You will identify the key characteristics of 19th and early 20th-century art in Mexico and South America. You will explain the influences on that art and the ways in which the art responded to its current historical conditions.
Instructions
- Choose one of the works of art/photography presented in this week's assigned readings or further readings.
- Compose an original discussion post. In your post, you will
o Name the artist, the work of art and give its date AND
o Explain the ways in which the work of art responded to its current historical conditions to communicate a political message.
o Important: Descriptions show a close understanding of the course readings and a close viewing of the chosen work to receive full credit. If you conduct any research based in readings not assigned or offered as further reading in this unit, you must cite your sources to receive credit for your work.
Readings
The objective of presenting these three periods in Mexican history in the same lesson is so that you can identify and analyze the political role of art in three vastly different political situations. As you study the articles and works of art in this lesson, ask yourself the following questions:
• what was the political situation (in 1810, in 1821, in the late nineteenth century and the early part of the twentieth, or between 1910-1920)?
• how did artists use their art to respond to this political situation?
Let's start in 1810 - the moment in which Father Hidalgo called for an end to rule by the Spanish and an end to slavery in Mexico.
Read this article on Mexican Independence (Links to an external site.). As you read, think about the following questions:
• What conflicts and event surrounded the Mexican struggle for independence?
• Who were important leaders in the fight for independence?
• What role did art play in relation to this historical event and the portrayal of its key figures? How did art help create an identity for the new nation of Mexico?
See below an important work of art from this period, the painting by the anonymous painter, Allegory of Independence, 1834 (Museo Histórico Curato de Dolores, Guanajato, INAH). The painting shows a female allegorical figure representing independence with Father Hidalgo to the left and General Iturbide to the right. According to Dr. Maya Jiménez, "such paintings energized the struggles for Latin American independence and aided in the creation of national unity" (See Mexican Independence (Links to an external site.)). Which symbols spoke to Mexicans of Amerindian descent? Of Spanish descent? After studying the other works of art in this article, click now on the tab "The Porfiriato" above to move on to the next part of the lesson.
Exercise #2
- Choose two works of art that you think you will compare in your paper.
Compose an original discussion. In your post, you will
• Name the two artists, the two works of art and give the two dates of your chosen works AND
• Explain why you think these two works of art will make an excellent pair to research in your midterm paper. Tip: refer to the midterm paper assignment instructions linked above.
• Important: Explanations show a close understanding of the course readings and a close viewing of the chosen work to receive full credit. If you conduct any research based in readings not assigned or offered as further reading in this unit, you must cite your sources to receive credit for your work.
Use one of the following prompts to guide your comparison. Note that all prompts suggest you choose two works of art, but you are allowed to also write on a third work if it is relevant and you stay within the 3-page limit with your paper and bibliography: - Choose two works of art from Latin American history. Explain how the artists use different elements and principles of design to communicate an ideal of beauty. How does this ideal reflect the values of the cultures for which the work of art was made?
- Examine two works of art from the same culture or period. Citing formal details in both, explain how this artist uses different elements and principles of design in a distinctive way to reflect a historical style.
- Choose two works of art or architecture. What do they communicate about identity? Explain how the artists use different elements and principles of design to communicate this message. How do the works reflect the values of the individuals or cultures for which they were made?
- Choose two works of art or architecture that you consider political. Explain how the artists' use the elements and principles of design to render their chosen subjects in a way that reflects political status or power.
- Choose two works of art that offer perspectives on important historical events. Explain how the artist uses the elements and principles of design to offer an interpretation of these historical moments. Do you find this work of art a reliable historical “record” or “source”? Why or why not?
- Choose two works of art or architecture that takes religion or spirituality as their theme or were created for a religious/spiritual context. How do the artists use the elements and principles of design to represent the ideas, stories, or symbols of religion?
- Choose two works of art. What do they communicate about gender or sexuality? Explain how the artists use different elements and principles of design to communicate these messages. How do the works reflect the values of the culture for which the work of art was made?
- Craft your own prompt. This prompt must be approved by the instructor at least a week prior to the outline deadline.
The comparison paper should contain
• an original and compelling thesis that tells your reader which works of art you are examining and what you aim to show in your comparison
• a comparison of your chosen works in terms of
o their formal characteristics (the use of the elements and principles of art),
o content/themes,
o and historical context
• in-text citations (especially in the analysis of historical context) that shows that you got your information from at least two reliable, scholarly sources
• a works cited list or bibliography at the end with at least 2 consistently formatted entries. All in-text citations should correspond to an entry in this work cited list/bibliography and vice-versa.
Reminder: Note that any sources you consult should be cited using a consistent style with in-text citations/footnotes and a bibliography. Use the CCSF library guide to citing sources (Links to an external site.) to help you. Although I recommend using Chicago or MLA style, can choose any style you wish, so long as it is consistent.
Exercise #3
Interpreting Writings about Modern Art in Latin America
In this discussion, you will collaborate with your peers to analyze texts by and about Latin American artists working in the early part of the 20th century.
Choose one of the following assignments:
- Choose and interpret one quote from one of this week's assigned readings. For your discussion post do all of the following,
o Copy the quote from the reading into the discussion forum
o Cite the quote by noting the name of the author of the quote, the name of the assigned reading in which you found it, and the date when the quote was originally published.
o Explain why you think the quote is meaningful and helpful for our understanding of how artists viewed their own art. What statement does it make about the role of the artist in society or the purpose art served?
o OR - Seeing connections to other fields: In 3-5 sentences explain how the topics we studied this week connect to topics studied in another course you are taking or have taken. How does the history of art help us better understand topics in anthropology? Ethnic Studies? Gender studies? Latin American and Latinx Studies? the history of music or literature?
