Figuration, Expressionism and Environments

You are invited to view the individual lectures of the course "A brief history of art in Latin America in the XX century". 

If you are interested in the whole course and decide to purchase it after your class, the price of this class will be discounted from the full price of the course. You will receive access to the recordings of the previous classes. 

About this Lecture: 

During the 50s and 60s, geometric abstraction had gained particular importance within the artistic tradition of Latin America. Nevertheless, new economic and political circumstances forced a new direction that would reject previous artists' apolitical tendency. Power of content over form became more critical in understanding the individual experience of human beings. This lecture will study the new aesthetic practices developed by artists that allowed them to make the turn. As traditional painting and sculpting became insufficient, artists explored new forms of figuration that would enable them to intervene in space and invite more active participation from the viewer.

About the Course:

This 6-week course will provide you with an overview of key historical elements that shaped the Latin-American art scene of the 20th Century. Despite the current debate over the use of the term "Latin American Art", art-historian Daniela Galan will guide an in-depth critical discussion on the patterns, dissonances, similarities and tensions that determined Latin America’s importance in the global contemporary art scene. Through the analysis of 50 artworks, we will study concepts such modernism; post-colonialism; the relationship between social realism and politics; universalism, primitivism and the construction of the fantastic; abstraction vs concretism; among others.

Each lesson which will include a one-hour lecture, one-hour Q&A discussion, and will be accompanied by a suggested reading list.

Session 1: Universalism or National Identity?

Session 2: Dream or Reality? Dismantling the fantastic.

Session 3: Chi'ixi: Indigenism or the gesture of returning the gaze.

Session 4: Creating Illusions: Geometric Abstraction & Op Art.

Session 5: Figuration, Expressionism and Environments

Session 6: Conceptualism as a political device.