This six-session course will unpack the term “style – the distinctive way in which something is made or how something appears – and frame it as a central characteristic of all art and culture. Specific styles emerge in different parts of the world during certain time periods because of changing tastes and new inspirations. At the same time, style is a way of describing personal taste, from codes of dress and home décor to the kinds of objects one might collect. Individual sessions topics include: garments, textiles, and other forms of adornment from the museum’s Japanese, Native American, and Education Art collections the taste for gold in 17th century France the connection between self-presentation and royal power in Renaissance England and the ongoing American and European fascination with Egyptian culture and style. The course also includes visits to CMA special exhibitions The Tudors: Art and Majesty in Renaissance England and Egyptomania: Fashion’s Conflicted Obsession.
This on-site course involves walking through the museum galleries and may also include slide presentations in our lecture hall, as well as viewing objects from our Education Art collection in a classroom space. Assisted listening devices are available for use in the museum.