Art and Intersectionality

Intersectionality is a framework for understanding how aspects of a person's identity intertwine in relation to structures of power and privilege. These include aspects of intersectionality such as gender, race, class, sexuality, religion, physical and cognitive ability and appearance, etc. In this course students study art and visual culture from the perspective of intersectionality, where images and objects become contested sites of power, privilege and oppression. Through case studies, students explore how representations of various intersectionalities in art have traditionally expressed and reinforced cultural stereotypes in particular historical moments. Students also look at ways in which art has functioned to critique these stereotypes and challenge the status quo.