CRARTS 1001 - What Is This Thing Called Art?

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2019

Can a toilet be considered a work of art? Who decides what art is? According to many scholars, when Marcel Duchamp exhibited a urinal he purchased from a plumbing warehouse under the title 'Fountain' in a New York art exhibition in 1917, he created one of the most iconic works of art of the twentieth century. Duchamp's action challenged received notions of art, such that now, according to Theodor Adorno, it is 'taken for granted that nothing which concerns art can be taken for granted any more: neither art itself, nor art in relationship to the whole, not even the right of art to exist'. In this course we will examine art as just such a contested category, and consider some of the ways in which the arts have been understood across human history. The course encompasses all forms of art, from the literary and visual to the performing and decorative, and will be organised thematically around a series of questions and topics. We will discuss some definitions of art and we will examine the relationship of art to ideology, the economy and the state, to gender and social class, and we will discuss some of the debates about the social functions of art and the notion of taste. Above all, the course will encourage students to think critically about the very notion of art and to begin to question their own practice as makers of art in contemporary culture.

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Course Details

Course Code	CRARTS 1001
Course	What Is This Thing Called Art?
Coordinating Unit	English, Creative Writing, and Film
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Up to 3 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Restrictions	Available to BCtveArts students only
Assessment	Participation 10%, Textual analysis 20%, Annotated bibliography 30%, Research essay on an Artwork 40%

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Dr Maggie Tonkin

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

Discuss some of the different ways that the arts have been understood across human cultures.
Demonstrate understanding and be able to discuss some of the debates about how art has been defined and categorized, and about the relationship of art to power, ideology, the economy, race, gender and social class.
Locate and access primary and secondary sources relevant to the course.
Read and interpret criticism and apply it within academic arguments.
Write logical and coherent arguments based on evidence, and engage in critical debate.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1,2,3,4,5
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	1,2,4,5
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	1,5
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	2,5
Intercultural and ethical competency adept at operating in other cultures comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges	1,2,3
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	1,2

Learning Resources

Required Resources

Learning materials will be provided online via MyUni.

Online Learning

All lectures will be recorded and available via MyUni. Assessement details, announcements and email communications will all be available through MyUni.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

Weekly lectures will introduce the topic and outline related key concepts and debates. In seminars we will explore the lecture material, as well as the issues raised in the reading material for the week. In both small and large groups, students will discuss ideas about art and their implications in relation to specific artworks. Time in seminars will also be devoted to skill building: critical reading, textual analysis, locating and interpreting appropriate scholarly secondary sources, referencing and writing university essays.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

1 x 1 hour lecture per week                                                               12 hours per semester
1 x 2 hour seminar per week (or equivalent)                                      24 hours per semester
6 hours reading per week                                                                 72 hours per semester
2 hours research per week                                                                24 hours per semester
2 hours assignment preparation per week                                           24 hours per semester
TOTAL WORKLOAD                                                                           156 HOURS PER SEMESTER

Learning Activities Summary

Week 1: Introduction: What does art do?
Week 2: The role of the arts in Aboriginal culture, both traditional and contemporary
Week 3: The arts in the ancient world
Week 4: The economics of art: models of patronage, state support and independence
Week 5: Art, ideology and power: propaganda and censorship, the artist and the state
Week 6: Art and ideas of cultural value and taste: high and low art, the avant-garde, the original and the copy
Week 7: Who can be an artist? theories of authorship, genius and originality
Week 8: Art, gender and sexuality
Week 9: The two cultures: art and science
Week 10: art, craft and the community arts movement
Week 11: Art and disability
Week 12: The arts in contemporary culture: festivals, bienniales, retrospectives, blockbusters, etc.

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

Assessemnt Task Task Type Course Learning Outcomes

Participation in seminars 10% Formative 1,2,4

Textual Analysis 20% Formative and Summative 1,2,3,4

Annotated Bibliography 30% Formative and Summative 1,2,3,4

Research Essay 40% Summative 1,2,3,4,5

Assessment Related Requirements

Students are expected to attend lectures and seminars having read the set reading material. Attendance at seminars is compulsory. All assessment tasks must be attempted in order to pass this course.

Assessment Detail

Assessment Task	Description	Weighting
Seminar participation	Active participation in class activities, including selection of a passage and questions for group discussion	10%
Textual analysis	Students will analyse a scholarly article (1000 words)	20%
Annotated bibliography	Students will identify appropriate scholarly sources for their essay and summarize their arguments (1500 words)	30%
Research essay	Students will write a research essay on a topic related to the course (2000 words)	40%

Submission

All written work will be submitted via Turnitin on MyUni.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

The University of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The University of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator