University Bulletin
Undergraduate Degree Programs
ART H 304
(GA;IL)
Southern Baroque Painting (3) Seventeenth-century painting in Italy, France, and Spain. Emphasis will be on Italy as the vanguard country.
ART H 304 Southern Baroque Painting (3)
(GA;IL)
(BA) This course meets the Bachelor of Arts degree requirements.
Art History 304 concentrates on the art of southern Europe during the seventeenth century; the art of Italy, Spain and France are explored at a time during which virtually every country in western Europe experiences a Golden Age. Although there is frequently an intermingling of the three media during this period and a necessity to acknowledge major architectural and sculptural monuments, emphasis will be upon painting. Discussion will concentrate on what constitutes the baroque and its interpretation by each country as well as issues such as patronage, primary sources, iconography, and historical context. The class will begin with the indications of the new Baroque in Italy during the 1580's and proceed to Spain and France. The course is designed to meet two principal goals. The first is to increase students' powers of visual analysis and help them build a critical vocabulary for discussing an art object's medium, composition, style, and iconography. The second is to foster an understanding of the deep implication of the visual arts in their social and cultural contexts. The course therefore involves significant material relating to political, economic and religious issues. It investigates problems in patronage, function, reception and censorship. It considers such intra- and cross-cultural issues as representations of Aender. Requirements include essay exams and at least one paper. As a general education course in the arts, this course provides an introduction to Southern Baroque painting to a student of any major. This course has no prerequisite, and presumes no prior exposure to fine art. Students majoring in History will learn in it both the common vocabulary of the field and the outlines of the field that form the foundation for future study.