Unit information: From Scythes to Soviets: Russian and Soviet Art 1905-1945 in 2011/12

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Unit name From Scythes to Soviets: Russian and Soviet Art 1905-1945
Unit code HARTM0200
Credit points 20
Level of study M/7
Teaching block(s) Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24)
Unit director Professor. Mike O'Mahony
Open unit status Not open
Pre-requisites

None
Co-requisites

None
School/department Department of History of Art (Historical Studies)
Faculty Faculty of Arts

Description including Unit Aims

This unit will introduce students to the theory and practice of Russian and Soviet art. Through an analysis of the historical conditions and cultural debates in early twentieth century Russia students will gain a broader awareness of: the emergence of an early Russian avant-garde; the impact of the First World War and the 1917 revolutions; the new role for artists in the post-revolutionary era; the ideological and cultural debates of the 1920s and 1930s; the formation and development of a Socialist Realist aesthetic; and the role of the artist in the conflict known in Russia as the Great Patriotic War. Students will learn to engage critically with the complexity of cultural practices during a crucial period in Russian and Soviet history.

Aims:

  • a broad knowledge of the canonical art and artistic theory produced in Russia and the Soviet Union during the period 1905-45.
  • an awareness of the relationship between art and society during a time of rapid social transformation and major political upheavals.
  • different ways to approach issues of class, gender and ethnicity by using specific case studies from the period.
  • a lively forum for the development of student skills in discussion, seminar presentation and formal essay writing.
  • the opportunity to develop further skills in visual analysis by means of the close examination of particular artworks.

Intended Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit students will have developed: (1) an expert knowledge of the canonical art and artistic theory produced in Russia and the Soviet Union during the period 1905-45; (2) an awareness of the relationship between art and society during a time of rapid social transformation and major political upheavals; and (3) different ways to approach issues of class, gender and ethnicity by using specific case studies from the period.

Teaching Information

One weekly seminar, to involve formal presentation by the tutor, discussion of set reading and presentations by students

Assessment Information

One summative coursework essay of 5000 words (100%) assessing skills in ILOs.

Reading and References

  • Cullerne Bown, Matthew, and Brandon Taylor (eds), Art of the Soviets: Painting, Sculpture and Architecture in a One-Party State, 1917-1992 (Manchester, 1993)
  • Cullerne Bown, Matthew, Socialist Realist Painting (New Haven, 1998)
  • Dobrenko, Evgeny and Eric Naiman (eds), The Landscape of Stalinism: the Art and Ideology of Soviet Space (Seattle and London, 2003)
  • Groys, Boris and Max Hollein, Dream Factory Communism (exh cat), Schirn Kunsthalle, Frankfurt, 2003-04
  • O’Mahony, Mike, Sport in the USSR: Physical Culture – Visual Culture (London, 2006)

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