The field art is a system of intersecting theories, actors, techniques, histories, and ideologies. This course examines New York City’s art scene through visits to museums, galleries, and alternative exhibition spaces. Each week, students will visit an assigned exhibition, which will serve as the basis for collective discussion and critical reflection in the following seminar. Through close looking, group discussions, and comparative analysis, we will consider how artworks and exhibitions both reflect and shape broader artistic, historical, cultural, and social contexts.The course will engage a broad range of contemporary and twentieth-century art, with particular attention to curatorial practices, institutional frameworks, and the relationships between artists, galleries, museums, and their publics. Students will develop their capacities for visual analysis through dialogic participation, short critical writing assignments, and a final critical review paper.