Download HONR269A Syllabus - University Honors

HONR 269A: Contemporary Arts and Ideas
Spring 2015, HBK 0123, T Th 2:00-3:15
Dr. Ingrid Satelmajer
Office hours: T 3:30-4:30, and by appointment
[email protected] (preferred)
REQUIRED TEXTS:
Handouts, self-made course packet from ELMS course space on-line readings (printouts required).
A selection of six contemporary arts events in the D.C. region, one of which must be the group field trip
at the beginning of the semester. One group event will be paid for by the Honors Program
(up to a certain limit). Many others can be attended for free or for relatively minimal cost.
A folder or binder for collecting handouts, lecture notes, and your responses.
COURSE OBJECTIVES:
When is a stuffed shark worth 12 million dollars? Is it good theater when the actors yell "inane
declarations" in your face?1 Why would anybody attach objects to the strings of a piano? If a poet slams
at a venue and no one is there to hear it, does the poem really exist? This course will introduce students to
the process of defining and evaluating the contemporary arts—visual art, theater, music, dance, and
literature. We'll visit D.C. area venues as we consider the role contemporary arts can play in our own
lives. And we'll consider whether (and how) the contemporary arts maintain a sense of relevancy, how
they invite or deflect audience participation and the construction of meaning, and what kind of
relationship they have to public institutions and debates.
Our examination of this subject will center, in the end, on questions about the role of the arts in the D.C.
region (including on our own campus), and we'll consider how regional characteristics have hindered or
helped the development of a local contemporary arts culture.
ATTENDANCE: I expect you to be here. Not attending class means you will miss material that will
affect your grade both directly (points missed from quizzes and daily assignments; points missed from
your class participation grade, to which I apply a multiplier based on your attendance) and indirectly
(material missed that you will need for your papers and other assignments). It’s important that you’re here
at the start of class (two tardies equal an absence). Not attending, or coming late to class, almost always
creates grade-related problems for students.
Excused absences are: classes that you miss because of serious illness (supported by a signed
letter from a doctor) or because of a serious emergency, such as a death in your family. If you know that
you will be missing class, you must notify me ahead of time. The day that you return to class, you must
bring a note identifying the date of and reason for the absence, and acknowledging that the information in
the note is accurate. It also is your responsibility to find out on the day you return if there is any
possibility to make up missed work.
If you are absent more than one time, I require documentation signed by a health care
professional.
If you are absent on days when there are formally scheduled assignments (tests and papers), you
are required to notify me in advance, and upon returning to class, bring documentation of the illness,
signed by a health care professional.
1
See Nelson Pressley, "With the Neo-Futurists, A Lot Can Happen in an Hour," The Washington Post, December 13, 2009: E7.
Note: If you will be missing any classes/deadlines on the basis of religious observance, you must
let me know in writing during the first two weeks of the semester.
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Note: This course offers a guided exploration of the D.C. arts scene. As such, you will be asked
repeatedly to share your individual reactions to the ideas and events, as well as contribute to the larger
group conversation in which we consider how one defines, evaluates, and participates in this region's arts
scene.
Assignments, unless otherwise noted, are due at the start of class and must be typewritten and
handed in as hardcopy. Do not send assignments via email. Here's the advice I was given as an
undergraduate (though not with any guarantees): A-level work = 3 hours of study per course credit hour.
Papers
You will write short critical responses based on your attendance of five arts events (2-4 pp. each; the fifth
paper can be notes instead of an essay). A detailed handout will be given about these assignments, but the
following requirements apply: 1) One of these events must be a combined consideration of our first field
trip, 2) You must cover at least three categories of "the arts," as considered in this class, and 3) At least
one of these events must be an on-campus event; at least three of these events must be off campus.
Project: Our D.C. Guide to the Arts
In addition to your five short critical responses, you will cover one venue/event that will be your
contribution to our class's D.C. Guide to the Arts. You must choose this venue/event in consultation with
me, and there will be two graded components: 1) a project presentation and 2) a final project report (4
pp.). Detailed handouts will explain further the separate components.
Reading/Viewing/Textual analysis
We will read philosophical considerations of the arts, historical statements, and reviews/descriptions of
various art installations/performances. At times, you will be asked to watch or listen to video/music clips.
Assignments are listed next to the date that they are due. Make sure that you schedule adequate time to
process your reading/viewing/textual analysis.
Quizzes, short exams, homework, response papers
Expect regular reading quizzes (some covering material from multiple class periods) and homework
assignments. Short response and typed notes assignments will be a regular part of the class.
Participation
I expect you to come to class having completed the day’s assignment and ready to engage in thoughtful
discussion in response to the material (bring relevant material in hardcopy; demonstrate careful notetaking; turn off all electronic devices, unless otherwise instructed). In addition to at-large class
discussions and in-class group work, you will be called on individually to help with class discussion.
