Unsettling Narratives of Craft in Contemporary Art

This seminar focuses on the abundance of new scholarly research and other forms of art writing that examine craft in contemporary art and theory. Another way of saying this is that the course tracks and analyzes the shift of craft from the discourse of marginality to the mainstream. A cross-section of readings will be selected, but a special emphasis will be placed on those in which craft is the paradigm through which to consider issues of gender, sexuality, and race; cultural appropriation and decolonization; or fresh theoretical approaches to process, skill, materiality, and labor. This course is designed with several objectives in mind. First, I would like to introduce you to the critical debates surrounding the art of our time, especially since they pertain to craft. Second, I want to familiarize you with the work of major artists exhibiting today whose work cuts across the art/craft divide. Third, the course provides you with a forum to discuss and evaluate current artistic trends and practices. Students will leave the course with the skills and confidence to independently discover contemporary artists working with craft media and devise new frameworks for understanding the art of our time beyond those provided by the syllabus. 3 credits.