SYLLABUS PALAZZI - FLORENCE ASSOCIATION FOR INTERNATIONAL EDUCATION FLORENCE UNIVERSITY OF THE ARTS APICIUS INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF HOSPITALITY SCHOOL OF LIBERAL ARTS DEPARTMENT OF ART HISTORY COURSE TITLE: INTRODUCTION TO RENAISSANCE ART COURSE CODE: LA AH IR 220 SECTION: 201 SESSION: 3 semester credits (45 lecture hours) Day and Time: Professor: Teacher availability: Available to see students individually after class by appointment 1. DESCRIPTION This introductory course is aimed at students who have little or no background in the history of Western Art. Before examining the beginnings of Renaissance art which took hold in Florence in the early years of the fifteenth century, students will be given a broad overview of Greek and Roman art and architecture the emulation of which is fundamental to understanding the cultural revolution of the Renaissance. Through on-site visits to medieval churches and palaces in Florence, students will early on become become familiar with the Romanesque and Gothic styles in which the first Renaissance painters, sculptors and architects had their roots and from which they were dramatically to diverge. Since site-visits are a significant part of this course, the focus will be on Florentine artists who will include: Masaccio, Donatello, Brunelleschi, Fra Angelico, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. As well as analyzing the style and subject matter of works of art, students will learn about the techniques of painting and sculpture and comparisons will be made with techniques in other countries in the same period, for example the use of oil paints in Flemish painting. 2. OBJECTIVE As an introductory course, this will give the students an overview of the complexity of the Renaissance, as a fruitful moment for the society, the individual, and the arts. By the end of the course the students should be able to: • Acquire a basic knowledge of methodological approaches to Art History, such as formal analysis, iconographic analysis, and social history • Identify, date and analyze, the works of art and the techniques of the main Early and High Renaissance artists. • Evaluate those issues affecting the visual arts in Renaissance Florence, as well as in other Italian cities, as patronage, historical and social background, religious and philosophical movements, cross-influences between the different schools of art • Communicate and share those afore-mentioned abilities in oral and written form • Express critical points of view supported not only by the study of texts and primary sources, but also combining those with relevant direct experiences to the sites of the Renaissance • Select and synthesize relevant information and to communicate it in oral and written form 1 • Demonstrate enthusiasm and readiness to work and take decisions independently, but also in a cooperative and decisional team when required • Move further into the study of more specific subjects, such as Early Renaissance and High Renaissance and Mannerism The unique opportunity of being able to directly see, during the course’s on-site lectures, most of the works of art treated in the course, in their original location in palaces and churches, or in the major museums, enriches the students’ learning experience. 3. REQUIREMENTS There are no prerequisites for this course, although a background of European history would be "preferable" (but not essential) for the better comprehension of the subject. • At the start of the course, students will be asked to fill out a questionnaire to provide some background information, their study plan, expectations, etc… • Lectures are held in English. However students will be provided with terms and words used commonly in Italian or in art history; whenever necessary students will be helped with spelling and terminology. • A responsible and active class participation is expected at all times. • Individual study of the notes, the readings, the handouts etc. at home is required after every lecture and on a weekly basis. On your lecture schedule (point 12), you will find the required readings for each lecture or museum visit, and the possible assignments and homeworks. • Students will be asked to research, read and study quite often at the School Library. Please make sure you are familiar with it (know how it works, opening and closing times, facilities, etc.) from the very start of the course. • For the material you will need to type, please check the school computer facilities. • Students are required to dress properly for visits to religious sites (see point 6). • This course is not suitable for students with serious walking disabilities since many lessons will consist of out-door walking. • No eating is allowed in class • At all times cell phones must be turned off (both during lectures and visits). • Please also consider important notes on attendance, participation and assignments (as de- scribed in pertinent paragraphs). 