ARTH 320 - Matisse and Methods

This seminar will focus on Henri Matisse (1869-1954) using his work as a lens to explore the methods of art history. The vast literature on Matisse provides us with a range of writers asking different questions of the artist’ work. After a critical consideration of methodologies that have been used to interpret Matisse’ work (formalist, structuralist, psychoanalytic, feminist, postcolonial, for example) we will focus in on one art historical question in particular, surrounding sources and their possible influences on Matisse. How have scholars and curators interpreted Matisse’ studio sources, and his appropriations from other media (photography, for example) and other cultural traditions (African and Islamic for example)? Have these approaches adequately addressed the complex relationships between Matisse’ paintings and sculpture, and the critical concepts about representation which inform them?.

Credits 4

Area
Humanities

Division
Arts and Humanities

Compass Attributes
Global Honors, Humanities, Structure/Power/Inequality