ARTH 264 - Realism: Art and Politics in Europe, 1848-1968

FC ARHU

4 credits
This course examines an often-used but widely-misinterpreted term in art history and beyond: Realism. In art, Realism emerged in mid-19th-century France, where it described art invested in social concerns of the present: industrialization, political revolution, changing demographics. Quickly the term’s applications expanded-addressing disparate media, styles, geographies-but the connection between Realist art and the social and political conditions that engendered it remain strong today. These connections make up the central focus of this course, which explores divergent claims to “Realism” in European art from its foundation through the political upheavals of the 1960s.

Prerequisites: One 100-level course in ARTH.