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Liberal Studies & Art History

The Cornerstone of our
Art & Design Education

To Educate & Inspire

 

These are the two main goals of Liberal Studies & Art History at Paris College of Art. The courses we share with you ensure that you are confident in your written expression, critical thinking, and can communicate clearly about your work, and we also assure that your creativity and imagination find grand space for interpretation and expansion.

 

Our courses offer students a strong grasp of the creative world and history of the chosen focus of study. We provide the context needed with interdisciplinary Liberal Studies in general humanities – history, philosophy, languages and literatures as well as sciences, ensuring that navigating the complexities of contemporary culture are second nature. A multicultural and global perspective characterizes all our courses and allows students to engage in stimulating class discussions with their peers and instructors.

 

You will develop analytical prowess in comprehension and composition, shaping yourself into an articulate, effective, creative academic and professional.

In addition to a set of core courses in the history of art and design for the specific majors and degrees, a wide selection of Liberal Studies electives enables students to broaden their knowledge and sharpen their capacity for analytical inquiry. Courses cover an extensive range of disciplines, with a changing selection of electives ranging from cognitive psychology or semiotics to queer literature and dance/ theater studies. Through a large selection of art history courses, students also have the opportunity to expand the knowledge acquired in the core courses. Topics range from global design and history of fashion, to perfomance, video and digital art. Natural science courses such as Optics, Biology, and Botany complete our rich offering in general education.

French classes are offered over four levels. The French content course (advanced level) allows students to take an elective in French on various inspiring subjects such as sustainability, gastronomy, hip-hop culture, and French cinema.

PCA takes special advantage of its campus and location as an ideal environment for observing and exploring the social and cultural variety that is typical of a European and multicultural metropolis in the 21st century. Courses often include visits to a large variety of venues – museums and galleries, cultural events and urban sites. Senior level seminars and guest speakers address timely and provocative issues that help students develop ideas and make the choices that will enhance their own careers.

Faculty

Barbara Montefalcone

Barbara Montefalcone

Chair of Liberal Studies

Alice Aguila

Adjunct Faculty
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Toi Sin Arvidsson

Adjunct Faculty
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Marie Auger

Adjunct Faculty
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Malik Crumpler

Adjunct Faculty
Igor Czernecki

Igor Czernecki

Adjunct Faculty
New-Eisenhauer-PCA

Andrew Eisenhauer

Adjunct Faculty
Nicolas Frappe

Nicolas Frappe

Adjunct Faculty
Gain Justine Photo INHA

Justine Gain

Adjunct faculty
Mazen Haidar

Mazen Haidar

Adjunct Faculty
Linda Jarvin copy

Linda Jarvin

President of PCA
Simba-Rome

Simbarashe Kamuriwo

Student Life Counselor
Collin Kluchman

Collin Kluchman

Adjunct Faculty at PCA
Filippo Lorenzin

Filippo Lorenzin

Adjunct Faculty

Jessica Macor

Film Coordinator and Adjunct Faculty at PCA
Olenska

Aleksandra Olenska

Adjunct Faculty
peri-francesco

Francesco Peri

Adjunct Faculty

Marion Perier

Adjunct Faculty
Martin Phelps

Martin Phelps

Adjunct Faculty
robbins-juliette

Juliette Robbins

Adjunct Faculty
Lisa Salamandra

Lisa Salamandra

Graduate Research Coordinator
Anne-Marie_Smith_di_Biaso

Anne-Marie Smith-Di Biasio

Adjunct Associate Professor
Portrait_Melis-Tezkan_by-Beatriz-Toledo

Melis Tezkan

Adjunct Faculty
2_Emma V Headshots 2020

Emma Vissicchio

Adjunct Faculty

Course Offerings

Credits

Humanities

Critical Thinking & Writing I

Code
FLIB 1011
Description

This year-long course is designed to improve critical thinking, reading, and writing skills. Students learn to understand the inherent argument and logic of a text, to think more systematically and critically, and to write more effectively by developing skills in the structure, grammar, and mechanics of writing. Students also work toward the more focused goal of situating design and art practices within larger intellectual, historical and philosophical frameworks by exploring the indissoluble connection between ideas and the products of human culture. This is achieved by introducing students to texts representing and describing various methodologies applicable to art and design, which can then be used to critique and analyze visual and material artifacts.

Critical Thinking & Writing II

Code
FLIB 1012
Description

This year-long course is designed to improve critical thinking, reading, and writing skills. Students learn to understand the inherent argument and logic of a text, to think more systematically and critically, and to write more effectively by developing skills in the structure, grammar, and mechanics of writing. Students also work toward the more focused goal of situating design and art practices within larger intellectual, historical and philosophical frameworks by exploring the indissoluble connection between ideas and the products of human culture. This is achieved by introducing students to texts representing and describing various methodologies applicable to art and design, which can then be used to critique and analyze visual and material artifacts.

Paris Yesterday and Tomorrow: history, art and urban culture

Code
FLIB 1105
Description

This course acquaints students with the neighborhoods, cultures, people, customs, institutions and organizations in Paris through a thematic approach based on three main modules: the city and its history; the literary and artistic representations of the city; the city, its citizens, and its future. Students will learn about key moments in French history, from the Romans on, via the Middle Ages, the Revolution, Haussmannization, and May 1968; they will be introduced to such themes as political migrations and colonialism, and will explore the city from a variety of points of views including literary and artistic exchanges, urban history, architecture, and ecology. Active exploration of the environment is strongly encouraged and learning is accomplished through a variety of means: site visits, the examination of texts and images, and first-hand encounters with museums, galleries, and libraries, as well as other art and design-related resources in the city.

The Image of Paris

Code
FLIB 2XXX
Description

The Image of Paris introduces students to the role played by the city of Paris in shaping the history and practice of filmmaking. Starting with a general introduction on the history of Paris, followed by a focus on turn of the century urban transformations (mirrored by the first images of the Eiffel Tower and of Parisian life by the Lumière brothers), students will analyze a number of masterpieces of French cinema such as Les Enfants du Paradis by Marcel Carné, and New Wave works by Jean-Luc Godard, François Truffaut, Agnès Varda amongst others.

They will also explore the concept of the flâneur and investigate the dialogue between cinema and literature through the study of Surrealist films, and of such works as Zazie dans le Métro by Louis Malle and La traversée de Paris by Claude Autant-Lara. The way Paris is seen through foreign eyes will also be an important aspect of the course: the study of 1950s Hollywood portrayal of expat life in the French capital (Funny Face; An American in Paris) will be followed by more contemporary representations of the same theme (Midnight in Paris; Paris I Love You) as by works by non-Wester directors (Eli Lotar, Sarah Maldoror, Alain Bonnamy, Hong Sang-Too, Tsai Ming-liang amongst others).

Finally, the study of 20th century depictions of the Parisian suburbs (La zone by Georges Lacombe; Mon oncle by Jacques Tati) will be paralleled and contrasted with more contemporary narratives (La Haine by Mathieu Kassovitz; Entre les murs by Laurent Cantet). The course format will include a mixture of lectures, screenings and film analysis, practice-based research and field trips to the Cinémathèque Française, La Cité du Cinéma, La Gaîté Lyrique and to other iconic Parisian film locations.

Introduction to Design Studies

Code
FLIB 2212
Description

Design pervades every aspect of the world around us, from how we communicate information and identity, to the tools and systems that help us navigate through physical and digital environments. As design has such a broad reach, it is important that we learn to think about its implications, and the way it is influenced by—and influences—our society. Design Studies is the academic discipline that examines design’s role in our culture, and in our experience of life. By looking at the processes and products of, as well as the discourse on design, we can better understand how the objects and systems we create can solve problems—or, in some cases, create them. The approach for this course will be multidisciplinary and thematic: each week, we will investigate a new topic, considering how design relates to broader issues such as the ethics of consumption, gender, identity, and sustainability, to name just a few. By looking at theoretical essays, historical and contemporary case studies and key texts about design, students will learn to be more critical about how design gets assimilated into our society, our visual culture and our daily experiences, ultimately bringing that understanding into their presentations of their studio practice and their own creativity.

Contemporary Queer Literature

Code
FLIB 3031
Description

“Queer as being about the self that is at odds with everything around it and has to invent and create and find a place to speak and to thrive and to live.” -bell hooks

Contemporary Queer Literature will explore literature written by and about LGBTQ+ people over the course of the last century. In this course we will examine works under a wide literary umbrella, including examples of significant works of fiction, non-fiction, poetry, graphic novels, and film, mainly by writers from the US. Through these works we will explore themes of queer visibility, intersectionality, liberation, and deconstruction of norms. By analyzing the queerness of these works of literature in both form and content, we will collectively work towards building a new queer literary canon. Classes will follow a combined seminar-workshop structure and may include visits, such as to Les Mots à la Bouche (currently Paris’ only LGBTQ+ bookshop) and Chéries-Chéris, an LGBTQ+ film festival. Previous knowledge of queer literature or queer theory are not required, but outside reading and research are expected.

Theater from Text to Stage

Code
FLIB 3309
Description

Whether we are reading plays as literature or preparing for a production, the best approach to a play script is to imagine the experience of seeing it on stage—drama + performance = theatre, an artificial world, which paradoxically has much to tell us about our real one.  While the dramatic action contained in the play is presented in dialogue with some stage directions, it’s not until it is performed by humans that the characters are developed, the visual representation of the story can be seen and its emotional impact felt. It is the complete spectacle of theatre which presents the story of humans and our interaction in mind, society and history.

We are going to begin by analyzing and reading plays—to deepen our understanding of character, action, and spectacle. We are also going to examine one of the great controversies in the theatre between the style of realism that has come to dominate plays, movies, and television since the turn of the century, and experimentalism which in a dozen different movements including surrealism, expressionism, and the theatre of the absurd among others, has come to challenge the surface reality we see in everyday dramas and movies and demand theatre give us a deeper representation of experience.

This literary and stylistic exploration is more than academic—the target will be to bring what we have learned to staging a play(s) for the End of the Year show! The course will feature a series of hands-on workshops for acting and stagecraft as we prepare to occupy the auditorium for May.

Theater: History and Play Analysis

Code
FLIB 2211
Description

Theater: History and Play Analysis is a course designed to do two things: First, it will introduce students to world theatre—its origins in myth and religion, its dynamic interrelationships with society and culture—in the specific historical contexts of different theatres as they developed. Students will study the major periods and developments in the theatre from the ancient Dionysian festivals and Greek tragedy, the William Shakespeare and the Elizabethans, the coming of realism at the turn of the twentieth century and the many avant-garde and Absurdist reactions to it and political and gender issues from the contemporary theatre. Students will learn about approaches to performances and staging and perform scenes from plays.

Second, the course will introduce students to play texts as dramatic literature, full of  the literary themes and conflicts and demanding of the same type of discussion and analysis as stories, novels, poems, and films. Students will learn how to analyze and write about plays as literary texts. The specific project for this semester is Myth, Identity, and Performance within which we’ll look at specific themes such as the individual and society, gender and racial identity, existential identity and what is reality, and drama and social change. We will look at the ways that performance emerged from Shamanistic rituals, the close connection between drama and myth and religion in different societies, and the ways that the performed media has a special ability to help us convey, question, and determine who we are in our cultural and personal, racial and political, gender and linguistic selves.

Consider these three areas and quotes:

Myth: “A man who has a vision is not able to use the power of it until after he has performed the vision on earth for people to see” (Black Ellk, Oglala Sioux shaman. Qtd in Rogan: 9)

Gender: “Gender is in no way a stable identity or locus of agency from which various acts proceed; rather, it is an identity tenuously constituted in time—an identity, instituted through a stylized repetition of acts”; gender “is real only to the extent that it is performed.” (“Performative Acts and Gender Constitution” Judith Butler)

Performance: “Everything that acts is a cruelty. It is upon this idea of extreme action, pushed beyond all limits, that theater must be rebuilt.” (“The Theater and Cruelty.” Antonin Artaud)

Considering different plays or other performance “texts” through the interpretive framework suggested by these three areas we will try to define what theatre is and is not; ask us to determine which kinds of stories or ideas are best performed, and why performances are so closely associated with the rubrics of myth, gender, and the spectacle of theatre.  This exploration demands your active and enthusiastic participation as we discuss, read, and (yes) act out these plays!

Music History: from Mozart to the Dance Floor

Code
FLIB 2001
Description

In this course we will look at how the history of music emerged out of a timeless silence, in which the sounds of ancient times and civilizations could only be imagined, to the gradual construction of a period in which infinite time(s), space(s) and sound(s) are present, where soundscapes are formed intentionally and unintentionally in us and around us, individually and collectively on a permanent basis. It will take as its focus three fundamental aspects of music: sound, space and time, taking us from the beginning of organized sound, music, to an all time, all style ubiquity, covering both classical and popular forms.

The Modern Musical

Code
FLIB 2019
Description

This course provides students with a complete introduction to the history of musical theater, with an overview of 19th century music hall and melodrama and a primary focus on the form that developed in the first half of the twentieth century in England and the United States. The emphasis will be on the broad themes that have influenced the genre, as well as the continuing importance of cultural diversity and ethnic influences on the genre–from English popular culture, Southern US Aftrican-American traditions and the Yiddish culture from the Lower East Side of New York. Students will begin with a solid foundation in historically significant works and canonical authors such as George Bernard Shaw, then progress towards contemporary shows, and how the tradition continues in contemporary theatre and film. The focus of the course will be on discussing the themes of works and the inter-relationship between genres while at the same time developing students’ abilities to write argumentative and analytical essays. Class sessions will include staged readings and a trip to the theatre as well as the viewing of clips of movie-musicals. Learning objectives of the course will be both to analyze works of musical theatre, compare them to non-musical theatrical works, and a foundation for those wishing to eventually perform in the genre.

Art Criticism Writing

Code
FLIB 3002
Description

‘Text’ has somehow survived, thrived even in an increasingly visual, or audio-visual culture. Everyone is writing all the time, ‘texting’ indeed, whether on Twitter or Tinder, creating a Wiki entry, attempting a job application or a thesis, the choice and order of our words determines our future, erotic or academic. This course promises a hands-on and entirely practical, perhaps even actively enjoyable, exploration of writing about art. Though there will of course be some ‘conceptual underpinning’, as it were, of the foundations of the trade, from Diderot to Lucy Lippard, the emphasis will be less on any soi disant theory than on actual zesty practice. We will be dealing with a wide variety of writing and not just on art alone, starting from the basic question of the why and wherefore of such work, from the initial inspiration of any aesthetic reaction to the very real issues of publication, participation and payment even. There will be working trips to museums and galleries, visiting speakers and varied challenges, all with the aim of not only producing actual texts but more importantly students who understand how and what writing can add to their understanding of art and the symbiotic importance of these two long entwined practices.

Poetry and Modernism

Code
FLIB 3019
Description

In her 1974 study Revolution in Poetic Language, Julia Kristeva underlines how the language of European avant-garde poetry is both a symptom of and an instrument for the radical changes we associate culturally, socially and politically with Modernity.

Defining the break or chasm inscribed in history between the long 19th century and the short 20th century, which is epitomized by the First World War, Eric Hobsbawm (The Age of Empire 1875-1914, 1987) describes how ‘under the name of « Modernism » the avant-garde of this period took over most of twentieth-century cultural output’.

Recalling the early twentieth century, the American modernist poet H.D., who lived in Europe all her adult life, says, ‘In 1913 the « modern woman » had no special place on the map … to be « modern » after 1914 … was then a very, very thin line to toe, a very, very frail wire to do a tight-rope act on » (Bid me to live, 1960).

The course proposes to study the links between poetry and Modernity in the context of European & Anglophone Modernisms from a double perspective. It will begin by addressing the break in style signified by the French symbolists from Baudelaire to Mallarmé, Verlaine, Rimbaud, then moving to the surrealist poets Desnos, Eluard and other poets of the European & Latin-American avant-garde such as Apollinaire, Neruda, Lorca. The students will also be invited to draw links with the visual arts characteristic of Symbolism, Post-Impressionism, Surrealism and Cubism.

The second part of the course will address International Modernism through both trans-Atlantic & European women poets whose work is characterized by a search for new forms of expression, figures of exile and estrangement and the quest for female identity : H.D., Plath, Akhmatova, Bachman. Particular attention will be accorded to the poetry’s inscription of history and reference will be made to the arts in terms of early cinema, Modern dance and photography.

Terra Foundation Program I and II

Code
FLIB 3399
Description

The Terra Foundation Research Program gives the opportunity to both undergraduate and graduate students to have a first major academic experience in the field of American art and transatlantic artistic relations.

Every semester the Liberal Studies Department, along with members of the faculty, will select a group of outstanding PCA students across departments and will offer them the opportunity to take part in a research program based on the collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art Library. The project will culminate in a public presentation at the Terra Foundation Center in Paris.

The group of selected students will have the opportunity to work as a team and conduct high level research on a specific topic related to American Art. They will have free access to the Terra Library Collection, and training with a librarian who will present the collection and the research facilities available at the Terra Foundation. They will then conduct their research independently and under the supervision of the Liberal Studies Department Chair, and present their findings in English to an audience of art history students from Université Paris Nanterre. Students will also actively collaborate with peers from Université Paris Nanterre through workshops and studio visits (Terra Program I). After completing the first part of the program, students can opt to continue and use the material from their presentation as a basis to write an academic research paper (Terra Program II).

The PCA/Terra Research Program is suited for all students interested in the history of art and, particularly for those interested in American art. It is an opportunity to work closely with the Terra Library’s unique collection of books, have a first major experience within the academic research world, and improve one’s research, writing and presentation skills. The monthly workshops and the final presentation will also be occasions to meet peers from French universities and compare research methodologies in an international and interdisciplinary context. The program is open to undergraduate, graduate, and visiting students.

Multilingual Paris

Code
FLIB 3021
Description

Modern phenomena of mass migration and globalization are contributing to a rapidly changing landscape of language diversity and acceleration of language loss. One of the consequences is an unprecedented redistribution of languages around the world, particularly in major international cities. This course explores the modern-day multilingual city using Paris as a case study. Students will be introduced to concepts from the fields of linguistics, anthropology, and language planning, in general, and more specifically linguistic typology and the role of the science in language maintenance and revitalization; the anthropology of migration and transnational communities; and the history of language planning in the era of nation-states. Paris will be both conceptually and physically explored as a modern example of a multilingual urban center from a critical perspective. Concepts of language loss, transmission, and revitalization will be approached through artistic practice in order to affirm the innately human aspect of language.

Paris Inside/Out

Code
FLIB 0010
Description

Paris Inside/Out is a one-credit course consisting of visits to art & design exhibits, as well as meetings with artists, artisans and designers in Paris. The course will use a wide approach by including a variety of artistic fields, thus allowing students to draw inspiration from any discipline. The course will be held every week in a different location in Paris. Students are free to participate in as many visits as they wish, however a minimum of 5 visits are required to pass the course. For each visit, students will create a personal work within a given set of constraints. At the end of the semester, students will be asked to present to the class a personal work inspired by one of the visits during the semester.

History, Philosophy and Social Sciences

Positive Psychology

Code
FLIB 3025
Description

After a brief introduction and historical overview of psychology as an academic discipline, students will focus on what has since the late 1990s been known as positive psychology, i.e. the “study of positive human functioning and flourishing on multiple levels that include the biological, personal, relational, institutional, cultural, and global dimensions of life” (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). The aim of the course is to provide a contemporary understanding of theoretical and empirical advances in positive psychology. Students will read and discuss peer-reviewed research articles and each week there will be a hands-on assignment to personally apply one of the lessons learned in daily life.

