environmental Art:
Robert Smithson, Michael Heizer, Walter De Maria, Christo & Jeanne-Claude, Andy Goldsworthy, Maria Merz, Roxy Paine, Mary Beth Edelson, Wolfgang Laib, Mel Chin, Charles Simonds, Jackie Ferrara, Richard Long, Olafur Eliasson

Week 4 Installation Art

T, 9/13, READ: Taylor 132-37, 215-27, Weintraub 231-35

W, 9/14: Discussion of research techniques

Th, 9/15

List of artists for Installation Art:
Judy Pfaff, Ed Kienholz, Ilya Kabakov, Matthew Ritchie, Paul Thek, Alice Aycock, Ernesto Neto, Sarah Sze, Tomoko Takahashi, Diana Thater, Krzysztof Wodiczko

Week 5 Monuments; Body-Related Art

M, 9/19, 9:30-11: The Avoda Project is coming to Millsaps! Artist Tobi Kahn
will bring his art workshop to the Bowl. This is part of Kahn's introduction to his exhibit, which will be showing at the Mississippi Museum of Art from September 17 through October 30. Kahn will give a brief introduction to the use of ritual objects in worship and will then invite students, faculty, and staff to create their own objects of worship (supplies will be provided)

T, 9/20, READ: Taylor 141-48, Stiles & Selz 524-25
DUE: Expanded preliminary bibliography including ILL requests

List of artists for Monuments:
Maya Lin, Gordon Matta-Clark, Richard Serra, Rachel Whiteread, Isa
Genzken, Brian Tolle, Jochn Gerz,

Th, 9/22, READ: Robertson Ch. 5, Taylor 27-36, 151-61, Weintraub123-28

List of artists for Body-Related Art (Weeks 5 & 6):
Judy Chicago, Miriam Schapiro, Joel-Peter Witkin, Robert Mapplethorpe, Lynda Benglis, Janine Antoni, Robert Gober, Jake & Dinos Chapman, John de Andrea, Michelle Lopez, China Adams, Wenda Gu, Kim Jones, Ana Mendieta, Karen Finley, Rona Pondick, Kiki Smith, Aziz & Cucher, Jenny Saville, Nancy Fried, Magdalena Abakanowicz, Niki de Saint-Phalle, Stelarc, Monica Sjoo, Lynda Benglis, Chen Chieh-Jen, Franko B, Felix Gonzales-Torres, Shigeko Kubota, Piero Manzoni, Stephen J. Shanabrook, Rosemarie Trockel, Hannah Wilke

Week 6 Body-Related Art, cont’d.

Sept. 26-Nov. 4, Lewis Art Gallery, Exhibition of paintings on paper by Andrea
Prince (Memphis College of Art)

T, 9/27, READ: Stiles & Selz 257-60, 274-80, 358-62; & skim 427-30

Th, 9/29
Week 7 Performance

T, 10/4, READ: Taylor 19-22, 37-50, 227-44; Weintraub 59-64, 77-83, 165-70,
218-24; Stiles & Selz 604-06, 709-17 (top), 758-64 (bottom)

W, 10/5: Discussion of your resumé or CV (curriculum vitae)

Th, 10/6

List of artists for Performance:
Yves Klein, Matthew Barney, Vito Acconci, Carolee Schneemann, Chris Burden, Marina Abramovic, Joseph Beuys, Ann Hamilton, Gina Pane, Orlan, Robert Longo, Vanessa Beecroft, Rebecca Horn, Bruce Nauman,, Bill Viola. Nam June Paik

Week 8 Performance, cont’d.; Issues of Identity

T, 10/11

Th, 10/13, READ: Robertson Ch. 4, Taylor 186-97, 204-12, Weintraub 51-58,
71-76, 84-121, 145-51, 248-53

List of artists for Issues of Identity (Weeks 8, 9, 10):
Self-portraits: Cindy Sherman, On Kawara, Gilbert & George, Chuck Close, Francis Bacon, Alix Lambert, Adrian Piper, Jimmie Durham, Robert Morris
Collective Identity (Racial/Sexual, Ethnic/National): Faith Ringgold, Betye Saar, Romare Bearden, Robert Colescott, Lorna Simpson, Carrie Mae Weems, Sukran Moral, Yasumasa Morimura, David Hammons, Lyle Ashton-Harris, Liu Hung, James Luna, Amalia Mesa-Bains, Shirin Neshat, Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Kara Walker

Week 9 FALL BREAK; Issues of Identity, cont’d.

Th, 10/20, READ: Stiles & Selz 216-19, 363-66, 791-94

Week 10 Issues of Identity, cont’d.

T, 10/25

Th, 10/27, No Class: I'll be at the Southeastern College Art Conference

Week 11 Art and Language; Inspiration and Appropriation

T, 11/1 (Art and Language), READ: Robertson Ch. 6, Taylor 128, Weintraub
191-96, 236-41, Stiles & Selz 376-78, 858-61, 886-90

Th, 11/3 (Inspiration and Appropriation), READ: Taylor 81, 105-21; Weintraub
197-203, 212-17, Stiles & Selz 379-83

List of artists for Art & Language:
Barbara Kruger, Jenny Holzer, Gerlovina & Gerlovin, Mary Kelly

List of artists for Inspiration and Appropriation:
Mike Bidlo, Tony Cragg, Jeff Koons, Ericson & Ziegler, Mark Tansey,
Hubert Duprat, Ken Aptekar, Avdei Ter-Oganyan, Braco Dimitrievic, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Sherrie Levine

Week 12 Inspiration and Appropriation, cont’d; Art, Religion and Politics

Nov. 6-Dec. 9, Lewis Art Gallery, “Bagels & Grits” (Photography exhibition in
conjunction with the Jewish Film Festival); Opening Reception: Sunday, Nov. 6, 1 – 3 pm. Also note that at the Friday Forum, Nov. 11, 12:30, AC 215, Stuart Rockoff from the Institute of Southern Jewish Life will help to explain the importance of this exhibition.

T, 11/8

Th, 11/10, READ: Robertson Ch. 7; Taylor 155, 175-82, 239; Weintraub 159-64,
179-83

F, 11/11, DUE by noon in my office & in peer readers' P.O. boxes: First draft of research paper

List of artists for Art, Religion and Politics (Weeks 12 & 13):
Andres Serrano, Ofili, David Wojnarowicz, Maurizio Cattelan, Damien Hirst, Jeff Wall, Joseph Beuys, Paul Thek, Howard Finster, Mariko Mori, Martinez, Ron Athey, Renee Cox, Joseph Beuys, Araeen Rasheed, Glenn Brown, Luc Tuymans

Week 13 Art, Religion and Politics, cont’d.

T, 11/15, READ: Stiles & Selz 280-81, 373-76, 633-44

Th, 11/17, DUE: Peer responses to research papers

Week 14 Photography

T, 11/22, READ: Taylor 92-105; Weintraub 65-70
Th, 11/24: THANKSGIVING

List of artists for Photography:
Sally Mann, Nan Goldin, Diane Arbus, Sophie Calle

Week 15 Oral Presentations

M, 11/28, DUE: Final copy of research paper

T, 11/29: Oral Presentations

W, 11/30: Oral Presentations

Th, 12/1: Oral Presentations