1
ARTH 205-001: ART OF THE RENAISSANCE
General Education Foundational Area Two: Traditions that Shape the Western World
Professor: Dr Joanne Allen
Office: Katzen 220
Office phone: 202-885-6822
Email: [email protected]
Spring 2017
Classes: Tuesdays and Fridays 9.45am-11am
Room: Katzen 112
Office hours: Tuesdays and Fridays 12.45pm-2pm, Wednesdays 1pm-2pm and by appointment
Teaching Assistant: Sam Rhodes [email protected]
COURSE OVERVIEW
This course is an introduction to art of the Renaissance in Italy and Northern Europe, covering painting,
sculpture, prints, decorative arts and architecture. Students will learn about major artistic developments,
important patrons and the religious, social and political context. Through analysis of primary sources,
students will gain an appreciation of the contexts for art production and attitudes to art in this period.
COURSE GOALS
Improve your understanding of the history of Renaissance art
Build your visual literacy of painting, sculpture and architecture
Help you see the value of visual communication
Explore the relationship between art and historical culture
Encourage you to become reflective, critical learners
Explore critical themes in art history
LEARNING OUTCOMES
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
Use art-historical terminology accurately to describe artworks and buildings (assessed by
exams)
Identify the use of artistic techniques (assessed by exams)
Analyse works of art in their historical and cultural context (assessed by exams and essay)
Consider the use of primary sources as aids to our interpretation of the period (assessed by
discussion component)
Understand some of the critical issues in studying art of the Renaissance (assessed by
discussion component)2
Art History Program 200-level Learning Outcomes:
At the end of a 200-level Art History course, students will be able to
Identify critical tools for Art Historical analysis, including media, formal/stylistic analysis,
iconography and socio-historical context
Begin to work within these categories
Distinguish between primary and secondary sources
Complete formal analysis using accurate terminology
FULFILLMENT OF GENERAL EDUCATION REQUIREMENT
ARTH 205 is one of two courses you will take to fulfill Foundational Area 2 of the GenEd requirement:
Traditions that Shape the Western World. All courses in this area emphasize chronology and share a
close attention both to the substance of the past and the ways to study it. Through direct engagement
with primary texts, you learn to ask questions, debate ideas, and come to understand the ways that we
experience the events and ideas of the past in our own lives.
How does this course relate to General Education goals?
You will understand the factors which contribute to the creation of artworks: the artist’s creativity, the
patron’s agenda and the cultural context. Through lectures, in-class discussions, and written
assignments, this course will facilitate your acquisition of vocabulary and analytical skills necessary for
understanding both the formal visual qualities of art and the social issues surrounding the creation of
art.
The course will help you meet the General Education Foundational Area Two Learning Objectives:
1. Explore the diverse historical and philosophical traditions that have shaped the contemporary
Western world
In this course, we will explore the artistic tradition of the Renaissance, which profoundly impacted the
development of art up to the contemporary period.
2. Read and discuss fundamental texts from those traditions, situating the texts in their appropriate
intellectual contexts
In this course, we will read primary sources of art history in preparation for discussion classes.
3. Develop your ability to critically and comparatively reflect on religious and philosophical
issues, in dialogue with others both past and present
In this course, discussion classes will give you an opportunity to reflect on various art-historical issues.
In addition, the course will contribute to your development of the General Education program-wide
learning outcomes, in particular goals 1-3:
1. Aesthetic sensibilities
Exposure to the greatest masterpieces of western art in lectures and a visit to the National
Gallery of Art will enable you to develop advanced aesthetic sensibilities. You will learn arthistorical terminology which will enable you to express what makes works of visual art unique,3
innovative or shocking. This learning outcome is assessed by essays, exams, discussions and
discussion responses.
2. Communication skills
You will develop written communication skills in essays, discussion responses and exams and
will hone your verbal communication skills in discussions. This course will equip you with
specific skills in visual analysis and a range of methodologies for describing and analyzing
visual art. This learning outcome is assessed by essays, exams, discussions and discussion
responses.
3. Critical inquiry
Through lectures, in-class discussions, and written assignments, this course will facilitate your
acquisition of vocabulary and analytical skills necessary for understanding both the formal
visual qualities of art and the social issues surrounding the creation of art. This learning
outcome is assessed by essays, exams, discussions and discussion responses.
READING
The textbook for the course is:
Marilyn Stokstad and Michael W. Cothren, Art History portable edition: Fourteenth to Seventeenth
Century Art, 5th edition (Prentice Hall, 2014)
Supplementary required reading is available in pdf form on Course Reserves on Blackboard.
The following books are also available on Course Reserve in the library:
John T. Paoletti, Gary M. Radke, Art in Renaissance Italy (Upper Saddle River, N.J. : Pearson
Prentice Hall, 2005)
Northern Renaissance Art : Painting, Sculpture, The Graphic Arts From 1350 to 1575, James
Snyder; Revised By Larry Silver, Henry Luttikhuizen (Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall,
2005)
Martha Richler, A World Of Art: National Gallery Of Art, Washington (London : Scala Books,
1997)
The National Gallery of Art, Washington, foreword by Earl A. Powell III (New York, N.Y. :
Thames and Hudson, 1992)
You must do the assigned reading before each class and will be expected to discuss critically what you
have read. Students are required to bring to each class a written list of points, keywords or questions
that have arisen in their reading. A random selection of students will be asked to comment on the
reading at the start of each class; for each comment you will earn one point towards your
Discussion/Participation grade. Each student will give reading feedback twice during the semester. If
your name is called and you are not present (either due to lateness or an unauthorized absence), you
will not receive a point. More advice about this will be given in the first lecture.
Useful websites:
The Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/
The Web Gallery of Art: http://www.wga.hu/index.html4
Art Images for College Teaching: http://quod.lib.umich.edu/a/aict?page=index
Artstor: http://www.artstor.org/index.shtml
Smarthistory: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history-basics/beginners-arthistory/a/cave-painting-contemporary-art-and-everything-in-between
GENERAL REQUIREMENTS
Attendance is required and a register will be taken at the beginning of every class. Your first two
unauthorized absences will not affect your grade, but each absence after that will incur a one point
penalty from your Discussion/Participation grade. If you are late to class or leave early your attendance
will not be counted.
Use of laptops to take notes in class is not allowed. Mobile phones are not permitted and should not
be on display during class. Phones can only be out in times of serious family emergency- please advise
me of this before class.
There are five assessment components of this course:
Discussion/participation 20% Ongoing
Patronage essay 15% February 17th (hard-copy in class please)
Mid-term 20% March 21st
NGA Paper 25% April 7th (hard-copy in class please)
Final 20% May 5th
There is no extra credit available for this course and assignments which have been graded will not be
subject to revision. If you submit a primary source summary late then it will not be graded. If you hand
in your paper late you will lose a third of a letter grade for every day that it is late, starting from the
class period when it is due (e.g. B will go down to B-).
You can contact the TA to help you prepare for exams, assist with discussions and provide guidance for
your projects. She will not help you with the actual writing of your paper; for this, please contact the
Writing Center. Please feel free to email her to arrange an appointment.
Make-up exams: Make-up exams will be administered only in the case of an unexpected family
emergency or serious illness. You must contact me before the scheduled exam by e-mail and you must
have verifiable documentation from a medical or university authority. Be sure to schedule any travel
arrangements in accordance with the final exam date, and be sure that your parents know your final
exam date for this class before booking your travel arrangements. No advance exams will be given for
any reason.
Extra credit: There are two Art History guest lectures this semester taking place on Wednesday
afternoons in the Abramson Recital Hall in Katzen. Attendance of each lecture and the submission of a
300-word summary on Blackboard will earn one additional percentage point on the final exam.5
Grading System:
A = 100-93
A- = 92-90
This grade range indicates work which is clearly superior. It does not mean
“satisfactory” or “adequate.” Such work must reflect an excellent understanding
(and communication) of the material and must be presented in a clear and logical
fashion and in nearly flawless written English.
B+ = 89-88
B = 87-83
B- = 82-80
This grade range implies work that is more than merely satisfactory. Such work
will reflect an above average understanding (and communication) of the material
and will contain only minor errors in grammar, syntax, usage, and spelling.
C+ = 79-78
C= 77-73
C- = 72-70
This grade range indicates work which is competent, adequate, and satisfactory in
presentation. Such work reflects effective understanding of the majority of the
material covered and will not contain excessive errors in grammar, syntax, usage,
and spelling.
D+ = 69-68
D= 67-63
D- = 62-60
This grade range is awarded to work which is unsatisfactory, not competent, or
inadequate in terms of presentation or in terms of fulfilling the assignment. Papers
which contain many serious errors in grammar, syntax, usage, or spelling will
normally be awarded this grade as well.
F (<60) This grade is assigned for failure to complete an assignment in a timely or
competent manner.
Academic Integrity Code
All students should be aware that the American University has an Academic Integrity Code that forbids
both cheating and plagiarism. When you register for courses at AU, you accept these rules. Cheating
includes obtaining assistance on exams or turning in papers that are not your own. Plagiarism includes
quoting someone's exact words or reproducing their innovative ideas without giving them credit.
If you are quoting, you must cite the author and source, with page number(s). If you are not quoting,
you still may not “borrow” either the exact phrases (even two or three words) or the opinions (other
than general facts) from your source. You must change the author's phrases into your own words, and
you must acknowledge opinions by citing the author and source just as you do for a quote. When you
are taking notes, be careful to differentiate clearly what you copy from your own ideas. If you need
help, consult one of the manuals on style available in the Library or go to the campus Writing Center,
Grey Hall 206. If you turn in a plagiarized paper or cheat on an exam, the matter will be subject to
adjudication.
Please refer to the Academic Integrity Code: http://www.american.edu/academics/integrity/code.cfm
Academic Support and Disability Services: If you experience difficulty in this course for any reason,
please don’t hesitate to consult with me. In addition, a wide range of services are available to support
you in your efforts to meet the course requirements.
Academic Support Center (x3360, MGC 243) offers study skills workshops, individual
instruction, tutor referrals, and services for students with learning disabilities. Writing6
support is available in the ASC Writing Lab or in the Writing Center – see below.
Counseling Center (x3500, MGC 214) offers counseling and consultations regarding
personal concerns, self-help information, and connections to off-campus mental health
resources.
Disability Support Services (x3315, MGC 206) offers technical and practical support and
assistance with accommodations for students with physical, medical, or psychological
disabilities.
If you have a disability and might require accommodations in this course, please notify me via DSS or
ASC so that we can make arrangements to address your needs.
Writing Center: The Writing Center, in Battelle-Tompkins 228, is a place where American University
students meet with other AU students to talk about writing. You may seek help from the Writing Center
when preparing the papers required for this course. Check the hours of operation on the website
(www.american.edu/cas/writing/index.cfmand) and call 202-885-2991 for an appointment.7
ASSIGNMENT 1: PATRONAGE ESSAY
Length: 4 pages double spaced, 12-point Times New Roman (excluding bibliography and images)
Deadline: February 17th, bring hard copies to class
This essay requires you to write about a work of art in terms of its patronage, setting and audience. It is
designed to help you consider more than just the artist's perspective when it comes to analysing works
of art.
Choose ONE of the following works of art:
Lorenzo Ghiberti, St John the Baptist, 1412-16. Location: Orsanmichele, Florence. Patron: The
Cloth Merchant's Guild of Florence
Jan van Eyck, Madonna of Chancellor Rolin, c. 1435. Present Location: Louvre Museum;
original location: Notre-Dame-du-Chastel in Autun. Patron: Nicolas Rolin
Pietro Perugino, Christ giving the Keys to St Peter, 1481. Location, Sistine Chapel, Vatican.
Patron: Pope Sixtus IV
Andrea Mantegna, Minerva chases the Vices from the garden of Virtue, 1502. Location: Louvre,
Paris. Patron: Isabella d’Este
You can choose to either write in the third person or take a first person perspective, i.e. pretending you
are the patron themselves.