Reading:
Open the Google slides presentation (Links to an external site.) for this lesson https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Iw95T5WppUidLsMKh2X_Oyh2-n5R8Bfg1ddB_hcQrb0/edit#slide=id.g51bfbe4555_0_23
Reading
Read the all of the following three short articles on or by Latin American artists and writers who stressed their own cultural influences and themes. Each article should take about 15-20 minutes to read. This may sound like a lot, but trust me, it's worth it. In these articles you will hear the voices of Latin American artists and writers speaking about their art in their own words! Pay close attention to how they define themselves and their work. How does a closer understanding of these artists' points of view help us as art historians move away from a Eurocentric perspective of art history?
Connections to Gender Studies and Latin American Literature and Music
How does the history of art help us better understand topics in other fields? How might the history of Latin American art enrich our study of anthropology? Ethnic Studies? Gender studies? Latin American and Latinx Studies? The history of music or literature?
The following articles show how the histories of modern painting, sculpture, and architecture in Latin America overlap with the histories of modernist literature (in Cuba and Brazil), modern music (in Cuba), as well as with greater concerns about the place of Europe in Latin American art history (see the Pettoruti article). In the optional article, the author looks from the view of today at the history of women artists in Argentina. Her article shows how the perspectives of Gender Studies can overlap with the study of art.
As you read, think about how these creative ideas shared in the articles about art help us better see the historical and disciplinary connections with other areas of study that we as students still pursue today.
Tips for critical reading
• You can print out the articles and take notes in the margins of your paper.
• Underline sentences that you think offer an important thesis or express extra clearly what the writer is trying to say.
• Try to highlight and define keywords in each paragraph. If there is a word you don't understand, look it up in an online dictionary (Links to an external site.).
• After you read each article, try to summarize in a sentence or two what you think it is about.
The articles
• Modernism in Cuba: "Manifesto of the Grupo Minorista: Havana 7 May 1927." (Links to an external site.) In Readings in Latin American Modern Art, ed. Patrick Frank. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2014. Essay originally published 1927, then translated in 1989. Note that this link will require your CCSF library login. You may have to clear your browser's cookies to read the article (how do I clear cookies (Links to an external site.)?). When you log in, you may need to click "PDF full text" on the left side of your screen to read the article.
• Modernism in Brazil: De Andrade, Oswald, "Anthropophagite Manifesto." (Links to an external site.) In Readings in Latin American Modern Art, ed. Patrick Frank. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2014. Manifesto originally published in 1928. Manifesto originally published Note that this link will require your CCSF library login. You may have to clear your browser's cookies to read the article (how do I clear cookies (Links to an external site.)?). When you log in, you may need to click "PDF full text" on the left side of your screen to read the article.
o This article can be read alongside the art of Tarsila do Amaral
• Modernism in Argentina: Pettoruti, Emilio. "The Situation of the Modern Artist." (Links to an external site.) In Readings in Latin American Modern Art, ed. Patrick Frank. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2014. Essay originally published in 1968. Note that this link will require your CCSF library login. You may have to clear your browser's cookies to read the article (how do I clear cookies (Links to an external site.)?). When you log in, you may need to click "PDF full text" on the left side of your screen to read the articles.
o This article can be read alongside the art of Emilio Pettoruti.
As you read these articles, think about the following questions:
• How did each artist understand their own identity?
• How did each artist describe their role or the role of art?
• How did each artist respond to European influences?
• Do these artists aim to define Latin American art? If so, how?
• Which paintings and sculptures from the previous lessons connect with each of the articles listed here?
Optional, Ungraded Further Reading (this article won't be on any exams, but you can still write about it in the discussions)
Where is the voice of women artists in all this talk about modern Latin American art? Read this current article from Art Bulletin to find out more about women artists in Argentina at the turn of the 20th century - so, quite a bit before the essays cited above were written. Access to the article will require a CCSF library login.
• Gluzman, Georgina G. “Argentine Women Artists at the Turn of the Twentieth Century: Their Careers and Critical Fortunes. (Links to an external site.)” Art Journal 78, no. 3 (Fall 2019): 10–28.
Grading
Aim for excellence! These are the criteria for what comprises an "Excellent" rating for a discussion post:
• Addresses each part of the discussion prompt(s).
• Postings demonstrate reflective and critical thinking, not just recitation of information from textbook.
• Makes connections to previous or current course content, or to real-life situations.
• Contains insightful and thoughtful ideas, connections, or applications.
• Makes reference to textbook or other sources when required.
• Well-written and free of spelling and grammatical errors.
• Includes well-written, thoughtful response(s) to classmates.
Exercise #4
Analyzing Influences on Modern Art in Latin America
In this discussion, you will collaborate with your peers to analyze the influences on Latin American artists working in the early part of the 20th century.
Instructions
- Compose an original response: Choose and interpret the work of one artist from this week's assigned readings. For your discussion post,
o Give the name of the artist
o Explain how the artist used ideas from Europe and/or the indigenous cultures of Latin America in their work.
o Name one work where these influences are evident
Reading:
Open the Google slides presentation (Links to an external site.) for this lesson https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1Iw95T5WppUidLsMKh2X_Oyh2-n5R8Bfg1ddB_hcQrb0/edit#slide=id.g51bfbe4555_0_23
Sample Solution