Latin American and Latina/o Art 111

Wednesday 3-5:50 pmLibrary 127

Elaine O'Brien Ph.D.Office: Kadema 190

Hours: Tu 3-5 & W 5:50-6:50 pmeobrien@csus.edu

http://www.csus.edu/indiv/o/obriene/

Course Description: This course is an overview of the history of Latin American and Latina/o art After a video-based survey of ancient cultures with selected readings and discussion of Mesoamerican and Andean cultures, our focus shifts to Spanish and Portuguese colonial art, then to art of the independence era in the first half of the 19 th century, the rise of modernism across Latin America in the 1920s, and finally to contemporary Latin American and Latina/o art, including Chicana/o art. A trip to see Diego Rivera’s Pan American Unity mural at the Ocean Campus of San Francisco City College is assigned as are two local art exhibitions of Latin American and Latina/o art. The sweeping geographical and historical breadth of the course allows us to ask what (if any) identifiable forms, attitudes, and concepts characterize “Latin American and Latina/o” art.

Note: This is a Writing Intensive Course with a prerequisite of upper-division standing and the completion of the University’s Graduation Writing Assessment Requirement.

University expections for Writing Intensive Courses:A. The course must build on the basic skills and knowledge acquired by students in their foundation

courses in General Education or the major.B. The course must expand students' knowledge by examining complex issues.C. The course must expand students' abilities to reason logically and to write clearly in prose.D. Students must be required to write not less than 5,000 words of clear and logical prose (not to

include simple narrative or diary writing).E. Instructors must work actively with students to sharpen analytical abilities and to improve their

writing styles.F. Writing assignments must be spread over the entire semester (with at least 3,000 of the 5,000

words due before the last two weeks of instruction).G. Instructors must provide timely responses and evaluation of each writing assignment, and

evaluations and comments must not only be about the subject matter content but also about writing skills.

Course Objectives: Increased knowledge and appreciation of forms, contents, and contexts of Latin American and

Latina/o art and visual culture Advancement of skills in research and in the articulation of visual concepts Advancement of information technology skills Development of analytic and critical thinking abilities Improved listening and public speaking skills Direct experience with artistic production via the field trip to the Diego Rivera Pan American Unity

mural A stronger grasp of the relationship between form and content of artworks and why works of art look

the way they do

Frida Kahlo, The Two Fridas, 1939, Oil on canvas, 67" x 67", Collection of the Museo de Arte Moderno, Mexico City

Appreciation of the various social roles of the artist

To help you achieve these objectives and excel in this and other courses: Dartmouth College Academic Skills website:

http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/success/index.html Another good academic skills website: http://www.studygs.net/

Required texts: Dawn Ades, ed., Art in Latin America: The Modern Era 1820-1980 (on syllabus as “Ades”) Mary Ellen Miller, The Art of Mesoamerica: From Olmec to Aztec, 4th edition (on syllabus as “Miller”) Articles available for downloading from the course website Sylvan Barnet, A Short Guide to Writing About Art, 10th edition

Course Requirements and Grade Basis:

10% participation: Good participation is how much you help others learn: a positive, questioning, engaged attitude toward the material in the class. This is evident in attendance, being on time, attentiveness, and note taking. I recommend that you come to my office hours early in the semester and introduce yourself to me. This is much more important than many students realize.

Note taking : Some of this class is discussion, but information presented in lectures contains information that will be on quizzes. According to cognitive research, listeners only recall 50% of what they hear and that 20-30% is incorrect. Therefore, taking good notes is crucial for success in college. Please review these suggestion on note taking: http://www.dartmouth.edu/~acskills/docs/taking_notes.doc

Participation during small-group discussion : at times during the semester you will be asked to participate in small-group and class discussion. It is during these discussions that your participation (how much you help others learn) is most evident. Good and bad participation is noted and affects your grade.

o Never leave your group to talk with me individually or leave the classroom during small-group discussions.

Attendance policy Two unexcused absences reduce your grade by a full letter grade; three unexcused

absences result in automatic failure. Chronic (more than 3 times) lateness or leaving early will count as an absence.

