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WRITING (L13) (Dept. Info)

Arts & Sciences (Policies)

L13 Writing 205

Writing the Visual World

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Art, like writing, is a form of storytelling. Yet while writers and artists set out with a purpose-a clear vision and intention-those motives may change or evolve throughout the creative process. In "Bird by Bird," for instance, Anne Lamott likens the writing process to "watching a Polaroid develop." As a writer, she claims, "[y]ou can't-and, in fact, you're not supposed to-know exactly what the picture is going to look like until it has finished developing." It is only after "the portrait comes into focus, [that] you begin to notice all the props surrounding these people, and you begin to understand how props define us and comfort us, and show us what we value and what we need, and who we think we are." Likewise, in "At Work," Annie Leibovitz recalls staging the portrait of John Lennon and Yoko Ono in "their apartment in the Dakota early in December" of 1980. Initially, Leibovitz had a clear vision and mission in mind; she conceived of the photo as a moment of stolen intimacy: "a simple kiss in a jaded time." But everything changed in an instant-in the blink of an eye. That night, Lennon was shot and killed while returning to the Dakota. In retrospect, recounts Leibovitz, the portrait "looks like a last kiss." This is a course about stories and storytelling. What stories do creators (writers, artists, architects, advertisers, filmmakers) set out to tell? What meaning do they convey through their work, their craft? What is their vision, their intention? What meaning do we-as thinkers, readers, viewers, and spectators-find in or impose upon their art? What stories do we tell and what stories are we told? Throughout this course, students will explore these (and other) questions by drawing from a wide range of discourse communities and genres, including (but not limited to) art history, psychology, sociology, fiction, and nonfiction. Readings and assignments are designed to enhance students' awareness of the relationship between the written, visual, and performative arts. Writing assignments will enable students to explore the visual world and their personal interest in related subjects (such as art, architecture, and iconicity). The course includes three nonfiction essays (memoir, reflective, lyrical, and/or literary journalistic) and four paired reading and writing responses. Students will have some choice in selecting from a range of reading and writing responses, designed to help foster critical thinking and creative writing skills (from performative and experimental to persuasive and analytical). This course does not count toward the Creative Writing Concentration.

A&S IQ: HUM Arch: HUM Art: CPSC, HUM BU: HUM EN: H

Instruction Type:

N/A

Every 1 or 2 Years / History

Building / Room

01

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11:30A-12:50P
11:30A-12:50P

Remote / LA
January Hall / 10A

Daniels

Paper/Project/TakeHome

15

12

0

Desc:

Tuesdays are required in-person meetings. Thursday class sessions will take place synchronously over Zoom.

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