introduction to art history (vs3)
TRANSCRIPT
Introduction to Art History
The “PAINTING ABOVETHE COUCH”
IN THE TIME BEFORE COUCHES…….
ART EXISTED ONLY TO
A. GLORIFY ELITE RULERS
ART EXISTED ONLY TO
A.
B.GLORIFY ELITE RULERS
MAKE VISUAL RELIGIOUSNARRATIVE
Sad poor persons have couch but withno painting
Until….The Dutch Golden Age !
The Dutch got very Richfrom Trading
A new MIDDLE CLASSEMERGES
With MONEY to spend
$$$$$$$
So…The Average Guy FinallyGets a Painting Above theCouch…or chair…or whatever
Mostly the Dutch had a TASTE
For Portraits, Still-Lifes, andLandscapes
Some ordinary non-richpeople happily posing for thepainter
If You won the Lottery (like the Dutch Middle Class), is this the house YOU would buy ?
When we talk about art on a casual (above the couch) level, mostly we are talking
about TASTE.
Taste as an aesthetic, sociological, economic andanthropological concept refers to cultural patterns of choiceand preference regarding aesthetic judgments.
W hat determines aesthetic judgments…your taste?
Are we born with it?
And why should we even care about things we don’t like ?
Do you like this painting forexample ???
Who’s couch is it going to go over
exactly ???
Edvard Munch, “The Scream”
1893, National Gallery, Oslo Norway.
ART is reflective of the HUMANEXPERIENCE…good andbad…..not just an interior designobject to put above couches!
Edvard Munch, “The Scream”
1893, National Gallery, Oslo Norway.
ART IS NOT JUST AN
INTERIOR DESIGN OBJECT
TO PUT ABOVE COUCHES !!
Edvard Munch, “The Scream”
1893, National Gallery, Oslo Norway.
ART and BEAUTY
Should ALL art be BEAUTIFUL ?
Socialist Realism……pretty as a picture???
What if ART was beautiful
But masking a sinister REALITY !!?
NOT SO PRETTY
Soviet Union , Stalin's regime
(1924-53): 20 million DEAD.
“As long as art is the beauty
parlor of civilization, neither art
nor civilization is secure .”
-John Dewey
ART and BEAUTY
It has MANY purposes….
And certainly beauty is one of
them…
Art should comfort the disturbed
and disturb the comfortable!
ART IS POWERFUL
The reason art can please, is
also because it can
displease…..
The Buddhas of Bamiyan were two 6th century monumental statues of standing buddhascarved into the side of a cliff in central Afghanistan. They were intentionally destroyed in 2001by the Taliban, on orders from leader Mullah Mohammed Omar, after the Taliban governmentdeclared that they were "idols".
ART IS POWERFUL
…. it can alternately challenge
or reinforce the value system
of any given culture.
It is one of many place where
a peoples discovers who they
wish to be….
COUCHES ARE GREAT….
BUT WHAT IS ART HISTORY?
Yes, what exactly, will we learn in anart history course aside from what toput over our couches ???
Image source: http://www.marshall.edu/cofa/art/arthistory/
ART HISTORY is NOT“judgment”
What makes one work of art “better ”
than another is highly subjective.
Which of these do you have a “taste”for ??
Michelangelo, David , 1501-1504
Therefore…JUDGING
….is the job of art criticism, and artConnoisseurship
Image source: http://www.marshall.edu/cofa/art/arthistory/
Judgment
In fact, it might be useful to define arthistory by contrasting it to 2 relatedfields that DO involve JUDGMENT:
• Art Connoisseurship
• Art Criticism
Image source: http://www.marshall.edu/cofa/art/arthistory/
Art Connoisseurship
Estimating the market value of a workof art is the job of the art connoisseur.
“Judging ” The Dollar Amount
Sotheby’s auction, May 3, 2006, where Picasso’s Dora Maar with Cat sold for $95.2 millionArt Knowledge News
Art Criticism
Professional Art criticism involvesevaluation and judgment…in thepublic arena..
….”making and breaking ” careers
Mr. Art Critic, written and directed by Richard Brauer, 2008
But Ultimately you havethe right to your ownJudgment
You should be encouraged to formyour own opinion about what you likeand dislike no matter what the Critic orConnoisseur say.
Art History
It is concerned with what art meant tothe people who made and used itwithin a HISTORICAL CONTEXT.
Biography
To understand CONTEXT...ArtHistorians study the lives of artists?
