mid 2 terms Flashcards
(25 cards)
“Death of author” (Barthes)
The Author is Not the Sole Authority: Traditionally, people looked to an author’s background, intentions, or personal meaning to understand a work. Barthes argues that this limits interpretation and creativity
Meaning Comes from the Reader: Once a work is created, it exists independently of the author. Meaning is generated by the audience based on their own experiences, perspectives, and cultural context.
Appropriation
Sherrie Levine, After Walker Evans (1981). gelatin silver print
In this work, Sherrie Levine appropriates a famous photograph by Walker Evans of an Alabama sharecropper’s wife from the 1930s, re-photographing it and presenting it as her own. Levine is not just copying the image; she is commenting on the idea of authorship, originality, and the power dynamics behind artistic production.
Appropriation refers to the act of taking elements from one culture or context and using them in another, often without permission or understanding of their original significance. In the context of art and culture, it usually involves adopting symbols, styles, or practices from marginalized or historically oppressed groups by those in more dominant cultural positions.
Assemblage
Work: Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People), 1992, mixed media.
she has inscribed the image of a canoe, an icon of Native American culture and a key mode of transportation in the history of trade and crosscultural interaction, amid layers of newspaper clippings, photographs of Native people, and washes of paint. Suspended above is a selection of sports memorabilia, calling attention to the much-contested use of Native American names for teams and mascots—hats with logos, rubber tomahawks, and faux headdresses.
Assemblage is an art form that involves creating a three-dimensional composition by combining different objects or materials that are often not traditionally considered part of art. These materials can include things like wood, metal, fabric, paper, or even found objects such as everyday items or scraps. The concept behind assemblage is that the artist takes unrelated, sometimes discarded items and arranges them together in a way that gives new meaning or artistic value to the objects.
Collage
Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People), 1992, mixed media
inscribed the image of a canoe, an icon of Native American culture and a key mode of transportation in the history of trade and crosscultural interaction, amid layers of newspaper clippings, photographs of Native people, and washes of red paint.
Collage is an artistic technique that involves assembling different materials, such as paper, photographs, fabric, and other found objects, into a unified composition or artwork. The term “collage” comes from the French word “coller,” meaning “to glue,” and it often involves cutting, pasting, and layering materials onto a surface to create a new whole.
Colonialism
Reading: Patel, Alpesh Kantilal. “Post-/Anti-/Neo-/De- Colonial Theories and Visual Analysis.”
“Colonialism is a specific form of imperialism in which a state settles territories outside its borders, thereby creating colonies. Imperialism, often confused with colonialism, is the broader dynamic that refers to any imposition of a state on an external territory, sometimes in proximity, sometimes far away.” (Patel)
Imperialism is a political and economic system where a powerful nation extends its control over other territories, often through colonization, military force, or economic dominance. The goal of imperialism is typically to exploit the resources, labor, and markets of the controlled territories for the benefit of the imperial power, often at the expense of the local population.
Colonialism refers to the historical practice of powerful nations exploiting and dominating other regions politically, economically, and culturally.
Decoloniality
Reading: Reading: Patel, Alpesh Kantilal. “Post-/Anti-/Neo-/De- Colonial Theories and Visual Analysis.”
Kader Attia, The Repair from Occident to Extra-Occidental Cultures, 2012, installation.
Decoloniality refers to efforts to dismantle colonial structures of power, knowledge, and representation that persist even after formal colonial rule has ended.
Decolonization
Reading: Reading: Patel, Alpesh Kantilal. “Post-/Anti-/Neo-/De- Colonial Theories and Visual Analysis.”
Refers to the formal end of colonial rule—when colonized nations gain independence from the powers that once ruled them
However, even after formal decolonization, colonial influences often remain in economic, cultural, and social structures.
Decoloniality is Ongoing Process of Dismantling Colonial Mindsets
Diaspora
Diaspora refers to the dispersal of people from their homeland to different parts of the world, often due to forced migration, colonization, slavery, war, or economic hardship. It also involves the cultural identity and experiences of these displaced communities.
Dutch wax fabric
Dutch wax fabric, also known as African wax print fabric, is a brightly colored, patterned cotton fabric that is often associated with African fashion and culture.
