Download F20 ART 3824 02

SAM FOX WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
Spring 2016
F 20
ART 3824 01
THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE IN THE CITY OF FLORENCE
INSTRUCTOR: KATHARINA GIRALDI PHD
[email protected]
CELL PHONE 3347099886
Contact Hours: 45
Class time: Monday Afternoon: 1pm-4pm (due to Museum openings the times of some classes may be changed)
Credits: 3
THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE IN THE CITY OF FLORENCE
DESCRIPTION
The Early Renaissance – also known as the Quattrocento – usually denotes the period from circa 1400 to circa
1500. In Italy those one hundred years (particularly in Florence) witnessed an extraordinary coming together of
artistic talent, a passionate interest in the art and culture of Greek and Roman antiquity, a fierce sense of civic
pride and an optimistic belief in the classical concept of “Man as the measure of all things”.
This course examines the principal artists who contributed to this Cultural Revolution.
In order to take full advantage of the special experience of studying the Renaissance in the very city of its birth,
the stress is mainly, although not exclusively, on Florentine artists who include:
sculptors as Donatello, Verrocchio and Michelangelo,
painters as Giotto, Masaccio, Uccello, Botticelli, Leonardo and Raphael,
architects as Brunelleschi and Alberti up to Sangallo.
Visits to museums, galleries and key Renaissance monuments are an integral part of this course. These visits are
timed to coincide with the material covered in class lectures.
The Renaissance artists are not examined in isolation but a continual reference is made to the social and political
conditions of the time:
- patronage – the dominance of the Medici family as arbiters of artistic taste receives especial attention here- artists’ personalities- their training and the materials they used.
- Broader issues such as Humanism- the philosophical school of Neo Platonism
- penitential religious movements (see charismatic monk Savonarola) are examined in relation to their
impact on the visual arts.
OBJECTIVE
This art history course is intended to provide students - whether they are future artists, architects, fashion
designers or art history minors/majors – with a detailed introduction to Italian – specifically Florentine –
Renaissance art of the fifteenth century. The approach is to focus on a select group of major artists rather than
proposing a more generalized overview of a large number of artists.
This means that by the conclusion of the course the student will be able to recognize and discuss the style of the
work of many Renaissance artists. The student will be able to relate the individual works to patronage conditions
and to pertinent social, religious and philosophical movements. On site teaching is a significant part of this
course and is aimed at providing the student with the incomparable experience of studying important works of
art and architecture at first hand. Freed from the purely academic constraints of the lecture room it is hoped that
the student will learn the skill of how truly to look at a work of art. The expression of subjective and personal
responses by individual students to the works of art is never undervalued – indeed is greatly encouraged.
Through studying the Renaissance period in situ the student will also become uniquely aware of the day-to-day
problems of conservation and restoration allied to the astoundingly rich cultural heritage of Florence.
COURSE AIMS
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to familiarize students with Italian artists and artworks during the Italian
Renaissance
to allow students to understand these art works better by exploring their historical,
social and urban contexts.
to encourage students to develop the skills, both analytical and interpretative,
required to examine and understand successfully an artwork.
ATTANDANCE AND PUNKTUALITY
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Each session forms a building block in the larger structure of the course and once missed our visits cannot
be rescheduled or effectively duplicated individually. For this reason you are not permitted to make any
unjustified absences during this course. Two unjustified absences will lower your grade. A justified absence
is one that is explained EITHER by a note from a Doctor OR by a note from the Program Director.
Arriving late to class is an absence until you come and see me at the end of class to explain your late arrival.
Handing in assignments late will lower your grade.
Examinations will not be rescheduled for any reasons.
ASSESSMENT
Your grade will be calculated to reflect your class participation and attendance, a presentation, draft and Final
paper.
Participation
Oral Presentation
Mid TERM EXAM
Final EXAM
10%
30%
30%
30%
The instructor will use the following specific criteria when calculating your class participation grade:
Criteria for Assessing Class Participation
Grade
You make major and original contributions that spark discussion, offering both critical
and analytical comments clearly based on readings and research and displaying a
working knowledge of theoretical issues.
A+
97-100
You make significant contributions that demonstrate insight as well as knowledge of
required readings and independent research.
A-/A
90-96.9
You make useful contributions and participate voluntarily, which are
usually based upon some reflection and familiarity with required readings.
B/B+
84-89.9
You make voluntarily but infrequent comments that generally reiterate the basic points
of the required readings.
C+/B77-83.9
You make limited comments only when prompted and do not initiate debate or show a
clear awareness of the importance of the readings.
C
74-76.9
You very rarely make comments and resist engagement with the subject, attending class
having manifestly done little if any preparation.
D+/C67-73.9
You are unable to make useful comments and contributions, being occasionally absent
from, generally passive in, and unprepared for class.
D/D60-66.9
You make irrelevant and tangential comments disruptive to class discussion, a result of
frequent absence and complete un-preparedness.
F
Below 60
Midterm and Final Exams (30% each):
The examinations will comprise:
 slide identifications – to test your visual recall of High Renaissance Artists works.
 slide comparisons – to gauge your ability to identify the function and styles of individual works; to
gauge your ability to discern the material condition and quality of an artwork; to address your
ability to apply the correct and expressive vocabulary employed by those engaged in art historical
analysis and essay question
 terms – to expand your technical vocabulary in art history
Oral Presentation (30%):
THIS IS AN EXTREMELY IMPORTANT part of your assessment
IT COVERS 30% OF YOUR GRADE!
The presentation is given on site in front of an assigned artwork (see topics below). We will focus on
artists, covered in the course, in context with our class program. Please prepare a class handout and
send it to my email account: [email protected] and post it for your class mates.
You can use bullet points. The information you provide will be an important help for all to prepare the
Final Exam. The more notes you make during class - the better.
How long should the oral presentation be?
About 15 minutes.
Make questions and expect answers!
Fun facts (but not only) and informative observations as well as a good knowledge of the artist’s life will
help (you are expected to read the chapter on the artist in Giorgio Vasari’s Lives.
Midterm and Final Exams (30% each):
The examinations will comprise:
 slide identifications – to test your visual recall of Renaissance Artists works.
 slide comparisons – to gauge your ability to identify the function and styles of individual works; to
gauge your ability to discern the material condition and quality of an artwork; to address your
ability to apply the correct and expressive vocabulary employed by those engaged in art historical
analysis and essay question
 terms – to expand your technical vocabulary in art history
 questions – to check the reading assignments.
Class Participation (10%):
This grade will be calculated to reflect your participation in class discussions, your capacity to introduce
ideas and thoughts dealing with the texts, your ability use language effectively, and to present your
analysis in intellectual, constructive argumentation.
When determining your class participation grade, traditional criteria such as material preparation,
completed reading before class, and collaborative group work are all evaluated. But it is the active,
meaningful and informed verbal and written contribution that you make that is most important to your
overall participation grade. Indeed, willingness to share views in classroom discussions and the
insightfulness of your comments and questions about assigned readings will all be taken into account
when evaluating your participation.
Additionally, it is important to demonstrate a positive and supportive attitude to the instructor and your
classmates, and give full attention to class activities (i.e., cell-phones off, laptop for notes only, not
sleeping or distracted, etc.). Whereas attendance and punctuality are expected and will not count
positively towards the grade, laxity in these areas will have a negative effect.
REQUIRED TEXT BOOK: you will receive chapters from different books and personal Notes.
FURTHER READING
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E.Welch Art and Society in Italy 1350-1500 Oxford University Press
C.Avery Florentine Renaissance Sculpture John Murray, Chaps.1-7
R.Olson Italian Renaissance Sculpture Chaps. 1-6
F. Ames-Lewis (ed.) The Early Medici and their artists, Birbeck College.
P.Murray The Architecture of the Italian Renaissance Thames & Hudson, Chaps.2-4
K.Clark The Nude , Penguin, (not exclusively concerned with the Renaissance but very useful for an
important Renaissance theme).
 Giorgio Vasari The Lives of the Artists, Penguin, vol.1
 J.Hall Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art, Harper & Row. Essential for those unfamiliar with
religious subject matter (both Old and New Testaments) constitutes most of the subject matter of Early
Renaissance art. (also useful for mythological subject matter).