Illness (yours or your child’s) is excused with a note from a medical practitioner. You can get a medical excuse from the student health clinic at the Well. Scheduled appointments, transportation problems, and job demands are not excused. Inform me of any situation that will keep you from class or affect your ability to learn, whatever it is. Do not hesitate to see me during my office hours or make an appointment via email.

NOTE : Use of cellphones, laptops, all electronic gadgets and communication equipment is forbidden, mostly because it distracts other students. Please keep everything turned off and out of sight during class. Otherwise I will ask you to leave the class and count you as absent.

Please use the toilet before class and leave the classroom only in an emergency, in which case, don’t hesitate to leave (and come back if you can).

NOTE : No eating or drinking please. I will ask you to put it away.

If you have a disability and require accommodations, you need to provide disability documentation to SSWD, Lassen Hall 1008, (916) 278-6955. Please discuss your accommodation needs with me after class or during my office hours early in the semester.

20% 1-page reading response papers: For each of the “Readings” indicated on the syllabus,1. Look up and write down the author’s education (as expert in subject)

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2. Find and quote the author’s thesis statement. Put the page number next to the quote in parentheses.

3. Paraphrase the author’s thesis statement. Your paraphrase should be about equal in length to the quotation.

4. Quote and paraphrase 3 key points the author makes - from the beginning, middle, and end of the reading. A “key point” is not just interesting; it supports (proves) the author’s thesis. They are usually factual evidence that convinces you the author’s argument is credible.

5. Conclude with the one most important question you got from the reading. These questions will be the basis of small group discussions.

5% Diego Rivera Mural at San Francisco City College: due May 1NOTE: This is also make-up assignment for February 13, so it is worth one week’s class attendance and participation in addition to 10% of the course grade.

Visit the Diego Rivera mural, Pan American Unity (1940) at the Ocean Campus of San Francisco City College. http://www.ccsf.edu/NEW/en/about-city-college/diego-rivera-mural/overview.html The mural has been closed but according to the website, it is due to open January 21 for the spring semester. Check before you go about hours, directions, parking, etc. 1) Get at least one photograph of you with the mural. NOTE: No credit is earned without a photograph of you with the mural. 2) Draw a 15-minute sketch of your favorite scene in the mural. 3) Write a 200-word response: a) Briefly explain the thesis and narrative of the mural. b) Explain how the scene you selected helps establish Rivera’s thesis. c) Conclude with a paragraph about what impressed you most and why it did.

35% 10-minute quizzes:

Quiz dates are indicated on the schedule and changes are announced in class. After lectures are presented in class, I will make them available on the course website under “Lectures.” Use them to make flash cards for the quizzes. I will only ask you to identify works of art and architecture that are in the readings and also shown in the videos and class lectures.

Quiz format: You will be asked to identify an art work (or two artworks in a comparison) – name and nationality of artist, title of work, date of work – and respond to a question related to the lectures, textbooks and other readings.

35 % Research Paper : Select an artist as the topic for your paper from the list at the end of the syllabus. Use the internet to check out the artists below until you find one that interests you. You may choose an artist not on the list, but you must get my approval before writing your proposal.NOTE: Each student must write on a different artist.NOTE: The thesis question is the same for everyone in the class. The question is: In what way(s) is the oeuvre (entire body of work) by the artist you have selected “Latin American” or “Latina/o”? Does the artist identify him- or herself with a nation, like Mexico or Brazil, for example? After you have done some preliminary research, propose an answer to that question and write it up as your thesis statement. The research you do for the paper will be to find out if your answer is correct. If you later find out it is not correct, you can change your thesis.

N ote : Your research paper is eligible for the Witt prize for the best art history research paper, usually around $300, awarded at the Student Award presentation in February.

o Read Sylvan Barnet and use it as a resource throughout your research project. Your paper must show mastery of the information in Barnet, but no class time will be spent on it. We will have a library class in information literacy and I am available during my office hours to instruct you. You can also get instruction at the Writing Center in Calaveras Hall and university librarians are always available to help you at the reference desk on the second floor.

