Fall 2009 AMCV2650 Here's the tentative syllabus for "Introduction to Public Humanities" for Fall 2009. Any suggestions appreciated.
Syllabus AMCV2650 2009 Fall.doc
Spring 2008 AMCV2650
Here's some of the books I'm thinking about including in the syllabus for AMCV2650 this spring. If there's anything here you'd especially like to read, or not like to read, or already read in another class, please post a comment. And if there's anything that you don't see here that you think would be appropriate, add that, too.
Many of these books are in the (newly reorganized!!) JNBC library--take a look.
Here's the brief for the class from the syllabus last year:
This course addresses the theoretical bases of the public humanities, providing a background that will help students understand the choices made in interpreting and presenting history and culture. We will also apply this theory, working with cultural organizations to understand some of the practical considerations that shape the presentation of culture to the public. I hope that this course will serve as a useful first step in the creation of thoughtful practitioners.
Last year, the class had three sections: History and Memory, Culture and Community, and Interpretation and Representation. It also had a workshop section, at the end, for presentation of papers. I still like those categories--they seem pretty fundamental to the field--but I'm up for changes if there's a better idea.
Potential books (with my apologies for the bad formatting... wikis don't lend themselves to easy formatting)
Charlene Miers, Independence Hall In American Memory
A Golden Haze of Memory: The Making of Historic Charleston by Stephanie E. Yuhl
History on Trial: Culture Wars and the Teaching of the Past by Gary Nash, Charlotte Crabtree, and Ross Dunn
Michel-Rolph Trouillot, Silencing the Past: Power and the Production of History
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Roy Rosenzweig and David Thelen, The Presence of the Past: Popular Uses of History in American Life
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Ivan Karp, et al., Museums and Communities: The Politics of Public Culture
Robert Janes and Gerald Conaty, Looking Reality in the Eye: Museums and Social Responsibitility
Americans for the Arts, Civic Dialogue: Arts and Culture
Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblatt, Destination Culture
Andrea Witcomb, Re-imagining the Museum: Beyond the Mausoleum
Catherine M. Lewis, The Changing Face of Public History: The Chicago Historical Society and the Transformation of an American Museum
Stanford Levinson, Written in Stone
David Glassberg, Sense of History: The Place of the Past in American Life
Dolores Hayden, The Power of Place: Urban Landscapes as Public History
Tim Collins, “Interventions in the rust belt: the art and ecology of post-industrial public space,” Ecumene 2000 7 (4)
Scott Sandage, “A Marble House Divided: The Lincoln Memorial, the Civil Rights Movement, and Politics of Memory, 1939-1963,” JAH 80:1, June 1993)
The Ellis Island Snow Globe by Erica Rand
Towards a New Museum: Expanded Edition by Victoria Newhouse
New Museum Theory and Practice: An Introduction by Janet Marstine
Whose Muse?: Art Museums and the Public Trust by James Cuno
Museum Skepticism: A History of the Display of Art in Public Galleries by David Carrier
Stuffed Animals and Pickled Heads: The Culture and Evolution of Natural History Museums by Stephen T. Asma
On Longing: Narratives of the Miniature, the Gigantic, the Souvenir, the Collection by Susan Stewart
Inhaling the Spore: A Journey through the Museum of Jurassic Technology DVD
Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder, by Lawrence Weschler
John H. Falk and Beverly K. Sheppard in Thriving in the Knowledge Age: New Business Models for Museums and Other Cultural Institutions (AltaMira Press, 2006)
Public Historian eugenics issue
Posted at Oct 17/2007 06:46AM:
Rosie:
I'd like to read something about relational aesthetics - the contemporary art movement that prioritizes experience over object. It is a pretty big issue in art museums and because of the art content, may be of interest to other people as well. From Wikipedia:
"In relational art, the audience is envisaged as a community. Rather than the artwork being an encounter between a viewer and an object, relational art produces intersubjective encounters. Through these encounters, meaning is elaborated collectively, rather than in the space of individual consumption."
Clarie Bishop is particularly astute on the issue, and her article Antagonism and Relational Aesthetics caused quite a stir. The term was coined by Nicholas Bourriaud, but I haven't read his book, so I can't comment.
Perhaps this fits into the "Culture and Community" or "Interpretation and Representation" section? Hmmm. Maybe it does not fit. It is such an issue in art museums now, however, that I thought I would mention it. I can always do the reading on my own!
Posted at Oct 29/2007 09:16AM:
Sarah Seidman: 2 quick comments: I really liked Trouillot's book as the jumping off point for the class last year. I didn't find the Americans for the Arts book on Civil Dialogue that useful -- maybe only include a portion of it on OCRA?
Posted at Oct 29/2007 07:34PM:
Ann Johnson: I read the Charlene Miers book this summer and thought it was great--definitely worth reading for AMCV2650.
Posted at Nov 01/2007 11:41AM:
Amanda Murray: I recommend Imagining the Past: East Hampton Histories. Also, this semester Gayle requires Thriving in the Knowledge Age for her class, so it will be redundant for a lot of students. Finally, I have to disagree with Sarah! I think you should start the class not with Trouillot, but maybe with The Presence of the Past, which came up again and again during the course. I had a hard time getting my teeth into Trouillot at the very beginning.
Thanks, everyone, for your suggestions. Here's a draft of the syllabus -- more focused than last year. Any comments welcome.
