History and Theory of Museums

(4 Credits)

Introduction to the social, cultural, and political history of museums. This course focuses on the formation of the modern museum with an emphasis on the U.S. context. Museums of natural history, anthropology, science, technology, history, and art are addressed from a variety of disciplinary approaches that explore the institution and its practices with respect to governance, colonialism, nationalism, class, gender, ethnicity, and community. Frequent visits to New York museums are required, along with weekly writing assignments, and a final paper.