Five revolutionary exhibitions in art history
Time: 18:30 - 20:30
Location: Online
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
- Course Code: VB771
- Dates: 14/01/25 - 11/02/25
- Time: 18:30 - 20:30
- Taught: Tue, Evening
- Duration: 5 sessions (over 5 weeks)
- Location: Online
- Tutor: Henry Martin
Course Code: VB771
Duration: 5 sessions (over 5 weeks)
Note: Course starts today, check start time
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Centre for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
From the opening of the Louvre in 1793 to the present-day Venice Biennale, this course uses five exhibitions (in Anglo-European history) as a jumping off point to explore and examine art-historical and contemporary themes including nationalism, modernism, identity politics and representation.
Artists, art movements and institutions featured include: Kiki Smith, The Whitney Museum of American Art, Venice Biennale, Zoe Leonard, German Expressionism, Claude Monet, Peter Paul Rubens, Louvre Abu Dhabi, Marcel Duchamp, Fred Wilson, Cecilia Vicuña, Guerrilla Girls and more.
The exhibitions include:
1793: Paris: Louvre (subject: Enlightenment and Nationalism).
1874: Paris: First Impressionist Exhibition (subject: art market and the dealer-critic system).
1913: New York: Armory Show (subject: modernity and the avant-garde) and 1937: Munich: Degenerate Art (subject: fascism and the state).
1993: New York: Whitney Biennial (subject: identity politics, queer, Black and feminist art).
2022: Venice: Venice Biennale (subject: gender and representation and the contemporary surreal).
This is a live online course. You will need:
- Internet connection. The classes work best with Chrome.
- A computer with microphone and camera is best (e.g. a PC/laptop/iMac/MacBook), or a tablet/iPad/smart phone/iPhone can be used if you don't have a computer but please note the experience may be less optimal.
- Earphones/headphones/speakers.
We will contact you with joining instructions before your course starts.
What will we cover?
• The background and context to each exhibition and why it is innovative and changed art history.
• We will identify key ideas and people ‘hidden’ within traditional accounts of Western art history including curators, dealers, writers and the art market.
• We will discuss and analyse how individual artworks challenge or support the ‘canon’ of Western art.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
• Discuss key historic and contemporary issues and themes in the (Western) art world/history.
• List ground-breaking exhibitions in art/history.
• Explain the context whereby selected exhibitions and artworks are important.
• Identify issues in exhibition and art history including public reception and the public and social role of the museum.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This course is suitable for all levels.
You should be able to follow simple written and verbal instructions, demonstrations, handouts and health and safety information and an understanding of how to operate basics of Zoom microphone and camera.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
You will be taught online with slide presentations and group discussions. Handouts will be provided by your tutor to support your learning on the course; these handouts will be available online/digitally for download via the college’s Google Classroom. You will be sent an invitation to join the Google Classroom within a week of the course start date.
Students will engage with a range of resources including images, podcasts, videos, and texts to explore the forms and functions (not to mention problems with, and successes) of art throughout the ages. Classes will include a range of media (visual, audio, audio-visual) and stimuli and be discussion-based. Short in-class assignments and homework many also feature.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
You might wish to purchase a notebook for taking notes. You might wish to buy some of the books on any reading list provided.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
A history of modern art in 50 objects
Change must come: art, politics and society.
Henry Martin is author of Agnes Martin: Pioneer, Painter, Icon (Benjamin Franklin Award), Yappo (Tipperary Artist Award), and contributor to Great Women Artists (Phaidon). His plays have been performed at Theatre 503, Underbelly, Roundhouse, Project Arts Centre, Belltable, Latitude, Bunker Theatre and Lime Tree Theatre, and his screenplays have been longlisted for the Red Planet Prize and BBC Tony Doyle Award. Henry has lectured at Camberwell College of Arts, University of Edinburgh, UCA Farnham, and the National College of Art and Design, Ireland. He has also worked in book publishing as an editor and rights manager since 2010, and he has written for many publications including The Irish Times, Hyperallergic, and The Journal of Illustration.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.