ARTH 699: Topics in Art History

ARTH 699-A01: Art and Myth of the Old South
(Summer 2015)

01:00 PM to 05:00 PM MW

Off-Campus Location OCL

Section Information for Summer 2015

In the post-Civil War era myths of the “Old South” as a romantic place filled the American cultural imagination. Tourists flocked to southern historic sites, suburbanites built white columned houses and filled them with “Southern belle” memorabilia, and movie goers watched and re-watched films such as Gone With the Wind. This course will examine the material and visual artifacts of the “Old South” produced in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In addition to studying the material reality of life in the early plantation south and the work of painters who tackled the subject (such as Eastman Johnson and Winslow Homer), the seminar will consider the various mythologies produced of the region. How was the South commodified for a national audience through products, in the popular press, in the tourist industry, and in films? How was the plantation past envisioned by those who sought to mythologize the Confederate cause or to return to a “simpler” colonial past? The course will address questions of race, Southern identity, the Colonial Revival, nostalgia, political change and protest, and consider how and why the “Old South” continues to be a subject for contemporary artists, filmmakers, and craftsmen. The course will involve museum visits and students will complete a research paper.

This section meets at the Smithsonian Ripley Center 3031.

Course Information from the University Catalog

Credits: 3

Research seminar on aspects of art history. Topics vary, but course entails extensive critical readings and discussion, development of bibliographies, and advanced-level research papers. Notes: May be repeated when topic is different. May be repeated within the term for a maximum 15 credits.
Specialized Designation: Topic Varies
Registration Restrictions:

Enrollment limited to students with a class of Advanced to Candidacy, Graduate, Junior Plus, Non-Degree or Senior Plus.

Enrollment is limited to Graduate, Non-Degree or Undergraduate level students.

Students in a Non-Degree Undergraduate degree may not enroll.

Schedule Type: Lec/Sem #1, Lec/Sem #2, Lec/Sem #3, Lec/Sem #4, Lec/Sem #5, Lec/Sem #6, Lec/Sem #7, Lec/Sem #8, Lec/Sem #9, Sem/Lec #10, Sem/Lec #11, Sem/Lec #12, Sem/Lec #13, Sem/Lec #14, Sem/Lec #15, Sem/Lec #16, Sem/Lec #17, Sem/Lec #18, Seminar
Grading:
This course is graded on the Graduate Regular scale.

The University Catalog is the authoritative source for information on courses. The Schedule of Classes is the authoritative source for information on classes scheduled for this semester. See the Schedule for the most up-to-date information and see Patriot web to register for classes.