Your essay must include the following:
1. Research on historical background
2. Description and analysis of image
3. Analysis of patronage, audience, location (the patron's objectives in commissioning the artwork;
how the specific audience may have reacted; the precise location of the artwork and who had
visual access to it)
4. Essay apparatus: grammar, structure, footnotes, images
You must do background reading and research for this essay, consulting books such as monographs on
the artists, academic articles, etc. (see below for suggested bibliography). Aim to cite at least three
sources. I value scholarly printed texts higher than websites (you won't get a high grade if you only
look at websites). Do not quote directly from secondary sources. Include footnotes and a bibliography,
using the Chicago style of notes/bibliography (not Author/date):
http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide.html
You will receive a letter grade for the essay based on the grading system in the syllabus.8
Patronage Essay Suggested Bibliography
Lorenzo Ghiberti, St. John the Baptist
Block, Amy, and David Bornstein. "Lorenzo Ghiberti, the Arte di Calimala, and FifteenthCentury Florentine Corporate Patronage." In Florence and Beyond: Culture, Society and
Politics in Renaissance Italy: Essays in Honor of John M. Najemy, edited by David Paterson,
135-152. Toronto: Centre for Reformation and Renaissance Studies, 2008.
“Monumental Sculpture from Renaissance Florence: Ghiberti, Nanni di Banco, and Verrocchio
at Orsanmichele.” National Gallery of Art. Accessed January 14, 2015.
http://www.nga.gov/exhibitions/orsanmicheleinfo.shtm
Zervas, Diane F. "Lorenzo Monaco, Lorenzo Ghiberti, and Orsanmichele: Part I." The
Burlington Magazine 133, no. 1064 (1991): 748-759.
Perugino, Christ Giving the Keys to St. Peter
O'Malley, Michelle. "Finding Fame: Painting and the Making of Careers in Renaissance Italy."
Renaissance Studies 24, no. 1 (2010): 9-32.
Verstegen, Ian. "Patronage and Dynasty: The Rise of the Della Rovere in Renaissance Italy." In
The Sistine Chapel, Dynastic Ambition, and Cultural Patronage of Sixtus IV, edited by Andrew
Blume, 3-18. Missouri: Truman State University Press, 2003.
Jan van Eyck, Madonna of Chancellor Rolin
Gelfand, Laura D. "Piety, Nobility and Posterity: Wealth and the Ruin of Nicolas Rolin's
Reputation." Journal of Historians of Netherlandish Art 1 (2011): 1-12.
Gelfand, Laura D., and Walter S. Gibson. "Surrogate Selves: The 'Rolin Madonna' and the LateMedieval Devotional Portrait." Simiolus Netherlands Quarterly for the History of Art 38 (2002):
1-31.
McCorkel, Christine H. "The Role of the Suspended Crown in Jan Van Eyck's Madonna and
Chancellor Rolin." The Art Bulletin 58 (1976): 516-529.
Mantegna, Minerva chases the Vices
San Juan, Rose Marie. “The Court Lady’s Dilemma: Isabella D’Este and Art Collecting in the
Renaissance,” Oxford Art Journal 14, no. 1 (1991): 67-78.
King, Catherine. “Medieval and Renaissance Matrons, Italian-Style”, Zeitschrift für
Kunstgeschichte 55, no. 3 (1992): 372-393.
Verheyen, Egon. The paintings in the studiolo of Isabella d’Este at Mantua. New York : New
York University Press for the College Art Association of America, 1971. Available as e-book via
AU catalogue9
ASSIGNMENT 2: NGA ESSAY
Length: 6 pages double-spaced (12-point Times New Roman)
Deadline: April 7th, bring hard copies to class
In class, we only have the opportunity to look at reproductions of art projected on the big screen. When
you see works of art in the flesh, however, you can appreciate their true scale, colours, textures and
details, gaining a greater awareness of their cultural value. This assignment requires you to study in
depth works of art in the National Gallery of Art collection.
For your essay, you will analyze a genre of painting or sculpture well-represented in the gallery.
