Decolonized History of Art - Full Course Package

Across 24 live online sessions (from mid-January to late April), the course Decolonized History of Art: Global Narratives from 1900 to the Present aims to realise one of the first sustained efforts to trace modern and contemporary art from a truly global perspective.

Participants will engage with an expansive and diverse range of artistic practices, including anti-colonial modernist movements of South Asia such as the Bengal School of Art and the Calcutta Group; Black diasporic modernisms, including the Harlem Renaissance and Caribbean avant-garde circles; Mexican and Chilean muralism, Brazilian Neo-Concretism, and the Anthropophagic movement; and modernist and calligraphic experimentation in North Africa and West Asia, exemplified by the Baghdad Modern Art Group and Algerian avant-garde circles. Postwar experimental collectives in East and Southeast Asia, such as Gutai, Mono-ha, and Dansaekhwa, are also examined, alongside pan-African cultural movements, experiences like the Kinshasa School, as well as the Hurufiyya movement and abstract modernism in West Asia. The course further explores Indigenous artistic expressions – including the work of Andean indigenist artists like José Sabogal, Julia Codesido, and Camilo Egas in Latin America and Rover Thomas and Emily Kam Kngwarray in Australia, as well as the political use of folklore in collectives like Las Arpilleras in Latin America – bringing these practices to light within broader art historical narratives. At the same time, the traditional Western trajectory of contemporary art is addressed – from early avant-garde movements such as Futurism and Constructivism, through the Neo-Avant-Garde with Abstract Expressionism and Fluxus, to Postmodernism and the present – critically addressing their colonial and often ambiguous elements. Full program details available HERE.

Guided by leading scholars and curators including Ute Meta Bauer, Nicolas Bourriaud, Tandazani Dhlakama, Charles Esche, Raphael Chikukwa, Gaudêncio Fidelis, Beáta Hock, Viktor Misiano, Morad Montazami, Samantha A. Noël, Anda Rottenberg, Shukla Sawant, Nada Shabout, R. Siva Kumar, Midori Yoshimoto, among others, the course strives to generate a unified yet plural history of art, examining and bringing together the diverse art histories that have developed across regions and periods and revealing the complexity of global artistic production.

The program is designed to be accessible both live and on-demand. Recordings of the lessons are available through a dedicated link for up to three months after the end of the course. An online community extends the learning experience beyond individual sessions, fostering discussion and exchange among participants from around the world.

Course Objectives:

• Provide a structured overview of key modern and contemporary art movements that emerged across different regions of the world, showing how they developed, interacted, and contributed to shaping a global history of art beyond traditional Western narratives;
• Strengthen participants’ ability to read artworks within their historical and cultural contexts, enabling informed comparisons between global modernisms and a clearer understanding of their impact on contemporary artistic practices.

Who it’s for:

Students, teachers, museum professionals, curators, cultural workers, and anyone looking to expand their understanding of modern and contemporary art.

Schedule & format:

• January 17 → April 22
• Wednesdays at 6 PM CET and Saturdays at 3 PM CET (two 2-hour session per week)
• Live on Zoom (recordings and additional materials included)
• Lessons are held in English.

Enrollment:

• Full course (24 lessons): €350*
• Early Bird: €250 (until December 28)
• Reduced rates: €180 for students under 26, €220 for teachers, €180 for residents of lower-middle and lower income countries (see which countries qualify).
• Single sessions: €25/ €18 for students under 26 each & residents of lower-middle and lower income countries.

Specific discounts are available for associations, universities, museums with specific interests on decolonization in art and related matters – please write to decolonizedart.subscriptions@institution.it.

*Upon enrolling in the full package, all previous recordings will be available.