The fabric was first made in Europe and marketed to African colonies, where it was adopted and transformed into a cultural symbol.
Hybridity
Bhabha, Homi K. “On ‘Hybridity’ and ‘Moving Beyond’.”
Hybridity refers to the process of mixing or blending different cultural elements, identities, or practices, often resulting in something new and complex. It is commonly discussed in postcolonial theory, where it describes the mixing of cultures that occurs as a result of colonization, migration, or globalization.
Extreme nationalism is dangerous and relies on erasing historical complexities.
In reality, cultures are hybrid and interconnected, rather than pure or isolated.
Imperialism
Reading: Patel, Alpesh Kantilal. “Post-/Anti-/Neo-/De- Colonial Theories and Visual Analysis.”
Imperialism is a political and economic system where a powerful nation extends its control over other territories, often through colonization, military force, or economic dominance. The goal of imperialism is typically to exploit the resources, labor, and markets of the controlled territories for the benefit of the imperial power, often at the expense of the local population.
Imperialism is a broader concept that refers to the expansion of a nation’s power and dominance over other countries or territories, often through military, economic, or political influence. It doesn’t always require the establishment of colonies
Intersectionality
Intersectionality is a concept used to describe how various social identities—such as race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, and others—intersect and overlap in ways that create unique and complex systems of oppression or privilege for individuals and groups.
Irony
Male gaze
Nostalgia mode (Jameson)
argues that postmodern culture is obsessed with nostalgia and pastiche, leading to a recycling of historical styles rather than creating truly new cultural forms.
In postmodern culture, the past is often represented as a “style” or aesthetic, rather than as a historical reality.
Loss of Historical Depth – Nostalgic media doesn’t truly engage with history; instead, it flattens and sanitizes the past, making it feel like a collection of pop culture references.
Pastiche Over Authenticity – Postmodern art, film, and literature often use pastiche (imitation of past styles) rather than creating original, innovative works.
Tied to Late Capitalism – Nostalgia mode reflects the economic and cultural conditions of late capitalism, where newness is difficult to achieve, and culture relies on repackaging the past for profit.
Orientalism
Readings:
Said, Edward. “Orientalism”
Orientalism is a concept developed by Edward Said in his 1978 book Orientalism. It refers to the way Western cultures have historically depicted and stereotyped the East (Middle East, Asia, and North Africa) as exotic, backward, uncivilized, or mysterious. This perspective served to justify colonialism, imperialism, and Western dominance over these regions.
Artwork: Eugène Delacroix, Women of Algiers in their Apartment, 1834. Oil on canvas
- Reflects Western fantasies about the East, specifically North Africa. Delacroix, a French Romantic painter, visited Algeria in 1832 when it was newly colonized by France. His work presents an idealized and exoticized vision of Algerian women, reinforcing Orientalist stereotypes.
- Colonial Gaze – Delacroix, as a European artist, portrays the scene from an outsider’s perspective, positioning the viewer as a voyeur peering into a private, foreign world.
Romanticized & Sexualized Imagery – The relaxed poses, rich fabrics, and warm colors create an idealized version of reality, aligning with Western myths about Eastern cultures being indulgent and passive.
Participatory art
Artwork: Jools Gilson, The Knitting Map,2005-2015
Participatory art is a form of art that involves the audience or community in the creation or experience of the artwork. Rather than the traditional passive role of the viewer, participatory art allows people to contribute directly, either physically, mentally, or emotionally, to the process or the final result.
Pastiche (Jameson)
David Salle, Reference to Wellington, 1987, oil and acrylic on canvas.
Pastiche involves the imitation or replication of various styles, motifs, and elements from past artistic, literary, and cultural traditions. However, unlike parody, which involves a critical or satirical reworking of existing forms, pastiche for Jameson lacks any sense of irony or critical distance.
It does not seek to subvert or challenge the original sources it borrows from but instead adopts them uncritically and superficially.
Jameson argues that in the postmodern cultural landscape, pastiche emerges as a dominant mode of expression due to the loss of historical referents and the fragmentation of the past. Jameson holds that, in late capitalist societies, the historical sense is eroded, and cultural production becomes detached from any coherent historical narrative. As a result, pastiche becomes a way to cope with the absence of a stable past and the disorientation of contemporary life.
