ART 478: Representing Identity In Contemporary Art - the Center for ...

ART 478: Representing Identity
In Contemporary Art
Asst. Professor Jaimey Hamilton
Office: ART 222
Email: jaimeyh @hawaii.edu
T/Th 1:30-2:45
Office Hours: T/TH 3:00-4:30
Office Phone: x5253
WRITING INTENSIVE CRN: 88846
This is a writing intensive course
designed to explore the role of
autobiography, social identity, and selfexpression
in current visual production.
Since the 1960s, many artists have
abandoned the modernist notion of selfexpression
for a concept of identity that
involves an exploration of the dynamics
between self and society. With a new
critical eye developed through the lenses
of feminism, civil-rights, the sexual
revolution, and globalization, they
examine identity as a socially constructed
representation of self. Often their art not
only describes this condition in contemporary culture, but also tries to formulate strategies to break out of
these confining representations of self.
Many of the representational strategies
artists use to do this come out of recent
philosophies in cultural studies,
sociology, philosophy, psychology, and
semiotics. In this class we will learn how
artists use these critical tools to negotiate
new representations of self and how
those same tools can be used to
formulate our own visual expression. As
the course moves from the 1970s
forward, and as we explore our own
backgrounds and motivations, we will see
that we can come to understand identity
not as a confining social “label,” but as a flexible, mobile, and open-ended questioning and de-limiting of
the self coming from our continual engagement with culture.
Above: Cindy Sherman, Untitled #96, 1981
Below: Yasumasa Morimura, To My Little Sister For Cindy Sherman,
1998

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
Textbooks:
- Appiah, Ethics of Identity
- Robertson and McDaniel, Themes in Contemporary Art
- PDFS available on Laulima
- Highly recommended: Sylvan Barnett, Writing about Art
-
Course Objectives and Outcomes:
In this writing intensive course students are expected to demonstrate their ability to:
- Recognize and understand critical and theoretical social frameworks of identity construction.
- Use these frameworks to examine and interpret contemporary art practices.
- To apply these frameworks to an understanding of the student’s own representational practices.
These outcomes will be expressed and evaluated in the form of personal writing responses, presentation
outlines, and research papers.
Course Requirements:
1. Personal Responses to Reading: Over the course of the semester you need to write a total of
4 - 2 page responses to the reading and discussion, as they relate to your evolving understanding
of “identity” and your own process of self-expression. You might also want to keep a “glossary,”
with a reference of new terms and ideas you are learning as you do the reading. I expect you to
read everything thoroughly, perhaps even twice and to have google image and wikipedia running
while you read so that you can research references mentioned in the articles to help you with
context. The responses will be due on the meeting after we discuss the readings in class
and will be graded with a check, +,-, system. I will skim all of them, but will also randomly select
some each time to which I will respond more carefully.
2. Face to Face – Identity and Identification Project
- Choose an artist to research (I’ve suggested artists under each topic, but you can propose
others). As you research the artist over the course of the semester, you will do a preliminary
presentation of their work, develop a thesis about their work in relation to identity theories and
your own understanding of your identity, and then write a final paper that explores that thesis.
-
- Part I -- Presentation. After you choose an artist, I will assign a time for you to present your
artist in the context of a particular topic. The aim is to integrate your understanding of the
artist’s work with the theoretical insights of the readings we are doing for that class period.
Present your artist as a case study in which we can explore and test the readings.
