University of St Andrews

Key information

SCOTCAT credits : 30

ECTS credits : 15

Level : SCQF level 11

Semester: 1

Planned timetable: To be arranged

This MLitt module will explore the complex relationship between photography and concepts of documentary and the document during the twentieth century, and into the twenty-first. It will address a range of issues and practices in relation to key socio-political events and ideas, from the emergence of documentary photography in the first half of the twentieth century, particularly in the US and Europe, through to the questioning and subversion of this legacy from the 1970s onwards, particularly in relationship to conceptual and performance art. We will address the changing relationship between photography and durational media such as film and video, as well as the impact of digital technology. By following the trajectory of various documents across the time-period, the module will enable us to address a range of geographic sites, together with photograph's role in mass reproduction and mediatisation on a global level, as well as trends in recent curatorial and exhibition practice.

Learning and teaching methods and delivery

Weekly contact: 1.5-hour seminar (x 11 weeks) and occasional fieldwork

Scheduled learning hours: 17

Guided independent study hours: 285

Assessment pattern

As used by St Andrews: Coursework = 100%

As defined by QAA
Written examinations : 0%
Practical examinations : 0%
Coursework: 100%

Re-assessment: An essay of 3,000 words

Personnel