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SCHEDULE:
1.TUESDAY,
JANUARY 12TH
2PM – 5PM
Location – Meeting Place
San Miniato al Monte
SIRSA Campus
2. SATURDAY, JANUARY 16TH
8AM – 5PM
Fieldtrip to Siena and San Gimignano
TRAINSTATION AT 8.00AM
3. MONDAY, JANUARY 18TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: LECTURE ON SIGHT
Introduction in the class material
Reading: indicated in class
Location – Meeting Place
Campus
4. MONDAY, JANUARY 25TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: LECTURE ON SIGHT
On site visits: San Giovanni, Santa Maria del Fiore, Cathedral
Museum OPA and Santa Reparata
Location - – Meeting Place
Piazza San Giovanni,
Baptistery, South Door
SATURDAY, JANUARY 30TH - SUNDAY 31ST
Time
MILAN TRIP
5.MONDAY, February 1ST
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: LECTURE ON SIGHT
Santa Croce & Santa Trinità
Location - – Meeting Place
Piazza Santa Trinità
0. MONDAY, February 8TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: No class
No class
Location – Meeting Place
None
6. MONDAY, February 15TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: LECTURE ON SIGHT
Santa Maria Novella
Location -– Meeting Place
Santa Maria Novella
7.MONDAY, February 22ND
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: LECTURE ON SIGHT
Bargello & Brancacci Chapel
Location – Meeting Place
Bargello
8. MONDAY, February 29TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: LECTURE ON SIGHT
San Marco, San Apollonia
Location -– Meeting Place
Museum of San Marco
9. MONDAY, March 7TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: MID TERM
Mid Term Exam
Location – Meeting Place
Campus
0. MONDAY, March 14TH – 19TH
Time
SPRING BREAK
10. MONDAY, March 21ST
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: EARLY RENAISSANCE FLORENCE
Palazzo Medici Riccardi & Cenacles & Or San Michele
Location – Meeting Place
Medici Riccardi
0. MONDAY, March 28TH
Time
Activity: PASQUETTA – NO CLASS - EASTER
11. MONDAY, April 4TH
Time
8:30
Activity: PRATO LECTURE ON SIGHT
PRATO
Location – Meeting Place
Train station
12. MONDAY, April 11TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: Medici and Michelangelo
Medici Chapel (New Sacristy) +Laurentian Library + Casa
Buonarotti
Location – Meeting Place
Meet at the Laurentian
Library/ San Lorenzo
13. SATURDAY, APRIL 16TH
Time
Activity: AREZZO-MONTERCHI- CITTA DI CASTELLO
8: 30
AREZZO: PIERO TRAIL
Location- – Meeting Place
Train station
14. MONDAY, April 18TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity: ARCHITECTURE, CONCENTRATE ON BRUNELLESCHI
Church San Lorenzo and the Ospedale degli Innocenti
Location – Meeting Place
Ospedale degli Innocenti
15. MONDAY, April 28TH
Time
1pm-4pm
Activity:
Final Exam
PRESENTATION TOPICS:
Location- – Meeting Place
Pandolfini Campus
 TORNABUONI CHAPEL
 STROZZI DI MONTOVA CHAPEL
 STROZZI CHAPEL, SPANISH CHAPEL
 TRINITY AND PERSPETIVE
 THE SCULPTURE CYCLE OF ORSANMICHELE
 THE BRANCACCI CHAPEL
 CAPPELLA DEI MAGI, BENOZZO GOZZOLI
 CHOSEN FRESCOS IN THE DORMITORY OF SAN MARCO, FRA ANGELICO
 THE LAST SUPPER, GHIRLANDAIO
 THE LAST SUPPER DI ANDREA DEL CASTAGNA
 HOSPITAL OF THE INNOCENCE
 THE DOME
 SAN LORENZO AND THE OLD SACRISTY
 MICHELANGELO’S LIBRARY AND VESTIBULE
 MAIN CHAPEL IN ST.STEPFAN, PRATO, FILIPPO LIPPI
 NEW SACRISTY, MICHELANGELO, SAN LORENZO
 DAVID, MICHELANGELO, ACCADEMY
 THE PRISONERS, MICHELANGELO
 THE RAPE OF THE SABINE WOMAN, GIAMBOLOGNA
 PALAZZO VECCHIO, PIAZZA DELLA SIGNORIA, PITTI
Study Projects:
The Volunteer Project:
The Volunteer Program (VP) assessment consists of three parts:
1 Part: Being a Volunteer: each of you will collaborate with the Florentine organization Ars ed Fides, a
volunteer program that promotes interaction between Florentine specialists in art and you as a foreign
student in Florence, and which provides volunteers the opportunity to study Renaissance monuments
on site. If you are interested I will take you there the first class and introduce you. You will choose a
church (San Lorenzo, Santo Sprito, Santa Maria del Fiore, Santa Croce, Santa Maria Novella) or museum
(Palazzo Vecchio, Museo del Opera del Duomo) and it will be your work to study in order to give a
guided tour once a week to ordinary tourists. In this way you would study at least one monument here
in Florence in depth.
1. Part: Presentation: At a certain point you can do the same in class or on site. We will focus on (by me
indicated) artists and bring their work in connection with our class program.
2. Part: Final Report: The purpose of writing a Final report is to communicate clearly what you have
learned through the Volunteer Project, and to demonstrate the ability to critically analyze a work of art
through consideration of its formal characteristics and the social context of its genesis. Your paper
should reveal mastery of the facts and interpretations found in readings, lectures, discussions, and
onsite studies. It will also demonstrate a comfortable command of the course material and is
characterized by your independent evaluation and critical consideration of that material.
The Fresco Project:
You can if you want participate a fresco class session. An expert will introduce to you the technique of
fresco making. Cost of this activity which last 3 hours is 20 Euro per student.
Following this experience, study a fresco cycle of your choice. Examine the present situation of the
Chosen work: had it been restored? I will arrange a visit in the office of the Pietre Dure where you can
talk personally to restorers.
We talk about this project together and set up a check list. Write an essay on the subject matter (2500
words)