- Your presentations should include a very short (10 minutes at the most!) introduction of the
artist’s work in general. This should be followed by some questions or larger discussion
points that you would like to propose to the class. These questions should generate
discussion in terms of how, why, and with what tools the artist is exploring identity. What are
the questions you need to answer about identity in order to interpret the artist’s work? After
you present the artist briefly, then we will use your questions and discussion points to lead
conversation about the reading for the rest of the class period. Your job is to help me guide
the conversation so that it can be as productive as possible.
o Prepare a powerpoint presentation and notes: Limit yourself to 4 images for your
artist overview. Then include your questions and discussion points in the
presentation. Usually an in depth analysis of one or two works is best. Discussion
prompts are most productive when paired with an image to guide us in analysis. You
can either upload your presentation to laulima or bring it to class on a flash drive.
o Your presentations will be graded on the content of the powerpoint itself and your
notes, not on your speaking ability. So RELAX and let your work and research do
the talking! …..I will help you lead discussion. In the powerpoints and notes, I am

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
looking to see evidence of the depth of research you have done to understand the
artist’s approach to identity, the clarity and precision with which you synthesize this
understanding into a very short presentation of your artist, your ability to organize this
information for people that do not know this artist, and most of all the level of critical
engagement you have with the overarching theoretical material as it relates to your
understanding of the artist’s approach. This will be evident to me in the
insightfulness of your questions and discussion points paired with the artist’s images.
Part II - Paper: 15 pages. Based on your presentation, you will make an outline and write a
research paper analyzing the intersubjective dimension between your identification with your
artist’s exploration of identity construction. Use at least 4 of the texts we have read and your own
research to help you elaborate. We will discuss specifics of the project over the course of the
semester.
Grading: Grading will be based on your attention to the assignments, the thoughtfulness of your arguments and
responses, and the clarity with which you present your ideas.
Participation/Personal Writing Responses: (40 pts) 20%
Artist Project: Presentation: (40 pts) 20%
Outline for Final Paper: (10 pts) 5%
First Draft:
Part I – Autobio (15 pts)
Part II - Analysis (15 pts) 15%
Peer Responses: (20 pts) 10%
Final Draft: (60 pts) 30%
Course Policies:
1. Believing that my high expectations are an indication of my respect for you and for your capacity to
work at a level of excellence you may not have thought possible, I will follow the grading standards
outlined in the college catalog:
Grade A is reserved for work that is exceptional in quality and shows keen insight, understanding, and initiative.
Grade B is given for work that is consistently superior [that is, not merely respectable or “average”] and shows
interest, effort, or originality.
Grade C is a respectable grade. It reflects consistent daily preparation and satisfactory completion of all work
required.
Grade D is the lowest passing grade. It is below the average necessary to meet graduation requirements and
ordinarily is not accepted for transfer by other institutions.
Grade F is failing.
2. I believe my students are adults who have other considerations, obligations, and priorities beyond this
class. I do not need to hear excuses for being late to class, not attending class, not turning in
assignments, etc. But in fairness to all students in the class and with the knowledge that, in the world
beyond college, people are expected to meet deadlines even in the absence of ideal circumstances, I will
faithfully enforce the following policy concerning attendance and assignments: Attendance and
Participation are mandatory and will affect your final grade. Assignments are due on time, regardless of
most circumstances (documentary evidence of mitigating circumstances required). Assignments lose a
half-grade for every day they are late. After 6 days they will not be accepted.
3. Plagiarism is especially seductive and easy in the era of the internet, but I believe that my students
have the capability of learning to judge and use relevant, valuable sources both online and on the library

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
shelves. I believe my students can learn how to use the ideas of others in order to develop arguments
and thoughts of their own and cite others’ words and ideas properly. Plagiarism will result in zero credit
for an assignment.
4. Knowing that ultimately your education is what you make it, I will encourage you to come to class
prepared; I will encourage you to initiate, ask questions, and comment on the readings and other
assignments; I will encourage you to engage your classmates in lively debate. The content of this course
could be considered “controversial” by some. Contemporary artists often challenge our ethical and social
mores with their images. This class addresses these kinds of artists. If you are not comfortable with
these challenges to your own identity (and your own process of value construction) than this class is not
for you. My style of teaching is purposely open-ended so that discussion opens up questions and
possibilities of complex topics that will hopefully be food for thought for the rest of your life. I teach
content, but most of all, I model critical thinking. Please come prepared for an open and thought
provoking space of discussion and exploration.
