Image of Woman (April 2017)
Image of Woman (April 2017)
Images of Woman: Evolution of the Female Form in Art
This image-based course traces the evolution of the female form from prehistory up to the Renaissance with a focus on how the representations of women emerge, develop, and transition from one era to the next.
Wednesdays, April 5 - 26 || 7:00 - 8:30 pm
Gallery 114 || 1100 NW Glisan St
$95 || Space is limited to 25 students
Taught by John Doyle
This image-based course traces the evolution of the female form from prehistory up to the Renaissance with a focus on how the representations of women emerge, develop, and transition from one era to the next. We also explore how female representation differs between cultural contexts. Our inquiry is not limited to concepts of beauty but extends to what insights these images lend us about women in society.
Week 1: Prehistory to the Ancient World. Two of the oldest, most famous and enigmatic representations of women are the Venus of Willendorf and the bust of the Egyptian Queen Nefertiti. What do they and other works of art tell us about the roles women played at the dawn of recorded history?
Week 2: Greece and Rome. Many of our conventional modern notions of feminine beauty can be traced back to Classical antiquity. How did they emerge and evolve? What remains and what has changed?
Week 3: Asia and Islam. We tend to see the evolution of the female form through exclusively "Western" eyes. What differences and similarities can be discerned in the art of Asian and North African cultures?
Week 4: The Middle Ages and Renaissance. The Medieval notion of chivalric love is credited with placing women on a pedestal. Could this construct be the foundation of our contemporary ideas on Feminism?