Philosophy of the Image

Code
FLIB 3024
Description

The course Philosophy of the Image aims at addressing key philosophical concepts that have been shaping the contemporary debate and informing art practices in recent years, and that are at the forefront of artistic research today. Key concepts will be discussed in conjunction with specific artworks and art practices in which they manifest themselves in order to expose on a one hand how they inform the production of artists and on the other hand how they are transformed by those very practices they affect.

Each lesson will discuss an art/theory couple: a concept will be analysed in conjunction with an artwork through the reading and discussion of theoretical passages and the analysis of the selected works. Through the dialogue with philosophy art will be regarded as a field of knowledge in its own right, standing on equal footing with the theoretical disciplines with which it dialogues: a field that has a bearing on reality, contributing both to our understanding of the world and to our capacity to shape it. The course provides an introduction to the core conceptual issues of our time via a combined analysis of philosophical theories and art practices in order to improve the students’ capacity to navigate the most relevant ideas of our present as well as the conceptual dimensions of contemporary art.

Philosophy of Education

Code
FLIB 2132
Description

The objective of the course is to familiarize students with some of the most important texts of political philosophy dealing with education, so as to allow them to meaningfully engage in current debates on the role of education in democracy. A secondary objective includes cultivating an understanding of some of the basic differences in the philosophical outlook of Antiquity, the Enlightenment and Modernity, as well as appreciating some of the continuities. The course gives an overview of attempts throughout history at overcoming the tension between education conceived of as self-fulfillment and education conceived of as the shaping of good citizens. The syllabus is divided into three parts, made up of five classes each, dealing accordingly with the views of the ancients, the Enlightenment and modern democracy. The course format will include a mixture of lectures, texts analysis, practice-based research and field trips to Parisian libraries, museums, and schools.

Sociology of the Arts

Code
FLIB 3037
Description

Sociology of Arts offers theoretical and methodological tools to understand the development of artistic and cultural values and practices. How is the cultural production articulated to social issues? Is the aesthetic experience universal? How far does our social path influence our artistic taste? What about artistic freedom? This course presents a global approach, from the origins of the discipline to the current questions, raising issues of cultural hierarchy, social distinction, legitimate and mass cultures. A synthesis of the many research areas and debates, including the role of institutions, the reception of works of art, aesthetic experience and emancipation through art, will allow us to examine the major trends that have emerged during the last decades.

The objective is double: to provide a theoretical background, essential to every professional working in arts and culture, and to empower students by developing their skills to question, objectify, argue and value their professional identity, posture, and choices.

Introduction to Social Theory

Code
FLIB 2116
Description

This course will offer a comprehensive overview of major concepts and theories in the history of social philosophy, from the Enlightenment to post-structuralism. Twelve classic texts will be read in excerpts, analyzed, contextualized, and explained in forms that will make them relatable and invite individual reflection. Students will be encouraged to extract vocabulary, scholarly habits, issues, and methodologies from each author, and to experiment with their newly acquired skills on subjects of their own choice (social phenomena, visual artifacts, cultural behaviors etc.).

Participants will familiarize themselves with a selection of foundational materials, heighten their awareness of the complexities and implications of social processes as a subject of scholarly endeavor, acquire lexical and conceptual tools for the description, analysis, and criticism of cultural phenomena, and learn how to produce a sociologically meaningful commentary on the present.

Gender Studies

Code
FLIB 3318
Description

In this course, students will explore the practices and theories of gender identification that have influenced not only how ‘masculinity’ and ‘femininity’ are lived and represented, but also how those classifications are critiqued, resisted, and rewritten. Working with historical and contemporary texts in gender studies, students will be asked to examine more deeply the ideologies that produce what gets known as ‘the truth’ of a gendered body as well as the social consequences of such knowledge production.

Gender Studies: Performance, Cinema, Still Image

Code
FLIB XX
Description

The course “Gender Studies: Performance, Cinema, Still Image” engages with interdisciplinary approaches to the study and critique of culture and society. Building on some “classics” of continental thinking and cultural theory, we will explore recent Feminist, Queer, Postcolonial, New Media Art theories and experience. The course explores how cinema, performance, and still images work as a “technology of gender,” how they construct subject positions and identities, and what these constructions can tell us about how gender structures our culture.

Because of the nature of the course and the amount of time that must be dedicated to screening the films, to gallery visits, and analysis of photo images and advertising, this class will be very different than a traditional lecture-based course. The course will require students to be self-motivated learners and emphasize individual readings of the assigned articles and thoughtful individual critiques of the films and readings. It will explore a variety of contemporary visual imaging technologies that privilege the body and encourage students to develop critical analytical skills to interrogate the world in which they currently live. Analyzing the production, circulation, and consumption of visual cultural productions, the course will ask what the roles of visuality and performance are in constructing ideologies of gender, race, sexuality, and national identity.

History of Technology

Code
FLIB 3304
Description

From the design of the first wheel in ancient Mesopotamia to the harnessing of alternative energy in the future, this course examines the role of technology in driving material, social, cultural, and artistic change. Ever since Palaeolithic caveman domesticated fire and learned to carve stone tools, humans have been driven by an insatiable desire to discover, harness, and design new technologies to purposefully modify their material environment. As an individual and collective endeavour, technological innovation is the result of human ingenuity fostered by specific social, material, and cultural conditions. Although new technologies are intended to solve practical problems, reduce human labour, and improve the quality of human life, changes in technology can elicit a host of unintended consequences with potentially evolutionary effects on society, the environment, and the human experience.

By analysing the paradigms set forth for scientific ‘progress’ the class will analyse how technology can be seen alternately perceived as the culprit driving social inequalities (i.e. the Marxist response to the Industrial Revolution) or as a possible solution to recalibrate the ‘great divide’ between first and third world countries (i.e. the ‘democratisation’ of knowledge in the Digital Age). Weekly topics will examine how technological developments influenced communication and transportation systems, energy, labour, war, and the economy. We will investigate how technology can reformulate human relationships and influence class, gender and artistic expression. As we examine the ethical dilemmas posed by new technologies, we will ask ourselves: Which technological changes constitute a radical break from the past? What has human culture gained from the experience? What have we lost? What is the role of the artist in designing new technologies? If the promise of technology is to improve our lives – has this been accomplished?

Revolutions: A History of the World from Ancient to Modern Times

Code
FLIB 3030
Description

Through this course, students will be introduced to the major revolutionary events that have shaped the world from ancient to modern times. Students will start by tackling fundamental questions as the definition of revolution and its place in contemporary society. They will then examine a number of major revolutionary events around the world from the Renaissance and the Reformation to the more contemporary Iranian and Egyptian upheavals. This historical survey including the American, the French, the Russian, and the Chinese revolutions amongst others will be enriched by the analysis of the diverse visual representations (illustrations, photographs, graphic novels, works of street art) that accompanied, interpreted, and reported the studied events. The role of social media, as the impact of the current technological revolution brought about by AI, will complete the course whose format will include a mixture of lectures, screenings, practice-based research and field trips.

Crossings: Introduction to Geopolitics and Globalization Studies

Code
FLIB 3016
Description

This course will attempt to trace the historical, cultural, and political roots of our globalized world-system. It will examine its inherent tensions and developments and introduce a critical vocabulary that will enable the students to navigate its complexities.

Drawing on geography, geopolitics, social theory, political philosophy, anthropology, and post-colonial studies, in a back-and-forth movement between current issues and transcontinental histories of trade, capitalism, slavery, colonialism, (under)development, migration, urbanization, cultural hybridization, and conflict, we will acquire a set of analytical tools, concepts, and theoretical categories for the assessment of geopolitical processes: from the negotiation of symbols, boundaries, and identities to the material distribution of wealth and economic assets. Textual and visual resources will include a selection of classic readings, documentary films, photographs, and literary statements.

Anthropology

Code
FLIB 2343
Description

Our innumerable conceptions of technology change as quickly as the technologies themselves. How then do we define technology? How does technology define us? Our aims in this class are to develop our vocabulary and theoretical framework for discussing the interactions of music with technological developments in instruments, musical creation/performance, recording, media, and industry. Notably, we will focus on the cultural, social, and aesthetic lives and meanings of technologies, thinking about how musical technologies—and the various ideas about these technologies—impact our experiences of the (musical) world around us. Topics will range from: the Futurists, the phonograph, Musique Concrète, sounds of urban life, turntablism, artificial intelligence, music apps, and so forth, and will open up discussions into the “aura”/“liveness”/mediation, the politics of capturing sound and how that taps into issues of representation, authenticity, gender, and race, the recognition and/or creation of sound ecologies, the constantly evolving relationship between what is music, sound, and noise, the implications of digitization and digital culture, among many other critical inquiries. We will be drawing from a variety of different source materials in this class, for example: video clips, theoretical writings, music lyrics, written accounts, musical examples, images, and many hands-on demonstrations of instruments and other tools. Course evaluation is based on class discussion, write-ups, a mid-term, and a final project.

Museology

Code
FLIB 3XXX
Description

Museums, as all cultural institutions, face a number of pivotal challenges in the contemporary world. From inclusion and accessibility, going through a fundamental rethinking of collections presentation and museographic techniques, museums and exhibition spaces play a central role in both making culture accessible to all and in mirroring the diversity and richness of cultural heritage. This course will address a number of crucial issues related to the field of museology (the study of the museum institution and its shifting role in society) that will be explored by privileging a contemporary and global perspective: starting from the analysis of the role played by museums in the 21st century, students will be introduced to the concept of New Museology and to such fields as cultural preservation and mediation in the context of a global questioning of the discipline. The history of the museum institution itself from the 15th century to the contemporary moment, as the evolution of its political, social and cultural missions throughout the ages will be part of the course.

The diversity of the Parisian exhibition environment, going from major museums to independent galleries and exhibition spaces, will contribute to connect the students’ theoretical work to the reality of the field. The course format will include lectures, practice-based research, guest talks by collectors and curators, and field work in a number of public and private cultural institutions.

Introduction to Semiotics

Code
FLIB 3343
Description

Semiotics is the “study of signs” — a framework for analyzing the world around us as systems of symbols and signs. This course will offer an introduction to the discipline of semiotics. We will read introductory and foundational texts. Emphasis will be on the application of different approaches of semiotic analysis to the visual (photography, paintings, fashion) and the textual (songs, media, language) artifacts that populate the world of signs that surrounds us. Students will be invited to choose items for semiotic study, including their own work.

Music, Technology, and Digital Culture

Code
FLIB 2300
Description

Our innumerable conceptions of technology change as quickly as the technologies themselves. How then do we define technology? How does technology define us? Our aims in this class are to develop our vocabulary and theoretical framework for discussing the interactions of music with technological developments in instruments, musical creation/performance, recording, media, and industry. Notably, we will focus on the cultural, social, and aesthetic lives and meanings of technologies, thinking about how musical technologies—and the various ideas about these technologies—impact our experiences of the (musical) world around us. Topics will range from: the Futurists, the phonograph, Musique Concrète, sounds of urban life, turntablism, artificial intelligence, music apps, and so forth, and will open up discussions into the “aura”/“liveness”/mediation, the politics of capturing sound and how that taps into issues of representation, authenticity, gender, and race, the recognition and/or creation of sound ecologies, the constantly evolving relationship between what is music, sound, and noise, the implications of digitization and digital culture, among many other critical inquiries. We will be drawing from a variety of different source materials in this class, for example: video clips, theoretical writings, music lyrics, written accounts, musical examples, images, and many hands-on demonstrations of instruments and other tools. Course evaluation is based on class discussion, write-ups, a mid-term, and a final project.

Street Culture And Art

Code
FLIB 2018
Description

The diversity of the urban environment has historically fostered a fertile ground for the birth of subcultures. Claude Fischer, an American sociologist, suggested nearly twenty years ago, that the size, population, and heterogeneity of cities strengthen social groups thereby encouraging the establishment of subcultures. This course intends to explore the emergence and evolution of modern and contemporary urban subcultures, including beatniks, punk, hip-hop, rap, grunge, and even the more recent hipster. We will study each phenomenon, from not only a socio-historical perspective, but through their impact on the broader visual landscape. The history and progress of these initially marginal movements provide a singular opportunity to examine the endless cross-fertilization occurring between artistic disciplines and the ever-changing contours of mainstream culture.

Dance Culture

Code
FLIB 2131
Description

Dance as an art form is interdisciplinary by nature combining elements of the visual, oral, literary and performative arts. The study of dance history and culture allows students to be introduced to the social and cultural foundation of dance as a form of expression while discovering the variety of connections it establishes with such disciplines as film, photography, fashion, stage and set design, and the visual arts.

The course will start with an introduction of the history of dance from the nineteenth century to the contemporary moment. While tracing the work and influence of major international choreographers/dancers we will contemplate the significance of dance more broadly through sessions on such topics as street dance, dance in non-western contexts, and dance therapy. We will thus tackle the following questions: what is a “dance culture”? What cultural assumptions determine who “can” and “cannot” dance? Where does dance happen and how does location influence the dance experience? What do artists – and you as artists – see in dancers’ movement? How do they – and you – depict motion? How can one describe and write about the experience of watching dance? What is “kinesthetic empathy” and could it be used to write about and respond to dance?

The course format includes a mixture of lecture, discussion, practice-based research and viewings of live and recorded performance.

Natural Science and Math

General Biology I

Code
FLIB 2004
Description

General Biology is a non-technical survey course emphasizing symmetry and systems as unifying themes. The scientific method, the diversity, and unity of all living things will be presented in this context. The areas of investigation include the human body, zoology, botany, and microorganisms.

Urban Biology

Code
FLIB 2028
Description

This course will explore how all domains of life (Eukaryotic and prokaryotic) survive and thrive in the urban Parisian ecosystem. With the city of Paris as a setting, students can explore how the taxonomies of living organisms adapt in their ecological niches. Topics such as the biodiversity of the urban environment, the impact of development on human and non-human species, the varying adaptations and genetic mutations among living species and the relationships between natural preservation, public health, and the advancement of scientific knowledge will be covered through in-class sessions, walking tours, and museum visits. Sessions at the Ecole du Breuil (School of horticulture and landscaping techniques of the city of Paris) will complete the course and offer a unique hands-on experience on the way organisms evolve in the urban environment.

Optics & Science of Perception

Code
FLIB 3020
Description

Optics and the Science of Perception provides an introduction to the nature of light, how images are formed, the anatomy of the human eye, and visual perception.  Through a critical approach, the course examines existing theories and scientific discoveries that inform the current understanding of optics and visual perception. The course draws on the domains of Physics, Human Biology and Psychology to embark on a journey of light from its source, reflecting off surfaces, then captured by the biological human eyes and brains as information interacting with our mind to form visual perception.

Math & Society

Code
FLIB 2XXX
Description

Math and Society introduces students to the main branches in mathematics including algebra, geometry, number theory and statistics. The course puts the accent on the applicability of mathematics and shows its contribution to such fields as politics, philosophy, the social sciences and the arts. (Lippman. Math in Society. CreateSpace, 2012)

Introduction to Human Anatomy

Code
FLIB 2005
Description

This course will provide an introduction to human anatomy and physiology. The systems, structures and functions of the body will be studied through the lens of our ever-evolving understanding of the human organism. Topics will include studies of the gross and microscopic anatomy and embryological development of the human body systems. Learning will be enhanced through visits to sites integral to the understanding of anatomical science.

Food, Health & the Environment

Code
FLIB
Description

This course explores the relationship between food, health and the environment. What is the impact of what we eat on our health, and how does food production affect the environment we live in? Starting from the study of the digestive system, students will be introduced to topics as food security, malnutrition and diet-related diseases. They will also examine how food production processes and consumption impact human health and the environment, and reflect upon innovative solutions offered by sustainable agriculture. Field trips to Ecole du Breuil (French school of gardening and horticulture), urban farms, La Louve (food coop), and to Rungis market (largest fresh products market in the world) will be part of the course.

Botany

Code
FLIB 2030
Description

This course introduces students to the study of plants biology insisting on their crucial ecological role. Topics will include: the anatomy, physiology and taxonomy of plants; ecology; the study of applied sciences as horticulture (gardening), forestry, agronomy and food science. Students will be encouraged to establish connections between the study of plants and their artistic interests. Field trips to some of the best Parisian botanical gardens, to the botanical gallery at the Jardin des Plantes, as well as to the Ecole Du Breuil will be essential parts of this class.

General Astronomy

Code
FLIB 2281
Description

General astronomy focuses on the study of the origins and structure of the universe: big bang, stars, back holes, galaxies, solar system and life on earth will be amongst the themes examined weekly. Field trips will include the Palais de la Découverte and the Observatoire de Paris.

French Courses

French for Paris

Code
FLIB 1150
Description

“French for Paris” is a course open to beginners who would like to expand their knowledge of French culture and develop their listening & speaking skills. The course will cover specific themes relating to everyday life in Paris, its history, its culture, and the arts. Emphasis will be placed on phonetics (rhythm, intonation, liaisons, silent letters & some specific French sounds) as well as everyday vocabulary and exchanges. Different subjects will be developed over the semester: cultural life in Paris, French cinema, French and Francophone cuisine, as well as music. Students will be able to engage in short conversations and will practice describing themselves and their environment along with their studies and artistic practice. Visits in French will be organized. Conscientious completion of homework and class participation is emphasized; a website has been specially designed to accompany students throughout the semester (readings, targeted grammatical exercises, podcasts, phonetics, etc.) The class will be conducted in French.

Discovering French Culture

Code
FLIB 1500
Description

This course is open to students who have already had some exposure to the French language because they have taken short courses, or because they have interacted with French speakers. However, these false beginners still need to master the basics. Students will start their study with topics and grammar necessary for successful daily interactions with a strong emphasis on oral production. As the course progresses, they will delve into themes dealing with French culture and life in Paris.

Pre-requisites: FLIB-1150 French for Paris OR per Placement test results

French Language and Culture

Code
FLIB 2250
Description

“French Language and Culture” is a course open to anyone who has some knowledge of French and would like to improve their listening & speaking skills. The course will cover specific themes such as Paris and its architecture, French cinema, French artists and artistic movements, as well as professional life in Paris. Students will develop key vocabulary in order to be able to communicate orally in French in everyday life situations, as well as in professional settings. Using a variety of materials, students will learn how to tell a story, make a description of their work and practice, talk about a personal experience or project, and give their opinion. Several museum guided tours in French will be organized during the semester. Conscientiouscompletion of homework and class participation is emphasized. Class will be conducted in French.

Pre-requisite: French for Paris or Placement

Spoken Contemporary French

Code
FLIB 3022
Description

This course is open to students who have solid foundations in French and wish to improve their learning of spoken French. First, the class will be focused on expanding everyday vocabulary made to enhance the students’ abilities to exchange, talk, and respond adequately to informal and daily situations. Second, the class will carry focus on specific phonetic points, to improve the students’ pronunciation and fluency. Finally, the course will focus on more formal communication situations, ranging from reading a literary text aloud from job interviews.

Topics in French Civilization

Code
FLIB 3400
Description

Ce cours a pour objectif de fournir aux étudiants les connaissances nécessaires pour comprendre la culture française mais également d’approfondir leurs connaissances linguistiques. Le cours portera sur différents aspects de la culture française : faits historiques et politiques marquants, courants intellectuels, économie, mouvements artistiques et vie quotidienne. Les étudiants auront l’opportunité grâce à des visites de se familiariser avec l’architecture et les monuments de la ville, mais ils pourront également découvrir les institutions culturelles et artistiques ainsi que la vie professionnelle à Paris. Les discussions seront nourries par la lecture d’articles de journaux, par des analyses littéraires, des documents audio-visuels ainsi que grâce à des rencontres avec des professionnels et historiens de l’art. Une partie du cours sera consacrée à des révisions de grammaire et des exercices de composition. Le cours est dispensé en français.

