ARTH 352 Studies of the History of Fibre Art: Fibre Arts in Canada

• Instrucotr: Victoria Macbeath

Fibre art practices in Canada have, for the past 150 years, been instrumentalized towards nationalist and touristic goals as well as the maintenance of regional identities, community initiatives, and concepts of place-making. This course will therefore consider the institutions, people, and places that have shaped fibre art in what is now known as Canada. Each lecture will take up distinct practices from across the country — such as rag rug hooking, Chilkat weaving, and split ash basketmaking — to consider the ways that fibre art practices circulate nationally and globally through Canada. The course takes up a wide conception of the 'fibre arts' in this country, asking students to consider the ways in which political, social, and economic value have shaped the history of fibre-related practices. In doing so, the course traces the impacts of modernism, tourism, labour issues, colonialism, language politics, and racism on this country's artistic output. 

Through reviews of art books, annotation assignments, and a final research paper, students will gain fundamental research skills in navigating and accessing alternative archives. Students will additionally build skills in writing and thinking about fibre arts that are particularly attuned to the material and tactile nature of the objects. As this course is informed by sources from a wide variety of disciplines (material culture, folklore, anthropology, art history, sociology), students will also develop analytic and research skills in interdisciplinary scholarship.