Postwar and Contemporary Art in Western Europe

About

The seminar offers an introduction to the history of art in Europe from the immediate Post-War II -period to the turn of the millennium. In the wake of the horrors of destruction and atrocities of war, artists across the Western part of the divided continent as from the 1950s begun to face the emerging new conditions of reconstruction, repression, consumerism andmedia culture and—oftentimes in a transatlantic dialogue with artistic production and criticism in the US and the influence of social movements—conceived of neo- and post-avantgarde practices that radically hybridized the notions of the work of art and expandedits contexts and sites of reception. Organized as a survey course, each class meeting covers distinct currents ormovements and concomitant , such as Art Brut and Informel, Nouveau Réalisme, Pop Art, Arte povera, Fluxus, Vienna Actionism, the so-called Becher school of photography and Relational Aesthetics, as they emerged across Germany, France, Italy, Austria and Great Britain, among other countries, and introduces salient artworks, major protagonists and key terms of Western European art history in the second part of the 20th century. The concluding class meeting will be held at the Neue Natiionalgalerie Berlin, the city’s main museum for postwar and contemporary art

Course leader

Prof. Dr. André Rottmann

Target group

This seminar is ideal for students, artists, and art enthusiasts seeking an in-depth introduction to postwar and contemporary European art. It offers a structured survey of major movements, key artists, and critical debates from the 1950s to 2000. Perfect for art history and humanities students, emerging artists, museum professionals, or anyone curious about how European art responded to social, political, and cultural changes in the second half of the 20th century. The course combines lectures with discussions and concludes with a visit to Berlin’s Neue Nationalgalerie, providing a firsthand encounter with seminal works and their historical contexts

Course aim

GRADING:
6 ECTS:
Home essay (10 -15 pp.): 40 %
1 presentation (10 minutes): 30 %
Participation/Engagement: 30 %
9 ECTS:
Home essay (20 -25 pp.): 40 %
1 presentation (10 minutes): 30 %
Participation/Engagement: 30 %

Fee info