Citation and Bibliographic Resources:
Learning to cite sources is an important component to any art history course, but something that each
student should take as their personal responsibility to learn. It is not something I can “teach” you, but
rather a set of very explicit rules that I can give you and that you must learn to consistently follow.
Either MLA or Chicago Style citations are acceptable. Look at how published sources write their
footnotes and bibliography. THEY ARE ALL CONSISTENT! Learn to follow this consistency. Use the
Library’s online resources: log in to the library website, click “quick facts,” and then “writing and research
resources”. One of the more helpful links provided on the library’s site is this one:
http://www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/p04_c10_s1.html

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
Syllabus:
This course is divided into a series of topics that offer different frameworks for addressing the issue of contemporary
identity in art. For each topic, I have included a list of relevant artists. If you are in charge of presenting a case study
for this topic, you can choose an artist from this list (if you would like to present an artist not listed, please consult with
me first.) Everyone is responsible for doing the reading listed under each topic and writing a response before our first
class meeting on that topic. In addition, I have included “Artist Project Further Readings” for those who are presenting
on that topic or those who would like to pursue the topic on their own.
Jan 10: Self-disclosures / Social contracts
- intro to syllabus and parameters for discussion
- guidelines for talking about and listening to difficult and personal issues and art.
- pick a theme and choose an artist that you would like to learn about by next week.
Jan. 12 - 17: Introducing Contemporary Theories of Identity
- What is Identity?
- Developing Thesis Questions on Contemporary Artists
Reading:
- Dunn, selection from Identifying Consumption
- Appiah, The Ethics of Identity, 1-61.
- Further Reading: Zygmunt Bauman, “From Pilgrim to Tourist – or a Short History of Identity”
- Stephen Mitchell, “True Selves, False Selves, and the Ambiguity of Authenticity”; Michel Foucault, “Discourse on
Language,” Key excerpts; Bethan Benwell and Elizabeth Stokoe, “Introduction 1- 35” in Discourse and Identity;
Stuart Hall, “Who Needs Identity?”
Jan. 19 & 24: The Body and Identity -- Performing the Self
Gilbert and George, Hannah Wilke, Carolee Schneemann, Eleanor Antin, Marina Abramovic and Ulay, Chris Burden,
Vito Acconci, Viennese Actionists, Cindy Sherman, Jenny Saville, Yasumasu Morimura, Nikki S. Lee, Zhang Huan,
Song Dong, Cang Xin, Pope L., Orlan, Laurie Anderson, Rebecca Horn, Mariko Mori, Rosemary Trockle, Gary Hill,
Tim Hawkenson, Patty Chang, Rashaad Newsome, Kate Gilmore
What is Identification?
Reading:
- Robertson and McDaniel, Themes in Contemporary Art, “The Body”
- Further Reading: Erving Goffman, from The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life Jones, The Artist’s Body,
(Phaidon Themes Series); Christine Ross, “Fantasy and Distraction: An Interview with Pipilotti Rist,” Afterimage,
(Nov. 2000); Donna Haraway, “The Cyborg Manifesto”; Stellarc, “Beyond the Body”; Judith Butler, Gender
Trouble; Henry Sayre, The Object of Performance; Moser, Immersed in Technology; Dunn, Identifying
Consumption
Jan 31: Writing Class: Autobiography and Art
- Autobiography and Intersubjectivity
Reading:
- Barthes, from Camera Lucida
- Sylvan Barnet, “What is an Interpretation?” & “Critical Studies,” especially the sections on Biographical Studies
and Psychoanalytic Studies, from Short Guide to Writing about Art
Assignment: (Due March 8 th )
o Based on these writings, develop a visual autobiography that responds to a work by the artist that
you have chosen for your artist project. With an emphasis on singular image describe how it

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
affects you, encapsulates or challenges certain things about your identity, identifications,
personality, emotional attributes etc. Use the externalized image to describe your interior life. At
least 2-3 pages. This can be used to develop your final thesis. A rough draft is due on March 8 th .