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o Format (Chicago full endnote and bibliographical citation style only. Please do not use parenthetical citations ) : Follow Sylvan Barnet. Here is the CSUS online Chicago s tyle g uide :

http://library.csus.edu/guides/wangh/chicagostyle.htm Online quick guide to Chicago style citations:

http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html

For free, one-on-one help with writing in any class, visit the University Reading and Writing Center in Calaveras 128. The Reading and Writing Center can help you at any stage in your reading and writing processes: coming up with a topic, developing and organizing a draft, understanding difficult texts, or developing strategies to become a better editor. To make an appointment or a series of appointments, visit the Reading and Writing Center in CLV 128 or call 278-6356. We also offer real-time online tutoring and small-group tutoring. For current Reading and Writing Center hours and more information, visit the website at www.csus.edu/writingcenter.

Note: Except for excused absences (see above), late papers are marked down half a letter grade for each class day they are late.

Paper proposal and research bibliography: Due September 23 Proposal: A one-page (250-word) thesis statement. For definitions of these terms, see Sylvan

Barnet and website tutorial: http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/thesis_statement.shtml. I highly recommend that you see me during my office hours for help choosing a topic and

formulating a question and hypothesis. You can also email me your research question and thesis statement up to one week before the due date if you want my help. Research bibliography: This is a complete list in correct Chicago style format for every

source of information available on your topic. The bibliography is the starting point of your research and tells you whether or not your thesis about the topic has already been published. It should be at least 4 pages and include everything published on your subject in books, articles, films, documentaries, and the web. Primary sources – interviews and unpublished archival research – are cited too. Look in books, catalogues, art encyclopedias, and articles for the citations of their sources and copy them into your research bibliography. You will not use most of the resources you find. The “research” bibliography is a “complete” not a “selected” bibliography. See Sylvan Barnet. Refer to CSUS library art history research resources: http://csus.libguides.com/arthistory Use full-text peer-reviewed articles only. (definition:

http://www.lib.utexas.edu/lsl/help/modules/peer.html Use WorldCat (OCLC) for resources in libraries worldwide that can be ordered through

Interlibrary Loan. Allow a minimum of two weeks. Recommended databases: Art Full Text, JSTOR, Project Muse, Academic Search

Premiere, Oxford Art Online Consult the bound Art Index (Library 2nd floor reference area) for magazine articles as far

back as a century ago.

First and Second (final) draft have exactly the same requirements: First draft due October 28 Peer Review: Follow directions in Sylvan Barnet. The Barnet peer review worksheet is available

on my homepage, left hand side: due November 23 Second (final) draft due December 2

A 10-page (2500 word, 12 font, double spaced) research paper, including footnotes, “Works Cited” bibliography, and a cover page with your name, title of paper, course name, and date

Reproductions of all artworks referred to in your paper with figure citations. Staple in upper left corner (*Please do not use plastic sleeves. I’ll want to make notes on the

pages.)

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Submit the final second draft in a sturdy, new, flat, 2-pocket file. Include all the work you’ve done: the original (marked) proposal, the research bibliography, and first draft. Submit all parts together. Your grade will be based on overall quality, effort, and presentation from start to finish.

Grading rubric: o Strength and clarity of thesis: 10 points o Logic of argument development (composition): 2 5 points o Strength of visual evidence: 15 pointso How clearly and concisely the conclusion sums up the argument and evaluates the thesis: 5

pointso Quality of scholarly sources: 1 0 points o Accuracy of citation usage and format (footnote and bibliography): 10 pointso Quality of writing (grammar, syntax, punctuation, spelling, etc.) and overall presentation = 2 5

pointso 100 total points: 100-90=A, 89-80=B, 79-70=C, 69-60=D.

NOTE: This class adheres to CSUS policy on plagiarism. Please review the policy: http://library.csus.edu/content2.asp?pageID=353 Cite quotations and all information that is not general knowledge. Web sources must have full bibliographical information or they cannot be used in your paper. Wikipedia is excellent for figuring out your thesis and for preliminary searches, but it cannot be cited as a source for research papers because the authors are anonymous.

