237331

Critical Understandings of Contemporary Art

Course
This course examines and appraises ideas that contribute to a critical understanding of contemporary art. Students will evaluate a range of content in relation to their own creative practice as well as the wider contemporary art world. The relation between artists and their processes and approaches will be explored through topics such as race, gender, intersectionality, decolonisation, popular culture, politics, social justice, and others.
Course code

Qualifications are made up of courses. Some universities call these papers. Each course is numbered using 6 digits.

237331
Level

The fourth number of the course code shows the level of the course. For example, in course 219206, the fourth number is a 2, so it is a 200-level course (usually studied in the second year of full-time study).

300-level
Credits

Each course is worth a number of credits. You combine courses (credits) to meet the total number of credits needed for your qualification.

15
Subject
Visual and Material Culture

Course planning information

Course notes

Students must submit all assessments and achieve an overall minimum C- grade.

Prerequisite courses

Complete first
15 credits from 237231, 289200, 150206, 133257, 197239, 237230

You need to complete the above course or courses before moving onto this one.

General progression requirements

You must complete at least 45 credits from 200-level before enrolling in 300-level courses.

Learning outcomes

What you will learn. Knowledge, skills and attitudes you’ll be able to show as a result of successfully finishing this course.

  • 1 Retrieve relevant information, evaluate a range of appropriate sources, and use academic referencing conventions in carrying out research relevant to their own practice. (Graduate profile: Understanding and Mātauranga A4, E4)
  • 2 Demonstrate understanding of a range of texts and perspectives to locate their practice in the context of contemporary art. (Graduate profile: Understanding and Mātauranga A2)
  • 3 Critically locate and evaluate a range of cultural, philosophical and aesthetic perspectives relevant to contemporary art and their own practice. (Graduate profile: Understanding and Mātauranga A2, C2)
  • 4 Organise and articulate ideas and information in order to formulate arguments and express them effectively in written and oral forms. (Graduate profile: Connectedness and Whanaungatanga E1)
  • 5 Actively and thoughtfully engage in critical discussion in relation to course content and their own art interests (Graduate profile: Understanding and Mātauranaga C2)

Learning outcomes can change before the start of the semester you are studying the course in.

Textbooks needed

There are no set texts for this course.