St. Louis and the Documentary Image

AMERICAN CULTURE STUDIES 125

From magazines to maps to documentary movies and TV, we look to pictures to tell us the truth. But no image is ever completely objective; every visual reflection of the real world is mediated by technology, culture, politics, and memory. How do we-as viewers, as creators, as people-sort out the complicated claims pictures make on the world around us? Drawing on collaborations between three areas in two schools-Visual Arts, English, American Culture Studies-this class will introduce students to theories and practices of visual nonfiction within the city of Saint Louis. Through immersive, site-specific course units focused on a variety of approaches to visual nonfiction in different media, students will engage with the tumultuous history, material culture, and landscapes of St. Louis. The course will introduce first-year students both to their city and their university, preparing them to explore existing coursework in Arts & Sciences and the Sam Fox School. This course is for first-year (non-transfer) students only. Students who are not first year students will be unenrolled from this course.
Course Attributes: FA SSC; AR SSC; FA AM; AS HUM; AS SC

Section 01

St. Louis and the Documentary Image - 01
INSTRUCTOR: Maciak, Kirkwood