This course provides students with a general introduction to the arts of Asia from the 19th century to the present, with a special focus on India, Japan, Korea, and parts of Southeast Asia. We will cover topics such as the adoption of foreign artistic mediums, styles, and techniques to local, pre-existing visual vocabularies; the creation of arts institutions and their impact on the artistic traditions of different nations; the ways in which historical experiences (such as colonialism, wars, human rights violations) shaped the approach to modern and contemporary art in Asia; the ways in which traditional aesthetics is brought into contemporary modes of expression; and how artists have used visual arts as a means of political expression and subversion.
- Teacher: Rosaline Kyo