In early 1954, artist Robert Rauschenberg invented that particular conjunction of objects and gestural painting he called a "combine." In his lecture, Jonathan D. Katz, visiting professor at Smith College, will examine the passions and motivations of Rauschenberg. He will discuss the assemblages of found things, each carrying its own history. Katz will explain how the introduction of assemblage coincided with Rauschenberg's search for a way to express sexual differences as well as other meanings.
Katz is the 2007-2008 Clark-Oakley Fellow at the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute. Katz is the founder and former director of the Larry Kramer Initiative for Lesbian and Gay Studies at Yale University and was the founding chair of the Department of Lesbian and Gay Studies at City College of San Francisco. He writes for a wide range of publications regarding Cold War American art and sexuality.
This lecture is one of several that are part of "Theories and Things: Re-evaluating Material Culture," which is cosponsored by the Department of Art and Art History and the Memorial Art Gallery. The series is a part of the Humanities Project, an initiative by the University of Rochester emphasizing the influence and contributions of the humanities to academic and civil life.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Visit the Web site at www.rochester.edu/College/humanities or e-mail humanities@rochester.edu.