University of Edinburgh

Develop and consolidate the department's interests in Latin American modernism in order to revise Edinburgh's teaching of modernism. GLAADH provided funds for a short visit to Mexico DF in 2003, to visit key architectural sites and photograph them. A major new body of images would be created, to be made available to students. GLAADH encouraged RW to revise existing teaching on modernism by incorporating the new material.

Where the new material was incorporated

(i) 'The Contemporary City'

Honours course, 30 students, autumn of 2003. This course, which had dealt with exclusively US and European urban theory in its first incarnation (2001), was revised to include material from both Mexico and Brazil. Images of Mexico DF, Rio de Janeiro, and Brasília were used extensively to introduce and develop the themes of modernism in the built environment, and public art. There were essay and exam questions on Brazil, which produced some high quality work.

(ii) 'High and Low in Modern Art'

A second year lecture series, which had previously only made use of European and US material. In terms of student numbers this was the most public presentation of the new material, with around 200 students in each lecture.

(iii) Research training for MSc students

Taught masters, 15 students, 2003. I presented my GLAADH work in detail as part of a discussion of the art historical canon

(iv) 'Critical Thinking'

First and second year History of Art course, 250 students each year. The introduction of CT marks the first comprehensive theory and methodology programme at Edinburgh. I conceived and wrote the programme, which is delivered by most academic staff. The GLAADH work on curriculum change informs the lectures on the canon, geography and national identity in year 1.

(v) postgraduate research

Student take-up of revised courses

This is only really measurable on the Honours course 'The Contemporary City' which ran in the autumn of 2003. 30 students took this course, the highest take-up of any honours course at the time - although this is also typical of courses in the modern and contemporary fields.

Student feedback

Feedback has been in general very positive. Students taking 'The Contemporary City' were genuinely intrigued, if sometimes puzzled, by the Latin American material I included. The material that provoked the most discussion was Brasília (all of it) and the Torres de Ciudad Satélite by Luis Barragán, a monumental public sculpture in Mexico city. Images of both helped identify the idea that there were concepts of modernity in Latin America that are very different those in Europe and the US.

Stand-alone course

The stand-alone course described has not been implemented. See under 'assessment' below for comments.

Further progress

(i) AHRB and University of Edinburgh grants

The GLAADH project undoubtedly helped consolidate the department's interest in Latin America, and helped secure two grants in 2004 to enable further work on Brazil. The grants totalled £10,000, and will be spent during 2004-6.

(ii) Consolidation of non-Western teaching at Edinburgh

During 2002-4 History of Art at Edinburgh underwent the most profound change for 120 years (amalgamation with three other departments, semesterization, relocation, reinvention of its entire curriculum). It is now at the beginning of a process of staff renewal, and will make new appointments in Chinese and Asian art during 2005. I have supported this with reference to my own work.

(iii) Appointment of Brazilian specialist in Hispanic Studies

A Brazilian specialist was appointed in the subject area of Hispanic Studies in September 2004. We are in discussion about possible areas of collaboration, including teaching at honours and postgraduate levels.

(iv) Expansion of postgraduate numbers

As postgraduate director, I have overseen an increase of 30% in postgraduate numbers during 2002-4. I have 2 students now using Latin American material as reference points, and I hope to recruit 2-3 postgrads during the coming year to work exclusively on Brazilian material. Grant applications to support this will be made in early 2005, drawing on success with GLAADH, AHRB, and internal grants.

Assessment

Overall the GLAADH sub-project has been worthwhile: History of Art has gained several hundred new images for teaching and research, available as 35mm slides, and increasingly, digitally on the department's website. It has revised its teaching of modernism in some interesting new ways. Most of all, it has given the project leader the confidence to turn what was a peripheral (but intriguing) area of interest into an area of some expertise; thinking about modernity and modernism for GLAADH helped lever out research money, which will have a direct impact on teaching in due course. The long-term benefits of the project are potentially considerable: a future honours course on (say) Brazil now seems feasible, and we have established that student demand would be there.

But that is some years off. At the outset, I imagined, perhaps naively, that a stand-alone course could be researched and implemented during the time of the project. This simply wasn't possible: the university underwent an unprecedented administrative convulsion during 2002-4, which demanded that all courses were revalidated, and credit-weighted. A 'safety-first' policy was very much in operation, with all new courses based on existing subject matter and material. It would have been intellectually wasteful, and politically unwise, to try to set out in a new direction. A further complication was the increasing demand on my time, and the need (as the only staff member teaching contemporary art) to satisfy the huge demand for courses in that area.

My approach has been necessarily incremental and low-key: revise existing courses where appropriate; introduce new images; make new comparisons; order new books for the library; broaden students' own idea of city life beyond that of New York and London; make pedagogic links with other departments (in Edinburgh and elsewhere) with interests in the same material. To do any more would require much larger investment, especially in staff time. But we have put Latin America on the map at Edinburgh.