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History of Interiors: Napoleon to Graves

This course provides a foundational understanding of developments in European and American decorative arts from the turn of the 19th century to the end of the 20th. Particular attention will be given to the complex design trends and the expressions of the 20th century as the foundation of interior design today. Prerequisites: none.

Instructor
Erica Forester
Erica Forester
Erica Forester is a decorative arts historian and lecturer on topics relating to the history of architecture, interiors and furniture, from antiquity to the present. She teaches courses on those subjects at Parsons, in person and online. She has also taught at NYU. She has been a guest lecturer at museums and historical societies. She serves as a consultant in creating interiors of a particular historic period. In th...
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Jan 22 - Mar 31
Online
Spring 2019
CRN 5305
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What you will learn
  • Movements, styles, and schools of design and the decorative arts from 1800 to the the late 20th century, including furniture, textiles, metalwork, glass, ceramics, interiors, and architecture will be examined.
  • Objects will be considered for both their formal qualities and in relation to their meaning as cultural signifiers.
  • Students will learn the chronology and identifying characteristics of the important stylistic movements of the period, along with the larger cultural, social, and political contexts in which they were designed and used.
Benefits
  • Have a working knowledge of the various movements and styles in European and American design from the early nineteenth century through the end of the twentieth.
  • Be able to identify the characteristics and the ideas behind each style or movement.
  • Increase visual literacy and ability to identify the source and context of a wide variety of motifs, forms, architectural elements, and details.
  • Write and think analytically about these topics.
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