ARTHIST 317 : Contemporary Pacific Art

Arts

2023 Semester Two (1235) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Focuses on work by contemporary Pacific artists, exploring the ways that they translate indigenous knowledge and urban experiences into gallery forms such as painting, installation, performance, film and video making. Themes such as migration and diaspora, language and memory, notions of homelands and return, and the creation of complex cultural identities will be explored.

Course Overview

Pacific art and visual culture spans a rich and varied body of objects, dance forms, song, painting, and sculptural practices as well as adornment—both permanent and temporary, textiles, performance, and oral histories. It also encompasses the harnessing of digital media technologies as a means of creating new networks of communication and expression, and a crucial agent in maintaining and developing cultural traditions both in the homelands and diaspora. 

Contemporary Pacific artists explore and translate indigenous knowledge systems and urban experiences into gallery forms such as painting, sculpture, photography, installation and multimedia, as well as performance and digital art practices.  This course focuses on how Pacific artists in Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia, the wider Pacific and the diaspora, engage with and explore the economies, environments, and dynamics of the art gallery and museum systems.  Artists discussed in the course include Ani O’Neill, Angela Tiatia, Michel Tuffery, Tracey Moffatt, Fatu Feu’u, John Pule, Yuki Kihara, Kalisolaite 'Uhila and Janet Lilo.  Themes include migration and diaspora, language and memory, notions of homelands and return, and the creation of complex cultural and gender identities.   The course also provides an introduction to indigenous and decolonial theories, and non-western feminisms.

Students taking the course will pay visits to art galleries as well as examine works from the University of Auckland art collection.

The development of academic writing skills is also an aim of the course. Students are encouraged to develop their visual analysis skills and to discuss and write insightful and critical analyses of works

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: 15 points at Stage II in Art History and 60 points passed Restriction: ARTHIST 217

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Capability 6: Social and Environmental Responsibilities
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Arts

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Develop the ability to visually analyse artworks, images and examples of visual culture using reliable methods and terms. (Capability 1.1)
  2. Develop and demonstrate a good confidence in comparing and contrasting artworks by contemporary Pacific artists, identifying the key intentions and stylistic characteristics of their art practices. (Capability 2.2)
  3. Develop the skills to sustain an argument and logically compose a narrative in essay writing (Capability 4.2)
  4. Demonstrate the ability to situate artworks in their social, historical and cultural contexts (Capability 3.2)
  5. Demonstrate an understanding of the ways that diverse cultural identities and experiences shape and inform contemporary Pacific art forms and practices. (Capability 6.2)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Essay 25% Individual Coursework
Essay 25% Individual Coursework
Final Exam 50% Individual Examination

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 2 hours of lectures, a 1 hour tutorial, 7 hours of a combination of reading and thinking about the content and working on your on coursework and examination preparation.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is expected at scheduled activities including lectures, tutorials and gallery visits to complete components of the course.

Lectures will be available as recordings. Other learning activities including tutorials and gallery visits will not be available as recordings.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

All of the digital resources that were available to us as well as all of Caroline's personal knowledge about the artists and movements was helpful to my learning. The trip to the gallery was very interesting.

Tutorials, in particular were helpful, those that focused around the essays.  Expectations were clearly explained and time was spent making sure everyone had a good idea of what they could be writing about

Caroline is a great lecturer, she is interesting and passionate which gives high quality teaching.


Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.

Published on 26/10/2022 10:25 a.m.