African 202: Africa in Images

An encounter with Africa is an encounter with images. Whether in imagination or pictorial representations, Africa exists as an image in the making. This course introduces students to topics in African cultural studies through the lens of the visual image. Reading visual cultures like photography, film, animation, comics, maps, and music art, students will explore the history, politics, and cultures of select African societies. This course is about images, but its understanding of the visual image is situated at the intersection of African oral tradition and African visual cultures. Therefore, the course will delve into the oral dimensions of images to examine how visual texts are technologies of praise, morality, and ideology. Additionally, students will evaluate how contemporary artists utilize images to comment on issues of identity, gender, and youth culture, as well as envision a sustainable future.