FYF@Innis Seminars

Shocking Artists, Shocking Art

Professor: Elizabeth Legge
Subject: Art History
Course Code: FAH198H1F

Seminar description

Art causes scandals for many reasons, provoking a range of consequences, including censorship, cuts to government funding of the arts or even destruction of the work in question.

In this course we will consider a number of kinds of art scandal arising from exhibition in public galleries and urban spaces, including those that have to do with legal issues such as plagiarism and vandalism; aesthetic objections on the part of the public, ranging from perceived obscenity to simple resentment of abstract art; racism; sacrilege; and political subversion, amongst others.

We will consider the work of artists including Chris Ofili, Joep van Lieshout, Paul McCarthy, Damien Hirst, Michael Snow, Sally Mann, Banksy, Rachel Whitebread, Richard Prince, Andres Serrano, Robert Mapplethorpe, Carl Andre, Maya Lin, and Jeff Koons, amongst others.

Get to know your professor

Elizabeth Legge

Picture of Elizabeth Legge

You can call me…

Professor, Prof

I just can't live without…

Coffee

I just can't live without…

Coffee

My hometown is…

Toronto, Ontario

For my undergraduate degree…

English at the University of Toronto, Art History at Cambridge (2 BAs!)

I am surprisingly good at…

Nothing I’m good at is really surprising.

Fun fact:

I met John Lennon.

If I wasn't teaching, I would be a…

I would open a tea room.

A fun fact about my field of study is…

Art history books have a lot of pictures.

In a sentence, what you’ll learn in my course:

Think about why people get more upset about art than about other social realities.

One of my favourite things about teaching first-year students is…

They are not yet specialized in a field, and so, bring diverse points of view to questions of art.

What I'm working on now is…

The representation of children in contemporary art.

Lately, something that has been exciting me about my research/scholarship is…

Learning about the aesthetics of cuteness.

A fun fact about my field of study is…

Because it extends into the present, the art that I deal with changes all the time.

I was inspired to get into this field because…

I like pictures. And I like looking closely at the visual environment.

My first-year seminar in five words:

In a sentence, what you’ll learn in my course:

You will learn how art can entertain, inform, and cause moral panics

One of my favourite things about teaching first-year students is…

Having a conversation about the many ways of understanding art and what it does.

My best advice for those starting their first year…

Try to find out what interests you!

NAME: Chelsea Rochman.

INNIS FYF SEMINAR I WILL BE TEACHING IN 2020-2021: EEB197H1S Biodiversity and the city

HOMETOWN: Tucson, Arizona.

THE LAST GREAT MOVIE I SAW WAS: Coco :)

MY ACTUAL FAVOURITE MOVIE: hmmmm… not sure.

THE SONG I HAVE ON REPEAT RIGHT NOW: CSNY, Judy Blue Eyes.

FAVOURITE FOOD: Pickles & gummy candy.

GUILTY PLEASURE: Gummy worms & other gummy candy.

I AM SURPRISINGLY VERY GOOD AT: Multi-tasking.

A FUN FACT ABOUT MYSELF: I have 2 sisters named Berrye.

MY FAVOURITE THING ABOUT TEACHING: Keeping up with the knowledge.

WHY YOU SHOULD TAKE MY CLASS: So you can see the nature behind the concrete in our city.

WHAT I WANT MY STUDENTS TO KNOW: We live in the Carolinian forest.

A COOL FACT ABOUT MY FIELD OF STUDY: There are just as many freshwater fish species as marine.

SOME FINAL WORDS: The waste hierarchy is a good rule to live by.

Good to know

Pre-requisites: none
Co-requisites: none
Exclusions: none
Recommended Preparation: none
Breadth: Creative & Cultural Representations (1)
CR/NCR: Not eligible for CR/NCR option
Restrictions: Restricted to first-year students

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You can enrol in courses on a first-come, first-served basis during regular course registration.

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Need more info about FYF@Innis seminars? Not sure which seminar is right for you? We can help!

programs.innis@utoronto.ca
416-946-7107