THE MATERIAL WORLD: ART AND ARTIFACTS-TCXG 470

GWP 101

T-Th 1:30-3:35; Winter 2009

Professor Julie Nicoletta

GWP 418

253-692-4468; fax: 253-692-5718

Email: jn@u.washington.edu

Office hours: T&Th 12:30-1:00 p.m., 3:45-4:15 p.m. and by appointment.

For Campus Info in case of snow: 253-383-INFO

Course Description:

The Material World examines material culture, that is, artifacts created and used by humans to cope with the physical world. The course will employ interdisciplinary methods drawing from, among other fields, art history, historical archaeology, anthropology, and museum studies. The combination of these and other methods, known as material culture studies, will be used with hands-on study of everyday objects, such as tools, clothing, and buildings, as a means to understand the world around us.

Course Objectives:

Students will learn how to interpret objects and the cultures that create them. Through readings and class discussions, students will acquire skills to visually analyze art and artifacts. Equally important to the class will be the development of research, writing, and critical-thinking skills through numerous writing assignments.

Required Readings:

Prown, Jules David and Haltman, Kenneth, eds. American Artifacts: Essays in Material Culture, 2000.

Deetz, James. In Small Things Forgotten: An Archaeology of Early American Life, 1996.

Barnet, Sylvan. A Short Guide to Writing about Art, 9^th ed., 2008.

Reserve readings are accessible at the following website: http://ereserves.tacoma.washington.edu/. You will need a UW net id to access these readings.

Website

This course is being taught with a corresponding web site; the link to this site will be found at: http://courses.washington.edu/pubhist/matcult/index.html.

Grading and Evaluation: 

Class participation and preparation                30%

Object Analysis Paper                                    25%

Research Project                                             45%

Note: Doing below average work will earn you a D; average work will earn you a C; above average work will earn you a B; only truly exceptional work will earn you an A.

Class Participation and Preparation:

Class participation and preparation will be evaluated by:

1. Regular class attendance.

2. Your interpretation and analysis of the readings as reflected in the amount and quality of discussion.

3. Completion and quality of assignments.

Since this course is run as a seminar, it is extremely important that you attend every class and come prepared to actively participate for a number of reasons. First, we will spend a great deal of time analyzing art and artifacts through slides, objects, and field trips. Second, your insight and participation during discussions are a critical part of the class. We all learn from each other's perspectives; if you miss class, you will miss learning from these insights. Being clear-headed in discussion involves not just reading the assignments, but thinking about them, so allow yourself some time for reflection. Each student will have the opportunity to be a discussion leader for at least one class meeting, for which I will expect additional preparation. Missing more than three class meetings during the quarter, regardless of the reason, will have a negative effect on your class participation grade.

Assignments:

**Prown outline.

**One 5-page object analysis paper and one research project.

**For each assigned reading bring in a typed sheet with the author's thesis statement and two discussion questions for the class. Each sheet should be handed in the day of class to facilitate class discussion. When it is your turn to be discussion leader for an assigned reading, you must also bring in an object related in some way (however loosely) to the content of the reading. This object will be analyzed in class using Prown's method.

Note: Papers will be graded for clarity of composition and grammar as well as content. All assignments must be typed, double-spaced with one-inch margins. All sources must be cited in footnotes or endnotes using The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th ed., available in the library and summarized in A Short Guide to Writing about Art. Failure to do your own work or to cite the work of others properly will constitute plagiarism and result in a 0.0 for the assignment. In addition, all assignments must be turned in on time. Late assignments will be dropped one-half grade for each day late, except in extreme circumstances. No extensions will be granted except for a written medical excuse presented before the due date of the assignment. No assignments will be accepted by email. It is not acceptable to turn in what is substantially the same paper to two different courses.

General Evaluation of Written Work: Writing effectively means writing clearly and concisely and using correct grammar. Excellent papers will meet all of the following criteria:

1. The paper addresses all of the questions and issues posed in the assignment.

2. The paper draws upon relevant readings and class discussions. The paper applies what you have been learning.

3. The paper adds your own insights to the analyses. The quality of your own ideas is important. Show your own independent thinking as much as possible.

4. The paper is convincing. You have the responsibility to justify your arguments. You must back up your points or conclusion. Support your argument by using evidence from the class readings or other sources. Use explicit examples to illustrate what you say. Examples or ideas from primary and secondary sources must be cited using footnotes or endnotes. Do not assume anything on the part of the reader.

