Friday lates: Agnes Martin – pioneer, painter, icon
Time: 18:00 - 20:00
Location: Online
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
- Course Code: VB781
- Dates: 28/03/25 - 28/03/25
- Time: 18:00 - 20:00
- Taught: Fri, Evening
- Duration: 1 session
- Location: Online
- Tutor: Henry Martin
Course Code: VB781
Duration: 1 session
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?
This course examines the unconventional life and artworks of Agnes Martin (1912–2004) regarded as one of the great artists of the Twentieth Century.
Bridging Abstract Expressionism and Minimalism, Agnes Martin forged a unique vision, creating sublime paintings she hoped would inspire universal feelings of joy and happiness. Despite critical and commercial success from the 1960s onwards, Martin lived a private, solitary life, about which very little was known, until recently.
This course is taught by Henry Martin (no relation to the artist), author of the award-winning biography Agnes Martin: Pioneer, Painter, Icon (Benjamin Franklin Award). Based on interviews with Agnes Martin's family, friends, and colleagues, this "intimate" (Culture Trip) and "revealing" (The Bookseller) biography is the most complete account of the artist's life to date.
Throughout her life, Agnes Martin's gender, sexuality, profession, social status, and schizophrenia made her an outsider in a conservative American culture. From Canadian pioneer plains, through bohemian New York, to the desert of New Mexico, Agnes Martin achieved great success and fame against the odds, transforming herself from outsider to icon and living alongside peers including Ellsworth Kelly, Lenore Tawney, Robert Rauschenberg and Betty Parsons.
In this course, students will learn how Martin achieved her creative vision and navigated the art world and broader culture from 1912 to 2004.
The subject of a major retrospective at the Tate Modern in 2015, Agnes Martin's work continues to show in the U.K. in public spaces (e.g. Tate Modern) and commercial galleries (e.g. Pace, London).
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?
• A short introduction to the life, works and creative communities of the artist Agnes Martin.
• Key themes and movements in mid-Twentieth-century American art history, including queer and feminist art and communities.
• Explore biography as a methodology in, and product of, art history.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
· Identify artworks by Agnes Martin and Lenore Tawney.
· Explain the key philosophy underscoring Agnes Martin’s art.
· List the differences between Abstract Expressionism and Minimalism.
· Summarise important biographical chapters in Agnes Martin’s life.
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, hand-outs and health and safety information as well as basic functions of Zoom, specifically microphone and camera.
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 with lecture, slide presentations and will be invited to participate in class discussion.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
You might wish to have something to write with. You might wish to buy some of the books on any reading list given out in class.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
Search our website for 'Friday Lates' to see a range of short courses on a variety of art historical topics.
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.