For this assignment, students will trace the afterlife of Leonardo da Vincis masterwork, The Last Supper, by investigating a later (modern or contemporary period) work of art that reinterprets the original painting. In analyzing, comparing, and contrasting the form and content of the Renaissance original and the image that refers back to it, you will need to consider WHY as well as HOW the later artist chose to appropriate and rethink the original. What did they see there that compelled their own investigation? And finally, what do you see in The Last Supper that continues to speak to viewers across time and space, across the centuries?
Your PRIMARY FOCUS should be LOOKING & THINKING CRITICALLY about the two works of art in relation to each other & the time periods in which they were created. Primary sources should be the works of art themselves and relevant ideas in class and in the text, not outside research; i.e., this is a primarily a reflective rather than research project.  However, if you use outside sources you MUST CITE THEM CORRECTLY both within the body of the text and in a works cited page using the CHICAGO STYLE.

CHOOSE 1 OF THESE ARTWORKS TO COMPARE TO THE ORIGINAL:
Suggested modern/contemporary works of art reinterpreting da Vincis Last Supper:
Last Supper of the Desert in Red    MF Husain 2008
Last Supper                                        Marisol 1982
                                                          Fateh al-Mourrades 1969 (multiple versions)
Last Supper of the Empty Plates, Last Supper    Abdulsalam Haykal  nd
Last Supper                                        Faisal AbduAllah  1995    (multiple versions)
60 Last Suppers                                Andy Warhol (+ other versions)
Some Living American Women Artists: Last Supper    Mary Beth Edelson  1972
Last Supper                                      Salvador Dali  1955

The    Research    Paper    Proposal   
Your    Paper    Proposal    should    include    the    following:   
1.    Working    title.    You    may    discard    your    working    title    on    your    final    draft,    but    for    now,    it    should    be   
specific    and    focused.    It    will    be    your    readers    first    indication    of    the    direction    in    which    you    intend   
to    travel.    Be    sure    to    include    key    words    that    accurately    identify    your subject    and    issue(s).   
2.    Identify    your    research    issue.    A    substantial    paragraph    (not    one    long    sentence)    in    which    you   
identify    your    subject    or    issue    and    pose    a    list    of    questions    about    your    subject    or    issue.    At    this   
point,    your    questions    may    be    quite    simple.    What    will    you    need    to    know    in    order    to    explore    your   
main    research    question?    What    kinds    of    information    will    you    need?    Who,    what,    when,    where,   
how,    why?    Provide    a    context    for    your    questions;    that    is,    explain    the    significance    or    importance   
of    the    questions    you    have    chosen.    As    you    learn    more    about    your    topic,    the    questions    that    steer   
your    research    will    become    more    refined    and    more    complex.   
3.    Working    thesis.    Although    your    reading    will    prompt    you    to    refine    and    revise    your    initial   
thinking    about    the    subject,    you    should    make    an    effort    to    articulate    a    working    thesis    — a    central   
hypothesis,    a    controlling    idea    — early    on.   
So,    in    a    brief    paragraph,    draft    a    tentative    thesis    for    your    paper.    Ask    yourself:    what    am    I    trying    to   
explain    or    claim?    You    may    have    little    or    no    basis    for    an    opinion    at    this    point,    and    thats    fine.   
However,    on    most    questions    that    interest    you,    youll    have    some    opinion.    Spell    out    what    that    is.   
Be    sure    that    you    state    your    central    claim    in    specific    terms    and    that    you    explain    it    in    enough   
detail    that    a    reader    can    follow    it.   
The    thesis:    A    thesis    is    an    argument–an    opinion,    conclusion,    idea,    or    explanation    that    you    drew   
from    the    evidence    you    examined    and    which    your    paper    will    support.    It    is    generally    an    informed   
and    supportable    (as    well    as    refutable)    opinion.    A    thesis    is    a    claim    that    would    be    an    issue    for   
someone;    it    has    at    least    two    dimensions    — individuals    can    disagree    on    the    issue.    It    is    not    merely   
a    statement    of    fact.    The    Bulldog    is    the    mascot    for    the    University    of    Monterey    is    not    an   
adequate    thesis,    even    though    it    is    true.    The    bulldog    is    an    appropriate    symbol    for    the    University   
of    Monterey    because    it    manifests    qualities    with    which    the    members    of    this    university   
community    identify:    strength,    loyalty,    and    tenacity    is    a    thesis    because    it    provides an   
explanation    for    a    fact.   
A    good    thesis    answers    questions    like    why    or    how    (e.g.,    Why    does    an    environment,    an    artwork,    a   
film    object,    look    the    way    it    does?    How    does    it    embody    &/or    generate    meaning?)    A    strong    thesis   
will    organize    the    paper    for    you:    each    paragraphs    topic    should    support    or    help    prove    your    thesis,    and    the    first    or    last    sentence    of    a    paragraph    (topic    and    transition    sentences)    is    the    best    place    to   
explicitly    state    that    relationship    to    your    larger    argument.   
Another    way    to    think    about    this:    if    you    had    to    present    one    meaningful    opinion    about    the   
artwork,    artist,    or    visual    practice    you    chose,    what    would    it    be?    Given    the    evidence    gathered   
through    your    research,    how    would    you    convince    the    reader    that    your    opinion    is    informed    and   
valid?    This    is    the    goal    of    your    paper.    The    purpose    of    this    paper    assignment    is    to    develop   
research    and    analytical    skills    — to    generate    research    questions    and    construct    an    argument    with   
relevant    details    into    a    coherent    whole.    Do    not    present    an    array    of    interesting,    but    unrelated   
facts    and    descriptions.    Everything    in    the    body    of    the    paper    should    meaningfully    contribute    to   
the    development    of    your    argument/thesis/position.   
3.    Research    Resources.    Create    a    preliminary    list    of    published    sources/library    holdings    relevant   
to    your    issue.    Identify    5-7    print    sources    (articles    and    books)    related    to    your    topic.   

