ARTS 238: Early Modernism 1880-1920

This is a critical and historical survey of the visual arts from 1880 to 1920, examining how modern art transformed in reaction and response to radical technological, social, and political change. Particular attention will be paid to the roles played by industrialization, political and sexual revolution, rapid urban growth, and an expanding consumer culture in defining a wide range of visual culture. The course examines problems of representation, abstraction, and modernism as they are exemplified in painting, drawing, and sculpture, alongside the newer media of photography, assemblage, film, and collage.