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⇱ What Is Contemporary Art? | Coursera

What Is Contemporary Art?

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Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.7

1,902 reviews

Beginner level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule
7 hours to complete
Learn at your own pace
97%
Most learners liked this course
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
4.7

1,902 reviews

Beginner level

Recommended experience

Flexible schedule
7 hours to complete
Learn at your own pace
97%
Most learners liked this course

What you'll learn

  • Build a toolkit to confidently decode and analyze contemporary art in any setting.

  • Explore how contemporary artists navigate and respond to the most pressing social and political questions of our time.

  • Apply insights from world-class artists to enhance your own academic studies, professional pursuits, or independent creative practice.

  • Gain fluency in the methodologies of today’s visionaries and develop your own strategic foresight and critical thinking skills.

Details to know

Shareable certificate

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Assessments

6 assignments

Taught in English

Build your subject-matter expertise

This course is part of the Modern and Contemporary Art and Design Specialization
When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Specialization.
  • Learn new concepts from industry experts
  • Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
  • Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
  • Earn a shareable career certificate

There are 6 modules in this course

See the world through the eyes of today’s visionaries.

Contemporary art can be challenging, but artists working today provide us with a direct lens to see the social, political, and technological shifts of our time. Whether you are a student building your academic foundation or a professional looking to sharpen your creative intuition, this course is structured around enduring themes to help you understand art being made today. This course from The Museum of Modern Art will lead you to go beyond the "what" to discover the "how" and "why" of making art. Hear directly from global artists, architects, and designers about new approaches to traditional mediums like painting and sculpture as well as cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence and 3-D printing. You’ll also have the chance to explore public art, performance, and interventions into television and video games. By the end of this course, you will gain the confidence to engage with art wherever you encounter it and the tools to connect global creative trends to your own life and practice. Career Application: This course uses contemporary art as a lens to analyze the technological, political, and social shifts defining our current landscape. By gaining fluency in the methodologies of today’s visionaries, you’ll develop the strategic foresight and creative intuition necessary to anticipate global cultural trends, innovate with emerging technologies like AI, and navigate complex public discourse in media and design.

What's included

1 video5 readings

1 video•Total 1 minute
  • Preview What Is Contemporary Art?•1 minute
5 readings•Total 30 minutes
  • Welcome to the course!•3 minutes
  • Course instructors respond: what is contemporary art?•5 minutes
  • First Look: This Course in Three Artworks•10 minutes
  • Suggestions for making the most of the course•2 minutes
  • Optional Prompts for Discussion & Reflection•10 minutes

What's included

5 videos11 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt

5 videos•Total 14 minutes
  • In the studio with Arthur Jafa •4 minutes
  • Beatriz González on her street posters in Bogotá, 1983•2 minutes
  • Alfredo Jaar on Lament of the Images, 2002•2 minutes
  • Dayanita Singh on Museum of Chance, 2013•4 minutes
  • Susan Kare on designing the first Mac icons, 1980s•3 minutes
11 readings•Total 44 minutes
  • Introduction to Module 2•2 minutes
  • Arthur Jafa, APEX, 2013•10 minutes
  • Four approaches to appropriation•5 minutes
  • How do artists and architects share and circulate images?•1 minute
  • Two interventions in television and architecture•3 minutes
  • How are images used to watch and classify us?•1 minute
  • Surveilling, seeing, scanning•5 minutes
  • What do video games and computers have to do with art and design?•1 minute
  • JODI on turning desktop order inside out•2 minutes
  • Serious games and artificial intelligence•4 minutes
  • Optional Readings & Resources•10 minutes
1 assignment
  • Memory Check •0 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
  • Reflect on Module 2•10 minutes

What's included

6 videos8 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt

6 videos•Total 17 minutes
  • Transforming the wall with Rael San Fratello•5 minutes
  • Bouchra Khalili on The Mapping Journey Project, 2008–11•3 minutes
  • Mateo López on Travel without Movement, 2008–10•3 minutes
  • Shellyne Rodriguez on Martin Wong, Stanton near Forsyth Street, 1983•2 minutes
  • IRWIN on NSK Garda, 2002•2 minutes
  • Amanda Williams on Color(ed) Theory Suite, 2014–16•3 minutes
8 readings•Total 42 minutes
  • Introduction to Module 3•2 minutes
  • Crossing borders•6 minutes
  • Claiming space•1 minute
  • Changing states•6 minutes
  • Sky Hopinka on Jáaji Approx., 2015•9 minutes
  • Portfolio: Teresa Margolles, Pista de baile (Dance Floor), 2016•3 minutes
  • Optional Readings & Resources•10 minutes
  • Mid-course survey•5 minutes
1 assignment
  • Memory Check•0 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
  • Reflect on Module 3•10 minutes

What's included

7 videos9 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt

7 videos•Total 20 minutes
  • At the Museum with Sheila Hicks•4 minutes
  • Liz Deschenes on Tilt/Swing (360º field of vision, version 1), 2009•2 minutes
  • Sheela Gowda on Of All People, 2011•4 minutes
  • 3-D printed architecture with Rael San Fratello•4 minutes
  • Lady Pink on Trust visions that don't feature buckets of blood, 1983–84•2 minutes
  • Glenn Ligon on White #19, 1994•2 minutes
  • Amy Sillman on making and unmaking painting•2 minutes
9 readings•Total 46 minutes
  • Introduction to Module 4•2 minutes
  • Film, vinyl, and ultrasonic gel•5 minutes
  • How is contemporary art made?•1 minute
  • Building, painting, printing•5 minutes
  • Luther Price, Sorry, 2005–12•10 minutes
  • Labor and work in contemporary art•1 minute
  • Interview with Revital Cohen & Tuur Van Balen on 75 Watt, 2013•10 minutes
  • Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker, Work/Travail/Arbeid, 2017•2 minutes
  • Optional Readings & Resources•10 minutes
1 assignment
  • Memory Check•0 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
  • Reflect on Module 4•10 minutes

What's included

8 videos9 readings1 assignment1 discussion prompt

8 videos•Total 22 minutes
  • In New York City with Pope.L•4 minutes
  • Two artists consider Catherine Opie, Dyke, 1993•3 minutes
  • Tania Bruguera on Untitled (Havana, 2000), 2000•4 minutes
  • Luis Camnitzer on Memorial, 2009•2 minutes
  • Nick Cave on Soundsuit, 2011•2 minutes
  • Lorraine O'Grady on Mlle Bourgeoise Noire, 1980–83/2009•2 minutes
  • Xiao Lu on Dialogue, 1989•3 minutes
  • Ralph Borland, Suited for Subversion (Prototype), 2002•2 minutes
9 readings•Total 37 minutes
  • Introduction to Module 5•1 minute
  • Yara Said on the Refugee Flag, 2016•7 minutes
  • Firelei Báez on For Améthyste and Athénaïre (Exiled Muses Beyond Jean Luc Nancy’s Canon), Anacaonas, 2018•1 minute
  • Who speaks?•1 minute
  • Lawrence Abu Hamdan, Conflicted Phonemes, 2012•2 minutes
  • P Staff on Weed Killer, 2017•10 minutes
  • Taking action•1 minute
  • Defining and blurring identities through performance•4 minutes
  • Optional Readings & Resources•10 minutes
1 assignment
  • Memory Check•0 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
  • Reflect on Module 5•10 minutes

What's included

5 videos10 readings2 assignments1 discussion prompt

5 videos•Total 17 minutes
  • Instructor Christian Rattemeyer on Mark Lombardi's diagrams of power•6 minutes
  • Deana Lawson on Nation, 2017•3 minutes
  • Wolfgang Tillmans on Sendeschluss / End of Broadcast I, 2014•2 minutes
  • Curator Paola Antonelli on Massoud Hassani's Mine Kafon wind-powered deminer, 2011•2 minutes
  • Rania Ghosn on After Oil, 2016•5 minutes
10 readings•Total 52 minutes
  • Introduction to Module 6•2 minutes
  • What do war and peace have to do with chandeliers and portraits?•3 minutes
  • How do artists critique power?•1 minute
  • Two responses to abuse of power•4 minutes
  • Power: sources and resources•1 minute
  • Outer space to inner earth•6 minutes
  • Optional Readings & Resources•10 minutes
  • End-of-course survey•5 minutes
  • Recordings of live virtual sessions (optional)•10 minutes
  • MoMA Resources•10 minutes
2 assignments•Total 30 minutes
  • Final course reflection•30 minutes
  • Memory Check•0 minutes
1 discussion prompt•Total 10 minutes
  • Reflect on Module 6•10 minutes

Earn a career certificate

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Instructors

Instructor ratings
4.6 (505 ratings)
The Museum of Modern Art
1 Course•168,467 learners
The Museum of Modern Art
2 Courses•177,114 learners
The Museum of Modern Art
1 Course•168,467 learners

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Showing 3 of 1902

GP
·

Reviewed on Jun 15, 2020

I discovered a lot of unfamiliar artists and topic such as border. It was worth taking this. I'm glad that I was able to absorb at this online class because it's my first time online course.

IM
·

Reviewed on May 19, 2020

Outstanding collection of artistic philanthropists, huge awakening of Visual Arts as a vehicle to profession and put light on global and social issues.

CB
·

Reviewed on Sep 21, 2020

Greatly broadened my idea of what contemporary art is and introduced me to some very innovative andunique ways to present views of contemporary worldwide issues.

Frequently asked questions

No prior knowledge of art or art history is required to complete this course. Whether you’re an artist, an art lover, an art skeptic, or just interested in learning more about art, this course has something for you.

Coursera currently provides certificates of completion, but MoMA does not offer additional accreditation at this time. 

By learning how ideas are translated into visual culture, you’ll gain a premium skill set directly applicable to creative direction, marketing strategy, arts management, and interdisciplinary education.

In completing this course and the Modern and Contemporary Art and Design Specialization you will receive a shareable certificate from Coursera. The cumulative project for this course is not designed to build a tangible artistic portfolio.

While The Museum of Modern Art is based in New York City, What is Contemporary Art? features a range of artists from across the globe, not just those based in the United States. You’ll encounter cross-cultural dialogue that contextualizes modern visual culture on a global scale.

The modular structure of this course allows you to pause, skip, or deep-dive into specific topics during busy weeks. Precise recommendations for a learning schedule can be found on the course page.

The discussion forums are active! You’ll find they are a great place to reflect on course topics, peer-to-peer. 

To access the course materials, assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience when you enroll in a course. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid. The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.

When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile.

Yes. In select learning programs, you can apply for financial aid or a scholarship if you can’t afford the enrollment fee. If fin aid or scholarship is available for your learning program selection, you’ll find a link to apply on the description page.

Financial aid available,