TAD3301

Making art and design: cultural contexts 3A

6 points - Two hours lectures and one tutorial per week - First semester - Caulfield and distance - Prerequisites: Two second-year level TAD subjects - Prohibited combinations:TAD2301, TAD2311, TAD3311 - Elective

Objectives On successful completion of this subject, students should possess knowledge and critical understanding of the broad range of visual art practices of the Asia-Pacific region and be able to assess its reception in western histories and art publications; understand the relationship between craft, art and design and the culture in which these are created, especially in cultures of the Asia/Pacific region where western dialectic assumptions may not apply; be able to examine critically the significance and values of a variety of art practices which do not proceed from a mainstream western perspective and develop critical intuitions concerning their 'incommensurability' with Euro-American cultures.

Synopsis This subject looks at the craft, art and design of our region, including Australia, New Zealand and Asia, in the context of various colonial histories. The ways in which visual art practices interconnect with, reflect, influence or shape cultural identities are of central interest as is the impact of gender and racial issues on the art and craft practices of the indigenous and settler cultures. Techniques, styles, and contexts of conception and making within Aboriginal, Maori, Polynesian, and various Asian populations are considered. Weaving, textiles, carving, ceramics and decorative arts are examined along with other forms of art and design, in both historical and contemporary contexts. A significant area of study is the shift from 'ethnographic artefact' to 'art object'. The ethical and social issues of the inclusion of indigenous art forms and motifs in the art and design of non-indigenous artists are also explored.

Assessment Tutorial paper: 30% - Gallery report: 30% - Essay: 40%

Recommended texts

Clifford J 'Travelling cultures' in L Grossberg, C Nelson and P A Treichler (eds) Cultural studies Routledge, 1992
Pound F The space between: Pakeha use of Maori motifs in modernist New Zealand art
Willis A M Illusions of identity: The art of nation Hale and Ironmonger, 1993

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