This course introduces upper-division students to the field of museum studies, both as a career option and a scholarly field by considering the ways in which museums can explore the relationships between the cultural contexts of viewer, object, and other public and private stakeholders. The course will cover the basics of museum acquisitions, collections, exhibitions, and installations across a variety of museums, with a particular focus on art and archaeology museums based in Rome. Additional rotating issues and case studies may explore themes of gallery management, cultural heritage, the business of art, fakes and forgeries, decolonialization, curation, and auction houses. The course may include site visits, internships at museums, and the production of an original exhibition show on campus as a final student project.

*Course content subject to change