This course explores the art of India produced since the late 19th century, specifically examining what modernity means in South Asian contexts. The discussion will include the artists from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh and will also encompass these regions’ diasporas in Europe, Africa, and the Americas. We will engage with theoretical as well as visual developments in contemporary art of these regions, reading statements by artists, as well as established and emerging art histories of this body of work.

The questions that we will explore throughout the course:

1. How do we define modernity in Indian contemporary art?
2. What is the post-Modern in South Asia?
3. What are the definitions of modern/modernity/modernism in these contexts?
4. What is “now?”
5. Who defines the parameters of the modern?