visible publics

Suppose there was art - and nobody showed up: a museum void of visitors, a concert without a crowd, graffiti that no one ever sees. Audiences are not a by-product of art; instead, their roles are an integral part of the works (and institutions) themselves. In galleries and in theaters, on pages and online, regardless of context or media, art overwhelmingly makes a play to be acknowledged as a creative endeavor, for which feedback is key.

Borrowing its title from Sarah Rifky’s 2010 exhibition Invisible Publics, this course aims to demystify art spaces and to uncover the structures that are unique to our personal perception of art. We will find our points of entry by discussing frankly why we may feel uncomfortable or out of place in art spaces or when it comes to certain art works, but also why we we think we like the things that we do. We will explore the underlying political, economic, historical structures that have helped form these viewpoints.