Possible genres include:
Portraiture
Altarpieces
Religious narratives
Devotional images
Mythological narratives
Historical narratives
Bronze medals/plaquettes
Sculpted reliefs
Sculpture in the round
Your essay must cover the following information:
1. Why was this genre was important and popular during the Renaissance? How did this genre
develop in this period? What were its main themes, aims, and contexts?
2. A comparison between two works from either different chronological or geographical contexts
(e.g. 15th and 16th – century Italian portraits; Sienese and Florentine altarpieces; German and
Venetian mythological scenes). Include substantial information and analysis of both artworks.
3. An unusual, different or unique example of this genre (e.g. portrait of deceased rather than
living person; terracotta rather than bronze sculpture in the round; unusual religious
iconography).
You may not choose Leonardo’s Ginevra de Benci, Cranach’s Nymph of the Spring or anything in
a temporary exhibition. You may not write about a painting you have written about for a
previous Art History class.
Required additional material:
Images of your chosen artworks
Photograph of you next to one of your chosen works (this is to prove to me that you have
actually visited the gallery!)
Footnotes and bibliography
Some other things to consider:
Avoid quoting directly from a source- I am interested in hearing what you have to say, and how
well you can summarize another art historian's ideas. You may lose marks for long quotations.
My lectures are not valid published sources, so you can't reference them in footnotes
Aim to look at around five publications10
Resources:
You may consult the National Gallery's website: www.nga.gov
You must do background reading and research for this essay, consulting books such as the NGA
catalogues, monographs on the artists, academic articles, etc. I value scholarly printed texts higher than
websites (you won't get a high grade if you only look at websites). The following books are on course
reserve in the library:
John T. Paoletti, Gary M. Radke, Art in Renaissance Italy (Upper Saddle River, N.J. : Pearson
Prentice Hall, 2005)
Northern Renaissance Art : Painting, Sculpture, The Graphic Arts From 1350 to 1575, James
Snyder; Revised By Larry Silver, Henry Luttikhuizen (Upper Saddle River, NJ : Prentice Hall,
2005)
Martha Richler, A World Of Art: National Gallery Of Art, Washington (London : Scala Books,
1997)
The National Gallery of Art, Washington, foreword by Earl A. Powell III (New York, N.Y. :
Thames and Hudson, 1992)
You will receive a letter grade for this assignment based on the grading system in the syllabus.11
FOOTNOTES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY GUIDE
How to add a footnote in Microsoft Word:
1. Click in the text where you want to insert the note reference mark.
2. On the References tab, in the Footnotes group, click Insert Footnote. Word inserts the note
reference mark and places the insertion point in the text area of the new footnote or endnote.
3. Type the note text.
NOTE When you add, delete, or move notes that are automatically numbered, Word renumbers the
footnote and endnote reference marks.
NOTE Never add footnote references manually using the superscript function.
NOTE If you have more than one citation, put them both in the same footnote. Do not double up
numbers like this.3,4
How to add a footnote in Pages for Mac:
1. Click in the text where you want to insert the symbol for a footnote or endnote.
2. Click Insert in the toolbar, then choose Footnote.
3. The symbol is inserted in the text and the insertion point moves to the footnote text field at the
bottom of the page.
4. Enter the footnote text.
How to cite books and articles using the Chicago Style
The following examples illustrate citations using the notes and bibliography system. Examples of notes
are followed by shortened versions of citations to the same source.
Books
One author:
1. Michael Pollan, The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals (New York: Penguin,
2006), 99–100.
2. Pollan, Omnivore’s Dilemma, 3.
Two or more authors:
1. Geoffrey C. Ward and Ken Burns, The War: An Intimate History, 1941–1945 (New York: Knopf,
2007), 52.
2. Ward and Burns, War, 59–61.
Chapter or other part of a book:
1. John D. Kelly, “Seeing Red: Mao Fetishism, Pax Americana, and the Moral Economy of War,” in
Anthropology and Global Counterinsurgency, ed. John D. Kelly et al. (Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 2010), 77.