Course requirements will determine your grade as follows:
Quizzes & homework; participation (12.5% & 12.5%; 25% total)
Portfolio: Five Short Critical Responses (9% each; 45% total)
Presentation (15%)
Final Project Report (15%)
Final letter grades will be determined by the following percentages:
A/B+/C+/D+
97-100/87-89/77-79/67-69
A/B/C/D
93-96/83-86/73-76/63-66
A-/B-/C-/D90-92/80-82/70-72/60-62
F
59 and lower
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY: Plagiarism, whether it is submitting someone else’s work as your own,
submitting your own work completed for another class without my permission, or otherwise violating the
University’s Code of Academic Integrity, will not be tolerated and will result in a grade of XF. If you
have questions about how to use and attribute use of sources, talk to me and see the “students” link on the
Student Honor Council website. The Honors Code prohibits students from cheating on exams,
plagiarizing papers, submitting the same paper for credit in two courses without authorization, buying
papers, submitting fraudulent documents, and forging signatures. The University’s Code is on line at
www.studenthonorcouncil.umd.edu/code.html.
You will be asked to write and sign The Honor Pledge, a statement of integrity, on each formal paper you
turn in to this class: “I pledge on my honor that I have not given or received any unauthorized (or
unacknowledged) assistance on this assignment. Moreover, I have not taken or ‘borrowed’ the ideas or
words of another without properly citing that source.”
The Honors College works to enrich its community life by promoting an atmosphere of honesty, trust,
and mutual responsibility. In the event that an Honors College student is found responsible for a violation
of the Code of Academic Integrity by the Student Honor Council, he or she will be dismissed from the
Honors College for the semester in which the violation took place and for all subsequent semesters in
which the student is enrolled as an undergraduate at Maryland.
What to do about additional questions or problems:
If you have questions about procedures, if a problem occurs, or if you want to request flexibility in
connection with a course requirement, write me a memo, making clear what you are asking for and telling
me whatever I need to know to make a decision. I can make better decisions if I am given good
information and time to consider a question or problem. Please keep in mind that submitting a memo will
not necessarily result in the fulfillment of your request.
Inclement weather/other closings:
The university announces closings via the UM website, Terp Radio (1640 AM), and local media venues
(e.g., 103.5 FM). In case of university closing, continue with scheduled readings and assignments per the
syllabus, and check your university email account for additional instructions.
SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES: If you have a registered disability that requires accommodation (see
www.counseling.umd.edu/DSS/receivingserv.html), please see me immediately. If you have a disability
and have not yet registered with Disability Support Services in the Shoemaker Building (4-7682 or 57683 TDD), you should do so promptly.
NOTE: This syllabus might change. Advance notice will be given of changes that affect grading,
assignments, etc.
Syllabus
I. The Contemporary Arts: What, When, Why?
T 1/27
Introduction
H 1/29
What Is (Contemporary) Art? (And do we really want what we want?)
Reading due: Definitions and Criteria from Denis Dutton, The Art Instinct (CP)
Assignments due: 1) Mapping your criteria, and 2) Is it art?
T 2/03
Why Is Contemporary Art? And Whatever Happened to Reality? (And Beauty,
Accessibility, and Skill? Or: Inaccessibility and Aura?)
Landmarks and examples in Visual Arts—from Mimesis to Perspective to Cubism &
beyond
Notes due: Events wish list
Reading due: Select definitions
Viewing due: Examples
H 2/05
Why?, part II
Visual Arts, cont.—WWI & II and the Industrial/Machine Age
Reading due: "Dada" printout; on glass doors
Viewing due: Oliver Laric, Versions 2010; examples
NOTE: The class will decide on a group trip date: Sunday (2/08) (STRONGLY PREFERRED) or Sunday
(2/15). If you cannot attend with the group, it is your responsibility to go at another time, and there will
be additional assignment components as a substitute for the guided component of the tour.
Stamp Gallery opening: Nomad's World (solo show)
F (2/06) Last day for drop/add
T 2/10
TBA
H 2/12
Due: Report #1
T 2/17
Art and the Machine: A further consideration of tools
Digital Art; A brief introduction to where we're going
Viewing due: Blu & David Ellis ("COMBO"); Niles Atallah, Cristobal Leon, & Joaquin
Cociña, "Lucia" and "Luis"; jodi.org; Martin Wattenberg, "Apartment"; other
selections.
Assignment due: Course packet printout.
H 2/19
Dance (and some minor mention of theater): Landmarks and examples
What about the audience?
Viewing due: "The Nutcracker" (excerpt); "The Rite of Spring" (excerpt); Mary
Wigman; Martha Graham; Yvonne Rainer; Paul Taylor; others.