5. The paper is well organized. It has an introduction with a thesis (argument), it has a body supporting this thesis, and it ends with a conclusion summarizing the main points.

6. The paper has no spelling and grammatical errors.

7. The final draft shows substantial and significant improvement over earlier drafts.

A Short Guide to Writing about Art offers excellent explanations on how to develop a thesis, conduct research, use secondary and primary sources, and write effectively. Read it!

**When analyzing objects for the following two assignments, you will be expected to use the method presented by Jules Prown in his article “Mind in Matter.”

Object Analysis Paper: Write a 5-page paper on the two objects on reserve in the library. (Details to be handed out in class).

Research Project: Choose an object (to be approved by the instructor) to analyze in detail using the Prown method and archival research. You will be using the same methodology you used for the first paper, but you will be taking a more in-depth look at your object. The object can be from any historic period and from any culture, but it must be something you can bring to class for your presentation. A larger object, such as a building, may be permitted if you can show me that you can provide adequate visual aids for your presentation. There are four components to the research project:

1. Initial Project Proposal: see handout.

2. Final Project Proposal: see handout.

3. Introductory Paragraph and Annotated Bibliography: the introduction to the paper you would have written and at least 10 primary and 10 secondary sources, not including Internet sources, with 2-3 sentence annotations describing and analyzing each source; see handout.

4. Presentation: Give a 5-7 minute presentation on your research project at the end of the quarter. The presentation should clearly summarize your project and your findings. You should use visual aids to illustrate your points.

Classroom Etiquette:

Food and drink are acceptable as long as you do not disrupt the class or bother your neighbors. Electronic devices (including, but not limited to, cell phones, pagers, blackberries, digital assistants) may not be used. Activities that are non-relevant to the course, such as checking/sending email, playing games, and surfing the web, are considered disruptive activities when class is in session. Please be respectful and attentive when others are speaking in class. Arriving late or leaving early should never happen except in exceptional cases.

Miscellaneous:

If you choose to drop the course, you are responsible for reporting the change to the registrar's office. If you stop coming to class and do not contact the registrar, you will end up receiving a failing grade even if you attended only once or not at all.

If you would like me to mail your final paper/exam to you, bring a self-addressed, stamped 9½ X 12 inch envelope with you to the final exam period. Otherwise, you can pick up your final papers in my office during the next quarter. Remember that you need papers for the portfolio that you must complete before you can graduate, so keeping all your papers across your career at UWT is a good idea.

The Counseling Center offers short-term, problem-focused counseling to UW Tacoma students who may feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities of college, work, family, and relationships. Counselors are available to help students cope with stresses and personal issues that may interfere with their ability to perform in school. The service is provided confidentially and without additional charge to currently enrolled undergraduate and graduate students. To schedule an appointment, please call 692-4522 or stop by the Student Counseling Center (SCC), temporarily located in Cherry Parkes 206. Additional information can also be found by visiting http://www.tacoma.washington.edu/studentaffairs/SHW/scc_about.cfm/

DISABILITY SUPPORT SERVICES (Student Health and Wellness - SHAW)

The University of Washington Tacoma is committed to making physical facilities and instructional programs accessible to students with disabilities. Disability Support Services (DSS) functions as the focal point for coordination of services for students with disabilities. In compliance with Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act, any enrolled student at UW Tacoma who has an appropriately documented physical, emotional, or mental disability that "substantially limits one or more major life activities [including walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning and working]," is eligible for services from DSS. If you are wondering if you may be eligible for accommodations on our campus, please contact the DSS reception desk at 692-4522, or visit http://www.tacoma.washington.edu/studentaffairs/SHW/dss_about.cfm/

SCHEDULE OF CLASSES AND ASSIGNMENTS

Selected Bibliography

Ames, Kenneth L. Death in the Dining Room and Other Tales of Victorian Culture. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1992.

Appadurai, Arjun, ed. The Social Life of Things: Commodities in Cultural Perspective. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1986.

Basalla, George. The Evolution of Technology. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1988.

Benjamin, Walter. “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction.” In Marxism and Art, edited by Berel Lang and Forrest Williams. New York: McKay, 1972.

Cowan, Ruth Schwartz. "The 'Industrial Revolution" in the Home: Household Technology and Social Change in the Twentieth Century." In Material Culture Studies in America, edited by Thomas J. Schlereth. Nashville: American Association for State and Local History, 1982.*

-------. More Work for Mother: The Ironies of Household Technology from the Open Hearth to the Microwave. New York: Basic Books, 1983.