4. METHOD The course is based on lectures with slides in class, and lectures on site to churches, museums and palaces. Outlines comprehending slides lists, questions, keywords and key concepts to support the lectures/visits, will be provided for each class. Few days before the mid-course and final exam students will receive a study guide. Videos or clips may be shown for didactic purposes. The lessons are usually divided in two parts: a lecture with slides, and discussions in class, and a fieldtrip to visit sites relevant to the lecture. A 10 minutes break will divide lectures that just take place in class. Fieldtrips are always an integral part of the course/class, and for no reason the students can miss it. At times, though remaining mandatory, visits may be scheduled differently, due to the incompatibility of the opening hours of the sites with our timetable. In some occasions you should schedule your own visits to the sites suggested below (point 6). Active participation is expected in class as well as during visits. Students will be asked to intervene according to different modalities: open discussions on topics and readings, scheduled oral presentations, group activities. Since participation plays a role in your final grade, it is essential that you have not only read what assigned, but also that you have drawn conclusions of your own from the reading. Your conclusions will often emerge during class discussions. The method is basically interactive to help students develop a critical point of view. 5. TEXT BOOK – FURTHER READINGS – INTERNET RESOURCES 2 TEXT BOOK: The required textbook is a Course pack available at Copy Centre CENTROSTAMPA Via Alfani 103red (cost about 15.00 Euro) Reserve as soon as possible your copy the course-pack. It might take a few days to you need it by the very first week Each student must provide the Course pack for the successful completion of the course. Further material, handouts and notes will be eventually distributed to the students during the semester. FURTHER READINGS (Books listed below are available at the school library, Via de Macci 85 red). • AVERY C., Florentine Renaissance Sculpture, John Murray • HARTT F. / WILKINS D., A History of Italian Art, 6 Ed. • KENT F.W., Lorenzo de Medici & the Art of Magnificence, The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore 2004 • PAOLETTI J.T.& RADKE G.H., Art in Renaissance Italy, Laurence KingWELCH E., Art and Society in Italy 1350-1500, Oxford University Press; • VASARI G., The Lives of the Artists, Penguin, vol.1; • WELCH E., Art and Society in Italy 1350-1500, Oxford University Press; Suggested Readings for the paper Portraiture in Renaissance art : • BROWN D. A., Virtue and Beauty, Princeton Univ. Press, 2002 • LANGDON G., Medici Women: Portraits of Power, Love and Betrayal from the Court of Duke Cosimo I, University of Toronto Press, 2006 • POPE-HENNESSY J., The Portrait in the Renaissance, Princeton Univ. Press, 1979 STREHLKE C. B., Pontormo, Bronzino and the Medici: the transformation of the Renaissance portrait in Florence, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2004 • WOODFORD SUSAN, Portraits, in Looking at Pictures, Cambridge University Press, 1983, pp. 21-29 (photocopied on your class booklet) Please, expand the above list of books according to your interests and inclination, look for monographic sources on artists inspiring for you, and always follow cross-reference criteria for your research. INTERNET RESOURCES Good sources of information are the on line Groove Dictionary of Art, the platform JStor and ebray, that most of you can reach with your home university access. Free access: Many museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum in New York or the Louvre in Paris, have excellent databases. Browse those first, before addressing to less reliable sites. General: http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/art/index.html on line art dictionary: www.artlex.com 6. VISITS – TRIPS During the course we will visit the following sites: • Church of Santa Croce (€ 5.00) • Piazza San Giovanni (Bell tower, Baptistery, exterior) • Bargello Museum (free entrance with the museum pass) • Orsanmichele, exterior • Church of Santa Maria Novella (€ 3.50) 3 • Palazzo Medici-Riccardi and Magi Chapel (€ 5.00) • Church of Santa Trinita • Refectory of Sant’Apollonia • Accademia Gallery (free entrance with the museum pass) • Uffizi Gallery (free entrance with the museum pass) • Palatine Gallery inside Pitti Palace (free entrance with the museum pass) Individual visits to the following sites are highly recommended: o Brancacci Chapel (€ 4.00) o Church of Santo Spirito (free entrance) o Refectory of Ognissanti (free entrance) o Church of Santissima Annunziata (free entrance) o Refectory of Foligno (free entrance) o Church of San Lorenzo (€ 2.50) o Cathedral of Florence (free entrance) o San Marco Monastery (€ 6.50) o Palazzo Vecchio (€ 6.50) Recommended sites to visit in Italy Get inspired and organize your trips to see in person what we see in slides together. I especially recommend the following sites: Venice San Marco. Ducal Palace. Scuola Grande di San Rocco. Correr Museum. Guggenehim Collection Rome Vatican complex, as the most impressive example of 16th century papal commission; la Farnesina, commissioned by the banker Agostino Chigi .