Pamela I. Sneed

How is writing art? How is writing art connected to writing about art? How do various theories of poetics shape writing as art? This online course addresses the craft of writing in view of urgent issues of contemporary art. Students will develop and manage their own blogs and participate in continuing online discussions. The final requirement will be a finished body of writing.

Human Rights and Art: A Study of Social Movements is a course about art, activism, and writing about art in relationship to history, philosophy, social studies, literature, film, and ideas of the human. We will investigate ways artists in a variety of cultures articulate and express human rights, acting as conduits and catalysts who respond locally and globally to its abuses. In particular, we will investigate the uses of poetry, performance, theater, and visual arts. Through writing prompts, essays, and online discussions we will examine art produced by and not limited to AIDS activism of the early 90s, feminism, the LGBTQ liberation struggle, the South African anti-apartheid struggle, liberation struggles in Egypt and the Middle East, and the current Black Lives Matter movement. Also, we will examine the current resurgence in political art. We will look at many philosophers, historians, and essayists including Hannah Arendt, Kevin Bales, along with artists such as Pussy Riot, Simone Leigh, Carlos Martiel, Karen Finley, Kara Walker, and Ai WeiWei.