Austin Porter's classes explore American art, politics and culture. His primary research interest is American art and visual culture during the 1930s and 1940s. He also teaches courses on postwar contemporary art that examine the expanding international art scene. His other research and teaching interests include the history of photography and graphic design and African American art and culture.
Prior to his career in academia, Austin worked in advertising and later as a designer in an art museum, where he assisted with the creation of exhibitions and publications. Before arriving at Kenyon, Austin held fellowships with the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the American Council of Learned Societies and the Raymond J. Horowitz Foundation. He has taught classes on the history of art and photography at Boston University, the Rhode Island School of Design, the Art Institute of Boston and the Kansas City Art Institute. His current research examines the relationship between…
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Austin Porter's classes explore American art, politics and culture. His primary research interest is American art and visual culture during the 1930s and 1940s. He also teaches courses on postwar contemporary art that examine the expanding international art scene. His other research and teaching interests include the history of photography and graphic design and African American art and culture.
Prior to his career in academia, Austin worked in advertising and later as a designer in an art museum, where he assisted with the creation of exhibitions and publications. Before arriving at Kenyon, Austin held fellowships with the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., the American Council of Learned Societies and the Raymond J. Horowitz Foundation. He has taught classes on the history of art and photography at Boston University, the Rhode Island School of Design, the Art Institute of Boston and the Kansas City Art Institute. His current research examines the relationship between American artists and the U.S. government during World War II.
Areas of Expertise
American Art and Visual Culture, Art and Government, Modern and Contemporary Art
Education
2013 — Doctor of Philosophy from Boston University
2007 — Master of Arts from University of Kansas
2002 — Bachelor of Fine Arts from Kansas State Univ
Courses Recently Taught
AMST 378D
Topics in American Art
AMST 378D
This course will explore specific problems in American art and architecture. Topics include Modernism and the Great Depression, World War II and Abstract Expressionism and the relationship between art and politics broadly speaking. When possible, students will utilize regional museum collections. Assignments will include seminar reports, class discussion and a research paper. This counts as an advanced course for the Art History major. This course is the same as ARHS 378D. This course must be taken as ARHS 378D to count towards the fine arts requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111, 227D, AMST 109 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
AMST 378D
Harlem Ren. Art
AMST 378D
This course will explore specific problems in American art and architecture. Topics include Modernism and the Great Depression, World War II and Abstract Expressionism and the relationship between art and politics broadly speaking. When possible, students will utilize regional museum collections. Assignments will include seminar reports, class discussion and a research paper. This counts as an advanced course for the Art History major. This course is the same as ARHS 378D. This course must be taken as ARHS 378D to count towards the fine arts requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111, 227D, AMST 109 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
AMST 381
Senior Seminar in American Studies
AMST 381
The course will provide a setting for guided student advanced work in American studies. The participants will work collaboratively to assist one another in the development of individual research projects that represent the synthesis of the six courses they have crafted for the major in American studies. The course is required of all American studies senior majors and concentrators. Permission of instructor required. No prerequisite.
AMST 493
IS: The Utility of Picturebook
AMST 493
Individual study is an exceptional opportunity available to junior or senior majors who find that the ordinary course offerings at Kenyon do not meet their needs for the major. Individual study may be taken only for 0.5 units of credit. Students must have the prior approval of the department chair in order to apply to enroll in an individual study. The student must present a detailed reading list and syllabus, including a schedule of assignments/projects and due dates, to the American studies faculty member with whom they choose to work. The faculty member who agrees to supervise and direct the individual study will confirm the syllabus and schedule in writing to the director of the program. The student project must culminate in a public presentation. The overall evaluation is a combination of student self-evaluation and faculty assessment of the student’s performance, both of which will be reported to the department chair along with the final grade assigned in the course. Because students must enroll for individual studies by the end of the seventh class day of each semester, they should begin discussion of the proposed individual study preferably the semester before, so that there is time to devise the proposal and seek departmental approval before the registrar’s deadline.
ARHS 111
Survey of Art, Part II
ARHS 111
This course will survey art and architecture from the Renaissance to the present. Framing the study of art history within a social context, this course will provide students with the tools for understanding style and interpreting meaning in individual works of art. Although this is a lecture format, discussion is encouraged. Requirements include quizzes, exams and short papers. This counts as a required introductory course for the major. No prerequisite. Offered every semester.
