Instructor: Richard Friswell

Classes: Thursdays from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
September 19, 26, October 3, 10, & 17

One feature of 19^th century romantic art and literature is the emergence of the Gothic novel. Gothic fiction recalled bygone days, the medieval period when landscapes were inhabited with ruined castles, foggy heaths and damsels in distress. In the face of science and reason, writers could explore a simpler world when forces of good and evil, supernatural powers and mysterious occurrences could once more be considered as legitimate. Writers were free to imagine the effects that an untethered, Enlightenment-era scientific revolution might have on the course of humanity. Works by Milton, Radcliffe, Shelly, Lord Byron, H.G. Wells, Stoker, Poe and others will be considered, as well as a perspective offered on contemporaneous art, music and 20^th century film treatments.

Cost: $125.00 for members │ $150.00 for non-members

• The walk-in price for individual classes is $35 members / $40 non-members.
• No seat substitutes if you are unable to attend class.

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Richard J. Friswell, M.Ed., M.Phil, is a cultural historian and associate director of Wesleyan University’s Institute for Lifelong Learning. He is publisher and managing editor of ARTES magazine, a fine arts publication. He is an elected member of the International Art Critics Association, and author of a collection of autobiographical short stories, Balancing Act: Postcards from the Edge of Risk and Reward. Friswell lectures and speaks widely on topics of modernism, its art, literature and history.

Instructor: Joseph Alchermes, PhD

Classes: Thursdays from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
November 7, 14, 21, December 5 & 12

Working mainly with ancient Roman sculpture and wall paintings, this course will analyze how the Romans represented themselves, whether directly in portraiture or implicitly in carved or painted narratives, myth scenes and landscapes. As we investigate the factors that shaped these modes of self-presentation, we will consider the effects of the images, first on their initial audiences and then on later viewers.

Cost: $125.00 for members │ $150.00 for non-members

• The walk-in price for individual classes is $35 members / $40 non-members.
• No seat substitutes if you are unable to attend class.

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Joseph Alchermes’ main research interests range from the Roman and Early Christian world to the art and architecture of the Byzantine Empire with links to western Europe. He teaches a comparably broad array of courses, from the survey of ancient and medieval art to specialized investigations of Roman, eastern and western medieval, and Islamic art and architecture. Alchermes has published articles and book chapters on diverse topics such as art and architecture in the age of the Emperor Justinian, the urban scheme of medieval Constantinople, architectural reuse in Late Roman cities, settlements and land use in medieval Greece, and an essay and numerous entries in “The Glory of Byzantium,” the catalogue of a major exhibition held at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Current projects include a book on ancient Naples and archaeological field work at several sites in southwestern mainland Greece.

Instructor: Karen Gonzalez Rice, PhD

Classes: Thursdays from 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
January 16, 23, 30, February 6 & 13

Before it became a hip buzzword for living with less, Minimalism was an art world phenomenon that shifted the landscape of contemporary art.  Responding to the excesses of both Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art, Minimalist artists worked with pared-down forms, tools, and materials.  They created a new kind of artistic practice that emphasized repetition and simplicity.  In addition, many Minimal artists sought to move art beyond the gallery—to take art outside into urban and rural landscapes—as a way of creating more accessible, more democratic audience experiences.  In this class, we will grapple with the mixed results of Minimalist experiments and explore artworks both abstract and concrete, inviting and confusing, egalitarian and elite.  While Minimalism has often been represented in art history as white and male, in this class we will consider Minimalist artists with diverse identities and explore contradictory practices within the movement from an inclusive perspective.  In the spirit of Minimalism, we will engage with our subject beyond the museum and make use of the rich resources of Minimalist art in and around New London.

Cost: $125.00 for members │ $150.00 for non-members

• The walk-in price for individual classes is $35 members / $40 non-members.
• No seat substitutes if you are unable to attend class.

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Karen Gonzalez Rice’s approach to teaching and research is multidisciplinary, drawing on methodologies of contemporary art history, religious studies, American studies and trauma studies. Her courses at Connecticut College include Late 20th-Century Art, Seeing: Mona Lisa to Instagram, and upper-level courses such as Pop Art & Critical Visual Culture, and Radical Bodies: Contemporary Art & Action.