FRENCH 350: "AFTER"
A COLLABORATION WITH THE UMMA
FRENCH 350 TOPICS: "AFTER"
A COLLABORATION WITH THE UMMA
In Fall 2022, I partnered with University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) to present an exhibit related to a new course of mine as part of a new initiative called Curriculum/Collection. The course, titled “After,” follows a model I developed a few years ago and that has proved quite successful. In courses such as “Waiting,” “Men at Work,” and “Caring,” for example, I start with a topic anchored in the everyday but that also raises larger social or philosophical questions. The idea is that works from French-speaking cultures may provide unique insights into issues that are relevant to my students’ lives. With “After,” I invited them to reflect on aftermath, trauma, consequences, guilt, and other such fun stuff!
Dave Choberka, a curator with the museum, helped me identify works of art from UMMA’s collections (painting drawings, photographs) with the potential to trigger interesting reflections and conversations on these questions. We also discussed how to devise activities and assignments using this exhibit and the museum’s entire collection. The result of this partnership was a selection of thought-provoking works on topics ranging from World War II and the AIDS epidemic to postindustrialization and the future of books.
The students and I visited the exhibit several times to discuss the work, and I also led a discussion with a group of visitors from the community for the museum’s Subject Matters afterhours series of events.
In Fall 2022, I partnered with University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) to present an exhibit related to a new course of mine as part of a new initiative called Curriculum/Collection. The course, titled “After,” follows a model I developed a few years ago and that has proved quite successful. In courses such as “Waiting,” “Men at Work,” and “Caring,” for example, I start with a topic anchored in the everyday but that also raises larger social or philosophical questions. The idea is that works from French-speaking cultures may provide unique insights into issues that are relevant to my students’ lives. With “After,” I invited them to reflect on aftermath, trauma, consequences, guilt, and other such fun stuff!
Dave Choberka, a curator with the museum, helped me identify works of art from UMMA’s collections (painting drawings, photographs) with the potential to trigger interesting reflections and conversations on these questions. We also discussed how to devise activities and assignments using this exhibit and the museum’s entire collection. The result of this partnership was a selection of thought-provoking works on topics ranging from World War II and the AIDS epidemic to postindustrialization and the future of books.
The students and I visited the exhibit several times to discuss the work, and I also led a discussion with a group of visitors from the community for the museum’s Subject Matters afterhours series of events.
In Fall 2022, I partnered with University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) to present an exhibit related to a new course of mine as part of a new initiative called Curriculum/Collection. The course, titled “After,” follows a model I developed a few years ago and that has proved quite successful. In courses such as “Waiting,” “Men at Work,” and “Caring,” for example, I start with a topic anchored in the everyday but that also raises larger social or philosophical questions. The idea is that works from French-speaking cultures may provide unique insights into issues that are relevant to my students’ lives. With “After,” I invited them to reflect on aftermath, trauma, consequences, guilt, and other such fun stuff!
Dave Choberka, a curator with the museum, helped me identify works of art from UMMA’s collections (painting drawings, photographs) with the potential to trigger interesting reflections and conversations on these questions. We also discussed how to devise activities and assignments using this exhibit and the museum’s entire collection. The result of this partnership was a selection of thought-provoking works on topics ranging from World War II and the AIDS epidemic to postindustrialization and the future of books.
The students and I visited the exhibit several times to discuss the work, and I also led a discussion with a group of visitors from the community for the museum’s Subject Matters afterhours series of events.
In Fall 2022, I partnered with University of Michigan Museum of Art (UMMA) to present an exhibit related to a new course of mine as part of a new initiative called Curriculum/Collection. The course, titled “After,” follows a model I developed a few years ago and that has proved quite successful. In courses such as “Waiting,” “Men at Work,” and “Caring,” for example, I start with a topic anchored in the everyday but that also raises larger social or philosophical questions. The idea is that works from French-speaking cultures may provide unique insights into issues that are relevant to my students’ lives. With “After,” I invited them to reflect on aftermath, trauma, consequences, guilt, and other such fun stuff!
Dave Choberka, a curator with the museum, helped me identify works of art from UMMA’s collections (painting drawings, photographs) with the potential to trigger interesting reflections and conversations on these questions. We also discussed how to devise activities and assignments using this exhibit and the museum’s entire collection. The result of this partnership was a selection of thought-provoking works on topics ranging from World War II and the AIDS epidemic to postindustrialization and the future of books. The students and I visited the exhibit several times to discuss the work, and I also led a discussion with a group of visitors from the community for the museum’s Subject Matters afterhours series of events.
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With your help, we can continue to open doors and minds. Learn how your gift can make a difference.
Every single gift matters in RLL. Your generosity allows RLL students to experience the world.
From funding to support international programs to events with leading scholars from around the world, RLL continues to create opportunities for students to explore the world around them and to prepare for their future as global citizens.
With your help, we can continue to open doors and minds. Learn how your gift can make a difference.