2. Kelly, “Seeing Red,” 81–82.
Article in a print journal
In a note, list the specific page numbers consulted, if any. In the bibliography, list the page range for the
whole article.12
1. Joshua I. Weinstein, “The Market in Plato’s Republic,” Classical Philology 104 (2009): 440.
2. Weinstein, “Plato’s Republic,” 452–53.
Article in an online journal
Include a DOI (Digital Object Identifier) if the journal lists one. A DOI is a permanent ID that, when
appended to http://dx.doi.org/ in the address bar of an Internet browser, will lead to the source. If no
DOI is available, list a URL. Include an access date.
1. Gueorgi Kossinets and Duncan J. Watts, “Origins of Homophily in an Evolving Social Network,”
American Journal of Sociology 115 (2009): 411, accessed February 28, 2010, doi:10.1086/599247.
2. Kossinets and Watts, “Origins of Homophily,” 439.
Website
Because such content is subject to change, include an access date or, if available, a date that the site
was last modified.
1. “Google Privacy Policy,” last modified March 11, 2009,
http://www.google.com/intl/en/privacypolicy.html.
2. “McDonald’s Happy Meal Toy Safety Facts,” McDonald’s Corporation, accessed July 19, 2008,
http://www.mcdonalds.com/corp/about/factsheets.html.
3. “Google Privacy Policy.”
4. “Toy Safety Facts.”
Bibliography
Below is an example of a bibliography listing the sources cited above. A bibliography should be in
alphabetical order by author (or title if there is no author).
Google. “Google Privacy Policy.” Last modified March 11, 2009.
http://www.google.com/intl/en/privacypolicy.html.
Kelly, John D. “Seeing Red: Mao Fetishism, Pax Americana, and the Moral Economy of War.” In
Anthropology and Global Counterinsurgency, edited by John D. Kelly, Beatrice Jauregui, Sean T.
Mitchell, and Jeremy Walton, 67–83. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2010.
Kossinets, Gueorgi, and Duncan J. Watts. “Origins of Homophily in an Evolving Social Network.”
American Journal of Sociology 115 (2009): 405–50. Accessed February 28, 2010. doi:10.1086/599247.
McDonald’s Corporation. “McDonald’s Happy Meal Toy Safety Facts.” Accessed July 19, 2008.
http://www.mcdonalds.com/corp/about/factsheets.html.
Pollan, Michael. The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals. New York: Penguin,
2006.
Ward, Geoffrey C., and Ken Burns. The War: An Intimate History, 1941–1945. New York: Knopf,
2007.
Weinstein, Joshua I. “The Market in Plato’s Republic.” Classical Philology 104 (2009): 439–58.13
DISCUSSION SESSIONS
The Discussion/Participation component of the course is worth 20% of your final grade. In five
sessions, we will discuss themes in Renaissance art, based around primary sources. The texts are in the
folder "Discussion Assignments" on Blackboard. Each discussion is worth two points: one for
participating in class and the other for submitting a written assignment. Our TA will keep track of who
participated in the discussions. For each discussion, you are required to write a 400-word summary of
the documents and submit it to Blackboard. The written summaries are required but will not be graded;
however, if they are of poor quality or length they will not be counted towards your grade. The deadline
will be midnight on the day before the discussion and late summaries will only be accepted with
proof of a documented health crisis or other family emergency. Two further points are for giving
feedback in regular classes about the assigned reading, so there are a maximum of 12 points for this
component.
Further guidance for the written summaries:
Upload either a .doc or .pdf document (never ‘pages’ format)
Do not use quotations from the text; you are asked to summarize the text in your own words
Write 400 words in total, not 400 per document. You must declare the number of words at
the end of your text.
Do not include your own opinion; save this for the class discussion
If you are absent for part of a discussion period (i.e. you arrive late or leave early), your contribution
will not be counted.
