Topics in 19th-Century Art

Artistic technologies, politics, and definitions of the arts all changed dramatically over the course of the nineteenth century in the Indian subcontinent. In this course, students will gain an overview of arts of South Asia (primarily present-day India, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka) during one of the most complex periods of the region’s history. We will examine how the breakdown of the Mughal empire and Maratha confederacy, establishment of British colonial control, and emerging anti-colonial movements reshaped not only political geographies but also artistic production and patronage. We will consider both new and traditional media and forms (including photography, lithography, painting, and weaving) and how nineteenth century collecting and scholarship shaped the canon and theories of South Asian arts that persist today.

Instructor: A. Behan