ARHS 227D
American Art to 1900
ARHS 227D
This course presents an overview of painting, sculpture and architecture from colonial times to 1900. It frames the development of American art and architecture within a broad sociohistorical context and addresses many of the issues pertinent to American studies. The following questions, among others, will be addressed in the course: Does American culture have a single, identifiable character? How have Americans reconciled their uneasy relationship with European culture? How have American political values, such as freedom, liberty and democracy, informed the cultural expression of the 18th and 19th centuries? This course is the same as AMST 227D. This course must be taken as ARHS 227D to count towards the fine arts requirement. This counts as an intermediate-level course for the major and satisfies the Modern Art major requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111, AMST 109 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
ARHS 228
History of Photography
ARHS 228
This course surveys the history of photography from the medium's invention in the 1830s to the present. Key issues will include the manner in which photography functions as documentary evidence, demonstrates technological innovation, and is used as a means for artistic creativity. The role of digital imagery, social media, and the internet will also be addressed. Through lectures, critical readings, class presentations and discussions, students will develop a comprehensive understanding of the history of the medium within specific historical and cultural contexts. A particular emphasis will be placed on the social history of photography in an international context. This counts as an intermediate-level course for the major and satisfies the Modern Art major requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
ARHS 230
Modern Art I: Impressionism to Surrealism
ARHS 230
This course will focus on the evolution of modernism as an artistic practice and the emergence of the avant-garde as a social and political formation in Europe between 1880 and 1945. Among the themes to be considered are the relationship between art and technology, the cultural implications of "primitivism," and the significance of abstract and nonrepresentational art to modern expression. This counts as an intermediate-level course for the major and satisfies the Modern Art major requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 110, 111 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
ARHS 231
Modern Art II: Art in the Era of the Cold War
ARHS 231
Beginning with abstract expressionism, this course will critically address the development of high modernism in New York after World War II, analyze its nearly hegemonic position in cultural expression in the 1950s, and trace the resistance to this artistic ideology with the emergence of pop art and other artistic movements, such as minimalism, conceptual art and feminist art. This counts as an intermediate-level course for the major and satisfies the Modern Art major requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 110, 111 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
ARHS 245
Contemporary Art and Society
ARHS 245
Beginning with Postmodernism, this course examines the primary themes of the expanding contemporary art scene since the late 20th century. Issues and movements addressed include installation art, neo-Expressionism, graffiti art, conceptual art and theory, performance and video art, the AIDS crisis and identity politics, and the globalized art market. The relationship between art and social issues is emphasized. As we will address a fairly short period of time, this course will combine a chronological and thematic approach. This counts as an intermediate-level course for the major and satisfies the Modern Art major requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111 or equivalent. Offered every other year. \n
ARHS 291
ST: Contmp. Art & Society
ARHS 291
ARHS 291
ST: African American Art
ARHS 291
ARHS 291
ST: Contemporary Art & Society
ARHS 291
ARHS 291
ST: African-American Art
ARHS 291
ARHS 371
Museum Studies
ARHS 371
This seminar serves as an introduction to the field of museum studies. Consisting primarily of readings, discussions, assigned papers and special projects, the course will historicize the role of the museum, analyze the nature of the museum audience and study the representation and display of different cultures. This counts as an advanced course for the major. Prerequisite: ARHS 111 or equivalent and sophomore standing. Offered every other year.
ARHS 378
American Art during the Great Depression
ARHS 378
The 1929 economic crash resulted in an international crisis that continued for a decade until World War II. This seminar examines how American artists responded not only to Wall Street's financial collapse, but also to the rise of European fascism and the widespread drought that ravaged the Midwest during the 1930s. Students will examine a range of media, including easel painting and murals, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and film. Topics include government art patronage, modernism, documentary art, political art and activism, and advertising and popular culture. Prerequisite: ARHS 111, AMST 109, or permission of instructor.
ARHS 378D
Topics in American Art
ARHS 378D
This course will explore specific problems in American art and architecture. Topics include Modernism and the Great Depression, World War II and Abstract Expressionism and the relationship between art and politics broadly speaking. When possible, students will utilize regional museum collections. Assignments will include seminar reports, class discussion and a research paper. This counts as an advanced course for the Art History major. This course is the same as ARHS 378D. This course must be taken as ARHS 378D to count towards the fine arts requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111, 227D, AMST 109 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
ARHS 378D
Harlem Ren. Art
ARHS 378D
This course will explore specific problems in American art and architecture. Topics include Modernism and the Great Depression, World War II and Abstract Expressionism and the relationship between art and politics broadly speaking. When possible, students will utilize regional museum collections. Assignments will include seminar reports, class discussion and a research paper. This counts as an advanced course for the Art History major. This course is the same as ARHS 378D. This course must be taken as ARHS 378D to count towards the fine arts requirement. Prerequisite: ARHS 111, 227D, AMST 109 or equivalent. Offered every other year.
HIST 291
ST: African-American Art
HIST 291
HIST 391
ST: WWII and American Culture
HIST 391
HIST 491
ST: Depicting Democracy
HIST 491