COURSE INFORMATION

 

course description | grade distribution | required texts | course policies

Class Time:

W 4:00 - 6:30 pm (Section 1)� | W 12 – 2:30 pm (Section 2)

Room:

Duncker 101 (Section 1) | Lopata House 23 (Section 2)

Instructor:

Lutz Koepnick

Email:

koepnick@wustl.edu

Telephone:

935-4350

Office:

Ridgley 319

Office Hours:

Tue 1-3 and by appointment

Co-Instructor

Nick Tamarkin

Email:

tamarkin@wustl.edu

Office:

Holmes Lounge

Office Hours:

Fr 1-3

Class Blog:

http://www.unframedblog.wordpress.com/

Scrrenings:

Busch 100, Mondays 7:30 pm (not every week)

 

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION

 


Whether moving or still, mediated images today inhabit and engage with our surrounding spaces in an unprecedented manner. Screens are now ubiquitous in our urban environments, we watch films and images on tiny monitors while being on the move, 3D movies extend cinematic representation into the space of the auditorium, video installations restructure the experience of traditional gallery settings, and digital media of all sorts allow us to expand museums and cinemas way beyond their physical locations. This seminar is meant to develop a viable framework to account for the explosion of mediated images into space and think through its effects on various artistic media and practices. We will read a number of seminal texts about the spatialization of the visual in twentieth- and twenty-first century cultures written by media theorists, cultural historians, philosophers, film scholars, architects, and art critics. As importantly, we will also examine the work of contemporary writers, filmmakers, sound artists, photographers, and video artists eager to probe the omnipresence of different media in contemporary space and to develop new aesthetic possibilities. All readings in English. Open to graduate and advanced undergraduate students.

 

GRADE DISTRIBUTION

 

·      2 projects / essays (6-8 pages): 50%. Due on 3/6/12 and 4/30/12

·      Active participation in class blog: 20%

·      Attendance and participation: 30%

 

REQUIRED TEXTS

 


Materials marked "ARES" in the course schedule are available from the Electronic Reserve System at Washington University. Login and password to be announced in class.

All other books are available for purchase at the Washington University Bookstore:

·      Giuliana Bruno, Public Intimacy: Architecture and the Visual Arts (ISBN-10: 0262524651)

·      Don DeLillo, Point Omega (ISBN-10: 1439169969)

·      Hal Foster, The Art-Architecture Complex (ISBN-10: 1844676897)

·      Anne Friedberg, The Virtual Window: From Alberti to Microsoft (ISBN-10: 0262512505)

·      Alexander Galloway, The Interface Effect (ISBN-10: 0745662536)

·      Alexander Galloway, Gaming: Essays on Algorithmic Culture (ISBN-10: 0816648514)

·      Kate Mondloch, Screens: Viewing Media Installation Art (ISBN-10: 0816665222)

·      Orhan Pamuk, The Museum of Innocence (ISBN-10: 0307386244)

·      A.L. Rees, Expanded Cinema: Art, Performance, Film (ISBN-10: 1854379747)

 

COURSE POLICIES

 


Class participation is an important aspect of this class, and excessive absences will therefore aversely affect the final grade

Course evaluations will be available at the end of the semester at: evals.wustl.edu

Policy on Pass/Fail Grading Option:
Students who take Comparative Literature courses under the Pass/Fail option must receive a grade of C- or better in order to qualify for the Pass on their final grade.

Grade Requirement for Major and Minor:
Only courses taken for a letter grade count toward the major and minor in Comparative Literature.

Academic Integrity: Students are bound by the University policy on academic integrity in all aspects of this course.  All references to ideas and texts other than the students' own must be so indicated through appropriate footnotes, whether the source is a book, an online site, the professor, etc.  All students are responsible for following the rules outlined in the document regarding the University academic integrity policy: http://www.wustl.edu/policies/undergraduate-academic-integrity.html

Special accommodations for students with disabilities. Students seeking disability-related accommodations and guidance from the University must contact the Center for Advanced Learning Disability Resources, Cornerstone (DR) upon enrollment or once diagnosed.  Unlike high school students, college and graduate students are expected to identify themselves and to make specific requests for accommodations by notifying DR. Eligibility for accommodations is determined on an individual basis. Requests must be supported by professional documentation and must be renewed each semester. DR will guide students (undergraduates, graduate students, and prospective students) through each step of this process. Instructors will maintain strict confidentiality regarding disability issues and related accommodations, and will refer students directly to http://disability.wustl.edu/.