Accessibility statement

Contemporary Art: Practice & Debate - HOA00015I

« Back to module search

  • Department: History of Art
  • Module co-ordinator: Dr. Richard McClary
  • Credit value: 20 credits
  • Credit level: I
  • Academic year of delivery: 2022-23

Module will run

Occurrence Teaching period
A Spring Term 2022-23

Module aims

This course has two interrelated aims. First, we will attempt to come to terms with some of the prevalent themes and issues of contemporary art such as ‘globalisation’, ‘ecology’ and ‘relationality’ and we will consider how they have been understood by artists, critics and theorists. The second aim is to place the category of the ‘contemporary’ under scrutiny, to ask what makes a work of art contemporary, and under what conditions (aesthetic, political, ethical, geographic, economic) particular works come to be recognized as such. The module will be broadly thematic in structure, focusing on specific case studies and drawing on a range of different kinds of art writing and approach.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, students should have acquired:

  • Familiarity with a range of artistic and critical practices in contemporary art.
  • Knowledge of a range of theoretical and art historical texts and art works relating to contemporary art.
  • The ability to think critically and carefully about the art studied from both a theoretical and historical perspective.

Assessment

Task Length % of module mark
Essay/coursework
Contemporary Art: Practice & Debate Assessed Essay		 N/A 100

Special assessment rules

None

Reassessment

Task Length % of module mark
Essay/coursework
Contemporary Art: Practice & Debate Assessed Essay		 N/A 100

Module feedback

You will receive feedback on assessed work within the timeframes set out by the University - please check the Guide to Assessment, Standards, Marking and Feedback for more information.

The purpose of feedback is to help you to improve your future work. If you do not understand your feedback or want to talk about your ideas further, you are warmly encouraged to meet your Supervisor during their Office Hours.

Indicative reading

  • Questionnaire on 'the contemporary', October, 130, Fall 2009.
  • The monthly magazine Artforum is a terrific source for reviews and articles on contemporary art.
  • Y-A Bois, B. Buchloh, H. Foster, R. Krauss, Art Since 1900: Modernism, Antimodernism, Postmodernism, 2005, roundtable 'The predicament of contemporary art'.


The information on this page is indicative of the module that is currently on offer. The University is constantly exploring ways to enhance and improve its degree programmes and therefore reserves the right to make variations to the content and method of delivery of modules, and to discontinue modules, if such action is reasonably considered to be necessary by the University. Where appropriate, the University will notify and consult with affected students in advance about any changes that are required in line with the University's policy on the Approval of Modifications to Existing Taught Programmes of Study.