Pre-requisite: Placement

L'Activisme en France

Code
FLIB 4XXX
Description

Ce cours permet à des étudiant.e.s de niveau avancé de connaître plus en profondeur la société française dans laquelle ils/elles vivent. Plusieurs questions de société en lien avec les différentes formes d’activisme et de militantisme en France (féministe, syndical, anti-raciste, environnemental, LGBT ou encore anti-speciste entre autres) seront abordées par des supports pédagogiques divers (littérature, presse, projections, émissions radio et podcasts, conférences, expositions etc.). Des révisions de grammaire et de vocabulaire en lien avec la thématique abordée permettront aux étudiant.e.s de perfectionner leur français à la fois à l’écrit et à l’oral.

Le Développement Durable

Code
FLIB 4011
Description

Le développement durable peut être défini comme un développement qui répond aux besoins d’aujourd’hui sans mettre en danger la capacité des générations futures à répondre aux leurs. Dans ce cours, il sera donc question tout d’abord de présenter un état des lieux, à savoir connaître et discuter les études les plus récentes sur les questions concernant la démographie, les énergies et ressources naturelles, la gestion de l’eau et l’agriculture, le commerce et les filières textiles, le recyclage. L’accent sera mis sur les acteurs de changement en organisant la découverte et la rencontre de ceux qui sont en charge d’associations ou coopératives (La Louve, La Réserve des arts), travaillent sur l’élaboration de loi (avocats, parlementaires), s’attachent à faire prendre conscience de la nécessité de mieux gérer les ressources (journalistes, associations). Les étudiants seront amenés à confronter leurs idées et à rechercher des pratiques tant individuelles que collectives qui intègrent les problématiques environnementales dans les domaines de la mode, de l’art, du design, de la gastronomie, etc. Des sessions seront organisées à la Gaîté Lyrique.

La Gastronomie Francaise

Code
FLIB 4001
Description

De l’art de régler l’estomac [gastro : estomac; nomia : loi, règles] à l’art de faire bonne chère, la gastronomie sera abordée dans ce cours comme un art vivant et, à de nombreux égards, un art à part entière. Alors que le « repas gastronomique des français » a été inscrit en 2010 sur la liste représentative du patrimoine culturel immatériel de l’humanité par l’UNESCO, la culture de la cuisine est devenue un sujet aussi incontournable que passionnant depuis le début de notre millénaire. Qu’il s’agisse de la mode des nouveaux régimes qui transforment sans cesse nos assiettes (le véganisme, le paléolitique…), de la célébration médiatique et presque héroïque de la figure du chef ou encore des créations artistiques visuelles et littéraires autour de la nourriture, la gastronomie occupe une place primordiale au sein de la culture et de l’identité françaises et francophones. Ce cours propose ainsi un parcours critique à travers divers aspects et enjeux de la gastronomie aussi bien historiques, que sociaux, économiques, politiques, psychologiques et iconographiques.

Chaque séance sera organisée autour d’un thème précis et original qui vous invitera à penser la gastronomie d’une manière à la fois créative et critique à partir de sujets de réflexion variés. A cet effet, il sera fait appel à un corpus d’oeuvres littéraires, à des ouvrages critiques et/ou théoriques, des livres de recettes tant anciens que contemporains, des critiques gastronomiques (de la presse écrite ainsi que des blogs), des films, et également de nombreuses oeuvres visuelles. Les étudiants seront encouragés à enrichir cette traversée gastronomique de leurs expériences, réflexions et suggestions afin de faire de ce séminaire un lieu de pensée créative.

L'Ecriture de Soi

Code
FLIB 4016
Description

A l’ère de « la désegotisation » normée par les réseaux sociaux, dans cette période accélérée de la dissolution de soi dans une outrageuse ou courageuse démonstration de l’intime, il est nécessaire de porter un regard sur un passé si peu lointain, où dire le soi appartenait au domaine du scandale ou de l’impudeur. Tour à tour expression de la douleur d’aimer, volonté de reconstituer le vide de l’arrachement exilique, ou encore peinture d’un voyage initiatique qui ne cesse jamais, les auteurs et plus généralement les artistes, ont fait éclater certains cadres formels et ont questionné les registres. Le récit autobiographique n’a donc cessé d’évoluer, de muter et d’épouser les contours des époques qui l’ont vu naître. Et au-delà du temps, la géographie du récit de soi prend parfois les accents du risque, et c’est à cette information que se mesure son intérêt : quand l’intime le plus extrême bouleverse l’altérité dans son ensemble, il conviendra de redonner ses lettres de noblesse à un genre qui nous apparaît comme tout sauf mineur.

La première partie du cours sera centrée sur l’écriture de l’impudeur émotionnelle : grâce à l’analyse de textes rédigés par George Sand, Colette, Simone de Beauvoir, nous pourrons à la fois étudier le sentiment amoureux comme ancrage du récit dans cette tentative de dire la douleur d’aimer, tout en faisant apparaître comment une sincérité subversive peut troubler l’ordre public. Il sera question dans un deuxième temps de l’écriture de l’exil, l’écriture de soi comment tentative de combler l’apatridie au monde par la poésie (Kateb Yacine, Emile Cioran), ou comment traduire l’arrachement dans une audace formelle. La troisième partie sera consacrée au récit de soi comme fonctions et perceptions subjectives, en étudiant l’humour comme moyen de survie dans la littérature juive, le récit de l’intime et les risques pris tant au Soudan (Al-Tayeb Abdusalam), au Liban (Yussef Bazzi) qu’au Japon ou aux Etats-Unis.

Le dernier cycle du cours portera la question du droit et de l’intimité : a-t-on le droit de tout écrire (procès de Camille Laurens et Marcela Iacub) ? A-t-il jamais été subversif de parler de soi à l’ère des réseaux sociaux ? Le « drone-art » implique-t-il un renversement des valeurs? L’art n’est plus au service de l’intime, il le traque.

Ecriture Translingue de Soi

Code
FLIB 4XXX
Description

Le cours d’Écriture translingue de soi est pensé comme un cours à la fois théorique, à travers l’exploration de plusieurs notions en littérature – l’écriture de soi (Serge Doubrovsky) le translinguisme (Alain Ausoni) et plus largement le plurilinguisme littéraire (Olga Anokhina) – et à la fois comme un atelier d’écriture, dans lequel chaque étudiant fera l’expérience de l’écriture créative translingue (tenue d’un carnet d’écriture). Chaque atelier prendra comme point de départ l’étude d’un extrait d’un ouvrage d’un auteur·trice translingue ayant fait le choix du français comme langue d’écriture (Elsa Triolet, Agota Kristof, Vassilis Alexakis, Nancy Huston entre autres) à partir d’une entrée d’analyse particulière (la question du choix de la langue française, l’hétérolinguisme, les intraduisibles, la phonétique, les rapports entre les langues). Les étudiants exploreront ainsi les différents questionnements soulevés par l’expérience du translinguisme de ces auteurs·trices, d’un point de vue identitaire, créatif, expressif, langagier ou encore du rapport à l’écriture littéraire.

Le Livre et la Lecture

Code
FLIB 4015
Description

Le livre est un objet précieux pour les étudiants en art tant il nourrit leur imaginaire et enrichit la recherche visuelle. Notre séminaire sera entièrement consacré à l’étude de livres en français et se propose d’initier les étudiants à la lecture de textes populaires et à la découverte de la culture du livre à Paris. Chaque séance sera consacrée à un genre de livre particulier (la bande-dessinée, les nouvelles fantastiques, le roman-feuilleton, le récit Internet etc…) et à un texte que les étudiants liront du début à la fin.

Chaque classe sera organisée autour de plusieurs ateliers aussi riches que vivants : le club du livre permet aux étudiants d’échanger librement au sujet de leurs lectures et d’aborder nombreux thèmes littéraires ; la bibliothèque de classe est un projet de groupe pour constituer votre recueil de livres et de magazines contemporains ; le journal de lecture est une pratique d’écriture libre et créative.

Nous étudierons également le livre en tant qu’objet du quotidien (objet d’art, la bibliothèque et les illustrations) afin d’interroger la place qu’il occupe dans nos vies de tous les jours et en particulier face aux écrans (cinéma, Internet). Le cours permettra également aux étudiants de découvrir l’actualité littéraire parisienne à travers la visite de bibliothèques et de librairies spécialisées et des sorties à la « Maison de la Poésie » et au Salon du Livre de Paris. La vie du livre contemporain sera explorée à travers l’actualité des ventes aux enchères, la rencontre avec des bibliophiles et la découverte de nouvelles initiatives sociales telles que « bibliothèques sans frontières ».

Les principaux objectifs de cours sont l’enrichissement des connaissances littéraires et livresques et l’amélioration du niveau de français grâce à la lecture et à l’écriture (révisions de points de grammaire, vocabulaire riche et varié) et à la (re)découverte du plaisir des livres !

Le Hip Hop Français

Code
FLIB 4017
Description

Ce cours examine la dimension littéraire et engagée des textes de hip-hop français. A la croisée des problématiques qui nous incombent actuellement : féminisme, inclusion, minorités sociales et raciales mis au ban de la société, ce thème a la force de faire réfléchir génériquement et formellement sur la littérature tout en posant de réelles questions sur les structures sociétales qui nous gouvernent.

