HAD-493P Pratt in London: Design on Site

3 Credits

  • HAD-493P-01

    Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday

    10:00 am – 2:00 pm

    Off Campus, CAMP

Taking place in London and its environs, this three-credit course offers a full-scale immersion in British decorative arts, design, and material culture from the 18th century to the present. Through in person lectures, seminars, and guided visits, it considers an array of media - including interiors, furniture, landscapes, textiles, ceramics, metalwork, fashion, graphic design, and more - within the broader cultural and social contexts of gender, race, and class. Pratt in London: Design considers British design and the idea of 'Britishness' within broad, global, contexts. Visits, readings, and discussions situate London as a long-established global nexus vis a vis imperialism, trade, colonialism, extraction, and cultural exchange that reshaped cultural, social, political, and aesthetic networks. Assignments encourage students to think broadly about the ways art and design can serve as evidence and entry points into larger debates about the nature of globalization and its material legacies. Students will also participate in and generate dialogues about curatorial practice and museology and interact with local scholars and curators, further enhancing their experience of design in situ.