van Gogh: Creativity, Mythology, and Modern Art

3 units

Among the most famous artists of the canon of European modern art is Vincent van Gogh, known for his expressive paintings, his famous letters that chart his tumultuous career, and a short creative life marked by intense work, passionate interests in the modern art and literature of his time, and the challenges of a mental illness. This seminar will examine his art and literature in three sections: the first devoted to studying the art itself throughout his short career; the second devoted to the mythologies surrounding his art and its relationship to such notions as genius and madness; and the third looking at how his art has become a popular commodity, reproduced internationally by methods varying from precise painted replicas to commercially popular goods marked with his most famous paintings. The history and theory of modern commodity culture on a global scale and its intersection with a burgeoning art market for postimpressionist art will be explored in this final section. Prerequisites: L01 113 or L01 215 and one advanced course in art history, or permission of the instructor