Feb. 2 - 14: Identity Politics -- The 80s and 90s
Anna Mendieta, Valie Export, Judy Chicago, Martha Rosler, Guerrilla Girls, Mary Kelly, Barbara Kruger, Janine
Antoni, Alison Saar, Dorothy Cross, Pipilotti Rist, Romare Bearden, Faith Ringgold, Adrian Piper, Andres Serrano,
Lorna Simpson, Coco Fusco, Kerry James Marshall, David Hammons, Michael Ray Charles, James Luna, Laura
Aguilara, Cathy Opie, Guillermo Gomez-Pena, Warhol, Nicole Eisenmann, Iké Udé, Pepon Osorio, Paul McCarthy,
Pepon Ossorio, Nan Goldin, Robert Mapplethorpe, Felix Gonzalez-Torres
Reading:
- Robertson and McDaniel, Themes in Contemporary Art, “Identity”
- Appiah, The Ethics of Identity, Chapter 3
- Griselda Pollock, Rethinking the artist in the woman, the woman in the artist, and that old chestnut, the gaze,” in
Women Artist at the Millennium
- Piper, “Triple Negation of Black Women Artists”
-
- Further Reading: Selection from the Introduction to Art and Feminism; “Post-feminism” from Understanding
Contemporary Society: Theories of the Present; Heywood, L., A fifteen-year history of third-wave feminism;
Cornel West, Race Matters; Coco Fusco, “Passionate Irreverence: The Cultural Politics of Identity”; Martin
Berger, Sight Unseen: Whiteness and American Visual Culture in Reader Coco Fusco and Russell Ferguson,
Only Skin Deep: Changing Visions of the American Self ; Griselda Pollock, “Trouble in the Archives” (from
Looking Back Toward the Future); Cary Levine, "Manly Crafts: Mike Kelley's (Oxy)Moronic Gender Bending," Art
Journal, vol. 69, no. 1, Spring 2010 ; Martin Berger, Introduction, Sight Unseen: Whiteness and American Visual
Culture
- Intersections -- Fred Tomaselli, Wed. Feb. 15 th 6pm ART Auditorium – Extra Credit
Feb. 16 - 23: Beyond Identity Politics
Felix Gonzalez Torres, Jiri Kovanda, Jimmie Durham, Matthew Barney, Paul Pfeiffer, Blake Simpson, Isaac Julien,
Glenn Ligon, Laylah Ali, Ghada Amer, Jason Rhoades, Cai Guo-Qiang, Ann Hamilton, Gabriel Orozco, Mike Kelley,
Kiki Smith, Michael Arcega, Vanessa Beecroft, Rineki Dijkstra, Mark Bradford, Beatrice Searle, Peggy Chan, Phil
Collins, Elizabeth Peyton, Mika Rottenburg, Erwin Wurm, Tino Seghal, Mark Bradford, Juan Munoz, Steve McQueen,
Feb. 21 st – “Who’s Afraid of Lady Gaga?” Brownbag. Kuy 106 12-1:30pm
Presentations 21 st
Judy Chicago
Adrian Piper
Ana Mendieta
Marian Abramovic
Presentations 23 rd
Do Ho Suh
Glenn Ligon
Duane Michaels
Reading:
- Appiah, Ethics of Identity, Chapter 4
- Susette Min, “The Last Asian American Exhibition in the Whole Entire World” from One Way or Another: Asian
American Art Now
- Suzi Gablik, “Connective Aesthetics, Art after Individualism”
- Further Reading: Armstrong and deZegher, Women Artist at the Millenium; Russell Furgeson, “Invisible
Center” from Out There: Marginalization and Contemporary Culture Carolyn D’Cruz, “What Matter Who’s
Speaking?: Authenticity and Identity in Discourses of Aboriginal Australia”; Homi Bhabha, Location of Culture;
Olu Oguibe, The Culture Game; Freestyle exhibition catalog; Toon Van Meijl and Jelle Miedema, Introduction to
Shifting Images of Identity in the Pacific.

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
Feb. 28 - March 6: Narrative, Memory, and Identity
Eric Fischl, Anselm Keifer, Carrie Mae Weems, Kara Walker, Walton Ford, William Kentridge, Jane Alexander, Doris
Salcedo, Tracy Moffatt, Trenton Doyle Hancock, On Kawara, Ilya Kabokov, Amelia Mesa-Bains, Raymond Pettibon,
Roger Shimomura, Dinh Q Lê, Zoe Leonard, Omer Fast, Peter Doig, Neo Rauch, Louise Bourgeois, Amy Cutler,
Doris Salcedo, Lorrain O’Grady,
Presentations March 6 th
Zoe Leonard
G. Richter
T. Hawkinson
Reading:
- Robertson and McDaniel, Themes of Contemporary art, “Time and Art”
- James Hannahan, “Kara Walker” (from New Histories)
- Alcoff, L., “The Problem of Speaking for Others”
Further Reading: Jill Bennett, Emphatic Vision: Trauma, Affect, and Contemporary Art, re/righting history:
counter narratives; Stephen Heath, Questions of Cinema; Image and Narrative (Journal)
March 8: First Draft Part I - Autobiographies Due – Citing
Reading:
- Bloom, from The Anxiety of Influence
- Sylvan Barnet, “How to Write an Effective Essay,” “Style in Writing,” “Quotations and Quotation
Marks,” “Acknowledging Sources,” and “Citation” from A Short Guide to Writing About Art in Reader
- http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml
March 8 - 20: Place, Space, and Identity
Helio Oiticica, Cildo Merieles, Joseph Beuys, Wodiczko, Tehching Hsieh, Rachel Whiteread, Fred Wilson, Mona
Hatoum, Christian Boltanski, Maria Campos-Pons, Anselm Keifer, Do Ho-Suh, Shahzia Sikander, Tseng Kwong Chi,
Mthethwa Zwelethu, Georges Adegbo, Gillian Wearing, Mark Bradford, Lorraine O Grady, Wodiczko, Rikrit Tiravanija,
Renate Lucas,
Intersections: Joao Ribas Monday, 19 @ 6pm, Art Auditorium – Extra Credit
Presentations 20 th
Kapoor
Cai Guo-Qiang
Tim Hawkinson
Reading:
- Robertson and McDaniel, Themes in Contemporary Art, “Place”
- Foucault, “Of Other Spaces”
- Frazer Ward, “Alien Duration: Tehching Hsieh, 1978-99”
- Further Reading: Irene Winter, “Fred Wilson” (from New Histories) ; Vilsoni Hereniko and Rob Wilson,
Introduction to Inside Out: Literature, Cultural Politics and Identity in the New Pacific; Introduction to Flow
exhibition; BW E. Balibar and I. Wallerstein, 1991. Race, Nation, Class: Ambiguous Identities, London: Verso.
