CONTEMPORARY ART

The course is part of the core educational activities for art-historical disciplines in the degree course "Economics and Administration of Arts and Culture (EGART)". The main course objective is to provide students with a knowledge and understanding of the contemporary art system of the 20th and 21st centuries on the basis of the Exhibition and Biennial Studies.

The 12 credit course in Modern and Contemporary Art consists of two parts, each of 6 credits. The first part (Modern Art) is held in the third term. Students obtain 12 credits when passing both partial exams in whatsoever order. The final grade is given by the average of the two partial grades. Both parts must be passed within the same academic year, under penalty of forfeiture of the partial credits accrued.

The course will provide an in-depth knowledge of the contemporary art world, introducing students to key artists, works, theories and institutions that regulate today's art system. Classes will encompass the fundamental arts structures, processes and stakeholders, as well as their critical reception and theoretical framing. A particular emphasis will be given to the history of the Venice Biennale and to the main Biennials, as "the medium through which most contemporary art comes to be known".

The main objective of the course is to enhance skills in the following fields:
- to recognize the works and artists discussed in class and place them in a theoretical, historical and cultural context
- to develop critical skills and analyze an artwork within its historical context and from multiple perspectives, including its technical, iconographic and stylistic features
- to get familiar with key actors and institutions governing the contemporary art system
- to strengthen communication skills and acquire a vocabulary appropriate to the given context

Basic knowledge of contemporary art history and practice

LA BIENNALE DI VENEZIA AND BIENNIALS: FROM A LOCAL TO A GLOBAL CONTEXT
The module will offer an investigation into the contemporary art system from an historical perspective and in an international context. A comparative analysis of the topics addressed in class and devoted to art theories, professions and institutions will be conducted in the framework of the Exhibition and Biennial Studies, Cultural Cold War Studies and Global Art Studies.

Notes taken in class

ASAC, The disquieted muses: when La Biennale di Venezia meets history = Le muse inquiete: la Biennale di Venezia di fronte alla storia, La Biennale di Venezia, 2020.

B. Altshuler, Biennials and Beyond: Exhibitions That Made Art History, 1962-2002, vol. 2, Phaidon, London-New York 2013, pp. 11-24, plus the exhibitions analyzed in class.

P. Piotrowski, On the Spatial Turn, or Horizontal Art History, "Umění", 2008, a. LVI, n.5, pp. 378-383.

C. Ricci, From obsolete to contemporary: National pavilions and the Venice Biennale, "Journal of Curatorial Studies", vol. 9, no. 1, 2020, pp. 9-38.

J. Robinson, Folkloric Modernism: Venice’s Giardini Della Biennale and the Geopolitics of Architecture, “Open Arts Journal”, no. 2, Winter 2013-2014, pp. 1-24.



Chapters of the following texts, to be announced at the beginning of the class:

H. Belting; A. Buddensieg; P. Weibel, The Global Contemporary and the Rise of New Art Worlds, MIT Press-ZKM, Cambridge-London-Karlsruhe 2013.

E. Filipovic, M. van Hal M., S. Øvstebø (eds), The Biennial Reader. An Anthology on Large-scale Perennial Exhibitions of Contemporary Art, Hatje Cantz, Ostfildern 2010.

A. Gardner; C. Green, Biennials, Triennials and Documenta, John Wiley & Sons Ltd-Wiley Blackwell, Chichester-Malden 2016.

C. Ricci (ed.), Starting from Venice, et al., Milano 2010.

Assessment of a two-hour written exam, divided into two parts:
- One artwork, among the ones commented in class and included in the uploaded slides, to be recognised, contextualised and commented.
- Three open questions about topics presented in class.

The use of books, notes, and electronic media is not allowed during the exam.

written

Regarding the grading scale for the written exam:

A. Scores in the range of 18-22 will be assigned for:
- Sufficient knowledge of the textbooks and related topics
- Limited ability to use data and form independent judgments
- Sufficient communication skills.

B. Scores in the range of 23-26 will be assigned for:
- Fair knowledge of the textbooks and related topics
- Fair ability to use data and form independent judgments
- Fair communication skills.

C. Scores in the range of 27-30 will be assigned for:
- Good or excellent knowledge of the textbooks and related topics
- Good or excellent ability to use data and form independent judgments
- Fully appropriate communication skills.

D. The “laude” will be awarded to students with excellent knowledge and comprehension of the textbooks and related topics.

Lessons open to discussions and commentaries of the works, topics and texts presented in class.
Webinars and talks with selected guests. Possible visits to exhibitions.
The material presented in class will be available on the Moodle e-learning platform together with additional sources.

Students with Special Educational Needs are invited to contact the Inclusivity Service at Ca' Foscari before the beginning of the course.