Crash Course: The Future of Art History

Carnegie Museum of Art is running a four-part series called Crash Course: The Future of Art History throughout October, and it's set up so you can choose between coming in person or joining from home. The in-person sessions run Wednesdays, Oct. 7, 14, 21 and 28, from 1 to 2:30 PM in the museum's Art Theater in Oakland. If that doesn't work for you, there's a virtual option on Thursdays, Oct. 8, 15, 22 and 29, from 6 to 7:30 PM on Zoom. Both tracks cover the same material, just at different times and in different formats.

The series treats art history not as a fixed story you just memorize, but as an evolving conversation. Each session is led by one of the museum's curators, who builds their talk around the Carnegie's own collection. Every lecture focuses on a different area of the holdings, pairing key works with emerging perspectives and the questions that are currently shaping curatorial research and practice. It's less of a survey and more of a look at how the museum's curators are thinking about the art they live with every day.

Four curators take turns leading the sessions: John Tain, Director of Curatorial Affairs; Dr. Marie-Stéphanie Delamaire, Curator of European and American Art; Liz Park, Richard Armstrong Curator of Contemporary Art; and Dan Leers, Curator of Photography. Between them, they cover a wide stretch of the museum's collection, from the older European and American holdings to contemporary art and photography.

Registration is $160, which drops to $120 for Carnegie Museums members and $80 for seniors and students. That price includes a $5 parking rate on class days. You can sign up for the in-person sessions at the Art Theater in Oakland or the virtual ones on Zoom, depending on which schedule fits your October better.