With its vast array of institutions dedicated to distinct cultural groupings and its formation inextricably linked to the halls of power, the museum culture in our nation’s capitol is uniquely Washington D.C. Taking advantage of behind-the- scenes access to some of the most prestigious museums in the world and their staff, students will explore various approaches to interpreting art and will develop tools for appreciating their aesthetic experiences. We will also look critically at the ways in which museums—through their policies, programs, exhibitions, and architecture—can define regional or national values, shape cultural attitudes, inform social and political views, and even effect one’s understanding of the meaning of a work of art. Starting our class at The Phillips Collection, America’s first museum of modern art, we will visit other pioneering private and public museums both old and new and have the opportunity to meet with staff members actively involved in different activities. We will explore the collections, learn about the inner workings of the exhibition process, and investigate the diverse educational missions these museums fulfill. Against the backdrop of the Capitol Building where legislation is made influencing museums on the National Mall and beyond, we will examine the political sides of this cultural history and the unusual array of institutions that have been legislated into existence, specifically museums dedicated to defined constituencies.
Study of the American presidency, its origins, and roles, including those of commander in chief; director of foreign policy; leader in legislation, administration, and party affairs; manager of the economy; and dispenser of social justice. The president is also viewed as a decision maker and compared with the heads of other governments. Readings include the works of presidents and their associates, analytical commentaries by observers of the presidency, and biographies.
Topics: analysis of mechanisms of influence (selection of sympathetic incumbents, the provision of incentives for public officials, and the provision of information); objects of influence (voter choices, legislative behavior, bureaucratic decisions); collective action; and organizational maintenance.
The Black Atlantic considered as a socio-cultural and economic space from the 15th-century first arrival of Africans in the ’New World,’ through the rise of slavery in the Americas, continuing on to slave emancipation and decolonization in the 19th and 20th centuries, and concluding with contemporary black life in the Atlantic world. Traces the origins and importance of the concept of the Black Atlantic in the context of European imperial expansion and the transformation of indigenous structures of governance in the Americas, paying special attention to shifting social relations that shaped community formation among people of African descent and laid the foundations for political and economic institutions. Topics include: civilization, slavery, colonialism, capitalism, freedom, and justice, approached through focused engagement with African enslavement and settlement in Africa and the Americas; the development of transatlantic racial capitalism; variations in politics and culture between empires in the Atlantic world; creolization, plantation slavery, and slave society; the politics and culture of the enslaved; the Haitian Revolution; slave emancipation; and contemporary black Atlantic politics and racial capitalism.
A site for IMA NY Students to find equivalent courses outside of IMA NY
For most students joining IMA in Fall 2022 and beyond, our new program structure affects the categorization of courses on this site.
Classes listed in the "IMA Major Electives" categories refer to the old IMA program structure. If you're under the new IMA program structure, these courses count as general IMA Electives.
You can still search the Interchange for most of your courses. You can find "IMA Major Distribution" courses listed here: