Topics in Modern Art: Political Cartoons

The course discusses relevant subjects within art, architecture, and visual media, from the 19th to the 21th century. Students will gain specialization within a given subject related to modern and contemporary art and architecture, as well as theory and methods relevant for the given topic. The topic "political caricatures" examines the development of political caricature from about 1750 to the present day. In addition to examining political caricature in a narrow sense - its relation to satirical portraits and physiognomic studies - the course will analyze the visual expression of caricatures and illustrations in magazines and newspapers from different periods. The course will follow the historical development of political caricature from its early beginnings in countries like France, England, Germany, America, and Norway, to current controversies about caricatures. The specific exaggerations of the caricature will be theoretically examined, through analyses of its rhetorical characteristics and its relation to "serious" art.

Knowledge

Upon successful completion of the course, the student will have gained:

• understanding of the historical and political conditions informing the political cartoon
• knowledge of what characterizes the caricature in terms of its visual and rhetorical devices

Skills

Upon successful completion of the course, the student will know how to:

• discuss and theorize the visual exaggerations used by various political cartoonists

Lectures and seminars. Excursions can also be included in the instruction. All activities are joint with KUH3204. The course will also have compulsory exercises. The students are required to keep posted on messages from the department or teacher at Blackboard. This course is taught in Norwegian only.