Minimalism/ Institutional Critique/Conceptual—Judd, Flavin, Serra, Agnes
Denis, Lewitt, Haacke, Agnes Martin, Houshiary and others
Beginning with the early paintings of Frank Stella and boxes of Donald Judd, unit 7 charts the complicated path of minimalism from object to environment. Minimalism is presented as a powerful language of geometric abstraction that morphs into different practices. The object in space leads to institutional critique or an exposé of the museum as corporate space. Benjamin Buchloh’s writings on Hans Haacke and Dan Graham are problematized and the politics of the museum and corporate patronage are debated. The rise of conceptual art and the critique of art’s commodity status are engaged here.
