Compulsory attendance
Yes.
Admission requirements
BA-degree obtained.
Description
In this course, students explore a range of different approaches and issues in cultural politics and cultural theory as relevant to modern museum practices. Issues discussed will include post-colonial and post-structural responses to the museum as an institution; the artistic practice of institutional critique and its (paradoxical) absorption into museum practice; and the deployment of ritual and performance theories to analyse how museums function.
We will read authors such as Walter Benjamin, Michel Foucault, James Clifford, Tony Bennett, and Anthony Shelton, among others. The theoretical part of the course will be supported by discussions of case studies from South- and Meso-America, Indonesia and the Netherlands.
Course objectives
Thorough knowledge of relevant theoretical approaches;
Ability to critically analyse texts about the cultural field;
Ability to apply cultural theories to museums and collections.
Ects distribution
The course load will be distributed as follows:
Lectures (2 ects);
Literature (3 ects).
Timetable
Course schedule details can be found in the MA time schedule.
Mode of instruction
Lectures;
Tutorials.
Assessment method
Written exam;
Participation.
Assessment deadline
Exam dates can be found in the examination schedule.
Reading list
T. Bennett, The Birth of Museums. (1995);
Articles, to be determined.
Registration
Register for this course via uSis.
Instructions for registration can be found in the uSis manual.
Exchange and Study Abroad students: please see the Prospective Students website for information on how to apply.
Contractonderwijs: all information (costs, registration, entry requirements etc.) for those who are interested in taking this course as a Contractstudent is on the Contractonderwijs Archeologie webpage (in Dutch).
Contact information
For more information about this course, please contact mw dr L.N.K. van Broekhoven or prof. dr P. ter Keurs.