ART 207 Renaissance and Baroque
This course will survey painting, sculpture, and architecture in Europe
between 1400 and 1750. We will follow the development of a visual
expression which valorized the human figure as a basic unit of meaning,
and created a unified pictorial space in which figures could be placed in
significant relation with one another, and which grew increasingly
ambitious in its scale and effect. We will examine patterns of patronage
as they shift from the newly wealthy merchant class of the fifteenth
century to the papal courts of sixteenth century Rome and the absolutist
monarchies of seventeenth century Northern Europe. We will examine the
relationship between art and political and other cultural events of the
period. The course will cover the artistic centers of Northern Europe as
well as the Italian cities of Florence, Rome and Venice. The vigor of the
Renaissance and the visual complexities of the Baroque will offer us a
challenging opportunity to exercise our powers of description and
aesthetic analysis. This course is not offered 2005-2006.
No prerequisite.
Credits: 1