Margo Machida, “Out of Asia: Negotiating Asian Idenitities in America,” in Asia/America: Identities in
Contemporary Asian American Art; Bhabha, “Beyond the Pale: Art in the Age of Multicultural Translation”; Sarup,
“Imperialism and Culture”; Nicholas Thomas, “The Dream of Joseph: Practices of Identity in Pacific Art”
SPRING BREAK March 26-30

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
March 22 and April 5: Soul Searching
Shirit Neshat, Mona Hatoum, Bill Viola, Wolfgang Liab, Anish Kapoor, Mel Chin, John Feodorov, Shahzia Sikander,
James Turrell, Willy Tjungurrayi (Pintupi), Pierre Huyghe, Douglas Gordon, Sigmar Polke, Joseph Beuys, Bruce
Conner, Paul Chan, Doug Aitkins, Center for Tactical Magic
- 1 page Outlines for Final Papers Due on April 5 th (see Barnett for guidelines)
Presentations April 5 th
Mariko Mori
James Turrell
Reading:
- Appiah, Ethics of Identity, chapter 5
- Robertson and McDaniel, Themes of Contemporary Art, “Spirituality and Art”
- Further Reading: Weintraub, “Andreas Serrano”; Paul Chan, 7 Lights,
http://www.newmuseum.org/exhibitions/20 ; Richard Francis, “Negotiating Rapture: an Introduction,” from
Negotiating Rapture: The Power of Art; Centre Pompidou, Traces of the Sacred, 2008, Ecstasy: In and About
Altered States (La MOMA), Kay Larson, “Keeping the Faith,” ARTnews, v. 105, v.2 (Feb. 2006): 98-101; Ackland
Art Museum, Five Artists, Five Faiths: Spirituality in Contemporary Art ; Nevill Drury and Anna Voigt, Fire &
Shadow: Spirituality in Contemporary Australian Art; Evans, Tim, “Nature as Teacher: The art of Manabu Ikeda,”
ART AsiaPacific, n.44.
April 10 - 17: Rooted Cosmopolitanism – the Millennial Identity
Shilpa Gupta, Corey Archangel, Kahinda Wiley, Jenny Saville, Abdel Adbessemad, Natlaie Durjberg, Shaun
Gladwell, Daniel Guzman, Takashi Murakami, Sylvia Fleury, Andrea Zittel, Andreas Gursky, Christian Marclay, Xu
Bing (Wenda Gu,) Yinka Shonibare, Walid Raad, Emily Jacir, Nikki S. Lee, Julie Mehretu, Marcel van Eeden, Aneta
Greszykowska, Surasi Kusolwang, Creative Time
Presentations April 17 th
Takashi Murakami
Elizabeth Peyton
Keith Tyson
Reading:
- Appiah, Ethics of Identity, chapter 6
- Paul Bains, “Subjectless Subjectivities”
- Younger Tan Jesus Catalog – Cornell, “New Age Thinking” and Massimiliano Gioni, “We are Too Many”
- Further Reading: Homi Bhabha, Culture’s In-Between” Questions of Cultural Identity
- Nikos Papastergiadis, “Limits of Cultural Translation”; “Now in Moving Pictures: The Multitudes of Nikki S. Lee”;
Masao Miyoshi, “A Borderless World?”; John Storey, from Cultural Consumption and Everyday Life From The
Cultures of Globalization (Post-Contemporary Interventions) by Fredric Jameson (Editor), Masao Miyoshi
(Editor)] Noi Sawaragi, “On the Battlefield of ‘Superflat’: Subculture and Art in Postwar Japan” Gao Minglu,
“Extensionality and Intentionality in a Transnational Cultural System”
April 19-26: Collectivity
Jorge and Lucy Orta, Critical Art Ensemble, Political Art Documentation/Distribution, REPOhistory; The Land, The
Center for Land Use Interpretation, Temporary Services, Las Agencias, Center for Tactical Magic, Radical Software
Group, Institute for Applied Autonomy, Yes Men, ®Rtmark, Knitta Collective
Presentations 26 th
Patty Chang
Xue Song
Olafur Eliasson
Reading:
Maria Lind, from The Collaborative Turn
Claire Bishop, “The Social turn: Collaboration and its Discontents,” in Right About Now

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ART 478 Prof. Hamilton
- [Artist Project Further Reading: Gregory Sholette, “Activist Art and the Counter-Public Sphere,” Gregory
Sholette, The Interventionists: Users’ Manual for the Creative Disruption of Everyday Life; Stimson and Sholette,
Collectivism after Modernism: The Art of Social Imagination after 1945, n]
April 26: First Drafts II- Analysis Due
May 1: Peer Reading Groups
Final Papers Due May 9 th to my office, Rm. 222.