In Focus: Warburg as Curator

This course, initiating a sequence leading to a Focus exhibition of the same name, will provide an introduction to the thought of Aby Warburg (1866-1929), the influential founder of the Kulturwissenschaftliche Bibliothek Warburg (after 1933 the “Warburg Institute”). During the 1920s, a decade when he published nothing, he delivered a series of lectures, accompanied by illustrated panels. How these functioned will be the subject of the upcoming exhibition. In this course, emphasis will be placed on Warburg’s broader theory of culture and on existing curatorial strategies. Student contributions to the project will focus on this latter dimension. Reading knowledge of German helpful. 3 credits.