Why Is This Art? Understanding Contemporary Art and Value
LYOSA10 (Available for all periods: 14:30-15:30)
| 1st Term | Ayşegül Yapar |
| 2nd Term | Ayşegül Yapar |
| 3rd Term | Ayşegül Yapar |
This course introduces students to major developments in 20th and 21st century contemporary art through the lens of controversial works. The course examines how artistic value is produced at the intersection of ideas, institutions, art market, and public. Case studies that will take in the class are Dada and the readymade, Minimalism, performance and body art, appropriation practices, and recent debates around AI-generated images and authorship.
By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to describe key features of major movements such as Dada, Minimalism, Performance Art and Appropriation Art; explain how institutional context, curatorial framing and the art market contribute to the recognition and valuation of artworks; analyse selected works using formal, contextual and conceptual criteria; discuss recent controversies (e.g. AI art, copying/appropriation, shock and censorship) with reference to historical precedents.