Grades (Percentage equivalents are at the discretion of the professor)
11 to 12 points: A/A-
10 points: B
9 points: C
8 points: D
7 or less: F
1: Negotiating art
1A: Contract for the St. Wolfgang Altarpiece
1B: Gerard Horenbout takes on apprentices
1C: Regulations of the Antwerp Guild of St Luke
2: Making art
2A: Cennino Cennini on how to paint
2B: Leon Battista Alberti, On Painting
2C: Benvenuto Cellini’s Autobiography
3: Appreciating art
3A: Leonardo Bruni: In Praise of the City of Florence
3B: Poggio Bracciolini: Showing off an antique sculpture garden
3C: Memo to Lodovico Sforza, Il Moro, concerning the reputation of Florentine painters
3D: Castiglione’s Book of the Courtier14
4: The Paragone Debate (the comparison between painting and sculpture)
4A: Leonardo da Vinci
4B: Varchi's Paragone
5: Art and Religion
5A: Savonarola on publicity in chapels
5B: Andreas Karlstadt, On the Removal of Images
5C: Inquisition Tribunal of Veronese15
MIDTERM AND FINAL EXAM
Each exam will last one hour and consist of 5 questions each worth 20 points. You will have the
remainder of the class period to check your answers.
Question 1 will be a series of 10 short questions (2 points each) based on terminology,
techniques and iconography. Some of these will be image identifications.
Question 2 will ask you to write 4 longer definitions (5 points each) of specific terms we have
encountered in class. Along with your paragraph definition, you will be asked to provide one
example of an artwork which demonstrates the idea. Possibilities include, but are not limited to:
fresco painting, oil painting, marble carving, bronze casting, linear perspective, atmospheric
perspective, altarpieces, polyptychs, cassoni, etc.
Questions 3-5 will be comparison essays similar to those we will practice in class.
You will lose 0.5 points for each incorrect part of an identification (e.g. wrong artist name, title,
date, blank answer). A date is considered correct if it is within 5 years either way.
How to prepare for the exam:
Learn the identification of the images in the list (artist, title, date)
Re-read your notes and the textbook, making sure you can remember some salient points about
each picture.
Review the techniques we've discussed (egg tempera, oil, fresco, bronze, marble) and technical
advances in painting like linear and atmospheric perspective.
When writing the comparison essays, consider the following:
technical details, e.g. materials used, size, shape
formal elements, e.g. composition, style, colour
iconography, subject matter
bigger picture, context, i.e. what does this comparison show? It could be that the comparison
shows a development or influence, the same iconography treated by two different artists,
different social contexts of the artworks, etc.
Grading rubric for comparison essays:
19 or 20 (A) Excellent answer which includes some insightful or creative comments.
18 (A-) All of the information is correct and the student has included some particularly
insightful comments.
17 (B) This is the average grade. Information is correct and most of the main points have
been covered.
16 (B-) Lacking in information or analysis, but has some basic points.16
15 (C) Given for rather limited answers which may have omitted important information.
14 and below
(C-)
Answers which show little understanding or are severely lacking in factual
information.17
SCHEDULE OF CLASSES
Tuesday 17th January Introduction to Renaissance Art
Friday 20th January Inauguration Day: no class
Tuesday 24th January
Techniques and terminology
Textbook, pp. xx-xxxv
Learn iconography of the Life of Christ from this website:
http://www.christianiconography.info/ (scroll down to Christ) and read
about it here: http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/chri/hd_chri.htm
Friday 27nd January Fourteenth-century art in Europe
Textbook, pp. 531-551
Tuesday 31st January North-European art I
Textbook, pp. 563-579
Friday 3rd February DISCUSSION 1: Negotiating art
Reading:
Document 1A: Contract for the St. Wolfgang Altarpiece
Document 1B: Gerard Horenbout takes on apprentices
Document 1C: Regulations of the Antwerp Guild of St Luke
Tuesday 7th February North-European art II: Portraiture
James Snyder, Northern Renaissance Art, pp. 111-118
Wednesday 8th February Guest lecture, 4pm, Abramson Recital Hall, Katzen
“Never the Same Day Twice: Art History and Curatorial Practice”
Virginia Treanor, Associate Curator for the National Museum of
Women in the Arts18
Friday 10th February North-European art III
Textbook, pp. 576-585
Tuesday 14th February Early Sculpture in Florence
Textbook, pp. 595-609
Friday 17th February
Patronage essay due
The Early Renaissance in Florence
Textbook, pp. 609-17
Art in Renaissance Italy, pp. 228-234
Tuesday 21st February Medici Florence
Textbook, pp. 617-626
William Hood, “Saint Dominic's Manners of Praying: Gestures in Fra
Angelico's Cell Frescoes at S. Marco”, The Art Bulletin, Vol. 68, no. 2
(1986), pp. 195-206
Friday 24th February DISCUSSION 2: Making art
Reading:
Document 2A: Cennino Cennini on how to paint
Document 2B: Leon Battista Alberti, On Painting
Document 2C: Benvenuto Cellini’s Autobiography
Tuesday 28th February Botticelli and classical mythology
Textbook, pp. 626-628
Art in Renaissance Italy, pp. 279-282
Friday 3rd March The Italian Domestic Interior
Textbook, p. 616
Document: Letter from Isabella d'Este to Perugino
Document: Giovanni Boccaccio, The Decameron, Day 2, Story 919
Tuesday 7th March Leonardo and the portrait
Textbook, pp. 636-640
Patricia Simons, “Women in Frames. The Gaze, the Eye, the profile in
Renaissance Portraiture”, in The Expanding Discourse. Feminism and
Art History, eds Mary Garrard and Norma Broude (1992), pp. 39-57.
