History of Modernity Course London

The History of Modernity: From Bars to Stars and Stripes

Date/time:
31 May 2011 - 28 June 2011
Tuesdays 10.45am - 12.45pm
Venue:
1 Berkeley Street, London W1J 8DJ
Lecturer:
Stephen Nelson
Fees:
Full course (5 lectures) £150.00
Single lecture £35.00

With everyday subject matters, innovative painterly styles, and a new approach to spatial relationships, the 1860s heralded the beginnings of modernity and a new role for the modern artist.

In this provocative and illuminating series of lectures we'll deconstruct the work of 19th century artists such as Courbet and Manet - considered to be the first modernist painter - through to the works of Rothko and De Kooning in 1950s America.

click images to zoom in

Course outline

31 May 2011 Idea and revolution from Courbet's studio to Manet's Folies Bergere

The origins of modernism: Looking at the ideas and politics that led to the birth of modern art. Why was Paris the epicentre of the modern world and what circumstances led to the revolution of the nice?

07 June 2011 Post impressionism and the rise of the brave new world

The artist as the visionary romantic hero; the journey from Aix en Provence to Polynesia; and Paul Cezanne's role as the father of modern art and the reconstruction of the picture plane.

14 June 2011 Climbing the mountain: The invention of Cubism

How Picasso and Braque brought the real world to the picture surface; Analytical and Synthetic Cubism and how it led to the birth of Abstraction; Conceptual art, its ideas and how Marcel Duchamp created work that still defines contemporary art.