For this assignment, students will trace the afterlife of Leonardo da Vincis masterwork, The Last Supper, by investigating a later (modern or contemporary period) work of art that reinterprets the original painting. In analyzing, comparing, and contrasting the form and content of the Renaissance original and the image that refers back to it, you will need to consider WHY as well as HOW the later artist chose to appropriate and rethink the original. What did they see there that compelled their own investigation? And finally, what do you see in The Last Supper that continues to speak to viewers across time and space, across the centuries?
Your PRIMARY FOCUS should be LOOKING & THINKING CRITICALLY about the two works of art in relation to each other & the time periods in which they were created. Primary sources should be the works of art themselves and relevant ideas in class and in the text, not outside research; i.e., this is a primarily a reflective rather than research project.  However, if you use outside sources you MUST CITE THEM CORRECTLY both within the body of the text and in a works cited page using the CHICAGO STYLE.

CHOOSE 1 OF THESE ARTWORKS TO COMPARE TO THE ORIGINAL:
Suggested modern/contemporary works of art reinterpreting da Vincis Last Supper:
Last Supper of the Desert in Red    MF Husain 2008
Last Supper                                        Marisol 1982
                                                          Fateh al-Mourrades 1969 (multiple versions)
Last Supper of the Empty Plates, Last Supper    Abdulsalam Haykal  nd
Last Supper                                        Faisal AbduAllah  1995    (multiple versions)
60 Last Suppers                                Andy Warhol (+ other versions)
Some Living American Women Artists: Last Supper    Mary Beth Edelson  1972
Last Supper                                      Salvador Dali  1955

For this assignment you will need to watch the following videos. It would be a good idea for you to briefly look at these artists’ work online beforehand, so that you have a frame of reference as you watch.

Susan Hiller (95 mins) (Links to an external site.)
Simon Fujiwara (53 mins) (Links to an external site.)
Christine Sun Kim (23 mins)  (Links to an external site.)

You are asked to identify the artistic methods and strategies these artists use when making their work. Artistic methods can be in the context of:

how an artist makes decisions about what they want to explore in their work,
the processes they go through in planning and implementing a project,
the approaches they take to explore and realize their ideas,
the choices they make while producing the work materially,
the ways in which they exhibit their work in public contexts,
the way they choose to speak about their work.
Make a list of the methods and strategies you identify as you watch through the videos, and submit your list by midnight Wednesday February 12. Your final list should contain a minimum of 10 items, each indicating the relevant artist.

Your assignment is to write a 4-5 page essay analyzing a historical film (not listed on the syllabus) about the conquest of the Americas. A list of suggested films has been posted on Canvas.

Focus your analysis on the following questions:

To what subgenre of the Historical Film genre (epic, war, biographical, topical, etc.) can the film be ascribed?
How does the film illustrate (or problematize) the basic components of the subgenre it represents?
How are historical figures and/or events portrayed in the film?
What fictional characters and/or situations can be identified? What is their purpose within the context of the narrative?
In which ways does the film claim historical authenticity?
What contemporary concerns are expressed through the reenactment of the past?