Friday 10th March DISCUSSION 3: Appreciating art
Reading:
Document 3A: Leonardo Bruni: In Praise of the City of Florence
Document 3B: Poggio Bracciolini: Showing off an antique sculpture
garden
Document 3C: Memo to Lodovico Sforza, Il Moro, concerning the
reputation of Florentine painters
Document 3D: Castiglione’s Book of the Courtier
13th-17th March SPRING BREAK: No classes
Tuesday 21st March Midterm exam
Friday 24th March Papal Rome I: Michelangelo
Textbook, pp. 643-653
Art in Renaissance Italy, pp. 401-409
Tuesday 28th March Papal Rome II: Raphael
Textbook, pp. 640-643; 648-49
Wednesday 29th March Guest lecture, 4pm, Abramson Recital Hall, Katzen
“Foregrounding the Background: Dutch and Flemish Images of
Household Servants”
Diane Wolfthal, the David and Caroline Minter Chair in the
Humanities and Professor of Art History, Rice University20
Friday 31st March No class: Dr Allen away at academic conference (Renaissance Society
of America Annual Meeting)
Tuesday 4th April DISCUSSION 4: The Paragone Debate
Reading:
Document 4A: Leonardo da Vinci
Document 4B: Varchi's Paragone
Friday 7th April
NGA assignment due
Renaissance and Mannerist Sculpture
Textbook, pp. 667-668
Art in Renaissance Italy, pp. 387-89, 524-27
Document: The location of Michelangelo's David
Tuesday 11th April Between East and West: The Early Renaissance in Venice
Textbook, pp. 629-631
Alan Chong, “Gentile Bellini in Istanbul”, in Bellini and the East,
(2005), pp. 106-118
Friday 14th April Giorgione and Titian: Painted Poetry
Textbook, pp. 656-661, 672-677
Rona Goffen, “Sex, space and social history in Titian's Venus of
Urbino”, in Titian’s Venus of Urbino (1997), pp. 63-90
Tuesday 18th April Dürer and the Print
Textbook, pp. 679-687
Northern Renaissance Art, pp. 303-317
Friday 21st April Sixteenth-century Northern painting
Textbook, pp. 683-89; 698-700, 706-708
Northern Renaissance Art, pp. 337-34221
Tuesday 25th April The Global Renaissance
Christopher Heuer, “Difference, Repetition and Utopia: Early Modern
Print’s New Worlds”, in Crossing cultures : conflict, migration and
convergence : the proceedings of the 32nd International Congress of
the History of Art, ed. Jaynie Anderson (Carlton: Melbourne
University Publishing, 2009), pp. 203-208.
Friday 28th April DISCUSSION 5: Art and Religion
Reading:
5A: Savonarola on publicity in chapels
5B: Andreas Karlstadt, On the Removal of Images
5C: Inquisition Tribunal of Veronese
Friday 5th May Final exam, 8.10am