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihalyi and Eugene Rochberg-Halton. The Meaning of Things: Domestic Symbols and the Self. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1981.

Deetz, James. In Small Things Forgotten: An Archaeology of Early American Life. New York: Anchor Books/Doubleday, 1996.**

Ferguson, Eugene S. Engineering and the Mind's Eye. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1992.

Forty, Adrian. Objects of Desire: Design and Society Since 1750. New York: Thames and Hudson, 1992.

Giedion, Siegfried. Mechanization Takes Command. New York: Oxford University Press, 1948.

Gilborn, Craig. "Pop Pedagogy." In Material Culture Studies in America, edited by Thomas J. Schlereth. Nashville: American Association for State and Local History, 1982.*

Glassie, Henry H. Material Culture. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1999.

-------. Pattern in the Material Folk Culture of the Eastern United States. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1971.

Hilliard, Sam B. “Hog Meat and Cornpone: Foodways in the Antebellum South.” In Material Life in America, 1600-1860, edited by Robert Blair St. George. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1988.*

Hindle, Brooke. Emulation and Invention. New York: New York University Press, 1981.

-------, ed. Material Culture of the Wooden Age. Tarrytown, NY: Sleepy Hollow Press, 1981.

Hine, Thomas. The Total Package: The Evolution and Secret Meanings of Boxes, Bottles, Cans, and Tubes. Boston : Little, Brown, 1995. **

Jackson, J.B. Discovering the Vernacular Landscape. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1984.

Kingery, W. David, ed. Learning from Things: Method and Theory of Material Culture Studies. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1995.

Lubar, Steven, and W. David Kingery, eds. History from Things: Essays on Material Culture. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1993.

Lubin, David M. “Labyrinths of Meaning in Vanderlyn’s Ariadne.” In Picturing a Nation: Art and Social Change in Nineteenth-Century America. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994.

-------. Picturing a Nation: Art and Social Change in Nineteenth-Century America. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994.

Macaulay, David. Motel of the Mysteries. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1979.

-------. The New Way Things Work. Boston : Houghton Mifflin, 1998.

Martin, Ann Smart, and J. Ritchie Garrison, eds. American Material Culture: The Shape of the Field. Winterthur, Del. : Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum; Knoxville, Tenn.: Distributed by University of Tennessee Press, 1997.

Merrell, James H. “The Indians’ New World: The Catawba Experience.” In Material Life in America, 1600-1860, edited by Robert Blair St. George. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1988.*

Miller, Daniel. Material Culture and Mass Consumption. New York: B. Blackwell, 1987.

Molotch, Harvey. Where Stuff Comes From: How Toasters, Toilets, Cars, Computers, and Many Other Things Come to Be As They Are. New York: Routledge, 2005.

Norman, Donald. The Design of Everyday Things. New York: Doubleday, 1986.

Pearce, Susan M., ed. Museum Studies in Material Culture. London: Leicester University Press, 1989.

Pocius, Gerald L., ed. Living in a Material World. St. John’s, Newfoundland: Institute of Social and Economic Research, 1991.

Prown, Jules David. “Mind in Matter: An Introduction to Material Culture Theory and Method.” Winterthur Portfolio 17:1 (Spring 1982): 1-19.*

-------. “Style as Evidence.” Winterthur Portfolio 15:3 (Autumn 1980): 197-210.*

------- and Kenneth Haltman, eds. American Artifacts: Essays in Material Culture. East Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 2000.**

St. George, Robert B., ed. Material Life in America, 1600-1860. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1988.

Schlereth, Thomas J., ed. Material Culture: A Research Guide. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1985.

Schlereth, Thomas J., ed. Material Culture Studies in America. Nashville: American Association for State and Local History, 1982.**

Smith, Terry. Making the Modern: Industry, Art, and Design in America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

Thomas, Nicholas. Entangled Objects: Exchange, Material Culture, and Colonialism in the Pacific. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1991.

Tilley, Christopher, ed. Reading Material Culture: Structuralism, Hermeneutics and Post-Structuralism. Blackwell Publishers, 1990.

Trachtenberg, Alan. “Albums of War.” In Reading American Photographs: Images as History from Mathew Brady to Walker Evans. New York: Hill and Wang, 1989.

-------. Reading American Photographs: Images as History from Mathew Brady to Walker Evans. New York: Hill and Wang, 1989.

Wolkomir, Richard and Joyce. “Reading the Messages in Everyday Things.” Smithsonian 31:1 (April 2000): 75-80.

*on ereserve

**on reserve at UWT Library