History of Art (Multicultural Arts in the United States)

This is a cross-cultural introduction to American art history, with an interdisciplinary analysis of diverse art forms generated by artists of color, including African Americans, Asian Americans, Native Americans, Latinx/Chicanx, and Americans of non-European heritage. Significant attention will be given to topics considered important by each ethnicity or group, as well as issues related to racism, gender, social class, and contemporary social and political awareness. Traditions, values, and cultural expressions of diverse societies and their contributions to American visual culture are explored. Emphasis is placed upon the visual arts as a source of student empowerment, self-determination, decolonization and liberation in support of equity, and diversity, in anti-racist work and through civic engagement and activism.