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

Topic

Ways of Seeing - Photography in Latin America

Instructors

Alejandra Uslenghi
847/467-1713
3-113 Crowe

Meeting Info

Kresge Centennial Hall 2-325: Tues, Thurs 11:00AM - 12:20PM

Overview of class

Ways of Seeing - Photography in Latin America

This class explores the photographic representations of major social and historical events in Latin America from the turn of the 19th century through out the 20th century. We look at when and how photography became a medium of visual expression in Latin American culture and we examine questions on the construction of a shared Latin American experience. We analyze how different kinds of photographic registers (journalistic, ethnographic, territorial surveys, documentary, artistic) work as cultural interpretive tools. We also practice how to write critically about photography in relation to historical and literary works, learn about major Latin American photographers and how their images were produced, circulated and now participate in a larger history of the medium. We will put emphasis on the study of photographic themes that are singular to the Latin American experience: colonialism, revolution, native society, modernization and urban space, politics and self-determination. Prerequisite: 1 course from SPANISH 250-0, 251-0, 260-0, or 261-0.

Registration Requirements

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

Learning Objectives

1. Observe the forms, genres, and styles of literary and artistic expression in Latin American visual culture, identifying the relations between important events in Latin American history and their visual expression across media. Key moments are focused on the visual construction of coloniality, ethnicity, indigeneity, nationality, and cultural identity.
2. Gain awareness of the social, political, cultural, and historical factors influencing artistic expression, the relations between the artist and the public, and the potential of creative art to challenge or to affirm social and cultural norms. Identify how particular photographers and writers have represented the distant past and how photography and literature informs our understanding of the present.
3. Through class participation, presentations and writing assignments, students gain the skills to produce acts of persuasive interpretation, analysis, and commentary on literary and artistic primary sources, both orally and in written form.

Class Materials (Required)

Class materials and readings will be provided on the Canvas course site, or alternatively, students can request a course pack.

Class Attributes

Advanced Expression
Literature and Arts Foundational Discipline
Global Perspectives on Power, Justice, and Equity

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Registration for Majors and Minors in either Spanish or Portuguese until the end of preregistration, after which time enrollment will be open to everyone who has taken the prerequisite. Prerequisite: 1 course from SPANISH 250-0, SPANISH 251-0, SPANISH 260-0, or SPANISH 261-0