Postcolonialism
Readings:
Said, Edward. “From Orientalism.”
Postcolonialism is a theoretical framework and field of study that examines the cultural, political, and economic legacies of colonialism and imperialism in formerly colonized nations.
It analyzes power structures, identity formation, and the continuing effects of colonial domination, even after formal independence. Postcolonialism engages with Issues of hybridity, resistance, subaltern voices, and the impact of colonial discourse on contemporary societies.
Postmodernism
Baca, April. “Mapping Poststructuralism, Postmodernism, and Postcolonialism.”
History is fragmented, nonlinear, and constantly reinterpreted without a clear sense of progress.
Recycles and reuses past styles (pastiche); engages with nostalgia, but often without depth or historical continuity.
The present is defined by media saturation, consumerism, and simulation, making it harder to separate reality from representation.
Skeptical of progress; the future is uncertain, dystopian, or a repetition of the past.
Cyclical, fragmented, and disconnected; time does not necessarily move forward in a meaningful way.
Quilting
Act of sewing together patches of fabric
Faith Ringgold’s Who’s Afraid of Aunt Jemima? (1983)
Ringgold fuses traditional quilting techniques with fine art practices (acrylic painting on fabric).
This challenges the traditional Western division between “high” art (painting) and “domestic” craft (quilting).
Instead of the stereotypical Aunt Jemima figure (a racist caricature of Black women as obedient domestic workers), Ringgold reimagines her as a strong, successful Black entrepreneur.
The quilt includes text that tells the fictionalized life story of Aunt Jemima, transforming her from a stereotype into a fully realized person with dignity and agency.
Traditionally, quilting has been seen as “women’s work.” Ringgold elevates it into the fine art world, asserting the value of Black women’s creative traditions.
Relational aesthetics / Relational art
Refers to reading: Bourriaud, Nicolas. “Relational Aesthetics.”
“an art that takes as its theoretical horizon the sphere of human interactions and its social context, rather than the assertion of an autonomous and private symbolic space.
refers to a form of art that focuses on human interactions and social contexts rather than traditional, static works of art like paintings or sculptures. In relational art, the artwork is not an object to be admired in isolation but an experience that involves social engagement. The idea is that the audience becomes an active participant in the creation of meaning and the art itself.
“The formalization of convivial relations has been a historical constant since the 1960s. The generation of the 1980s picked up the same problematic, but the definition of art, which was central to the 1960s and 1970s, was no longer an issue. The problem was no longer the expansion of the limits of art, buttesting art’s capacity for resistance within the social field as a whole.”
1960s-70s: The big question for artists was “What is art?” Artists expanded the boundaries of what could be considered art. They experimented with new forms and concepts, breaking down traditional limits (e.g., performance art, conceptual art, installation).
1980s: By this time, artists were no longer focused on defining or expanding art itself. Instead, they were asking how art could act as a form of resistance. Art was seen as a tool to challenge and intervene in the larger social and political world, addressing issues like social injustice, political power, or cultural norms.
Recontextualization
Carrie Mae Weems, From Here I Saw What Happened and I Cried, 1995–96, photographic series:
- Weems uses photographs from the scientific and anthropological photography of the 19th century, specifically images that were taken during the period of scientific racism, where Black people were often objectified and reduced to mere subjects of study.
- By re-contextualizing these old images and placing them in a contemporary setting, Weems connects the historical oppression of Black people to present-day issues of race, identity, and the ongoing impact of those historical representations. The work calls attention to the way history has shaped the contemporary understanding of Blackness and challenges viewers to consider the legacy of these historical representations in modern society.
the process of taking an existing object, idea, or image out of its original context and placing it in a new one, thereby creating a new meaning or interpretation.
Rephotography
Sherrie Levine, After Walker Evans, 1981, gelatin silver print:
Rephotography is a photographic technique and conceptual art practice where an existing photograph is recreated or rephotographed from the same or a similar vantage point, often years or decades later. The process involves revisiting a place, scene, or subject captured in an earlier image and recreating the same composition, often with noticeable changes. The result can provide a unique commentary on time, change, and memory.
