ARTH 63.01 Mexican Muralism
This course provides an introduction to Mexican Muralism by focusing on the “Three Greats”: Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, and David Alfaro Siqueiros. We will study major works by each artist through in-class discussion as well as by placing different scholarly interpretations in dialog. Students will learn how to visually analyze and interpret mural art. In addition to considering muralism and its relationship to the Mexican Revolution and the post-revolutionary reconstruction of the state and society, we will also consider class and the politics of labor, gender and the politics of the body, sexual identity and the politics of desire, and race and the politics of nationalism in Mexico and the United States in from the 1920s and 30s through the 1960s. The course places special emphasis on José Clemente Orozco’s Epic of American Civilization through term-long student research projects as well as an exploration of the historical reception of the mural over time. This course has no pre-requisites and is open to students of all levels with or without prior experience in Art History.
Instructor
Coffey
Cross Listed Courses
LACS 48