Musique, Sons et Perceptions

Code
FLIB 4XXX
Description

Art du présent, la musique est la forme artistique par excellence qui échappe à toute structure chronologique et qui questionne la notion même d’histoire. Il est possible d’écrire « une » histoire selon l’approche que l’on souhaite privilégier, mais toutes ces histoires de la musique se croisent et se coupent en de multiples points d’entrées. Considérons que chaque individu puisse écrire sa propre histoire de la musique et le champ des possibles se trouvent amplifié, élargi et ouvert à de nombreuses interprétations. À travers une approche thématique de la musique autour, entre autres, des notions de voix, d’architecture, de rituel, ou de machine, il sera question d’aborder la musique comme étendue. Dessiner, tisser, construire un espace sonore implique une relation au temps et à la perception. Composer des étendues est peut-être le point commun des différents praticiens de la musique. Découvrir, analyser et critiquer ces étendues sera un enjeu collectif fondamental pour extraire une logique parmi un vaste champs de références qui est celui de la musique et du sonore. Document, bruits, silence, harmonie, émotion, les modes de conception et de perception de ce qui se passe via l’appareil auditif sont multiples, nous tenterons donc de les questionner et d’en établir un ensemble “cohérent”. Le cours sera ponctué par de nombreuses références théoriques, de séances d’écoute et de discussions collectives. Trois rencontres seront organisées : une rencontre avec un programmateur musical, conseiller du CNAP, une rencontre avec le conseiller musical de Villette Sonique et une rencontre avec un chercheur à l’Ircam.

Cinéma: le Plan en Question

Code
FLIB 4415
Description

Le cœur de ce cours s’articulera autour de l’unité cinématographique fondamentale qu’est le plan, ce fragment d’espace et de temps prélevé par les cinéastes, découlant de choix artistiques, narratifs mais aussi éthiques. L’idée est de traverser les 120 ans du 7e art par le biais de cette unité, en partant à chaque fois d’une conception «historique» du plan : la vue des frères Lumière ; le tableau chez Méliès ; la fragmentation par le montage initiée par David W. Griffith et réinvestie par l’avant-garde russe (Sergueï Eisenstein, Dziga Vertov) ; le plan séquence (Orson Welles, Jean Renoir) ; la pensée du plan à l’âge de la modernité cinématographique (par exemple Roberto Rossellini). Il ne s’agira toutefois pas de s’arrêter seulement à cette histoire mais d’en repérer les échos dans la création contemporaine, de questionner ces retours et permanences – par exemple un blockbuster comme “Gravity” d’Alfonso Cuaron s’ouvre sur un plan séquence de 16 minutes. Les étudiants seront amenés à une pratique (réalisation de vues selon les modalités des opérateurs Lumière : un cadre fixe dans un temps incompressible de 50 secondes), à une réflexion faisant appel à l’écrit (rédaction de critiques) ou à des recherches personnelles. Une sortie à la Cinémathèque interviendra au sein de ce parcours, ainsi que des rencontres et des projections au cinéma Le Louxor.

Art History

Introduction to Art and Design

Code
FHCA 0103
Description

This course aims to develop skills in perception, comprehension, and appreciation of various visual art forms. It fosters the ability to closely analyse visual materials and explore the range of questions and methods used to examine and interpret artworks. Moreover, the course emphasises understanding art as a visual language and encourages students to express their understanding verbally, both orally and in writing.

The course is structured around four thematic modules that correspond to specific geographical locations and major art historical periods. These modules do not provide comprehensive surveys of the art of each culture or era. Instead, they concentrate on specific themes and objects to enhance our understanding and appreciation of visual art forms.

Introduction To Visual Culture

Code
FHCA 0340
Description

This interdisciplinary course explores the rise of visual media, communication and information, within the context of a broad cultural shift away from the verbal and textual toward the visual, which has taken place since the advent of photography and cinema in the late 19th century, through the birth of television, to the present proliferation of digital media worldwide. We will consider the critical practices of looking, historicizing and interpreting that have accompanied this ‘visual turn’. Our readings will primarily address the theoretical foundations of the study of visual culture, which is understood to incorporate a variety of visual media and visual technologies: painting and sculpture, scientific imagery, material culture, the internet. If everything can be visual culture, what remains of traditional notions of medium specificity? What critical tools must be invented to analyze visual events from a visual cultural perspective? The relationship between the visual arts and visual media, especially with respect to the ‘global’ contemporary visual landscape, will be a focus of this course.

Paris Through Its Museums and Artistic Sites

Code
FHCA 2004
Description

This course is designed to introduce the student to the artistic and historical tradition of cosmopolitan Paris.

During the course the rich cultural and historical heritage of Paris, as it has come down to us from the Middle Ages to the present day, will be explored through a dynamic program of venturing into the city to learn about its cultural resources.

Social, political and economic changes have been paralleled by scientific, philosophical and artistic developments. For centuries there has been a passion for change and renewal, most clearly of all in the visual arts. Students will learn to read with their eyes and experience works of art in person, analyzing various complex artworks; visiting historic sites, monuments and museums; and considering the city’s remarkable urban development and contributions to architecture and design.

The focus will be on several historically organized sections: the development of Romanesque and Gothic art in France; the royal and imperial patrimony of the 17th to the 19th centuries; the achievements of the Parisian avant-gardes from the end of the 19th century until the Second World War; and, finally, postmodern Paris. Classroom discussions will alternate with visits to artistic and historical sites in and around the city.

Classicism and its Discontents

Code
FHCA 0223
Description

There is little doubt that the “classical” and classicism constitutes the principal matrix through which art history prior to the end of the nineteenth century is viewed. The course will examine the birth, meaning, and significance of the classical in ancient Greek and Roman art; study how the retrieval of its motifs made possible the art of the Renaissance; examine its return as “neo-Classicism” in the 18th century (and what this return means sociopolitically); and how it has been “remarked,” often ironically, in postmodernism. Students will acquire a clear sense of what classicism means and how it has, in its many forms, pervaded the history of visual culture and the traditions of the West.

Primitivism Revisted

Code
FHCA 0224
Description

While searching for alternative styles and means of expression, modern artists were attracted to the unusual and exotic. Both pre-historic art, early ancient, and “primitive” art (the traditional indigenous products of Africa, Oceania and North America) penetrated the western artistic world and had a determining impact on the aesthetic of the 20th century. The purpose of the course is to contextualize and analyze art and architecture from these cultures, and to describe their afterlife in modernist production. It will also describe the social changes associated with this attraction to “primitive” art forms. Key aesthetic discourses of the period will be articulated, offering crucial insight into the complex and always changing nexus between culture, politics and representation. The course will include field trips to the antiquities collections at the Louvre, to Musée du Quai Branly, and the Centre Pompidou to examine both primitive and ancient objects and images together. Students will be exposed to art historical and post-colonial critiques of the appropriation of past forms and the complex visual and ideological implications of the wholesale designation of cultures as “other”.

Modernity & Modernisms

Code
FHCA 0221
Description

If modernity can be understood as the distinctive set social, political, economic, and technological conditions that both shape and respond to the needs of a new form of human existence and that begin to emerge in the late 18th century, then modernism can be taken as critical literary, artistic, and architectural responses to those conditions and their consequences. The responses are therefore plural, and as such, we must speak of modernisms, some of which celebrate and make use of the advances offered by modernity, while others call them into question. This course will inquire into the distinctive features that characterize modernity and explore the various aesthetic responses to them in tune with technological advances such as photography and film.

Pop & Around

Code
FHCA 0222
Description

The industrial revolution made new forms of technology and mass communication possible, allowing not only for the mechanical reproduction of the image and its circulation on a large scale, but also new materials, new processes, and new media. These developments have had a decisive impact on visual culture, on aesthetic categories, and on the status of the image. The aesthetic revolution began in Montmartre in the 1880s, reached a climax in SoHo in the 1960s, and continues to shape visual culture and aesthetic debates today. What status does the image have? What is the difference between a Brillo box produced by industrial means and one produced by Andy Warhol? Does a distinction between high art and kitsch still matter in the age of Pop? How have the transformations in visual and material culture affected the productive activity of artists, or conversely, how does artists’ activity take up and critically remark upon these transformations? How has the Pop aesthetic translated and transmuted in contemporary global culture? These are the kinds of questions that this course will explore.

Contemporary African Art

Code
FHCA 0248
Description

This course introduces students to select themes and topics concerning contemporary African art on the African continent and in the diaspora. Over the last century African art has continually transformed and reinvented itself responding to a time of constant flux during colonialism and independence, where art traditions overlapped and existed side by side, each trying to interpret the changing times. In the last three decades more generally, and in the last few years more specifically, contemporary (and increasingly modern) African art has started to receive more international attention coinciding with the end of the Cold War and shifting global politics. The course focuses on artists, movements, exhibitions, curators and texts, allowing students to understand the role played by African art in the contemporary art world.

Photography Before 1960

Code
FHCA 0302
Description

Conceived as an introduction to the history of photography, this course will focus on the first half of the 20th century. The main movements and aesthetics characterizing that period will be examined through the work of various international photographers. Arranged thematically while following a chronological progression, it will approach each theme in connection with a major photographer whose singularity will help understand the particularities and issues of the subject and put them into perspective. As a product of light and chemistry, photography has always been determined by technical parameters. We will address these parameters and see how they shaped the history of the medium and what we can learn from them today.

Since its invention, photography has had an ambivalent status, regarded by some only as a way of recording or copying things, while others considered it as an actual means of artistic creation. This constant dichotomy between document and art will constitute the common thread of this course. We will look at it with a critical eye, examining photographs through all the stages of their life, from the moment they were taken to the moment they were printed, published, exhibited or discovered by others. In doing so, we will be able to examine how the status of these photographs often changed during the various stages of their history, going from mere document to renowned work of art.

Based mostly on the observation and comment of photographic images, this course aims to start a discussion and foster debate on photography, its specificities and the way they were developed and used in the first half of the 20th century.

Photography Since 1960

Code
FHCA 0303
Description

This course will focus on the second half of the 20th century and the first decades of the 21st. The work of various international authors representative of that time period will be examined. Arranged thematically, the course will approach each subject through a selection of photographs. The study of their meaning and singularity will help understand the particularities and issues of each theme and put them into perspective.

The notion of “creation” will constitute the common thread of this course. Each theme will interrogate the use of photography as a means of expression whether it be with a personal, political, artistic, commercial or social goal. Examining body of works developed from 1960 to today, we will see how photography has fostered tradition (commitment to a certain vision of the medium and to its history) as well as a stimulated novelty (invention of new ways of using the camera).

Based on the observation and comment of photographic images, this course aims to start a discussion and foster debate on the medium, its specificities and the way they have developed since 1960.

