Description
[Modern or Contemporary] This course will examine how modern and contemporary art has been represented, interpreted, and mythologized on film. Biopics and recent documentaries have played an important role in shaping the public’s understanding of artists and art history. Film has been an important medium in constructing the mythos of the modern artist. This course will feature films that present a conflict between the popular narrative and scholarly history of modern and contemporary artists, which include constructs of the martyr and the genius. We will also critique how films reflect the cultural values of their own era, in concert with historical reality. Beyond viewing films and engaging in critical discussion, there will be course readings, several in-class writing responses, and one longer-format research paper based on a film of your own choosing. By the end of the class, students will be able to analyze films not only as important contributions to visual material culture, but also how they construct or distort the history of art.