Vincent Van Gogh, Self-Portrait as an Artist , 1887-88. Oil on canvas, 65 x 50.5 cm. Van GoghMuseum, AmsterdamArtchive
Biography
The Artist ’s biography is ONEcomponent of art history, but it is notalways the most important…there areothers..
Rembrandt van Rijn, Self Portrait , c. 1659-1660
…The Role of theArtist
Prior to the Renaissance, the artist waswas merely thought of as a craftsman
Nanni di Banco, Sculptors at Work , 1416. Orsanmichele, Florence
Role of the Artist
Artists were expected to be skilled,BUT not creative.
“Do as you are instructed”
Image source
Role of the Artist
Works of art were commissioned bypatrons who gave specificinstructions about what theywanted. “Creativity ” and“originality ” were not valued.
Role of the Patron
Often, the work is more about thepatron than it is about the artist whomade it
Jacques Louis David, Napoleon Cro ssing the St. Bernard Pass, 1801
Enrico Scrovegni giving the gift of his chapel toangels, Last Judgment , Arena Chapel, Padua, c.1305
Methodology
How do art historians study works ofart?
Methodology
1. Subject Matter
•
•
Description,
narration
2. Interpretation/Content
•
•
Iconography
cultural analysis
3. Style• formal analysis
Subject Matter
What is the subject matter?
Georgia O’Keefe, Jack-in-the-Pulpit No. 4, 1930Oil on canvas, 3’ 4” X 2’ 6”National Gallery of Art
Subject Matter
What is the subject matter?
Georgia O’Keefe, Jack-in-the-Pulpit No. 4, 1930Oil on canvas, 3’ 4” X 2’ 6”National Gallery of Art
Subject Matter
Who or what is represented
Subject Matter
George Washington……in a room
This involves:
Description
Narration
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
Description
The visual facts:
How does he appear
How is he standing (pose)
What is he wearing?
What else is in the room?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
Narration
What is happening?
What is he doing?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
Subject Matter leads toINTERPETATION/CONTENT
After we describe and narrate thesubject matter we can make aninterpretation….and find the truthbehind the image…it ’s “meaning ”:
Why is he posed that way?
Why were those particular objectschosen?
What purpose was this portraitmeant to serve?
What was the message?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
To RECAP:
Subject Matter:The “what ” of the work (who, what,where)
Interpretation/Content:The “why” of the work (meaning,purpose, message)
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
Iconography
A big part of Content/Interpretation is
Iconography: the interpretation ofSIGNS and SYMBOLS
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
ICONOGRAPHYExample…Painted portraits of politicalleaders were the “media” of their day
They were supposed to communicatea message about the personrepresented
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796.Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
Allan Ramsay, King George III (in coronation robes), 1761-1762National Portrait Gallery
The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796.Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796.Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796.Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
“Stuart painted Washington from life, showinghim standing up, dressed in a black velvet suitwith an outstretched hand held up in anoratorical manner (which could becharacterized as "commanding and stern yetopen and inclusive"). In the backgroundbehind Washington is a row of two Doriccolumns, with another row to the left.Wrapped around and between the columnsare red tasseled drapes.”
The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796.Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
“Washington's suit is plain and simple, and thesword that he holds on his left side is a dresssword and not a battle sword (symbolizing ademocratic form of government, rather than amonarchy or military dictatorship). In the sky,storm clouds appear on the left while a rainbowappears on the right, signifying the AmericanRevolutionary War giving way to the peace andprosperity of the new United States after the 1783Treaty of Paris. The medallion at the top of thechair shows the red, white, and blue colors of theAmerican flag.”
The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796.Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery
“On and under the tablecloth -draped table to theleft are two books: Federalist — probably areference to the Federalist Papers — and Journalof Congress — the Congressional Record). Anotherfive books are under the table . . . . The pen andpaper on the table signify the rule of law . . . .”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lansdowne_portrait
Style
What is style?
