Critical Discourse in Arts

This course is required for all MA Aesthetics & Politics students and is open to graduate students from across the whole Institute, space permitting. It centers on the Aesthetics and Politics Lecture Series, featuring a yearlong program of public events with a rotating theme determined each semester by the instructor.

The series includes lectures, debates, artist talks, film screenings, performances, and discussions on topics such as art, politics, media, philosophy, and architecture. Guest speakers meet with MA students in seminar sessions to discuss their work, with preparatory classes at CalArts structured around readings by or about the speakers. These sessions provide an opportunity for students to critically engage with numerous perspectives across disciplines and debates in contemporary aesthetic and political theory.