Extra credit is earned by doing things you choose to do that educate you in Latin American & Latina/o. Some opportunities are listed on the syllabus schedule. There are many other events and independent projects that would qualify, but ask me first. Note: extra credit points are separate from course requirements. I record extra credit points next to your name in the grade book. They raise the participation grade and can be used to make up an absence. Depending on how much extra credit you’ve earned, they can mean getting the higher rather than lower letter grade when you are between, for example, B+ and A-.

Schedule of assignments (subject to change)

Week 1 / January 30: Introductory / Video “When Worlds Collide”Assignment: get the syllabus from the course website and learn the course requirements for the syllabus quiz on February 6. Readings (available from course webpage “Readings”): Jack D. Forbes, “The Use of Racial and Ethnic Terms in America: Management by Manipulation”; Ella Shohat & Robert Stam, “Unthinking Eurocentrism.” Bring hard copies of the readings and your response papers to class

Week 2 / February 6: Syllabus quiz / Ancient/Pre-Columbian Art: Hispaniola: Taino (tī'nō); Andean (Peru) civilizations: Moche and Inca / Video: “Inca: Secrets of the Ancestors”

Assignment: Study the map at the end of this syllabus. Be able to fill in names of all the countries on a blank map for the quiz February 20. For map game/study: http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/South_America_Geography.htm Reading (on course webpage): 1.Carolyn Dean, “The Inka Married the Earth: Integrated Outcrops and the Making of Place,” Art Bulletin, 2007. 2. Christopher Donnan, “Moche Portraits: Masterpieces from Ancient Peru.” Bring hard copies of the readings and your response papers.MILLER: read but do not write a response paper for chapters 1 and 2 (Olmec), Chapter 4 (Teotihuacán) You will be tested on the material in Miller.

Week 3 / February 13: NO CLASS / O’Brien at conference

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Makeup assignment due February 20: Makeup class assignment: Video log. For the two videos below, which you can stream from your home computer, take notes (write down all the facts) as you watch. Write a summary of the argument and 3 key points from the beginning middle and end of the video. Each entry including notes and response paper should be two pages (c. 400 words)

1) Teotihuacan: The City of the Gods. Films Media Group, 2001. Films On Demand. Web. 04 January 2013. http://digital.films.com.proxy.lib.csus.edu/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=21093&xtid=32749

2) To Death and Back. Films Media Group, 2005. Films On Demand. Web. 04 January 2013. < http://digital.films.com.proxy.lib.csus.edu/PortalPlaylists.aspx?aid=21093&xtid=40678 > NOTE: Although the first 20 minutes of this video are an interesting essay on the universal fascination with death images, you can begin watching at 20 minutes in. In less than a minute it will present material on the Moche of Peru and the Aztec and Maya of Mesoamerica.

Reading Assignment: Miller, Chapter 6-7 (Maya); Chapter 8 (Toltec); and Chapter 9 (Aztec) No response paper; you will be quizzed on the information in Miller.

Week 4 / February 20: Map quiz / Advanced civilizations in MesoamericaResearch paper proposal and bibliography due

Readings (on course webpage): 1) Frances F. Berdan and Patricia Rieff Anawait’s The Essential Codex Mendoza: the “Introduction” and “The Founding of Tenochtitlán,” 2) Urs Bitterli, “Cultural Collisions: Spaniards on Hispaniola,” Bartoleme de Las Casas, “Brief Account of the Devastation of the Indies (1542),”Christopher Columbus, Journal” (1492) (website) Bring hard copies of the readings and your response papers

Week 5 / February 27: Quiz on Pre-Conquest art / The Encounter / The Conquest of Peru Readings: Ades Introduction and pp. 6-61. No reading response; you will be tested on the material in Ades. 2) (webpage) Gauvin Bailey, “Eyeing the Other: The Indigenous Response,”3) (webpage) Jeanette Peterson, “The Virgin of Guadalupe: Symbol of Conquest or Liberation?” Bring hard copies of the readings and your response papers.

Week 6 / March 6: Colonial periodReadings Ades 63-123 (no response paper) 2) (website): Jose Marti, Our America 1891; 3) (webpage) Stacie G. Widdifield, “Dispossession, Assimilation, and the Image of the Indian in Late-Nineteenth-Century Mexican Painting”; 4) (webpage) Natalia Majluf, “’Ce n’est pas le Perou,’ or the failure of authenticity: Marginal cosmopolitans at the Paris Universal exhibition of 1855.” Bring hard copies of the readings and your response papers.