History of Architecture

Code
FHCA 0230
Description

This course is aimed to equip students with an understanding of the History of Architecture by examining and understanding the buildings and context of their own place of residence: Paris.

We will explore, analyze and compare a variety of architectural structures (interior and exterior) and urban spaces around us. Students will focus on the relationship between architectural design and the intellectual ideas that shaped the modern world, beginning with the vestiges of Lutetia. We will explore this city through frequent field trips, by making drawings, and analyzing readings to discover the impact of a variety of historical periods (including the Industrial Revolution) in modern design as well as its contributions to the broader History of Architecture and Design. Students will be introduced to key texts representing evolving critical methodologies applicable to architecture and design, which will be used to analyze visual materials.

History of New Media

Code
FHCA 0326
Description

History of New Media is an overview of the pioneering artists and scientists who have brought about the dissolution of boundaries that have traditionally existed between the artistic and technological disciplines. The course will survey the work and ideas of artists who have explored new interactive and interdisciplinary forms, as well as engineers and mathematicians who have developed information technologies and influential scientific and philosophical ideologies that have influenced the arts. The course begins with seminal artistic movements and genres as well as the study of the invention of information technologies and new human-machine paradigms that have come to define digital culture. This broad historical analysis will help illuminate an understanding of the emerging digital arts and its aesthetics, strategies, trends, and socio-cultural aspirations. Central to this analysis will be an understanding of key concepts for the interpretation of evolving multimedia forms: including integration, interactivity, hypermedia, immersion, and narrativity. The course will reveal how these primary elements of contemporary media have roots in experimental electronic and performance art prior to the digital era. Students will develop commentary in the form of critical projects through in-depth analysis of historical trends and seminal work in the media arts and information sciences.

History of Digital Art

Code
FHCA 0310
Description

The course offers an introduction to the history of digital art from the 1950s to the present. Students will be introduced to the first experimental works with computers in the early 1950s and then learn about the role played by the EAT group (Experiments in Art & Technology), Bell Labs and the Slade School of Art in London in the 1970s in shaping contemporary digital art. The work of historical figures (Robert Rauschenberg, Nam June Paik, Paul Brown, David Hockeney, James Faure Walker) and that of contemporary international artists as Han Yajuan (China) and Pilar Torcal (Spain) amongst others will be examined. The course format will include a mixture of lectures, screenings and artwork analysis, practice-based research and field trips to Atelier des Lumières, and digital art galleries.

History of 20th and 21st Century Fashion

Code
FHCA 0227
Description
This course investigates the visual history of fashion, focusing on the last 100 years, especially from the early 1900s to the present day, and with a particular focus on primary sources available in the museums and archives of Paris. Weekly units explore historical European fashion trends – their details, silhouettes, fabrics and embellishments – in their original social, political, economic, aesthetic and spiritual contexts. Influences and parallel developments in other countries are also covered in this class, as are connections between the fashion industry, theatre, film, and the fine arts. Students are introduced to research practices and encouraged to reflect on design and style choices rooted in fashion history while also doing their own in depth research and presentations based off of physical visits to Paris’ exhibitions, museums, and libraries.

Artists Cinema

Code
FHCA 0327
Description

This course interrogates the conceptual and historical connections between Experimental Film, Video Art, and Contemporary multi-disciplinary practices. Throughout the course of 15 weeks students will be guided through a thematically oriented survey of moving-image artworks, related readings, and assignments. Each class is organized with screenings of both Modern and Contemporary works to emphasize often understated connections between these two periods of artistic production. In doing so, we engage with canonical works of Modern Art in a way that connects them to the spaces, materials, and movements of today. Boundaries between sculpture, installation, film, and video will be simultaneously complicated and defined. Putting works from across art history in conversation with one another will help us understand how Contemporary practitioners reference, build upon, and even reject the work of the past. Working in this thematically organized fashion also allows us to focus on often unrecognized or marginalized artists while dissecting pertinent art-historical narratives.

This class holds communal projections as essential for properly experiencing many works of moving-image art. During each class, screenings will be followed by a discussion section where the works are examined in relation to weekly readings and previously analyzed artworks.

Artists On Art

Code
FHCA 0305
Description

This course will examine how artists from the mid-19th to the early 21st Centuries conceive of and talk about their own artistic practice. While artists’ works are frequently viewed through the lens of art history or criticism, students will consider how artists present, engage with and develop further levels of inquiry into their work. Topics covered will include artists’ published writings, their notebooks, the artist’s statement versus the manifesto, and their teachings. The course will also offer the opportunity to explore the relationships between artistic identity and art work, ranging from analysis of self-portraits to their performance on screen. Students will discover the extent to which artists’ practice depends upon a critical awareness of the cultural, theoretical, and historical matrix in which they operate. Assignments will include research projects on artists and the preparation of a statement that defines the students’ own self-conception of their studio practice or area of study.

Scandals in the Art World

Code
FHCA 0357
Description

This course will present works by artists who have – at different times and for diverse reasons –shocked and angered the general public, the art establishment and the mass media.

Specific incidents will be examined in order to understand how these incidents occurred, with attention given to the different factions involved. For example, why have some works of art been considered obscene? Who made that decision? The way these incidents concluded (and any subsequent impacts) will also be scrutinized.

The course will focus on controversies about individual works that have ‘violated’ moral norms and taboos; challenged generally accepted art standards; or criticized the established social, economic or political order. Interfaces between artists and the public, and between artists and the art establishment, will be analysed. We will also look at the mutual lack of comprehension that often exists between artists and the mass media and how their relationship has evolved.

This series of lectures will examine how the concepts of “acceptable” or “unacceptable” are developed and maintained, , focusing on several themes: transgressing aesthetic norms; conceptual ruptures; sex, nudity and pornography; destabilization of social and political order; subversive photography; destruction and vandalism.

Art and Politics

Code
FHCA 0245
Description

This course will examine relationships between art and politics in the past and, more importantly, today. The purpose of the course is not to discuss social and political problems in themselves or to propose solutions. Instead, it will show how engaged artists aim to raise awareness and change attitudes.

During the last few decades society has been profoundly changed by events including the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the fall of the Berlin wall at the end of the 1980s, September 11th, conflicts in the Middle East and other regions, and the worldwide financial crisis – together with globalization, growing awareness of the threat to the environment, and the Covid-19 pandemic. How have artists responded to these and other political and social changes?

To quote the art critic and philosopher Boris Groys: “Art has its own power in the world, and is as much a force in the power play of global politics today as it once was in the arena of cold war politics.” However, the relationships between art and politics are complex. Some artists are primarily concerned with poverty, social malaise, human rights or racism, while others focus on multinational corporations and environmental destruction. Still others represent the individual’s powerlessness in the face of totalitarian regimes, corruption or the influence of the media.

Artists’ work differs according to their explicit or implicit aims. It is also influenced by their own socio-economic background and culture and those of their intended audience. Interfaces between artists and the public, as well as between artists and the art establishment, will be analyzed. In addition, we will look at the mutual lack of comprehension that often exists between artists and the mass media, and how this relationship has evolved.

The Installation

Code
FHCA 0217
Description

Going beyond modernist categories, a new type of artwork was developed in the second half of the 20th century – defined by the ways in which places, spaces and materials are used. Site-specific art intersected with land art, process art, performance art, conceptual art, installation art and public art. These various artistic practices can be seen as variations on the concept of Gesamtkunstwerk – a ‘total work of art’.

Marcel Duchamp’s ready-mades and Kurt Schwitters’ Merzbau drew attention to the space in which the work was shown, while Minimalism established space as the work in itself. Since then, stimulating considerable controversy, installations have been challenging perceptions of the ephemeral and of the surrounding space. They have provided material for reflection on the relationships between the space and the work of art, as well as on the mechanisms of the art world.

The organization of space is based on the artist’s choice. It determines the dialectical relationship between the artist and the spectator. The interactive relationship between art and life – established through an appropriate transformation and articulation of space – began an artistic mode that was something entirely apart.

This course will address historic and contemporary installations by considering the role of space. We will discuss space, materials and site, focusing on several themes: sculpture in the expanded field; enclosure of space; overloaded space; live installation; immersive space; public space; and construction/deconstruction.

Interdisciplinary Performance

Code
FHCA 03XX
Description

It is in all their complexity that we look at the artworks of today and we tend to read the multiple struggles and questions that they make visible. This complexity is not only the result of the hybridity of artistic practices, the media used, but also the way artists draw their resources from social, political, scientific practices and refer to them or appropriate them. The necessity of critical analysis of knowledge, relations of domination, and norms shapes the landscape of art today.

This course will present various performative practices and this will be approached by discussing the works of visual artists, choreographers, directors, activists or musicians such as: Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore, Delphine Seyrig and Carole Roussopoulos, Letícia Parente, Füsun Onur, Laurie Anderson, and Talking Heads. Established works by Pina Bausch, John Cage and by contemporary artists as Gisèle Vienne, Rebecca Chaillon, and Kae Tempest will also be analyzed in order to introduce the historical, political, plastic, musical, and textual dimensions of performance. The back and forth between the field of art and that of social practices, and the relationship between live performance and the visual arts will be examined. Performance will thus be explored as a vast space of immaterial practices which uses a specific vocabulary – score, ritual, lecture, reenactment, carnivalesque. Examples will include, amongst others Esther Ferrer, Rabih Mroué (lecture-performance), Eszter Salamon (the artist as a museum), Big Art Group (the stage as a political space for live image production), Meredith Monk and Laurie Anderson (the voice), Antonia Baehr (the score), Latifa Laâbiss (the ritual and the vigil). The course format will include a mixture of lectures, screenings, practice-based research, practical exercises and field trips.

Senior Seminar

Code
FHCA 0402
Description

The Senior Seminar alternates between combined collective seminar and individual tutroials with senior theis advisors. Students develop and produce research for the written student thesis on a topic relevant to art history, theory and critisism, which may include a practice component if relevant to their art historical thesis topic and a public presentation of their thesis topic during the end of year show.

