Courses

Required Courses

First Year

Semester I

Proseminar: Studies in Contemporary Art
A proseminar in the history of the contemporary visual arts. Particular attention is given to the concepts and methodology of art historical study and their application to the contemporary visual arts. (2 credits)

Seminar: Theory and Criticism in Contemporary Art I
A seminar in the historical and philosophical foundations of contemporary criticism and theory. Studies of classical, medieval, Renaissance, and eighteenth- and nineteenth-century texts in aesthetic theory, including texts that explore relations between the arts and society. The purpose of the seminar is to introduce students to past discussions of the arts that continue to inform contemporary critical conceptions and theory. (2 credits)

Practicum: Curatorial Studies I
The first-semester practicum introduces students to the basic principles of collections care and management and to the intellectual and practical tasks of preparing an exhibition. The practicum includes sessions with Center staff and other arts professionals on art handling, registration and condition reporting, preparing works of art for transit, environmental standards for collections storage and exhibition, and the professional responsibilities of the curator. Students explore issues relating to the planning, design, and installation of exhibitions by preparing exhibitions from the Center's permanent collection with guest curators. (3 credits)

Semester II

Proseminar: Studies in the History and Practices of Exhibition
A proseminar in the history of the institutions and practices of exhibition. The proseminar surveys the history of museums, galleries, and other exhibition spaces and explores how social and cultural conditions, institutional requirements, and aesthetic conceptions have shaped past and current exhibition practices. The specific emphases of the proseminar each year depend on the background and interests of the instructor. As part of the proseminar, students conduct intensive studies of past or current exhibitions or permanent museum installations. (2 credits)

Seminar: Theory and Criticism in Contemporary Art II
A continuation of the first-semester seminar in criticism and theory. The emphasis in the second semester is on issues in nineteenth- and twentieth-century criticism and theory and on recent studies of the social, cultural, and institutional contexts of the contemporary visual arts. (2 credits)

Practicum: Curatorial Studies II
The second-semester practicum is an intensive workshop in critical and interpretive writing, taught each year by one or more practicing critics. Through group discussions of past and recent critical writing and frequent writing assignments, the practicum develops students' abilities to write critically about works of visual art and their various historical, social, cultural, and theoretical contexts. (3 credits)

Second Year

Semester III

Independent Research: Master's Degree Project
Independent individual research, supervised by a member of the faculty, leading to a draft of the catalogue for the final master's degree project. (2 credits)

Practicum: Curatorial Studies III
The third-semester practicum includes sessions on educational programming, public relations, the architecture of museums and galleries, and the design of exhibitions. Instructors include Center faculty and invited education curators, architects, exhibition designers, and other arts professionals. These studies are intended to broaden students' consideration of the possibilities of public programming and exhibition design and to address questions of the relation of an exhibition's design to its subject and intended audience. At the end of the semester, students present and discuss their final master's degree projects (see section on the master's degree project). (3 credits)

Semester IV

Independent Research: Exhibition Preparation
Final design, preparation, and installation of the exhibition for the master's degree project. This independent research course, like the third-semester course, involves periodic consultations with a faculty member. (2 credits)

Practicum: Curatorial Studies IV
Review and discussion of final exhibition projects. Each student presents and discusses his or her final master's degree project, addressing the choice of artworks for exhibition and the interpretive concerns and strategies of the exhibition and catalogue. These presentations are organized around critiques of the student exhibitions by visiting curators and scholars. (3 credits)

Electives

Particular attention is given in elective courses to developing interdisciplinary perspectives on the visual arts and their exhibition. Specialized courses taught by visiting curators and scholars offer studies of the contemporary arts and exhibition practices in Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Electives are divided into two distribution areas, described below. Students must complete a total of five elective courses, including at least two in each distribution area. Each course carries 2 credits.

Area I

Studies in Contemporary Art
Seminars in the history of the contemporary arts, including seminars on individual artists and particular developments or "movements" in contemporary art, and specialized seminars in criticism and theory. The following are some of the seminars offered over the past five years:

• The Work of Art after Minimalism and Pop
• Exhibiting Feminism: The 1970s
• Public Art/Public Space
• Current Issues in Critical Practice
• Art of the Sixties: Installation Practices and Strategies
• The Art and Criticism of Contemporary Women Artists
• On the Wall of the Museum: Collections and Exhibitions
• The Projective Artwork in the Age of Digital Reproduction
• Art and Criticism of the '80s and '90s
• On Globalization: A History, Some Theories, and a Few Interpretations
• Politics in the Arts: Art, Criticism, and Democratic Culture
• Fictions of the Artist

Area II

Institutional and Exhibition Studies
Seminars exploring the history and the social, cultural, political, and economic conditions of the institutions and practices of exhibition, including specialized studies of the history of exhibition, museum and curatorial practice, the sociology of museums and their audiences, the economics of arts institutions and of the art market, and the architecture of museums and the design of installations. The following are some of the seminars offered over the past five years:

• The Exhibition: Medium, Form, Genres
• Virtual Culture: Toward Definition
• The Catalogue as Site
• Curatorial Practice: Mapping a Territory
• City-Space and the Museum