ARTS 450 - Slavery and the Problem of the Visual

Semester Offered: First Semester
Full Course
Credits: 4 credits
Attribute: 4HU, CD

What aesthetic strategies can we, or should we, use to try to visualize the history of trans-Atlantic slavery? Through a series of case studies spanning the Atlantic world, we will tackle the visual culture of slavery through lenses of trauma, witnessing, memory, racial and gendered subjectivity, and cross-cultural conceptions of enslavement. Specific topics will include the role of public memorials, the paradox of ‘slave portraiture,’ and anti-aesthetic efforts to ‘flee’ visual representation altogether.

Enrollment Limit: 15
Instructor: M. Rarey

Consent of the Instructor Required: Yes