Ades 125-149; Reading: Oswald de Andrade, "Manifesto Antropofago" 1928 (Cannibalist Manifesto) and translator’s introduction (website) Bring a hard copy of the readings and your response paper

March 6: Quiz / No assignment

Ades 150-179 “Mexican Mural Movement” Reading: Siqueiros, “Three Appeals for a Modern Direction to the New Generation of American Painters and Sculptors” (Ades, 322-323)

March 13: Modernism Assignment: Ades 180-193

video: “The Frescos of Diego Rivera” (video 1307)Assignment: Ades 195-213

March 206

First draft of Research Paper dueAssignment: Ades 215-239

March 27: NO CLASS – Sping break No assignment

April 3: Reading: Ades 240-283, and manifestos, “Arturo,” “The Problem of the Frame in Contemporary Art.” No response paper

Reading: Guy Brett “Lygia Clark: In Search of the Body” (website) Bring a hard copy of the reading and your response paper

April 10: Xico Gonzalez: Guest lecture

Reading: Mari Carmen Ramirez, “Blueprint Circuits: Conceptual Art and Politics in Latin America” (R) Bring a hard copy of the reading and your response paper

Peer review due Quiz

Reading: Alicia Gaspar de Alba, “There’s No Place like Aztlan: Embodied Aesthetics in Chicana Art” (website) Bring a hard copy of the readings and your response paper

Saturday, April 13: Required attendance: Festival of the Arts Art History lecture by Dr. Ella Diaz on the Royal Chicano Air Force and University Art Collection Management Panel with Catherine Sullivan, CSU Chico; Robin Bernhard, UC Davis; Irene Lugo, Sac City; and Rachel Teagel, UC Davis. This is a class makeup assignment. See

April 17: April 24: Final draft of research paper due

April 25: Required lecture: Dr. Staci Sheiwiller, Modern Photography in Iran, Mariposa 1000

May 1

May 8

May 15 Class discussion of “What is Latin American and Latina/o art?” Bring a synopsis/abstract of your term paper argument and all of your reading response papers to class as the basis of the culminating discussion.

No final exam

List of artists for research papers:Use the internet to check out the artists below until you find one that interests you. You may choose an artist not on the list, but you must get my approval before writing your proposal.NOTE: Each student must write on a different artist.NOTE: The thesis question is the same for everyone in the class. The question is, In what way(s) is the oeuvre (entire body of work) by the artist you have selected “Latin American” or “Latina/o”? Does the artist identify him- or herself with a nation like Mexico or Brazil, for example? After you have done some preliminary research, propose an answer to that question and write it up as your thesis statement. (See syllabus page 5 for more information on writing the thesis statement and proposal.) The research you do

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for the paper is directed at finding out if your answer is correct. If your research shows that it is not correct, you can change your thesis for the paper itself.

ArgentinaLucio FontanaXul SolarGuillermo KuitcaBrazilLygia ClarkAdriana VarejãoTarsila do AmaralAnita MalfattiVik MunizHelio OiticicaCildo MeirelesChileAlfredo JaarRoberto MattaEugenio DittbornColombiaFernando BoteroDoris SalcedoBeatriz González CubaWifredo LamManuel MendiveJose BediaLatina/oCoco FuscoJudy BacaCelia Alvarez

Yolando LopezAna MendietaRoyal Chicano Air Force artists Guillermo Gómez-PeñaPepón OsorioMexicoRufino TamayoJuan O’GormanGerardo Murillo (Dr. Alt)Nahum ZenilLuis Barragon (architect)Gabriel OrozcoJose Luis CuevasRemedios VaraLeonora CarringtonMaria Isquierdo

PeruJosé SabogalFrancisco LasoUruguayLuis CamnitzerJoaquín Torres GarcíaVenezuelaJesús Rafael SotoArmand ReveronMarisol EscobarArthuro Herera Gego (Gertrude Goldschmidt)

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