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Visual Culture in Latina/o America and Spain (350-0-1)

Topic

Rosalia: Iconography, Performance, Poetics

Instructors

Francisco Miguel Caballero Vazquez

Meeting Info

Kresge Centennial Hall 2-425: Tues, Thurs 12:30PM - 1:50PM

Overview of class

Rosalía: Iconography, Performance, Poetics

Rosalía has emerged as a key figure in contemporary popular culture, captivating audiences worldwide with her blend of flamenco, urban, and electronic music. This course is divided into three parts corresponding to her three studio albums. We will focus on her visual storytelling, stage performances, and poetics to see how she engages with icons of Spanish cultural history ranging from Cervantes to Goya to La Niña de los Peines. The analysis of her body of work is the starting point to inquire into the cultural and social history of flamenco, including its Roma, Black, Jewish, and Andalusian roots, as well as the migrant history of flamenco in Catalonia and Latin America. Debates on cultural appropriation and appreciation will be addressed as we study Rosalía's engagement with (Afro)Latin American genres—reggaeton, bachata, bolero—or through the analysis of the long tradition of flamenco in Japan. We will reflect on the ways she explores fame, fashion, or feminism, and on what we mean when we term something "experimental" or "avant-garde".

Registration Requirements

Prerequisite: SPANISH 250-0, 251-0, 260-0, or 261-0.

Learning Objectives

1. Develop critical engagement with visual storytelling and stage performances
2. Develop critical engagement with the theory of art and poetics
3. Acquire theoretical tools to participate in debates on cultural appropriation versus appreciation
4. Explore the cultural history of flamenco
5. Explore the cultural history of the Roma people and their resistance
6. Explore the history of Black, Muslim, and Jewish communities in Spain
7. Delve into the complexities of Andalusian identity and history
8. Acquire theoretical tools to study popular culture
9. Improve writing skills in Spanish
10. Improve oral Spanish

Class Materials (Required)

Course package will be available on Canvas course site.

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area
Global Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Prerequisite: 1 course from SPANISH 250-0, SPANISH 251-0, SPANISH 260-0, or SPANISH 261-0