Then develop an argument about the way in which the film approaches history.

* You are not required to do any additional research for this paper. But you should draw upon some of the theories about the historical film that we have studied in class, testing them against your close reading of the film.

Tips

Avoid plot description. Aim instead to analyze how specific cinematic techniques function to underscore the films mode of historical thinking.
Organize your essay around key points in your argument, rather than a chronological examination of the film.
Be sure to use precise film terminology. (prop, performance, tracking shot, tilt, dissolve, jump-cut, diegetic/non-diegetic sound, etc.)
Avoid vague language. (The use of long-shots is very effective) Aim instead to analyze the specific effect of individual techniques. (Long-shots and well-choreographed crowd scenes convey a monumental vision of history.)
Essay Requirements

4 – 5 pages
Typed, double-spaced, in a simple 12-pt font
Unique, carefully chosen title that reflects the ideas in the paper
Put your name on the first page.
Italicize film titles. (CAPS or quotation marks are incorrect.)
Spell check and proofread your paper.
Your name on every page (as a header or footer)
Page numbers

VIEW ONE OF THESE TWO FILMS, TAKE NOTES (for yourself, you do not need to turn them in), AND ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS RELATED TO THE FILM YOU HAVE CHOSEN.

Choice A)

THE STORY OF VINH (56 minutes)

https://www.cultureunplugged.com/documentary/watch-online/play/51286/The-Story-of-Vinh

What is the story? Did you pick up on the dualism what are the two competing stories?

How is Vinh Dinhs being a failed model minority compare to Don Bonus? (On the filmic as well as on the individual level) Can you give specific scenes as an example?

Why do the two stories (AKA Don Bonus and The Story of Vinh) come across so differently? even if both are made by Asian American filmmakers? What are the structural and directorial differences? How many storytellers are there in The Story of Vinh?

Choice B)

SA I GU (42 minutes)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_UyYj-pR8U

How is perspective communicated/executed in this film? What feelings and emotions are communicated in and through this film project (about Korean immigrant women, directed and produced by Korean American women)?

Name 3 new pieces of information that you learned/heard?

What are some of the narratives that you hear? What word or phrase do you observe is repeated throughout the film? How is this film counter-hegemonic?

Before you start the self-scheduled screening, two items:

First, study the time-line of events leading up to the L.A. Uprising LA Uprising Timeline.pdfPreview the document
Second, gain some insight into the so-called, Black-Korean Conflict via a description of Michael Chos film, ANOTHER AMERICA
How did the idea for Another America begin?

The genesis of the project started in early 1992, before the riots. Around that time a few events took place which brought Black-Korean relations to the forefront. In Los Angeles, a Korean merchant shot and killed an African American teenager whom she accused of shoplifting. There was a fight that broke out between the two, and the Korean merchant killed this girl. The woman was convicted of murder, but sentenced only to parole. So that created a lot of outrage in the African American community. There was a lot being said about Black-Korean tensions. But I didn’t understand what that meant. When I was growing up, my father had a business and still has a business in the African American community in Detroit. He has been in the African American community for over thirty years.

So as I was growing up, I never saw anything of what the media called a “Black-Korean conflict.” My parents got along fine with their customers, especially my mother who was extremely friendly. I felt that the media didn’t know these communities and that they were in some ways creating a problem.

In January of 1992, I had an uncle who was murdered during a robbery at his store. His business was located in downtown Detroit, across from my father’s store. I felt that his death pointed to the deterioration and abandonment of the inner city, more so than to any inter-ethnic tension. The boy that killed him is African American, but no one in the family thinks of my uncle’s death as a racial issue since everyone that they come in contact with in their stores is African American.

The Langston Hughes African American Film Festival Underground Railroad Film Series presents ANOTHER AMERICA by Michael Cho

Filmmaker Michael Cho investigates his own family history and tragedy as he explores the Black/Korean conflict in the inner city as illuminated by the Los Angeles uprisings of 1992.

“In Another America, a documentary that I produced about the relationship between Korean American merchants and African Americans in the inner city, I looked at the murder of one of my uncles, an immigrant from Korea, during a robbery at his store in downtown Detroit. When he was murdered, my father, also a downtown merchant, called the local television news stations to have them cover my uncle’s death. He wanted to tell them a larger story about how the city had fallen apart under the weight of its abandonment and how this was connected to my uncle’s murder. Instead, the TV news programs told a tragic story of a family victimized by a random crime. The emotions were there in their report, but little context. Their coverage undoubtedly moved many who watched the news that night. But did it inform them?