Theorizing Art in Qatar conceptualizes various forms of art and creative industries in Doha. It applies a historic and theoretical method of analysis of artworks of various artists, their context, political agenda, or narrative that they are trying to convey. The collection of artworks examined through the course are done by artists from all over the world including the Middle East and America. Hence, this global perspective provides an all-inclusive comprehension of the utilized methods and themes that artists exhibit such as traditional, Islamic, Orientalist, modern, public, and contemporary. These themes were also best studied and engaged with through interactive fieldtrips and classes conducted at the museums themselves which provided an engaging method of learning about art that was located at the site itself and allowed students to ask questions and physically interact with the artwork and obtain more information rather than just reading about them in class. Overall, the course allowed us to understand the connections between art, culture, history, society, and politics.
The course’s focus on studying the context, narrative, or political agenda that artworks promote equipped me with critical skills that aid in evaluating the proposed narrative or agenda that the media frames. Just like how art is a method of expressing social, cultural, and political perceptions, the media representation of female political participants also is not without the reflection of any personal perceptions. These perceptions that the media promotes are constructed with subliminal messages about gender roles, patriarchial views, and political credibility. Yet, with the critical and analytical skills gained from this course, I can now deconstruct how the media represents female political participants, revealing implicit biases or agendas. In addition, with the cross-cultural approach of this course, where artists from all over the world were studied, I learned to measure how each culture portrays women differently, and this is shown through our viewing of orientalist art that changes the appearance of women to what the artist wants and not the actual appearance or cultural depiction of women of the region. This extends from artworks to the media since there is the recognition that media representations are not one common international interpretation, yet it is a culturally contextualized representation that can influence how female political participation is perceived across various different cultures and societies. Lastly, delving into different themes of art such as public and contemporary art highlights the power of visual culture in forming public opinion and social norms, and what engages in visual culture more than the media? The media plays a monumental role in visual culture and shaping the views of society on female political perceptions. With the gained understanding of the mechanics of visual representation in art, I can recognize certain uses of imagery and symbolism to express a certain narrative through the media that either reinforces or challenges stereotypes about women in the political field. Overall, while the course, "Theorizing Art in Qatar" is mainly focused on art, the intellectual skills and methods of perceptions it cultivates are extremely supplemental to the analysis of media representations. Utilizing analytical and critical methods, cross-cultural perceptions, and different themes catalyzes obtaining a more profound understanding of how media portrays female political participation and the wider implications it can have on female political engagement and overall gender equality.
