Why is the way we interpret and understand Courbet today different from the way we did in 1977, the year of the last big Courbet retrospective?  Partly it is because our notions about art have changed, but more specifically, it is because the art of today makes us see the art of the past with different eyes, think about it with different minds. A “post-modernist” Courbet intrigues Professor Linda Nochlin rather than a pre-modernist one. It is not the line from Courbet’s waves to Jackson Pollock’s abstractions that she wants to follow—a false trail if ever there was one! — but that leading from John Currin’s diggers back to Courbet’s stonebreakers. Courbet reacted to, or against, his own past.  He created his own revolution about what painting could or could not do, how painting could be involved with the world. This involved knocking over some of the icons of the recent past, as he was accused of doing quite literally in the case of the toppling of the Vendome Column.  Courbet’s example is as important now as it was then, in terms of formal achievement and political bravado. His work needs to be read from a new perspective.

Dr. Linda Nochlin is currently the Lila Acheson Wallace Professor of Modern Art at the Institute of Fine Arts/New York University, where she earned her doctorate in Art History in 1963. Nochlin also taught at Yale University, the University Center of the City University of New York and at Vassar College.  She is known widely for her work on Courbet and her ground-breaking 1971 article, "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?",  which is considered the advent of feminist art history and criticism.  Nochlin has written numerous books and articles on the social and political history of art, such as Representing Women, The Body in Pieces, Women, Art, and Power, and The Politics of Vision. She co-curated the exhibition “Global Feminisms” at the Brooklyn Museum in 2007, the year in which her book, Courbet was published.  Nochlin has been the recipient of numerous honors, including the Frank Jewett Mather Prize for Critical Writing and a Guggenheim Fellowship, and an NEH fellowship,  among others. “Self and History: A Symposium in Honor of Linda Nochlin” was presented at New York University in April of 1999 to acknowledge her contributions to her students and to modern art history. She is also a Contributing Editor of Art in America.

For information on the Department of Art History, Theory, and Criticism at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and for a list of previous Lifton lecturers, see our website.

Pirates of Penzance auditions will occur on Monday, November 10 from 6:00 PM-10:30 PM on the Mullady Stage with callbacks occuring on Tuesday, November 11 from 6:00 PM-10:30 PM.

We ask that auditionees prepare a solo section of a Gilbert & Sullivan piece that shows as much vocal range as possible. Vocal auditions should not be longer than one minute. Due to the specific vocal demands of the show, we ask that students refrain from using contemporary musical pieces. An accompanist will be provided, however you must bring your own sheet music. Auditions can not be longer than one minute.

In addition to these auditions, a fight workshop will occur on Saturday, October 18 in Mundelein Auditorium. The workshop will be broken up into two groups of twenty. The first group will work from 12:00 PM-2:00 PM and the second group will work from 2:00 PM-4:00 PM. This workshop is only offered to students auditioning for Pirates of Penzance and is highly encouraged. Bear in mind that space is limited for the workshop. Please note that not participating in the fight workshop does NOT exclude you from consideration for Pirates of Penzance.

Sign-up sheets are located in the Theatre Hallway across from Joe Glueckert's office.

If there are any questions please feel free to e-mail stage manager Pat Fries (pfries@luc.edu).

Shakespeare Theater
You are invited to a Tech Run-Through of The Troublesome Reign and Lamentable Death of Edward the Second, King of England, with the Tragical Fall of Proud Mortimer happening this Sunday at 6:00 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Previews do not begin until October 1st, so it will still be in the final rehearsal phases. Should you also want to attend a preview or regular performance, all remaining tickets are only $20. But this is your chance to see it for FREE!!! If you would like to attend, please RSVP via email. 
 
"Shakespeare's brilliant contemporary and rival playwright, Christopher Marlowe, penned Edward II at the end of his brief life. Now, his vicious exploration of power and persuasion explodes on to the stage in this innovative promenade production, directed by The Hypocrites' Sean Graney, where standing audience members are able—and encouraged—to move freely about the playing area throughout the 75-minute performance. Edward II marks a CST debut for both Marlowe and Graney."