Outrageous

Throughout history, British artists have pushed acceptable boundaries, created outlandish work. Yet few modern art critics think of British art as shocking and confrontational. By focusing on the most compelling and outrageous art, artists and critics from 300 years of British art history, this course will seek to challenge such conventional misperceptions.

We will consider, for example, why John Constable was once considered a blasphemous amateur; and why JMW Turner’s work was seen as extravagant and gratuitous. We will find out what was so scandalous about the red initials PRB with which Dante Gabriel Rossetti signed his paintings; examine the
disastrous libel trial between John Ruskin and JM Whistler; and look at how Richard Hamilton’s ‘pop’ art altered the course of art education forever. Finally, we will consider the modern day ‘bad boy’ Damien Hirst. Does true art have to be in opposition to the taste of its historical period? Why does confrontational art become acceptable through time?

The course will be taught through lectures, readings, classroom presentations and film and will include a visit to the Tate Modern in London.

Subject areas: Art, Art History.
Check with your home institution for specific information on fulfilment of major/course requirements.