The Culture of Design

Code
FHCA 0162
Description

“Design” has come to mean many different things. It has been defined as problem solving, communication of an idea, an aesthetic decision, but it is rarely discussed as a vital business concern – design communicates to us and makes us desire things in order to sell commodities…

Starting with the invention of mechanical printing and the Industrial Revolution, we’re going look at what has constituted “Good Design” in different time periods, focusing on the major historical design movements and the pioneering designers who helped to define them.

The culture of design is strongly influenced by advancements in technology and media, information theory, business & marketing practices, sociology and psychology, and these must be addressed to fully appreciate these milestones. We’ll look at design objects as cultural artifacts in a broad historical context, covering graphic design, photography, advertising, product design, furniture, interiors, fashion and architecture.

Global Design in the 21st Century

Code
FHCA 0312
Description

Global design is a contemporary phenomenon, but, paradoxically, it happens at the local level. The concept of an “International Style”, as promoted by Modernists in the 20th century, is no longer relevant. To understand what is happening in design worldwide, one must be able to appreciate the specific cultural baggage and the specific design contributions of each country. This course will deliver a cultural “passport” giving students access to major design cultures around the globe. We will study design in the USA, Russia, England, France, Germany, Italy, Scandinavia, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Brazil, Japan, and Korea.

The geography, history, economy, language, and political trajectories of various nations are important factors in developing a graphic design culture. Contemporary designers filter their work through their experience. Their sensibility is often the result of an interaction between complex cultural lineages. Global design is not a unified style, on the contrary. It is the merging of countless influences, stories, and individual experiments.

Students will acquire a first-hand appreciation of these cultures thanks to exercises highlighting various aspects of a country’s distinctive design practice.

Art Deco Past and Present

Code
FHCA 02XX
Description

This course will provide a broad introduction of the decorative arts from Modernity (15th century) through the 21st century. Crafted objects that pair form with function – such as furniture, industrial objects, textiles, ceramics, glass ware, jewelry and other artifact types – will be considered within their larger artistic, cultural, social, and political contexts. Through readings, in class lectures and round table discussions, students will develop a visual vocabulary relating to the decorative arts, as well as an understanding of materials and techniques involved, such as metal and wood working. Students will also explore the exchange between the decorative arts and other artistic fields as literature, fashion, and cinema. The course draws on the extensive collections of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs, the Louvre Decorative Arts department, the Mobilier National and the Manufacture de Sèvres collections.

Starting in the academic year 2023-24, new distribution requirements are added within Liberal Studies.

Students are required to complete at least 3 credits in the humanities, 3 credits in history, philosophy and the social sciences, and 3 credits in mathematics or natural sciences.

Terra Foundation for American Art Partnership

The Foundation

Since it was established in 1978, the Terra Foundation for American Art has been one of the leading foundations focused on supporting art of the United States. In partnership with organizations and individuals locally and globally, the Terra Foundation fosters intercultural dialogues and encourages transformative practices to expand narratives of American art.

In spring 2016, the Liberal Studies Department started a partnership with the Terra Foundation for American Art in Paris on a new research program devoted to undergraduate students.

Every semester PCA Liberal Studies Department Chair Barbara Montefalcone, along with members of the faculty, launches a call for applicants, selects a group of outstanding PCA students across departments and offers them the opportunity to take part in a unique research program based on the Collection of the Terra Foundation for American Art Library (Europe’s only research library devoted exclusively to American Art). The project culminates in a public presentation at the Terra Foundation Center in Paris.

The Research Program

The selected students have the opportunity to work as a team and conduct high level research on a specific topic related to American Art. They have free access to the Terra Library Collection and follow a one-session training with a librarian who will present the collection and the research facilities available at the Terra Foundation Center in Paris, located 121 rue de Lille. They will conduct their research independently and present their findings in English to an audience of art history students from Université Paris Nanterre.

The PCA/Terra Undergraduate Research Program is suited for all students interested in the history of art and, particularly for those interested in American art. It is an opportunity to work closely with the Terra Library’s wonderful collection of books, have a first major experience within the academic research world, and improve one’s research, writing and presentation skills. The final workshop and presentation will also be an occasion to meet peers from French universities and compare study and research methodologies in an international and interdisciplinary context.

Testimonials

Juliette Villaume, full time student in Fashion Design at PCA, Fall 2019

“The PCA/Terra Project was something I wanted do since my first year at PCA. I was lucky enough to have Barbara Montefalcone as my teacher who could tell me more about it, and got to know me as a student. I was highly interested in the history of art, and the environment. I wanted to write a formal research paper about this topic, especially since I knew I wanted to do a masters and PhD later on in my life. I thought this would be a great experience. (…)

During my senior year I submitted an application, and I was paired with Sam, who is an amazing artist, and someone whom I admire. We discussed things that were important for us: the environment, and using nature in art. We had the opportunity to visit the Terra Foundation Library, which is a very beautiful place, and has great resources.

Sam and I worked on a presentation and research paper titled ‘Changing Landscapes: American Art and Ecological Identity from Pre-Colonization to the Anthropocene’: we were both so passionate about this theme. We finally presented our work to an audience of peers at the Terra Foundation Center in Paris, and I think that everyone could tell how important it was for us. We ended up talking for about an hour! We were so proud of all the work we did; I remember crying at the end of this project because we accomplished so much, and it seemed like this meant a lot too to PCA, the Terra Foundation and the group from Université Paris Nanterre.

I think this project really demonstrated how formal writing is important: the words that you use, the research that you make, all the supports that you use to explain your ideas are as important as the creative aspect of one’s work. It is so important to be able to express what we love and are passionate about to the world in a dynamic and comprehensive way.

As a scholar this helped me so much understand how to conceive a research project and paper, and deepen my knowledge on a subject I care about. I was so happy to have the guidance of Barbara and Sam too. As an artist, this experience really allowed me to learn how to share my passion for a subject, as my values and beliefs, in a constructive way.”

Ezra Lee, visiting student in Communication Design from Fordham University, Fall 2018

“Learning and working with the Terra Foundation was a great experience for me. It gave me the opportunity to explore a topic that I was fascinated with and learn new things when it comes to graphic design and its deep and rich history in our culture. The library was wonderful and had a beautiful collection that really helped me with my research.”

Laiqa Ahmad, full time student in Design Management at PCA, Spring 2018

“The Terra Foundation project was an essential starting point for my thesis; it was an opportunity for me to really investigate WoC in Art, with a research Centre and supportive staff to help me through that journey. The work that I achieved with the Terra Foundation was pivotal as it demonstrated how tangible the lack of diversity is in mainstream Arts academia. It was only through this self-initiated work that I was able to actually learn about the work of WoC, beyond the tokenised WoC artist that has become a trope, like Frida Kahlo.

My thesis now hones in on the specific discriminations Intersectional women face in the Creative industry; it is the struggles of women I learnt about at the Terra Foundation, like Elizabeth Catlett and Faith Ringgold, who will inform the future of both my professional and personal journey.”

Beau Gomez, certificate student in Art History, Theory and Criticism, Spring 2016 group leader

“I have minimal experience with academic research, let alone with leading a group of people to develop a presentation amongst an audience of French art history teachers and Masters students. Barbara, our supervisor, was instrumental in directing us to a route that would prove unique and interesting for the attendees. These students are not used to presentations by student-artists, and likewise we were not accustomed to an academically-driven audience. But it was the ideal opportunity to exchange ideas about art and engage in a discussion from both perspectives.

The project challenged and further strengthened my skills in making solid and efficient decisions – much research was involved from visiting libraries as well as exploring galleries and exhibits around the city that proved relevant to the themes we explored. There was a lot of brainstorming, but in the end we came up with a presentation that was professional yet conversational, enthusiastic yet informative.

Sessions and Participants

Spring 2023

Theme: New Narratives in American Art
Ariel Ronayne
Valentina Facchinetti
Asian American Women Artists and Native Textile Art

Terra Project II: from Presentation to Research Paper
Megan Bowyer
The Artwork is the Place

Fall 2022

Theme: New Narratives in American Art
Kirby Mealer
Inclusivity for Disability in American Art

Spring 2022

Theme: New Narratives in American Art
Megan Bowyer
The Artwork is the Place

Fall 2021

Theme: New Narratives in American Art
Cage Sebastian Pierre
Developing Negatives: Roy DeCarava, Theaster Gates

Spring 2021

Theme: Words
Valentina Facchinetti
The Poetry of Carl André

Terra Project II: from Presentation to Research Paper
Holzberg, Villaume
Changing Landscapes: American Art and Ecological Identity

Fall 2020

Terra Project II: from Presentation to Research Paper
Rachel Fallon
A Wonderland of Colors

Spring 2020 (Online)

Theme: Colors
Rachel Fallon
The Colors of Alma Woodsey Thomas

Fall 2019

Theme: Change
Sam Holzberg
Juliette Villaume
Changing Landscapes: American Art and Ecological Identity from Pre-Colonization to the Anthropocene

Spring 2019

Theme: Genre
Sara Bensalem
Female Voices in American art and architecture

Fall 2018

Theme: Patterns
Samarah Fenelus
Ezra Lee
Patterns of Protest: AIDS and the American Visual Landscape

Spring 2018

Theme: Dreams
Laiqa Ahmad
The Black and White American Dream: Re-establishing the Image of the Black Women in Art and Society

Fall 2017

Theme: Dialogue
Katelyn Bennet
Margaret Bourke-White and Charlotte Perriand’s photographs

Spring 2017

Theme: Nature
Anahelena Arevalo
Madeline Hickey
On the Road: A Trip Through the American West

Fall 2016

Theme: Movement
Jackie Fei
Jorene Tavora
The Art of this Century Gallery: Moving Artists, Stirring ideas (1942 to 1947)

Spring 2016

Theme: Portrait
Beau Gomez
Heejae Jung
Hemma Kevenhueller
Liberation, Individuality and the American Photographic Portrait