Reading due: Sarah Kaufman, "In an art form that's struggling" (CP)
T 2/24
Dance: Landmarks and examples
Form vs. Content: "Victim Art" and the "Pornography of Pain"
Viewing due: Paul Taylor; Pina Bausch; others
Reading due: Deirdre Kelly, "Dance Review: Still/Here" (CP)
H 2/26
Music: Landmarks and Examples
"We Need New Instruments Very Badly" (or at least new ways of approaching music)
Igor Stravinsky, Arnold Schoenberg, John Cage, Pierre Schaeffer (musique concrete),
Earle Brown, Karlheinz Stockhausen (Kontakte), Steve Reich, Tod Machover
(hyperinstruments), and other selections
Reading due: Alex Ross, The Rest Is Noise; other selections (CP)
NOTE: Meet at Anne Arundel, NOT in our classroom
NOTE: We will decide on a second group trip date—Sunday, 3/01 or 3/08.
T 3/03
Music: Landmarks and examples
Who's Listening? AND
Music as Memorial
Examples due: Ted Machover (Guitar Hero); George Crumb; Krzysztof Penderecki;
others
Due: Report #2
H 3/05
Theater and Performance Art: Landmarks and examples
Reading/Viewing due: "Happening," "Performance Art" definitions (CP);
Marina Abramovic and others.
II. Where Is Contemporary Art?
T 3/10
TOUR: Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center—with Ryan Knapp, Production Manager
at The Clarice
NOTE: Meet at The Clarice, NOT in our classroom
H 3/12
Assessing Exhibition Spaces
Reading due: Isaac Arnsdorf, "The Museum Is Watching You"; Eleanor Heartney, "Lost
in the Museum"; other selections.
Viewing due: Jean Tinguely; Agnes Bolt and Arthur Jones; Pepon Osorio; others.
Spring Break 3/15-3/22
T 3/24
Assessing Exhibition Spaces, cont.
Reading due: Karen Jones, "New 'Smart' Galleries"; Matthew Mirapaul,
"Concrete Dreams: Actual Museums to Hold Virtual Art"; "Whose Art Is It, Anyway?";
other selections (CP, all)
Viewing due: Luc Courchesne; others.
H 3/26
Special Guest Performance/Workshop: Universes Theatre
Due: Report #3 or statement of intent; also, your early choices for Our D.C. Guide
to the Arts—final presentation & paper
T 3/31
America and the Arts; D.C. and the Arts—Fanny Trollope explains why nobody listens to
Joshua Bell (with a special non-viewing of a nude installation)
Reading due: How Fanny Trollope saw us (handout), Jessica Dawson, "Churning through
D.C.'s Studios" (CP), Gene Weingarten, "Pearls before Breakfast" (CP) and other
selections
H 4/02
D.C. Issues: Funding & Censorship (Mapplethorpe & Serrano; The NEA Four;
Sneakers—covered in class with notes on Michael Kammen, Visual Shock; Maureen
Dowd, "Powell without Picasso," Michelle Kamhi, "The Political Assault on Art
Education") Reading due: Michael Kaiser, "No Bailout for the Arts?"; Bill Ivey, Arts,
Inc., selections; Sarah Kaufman, "Top getter for crowd funding? Dance!"; Nelson
Pressley on facilities expansion and saturation (CP, all)
NOTE: We will decide on a third group trip--Friday, 4/10 or 4/17.
T 4/07
Tour: Stamp Gallery, and Intro. to the Contemporary Art Purchasing Program
NOTE: Meet at SG, NOT in our classroom
Due: Report #4 or statement of intent
H 4/09
TBA
M (4/13)—Last day to drop with “W”
T 4/14
D.C. Issues: Patronage and Landmarks
Reading due: Carol Kino, "Welcome to the Museum of My
Stuff"; Angela Valdez, "A Very Private Collection"; Kriston
Capps, "Together, Patron and Artist . . ."; other selections
H 4/16
D.C. Issues: Gentrification; Art as Decoration
Reading due: John Mintz, "Investors Reclaiming Riot
Corridors"; Adrienne T. Washington, "U Street NW at
Risk"; David Nicholson, "It's a Change, Not a
Conspiracy"; others (CP, all)
T 4/21
Individual conferences
Due: Report #5 or statement of intent
H 4/23
Individual conferences
T 4/28
TBA
H 4/30
Presentations—Our D.C. Guide to the Arts
T 5/05
Presentations—Our D.C. Guide to the Arts
H 5/07
Presentations—Our D.C. Guide to the Arts
On-line course evaluations start approximately two weeks before the end of the
semester at www.courseevalum.umd.edu. Please submit near the end of the semester.
T 5/12
Presentations—Our D.C. Guide to the Arts (Last day of classes)
Due: Short Reports Portfolio
M 5/18
Due: Final Report
10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.