ARTH 319
Robert Rauschenberg: Art, Archives, and Exhibitions Fall 2016
Division I
This is not the current course catalog

Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008) was a leading figure in postwar American art whose work is considered an important bridge between Abstract Expressionism and Pop art. Throughout his career he worked in a wide range of media, collaborated frequently with dancers and performers, and was dedicated to promoting awareness of causes he cared about, including world peace, the environment and humanitarian issues. The Robert Rauschenberg Foundation archives have recently been processed and opened to scholars for the first time. This course will make use of the archives with the aim of shedding new light on Rauschenberg’s art and collaborations in the form of an exhibition that will open at the Williams College Museum of Art in the spring 2017 semester. Students will have hands-on access to archival materials and will collaborate on the development of the exhibition through both individual and group activities and assignments. As a class we will critically explore the role and possibilities of research and archives in curatorial practices and museum exhibitions. Course readings will be drawn from the major monographs on Rauschenberg’s art, texts that highlight various historical, theoretical, and methodological approaches to the archive, and primary source material from the Rauschenberg archive.