Style
Style refers to the visual characteristicsof a work of art
Pablo Picasso, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon , 1907Museum of Modern Art
Style
Period Style
A style that is typical of a particulartime period
Jacopo da Pontormo, Entombment of Christ , 1525-1528
Parmigianino, Madonna with the Long Neck , 1534-1540
Regional Style
A style that is typical of a particularregion
Jean Hey? or the Master of Moulins, Portrait of Margaret ofAustria, oil on panel, c. 1490
Alesso Baldovinetti, Portrait of a Lady, tempera and oil owood, c. 1465 (National Gallery, London)
Personal Style
An individual artist ’s unique“personal” style
Vincent Van Gogh, Starry Night , 1888
Evolution of Style
How style changes over time
Giotto di Bondone, Ognissante Madonna, c. 1310
Unknown Master, Virgin and Child Enthroned with StDominic, St Martin and Two Angels, c. 1290 WebGallery of Art
Evolution of StyleChanging attitudes towards the body
Albrecht Dürer, Fall of Man ( Adam and Eve), 1504
Expulsion of Adam and Eve , Hunterian Psalter, c. 1170
Evolution of StyleComposition and lighting
Caravaggio, Deposition , c. 1600-1604
Jan Vermeer, Young Woman with a Water Pitcher, c.1662
Evolution of StyleConcepts of “realism”
Gustave Courbet, the Stone Breakers, 1849
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, Princesse de Broglie ,1851-1853
Evolution of StyleCapturing effects of atmosphere and light
Claude Monet, Boulevard des Capucines, 1873
Jacob Van Ruisdael, View of Haarlem from the Dunes atOverveen , c. 1670
Evolution of StyleRejection of realism
Paul Gauguin, The Yellow Christ , 1889
Ernst Kirchner , Head of a Woman, 1913
Evolution of StyleEvolution towards abstraction
Georges Braque, The Portuguese , 1911
Marcel Duchamp, Nude Descending a Staircase , 1912
Evolution of StyleElimination of subject matter
Wassily Kandinsky, Improvisation 28, 1912
Constantin Brancusi, Bird in Space , 1924
BEGIN
Europe in the ‘Dark Ages”
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DONATELLO, David , late 1440 –1460. Bronze, 5’ 2 1/4” high. MuseoNazionale del Bargello, Florence.
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SANDRO BOTTICELLI, Birth of Venus, ca. 1484 –1486. Tempera on canvas, approx. 5’ 9” x 9’ 2”.Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence.
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MASACCIO, Holy Trinity , Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy, ca.1424 –1427. Fresco, 21’ 10’ 5/8” x 10’ 4 3/4”.
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PERUGINO, Christ Delivering the Keys of the Kingdom to Saint Peter , Sistine Chapel, Vatican, Rome,
Italy, 1481 –1483. Fresco, 11’ 5 1/2” x 18’ 8 1/2”.
RAPHAEL, Philosophy ( School of Athens ), Stanza della Segnatura, Vatican Palace, Rome, Italy,1509 –1511. Fresco, 19’ x 27’. 76
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LUCAS CRANACH THE ELDER, Allegory of Law and Grace , ca. 1530. Woodcut, 10 5/8” x 1’ 3/4”. British
Museum, London.
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GIANLORENZO BERNINI, David , 1623. Marble,5’ 7” high. Galleria Borghese, Rome.
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GIANLORENZO BERNINI, Ecstasy of SaintTeresa , Cornaro Chapel, Santa Maria dellaVittoria, Rome, Italy, 1645 – 1652. Marble,
height of group 11’ 6”.
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CARAVAGGIO, Calling of Saint Matthew , ca. 1597 –1601. Oil on canvas, 11’ 1” x 11’ 5”. ContarelliChapel, San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome
TITIAN, Venus of Urbino , 1538. Oil on canvas, 3’ 11” x 5’ 5”. Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence.81
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PETER PAUL RUBENS, Consequences of War , 1638 –1639. Oil on canvas, 6’ 9” x 11’ 3 7/8”. Palazzo
Pitti, Florence..
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JAN VAN EYCK, Man in a Red
Turban , 1433. Oil on wood, 1’ 1 1/8” X10 1/4". National Gallery, London.
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REMBRANDT VAN RIJN, Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp , 1632. Oil on canvas, 5’ 3 3/4” x 7’ 1 1/4”.Mauritshuis, The Hague.
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PIETER CLAESZ, Vanitas Still Life , 1630s. Oil on panel, 1’ 2” x 1’ 11 1/2”. GermanischesNationalmuseum, Nuremberg.
89JEAN-BAPTISTE GREUZE, Village Bride , 1761.
90JACQUES-LOUIS DAVID, Oath of the Horatii , 1784.
Henry Fuseli, THE SHEPHERDS DREAM, 1793.
THÉODORE GÉRICAULT, Raft of the Medusa, 1818 – 1819.
“
97JEAN-FRANÇOIS MILLET, The Gleaners , 1857.
98ÉDOUARD MANET, Le Déjeuner sur l’Herbe ( Luncheon on the Grass ), 1863.
99ÉDOUARD MANET, Olympia , 1863.
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THOMAS EAKINS, The Gross
Clinic , 1875.
102JOHN EVERETT MILLAIS, Ophelia.