ARH f331J (77660): and Experience in Central : Gothic and Art and in Central Italy (VAPA) Castiglion Fiorentino, Toscana, Summer 2016

SYLLABUS

Dr. Ann Johns, Senior Lecturer, Department of Art and Spring Office Hours: DFA 2.520, MWF 12-2 or by appointment (MWF); email: [email protected]

Course Description:

(Siena Duomo, left; Brunelleschi’s for the Duomo, right)

"Then arose new architects who after the manner of their barbarous nations erected buildings in that style which we call Gothic (dei Gotthi)." --- (1511–1574)

In this course, we will focus on the rich tradition of both Gothic and and architecture in central Italy. In introductory art history courses, we learn that the Gothic style is the last and most elaborate of medieval modes—builders adorn churches with lacy, fanciful decoration (see Duomo, above), consists of sweetly smiling saints positioned in a Gothic s-curve, and paintings are richly encrusted with gold leaf and ornamental splendor. In these same introductory courses, we learn that the art of the is a return to Antiquity, with its classical architectural forms (see the Florence Duomo, above), sculpture balanced into poses of perfect contrapposto, and painting endowed, thanks to the discovery of scientific , with depth and clarity.

What we find when we are in Italy and have the opportunity to look at the real works of art is something much richer and more interesting. We see “Gothic” painters who employ the rudiments of scientific perspective (such as Ambrogio Lorenzetti; image, below), while we encounter “Renaissance” sculptors and architects who also incorporate Gothic decoration and architectural features into their work. Painters like (see image, below) and create stunningly convincing and naturalistic landscapes and fully modeled figures, while still using lavish quantities of gilding and decorative patterning. Brunelleschi encased his famous dome of Florence —the signature monument of the early Renaissance—with graceful Gothic ribs. All of the cities that we will visit—Florence, Rome, Siena, Orvieto, Arezzo, Cortona, and even our own Castiglion Fiorentino— possess countless works of art and architecture that demonstrate the difficulty of separating the Gothic style from the Renaissance. 1

Left: Ambrogio Lorenzetti, Justice, Allegory of Good Government, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena Right: Fra Angelico’s Cortona , with its classical frame and gothic decorative surface

Through reading, reading responses, discussion, presentations, drawing, blogging, and site visits, we will examine such topics as the development of style in art, the rise of the guild and workshop systems, and the social and economic factors that contributed to the manufacture and marketing of art in the late and Renaissance. We will discuss the development of humanistic in art and architecture, as well as the growth of the pan- European style known as the International Gothic.

Unlike classes here in Austin, few of our meetings will take place in a classroom. Instead, much of our class discussion will take place on site, in these famous art cities and in front of the objects and buildings of interest. One of the great joys of the Learning program is the day-to-day interaction and confrontation with art and architecture, both old and new. Thus much of our examination of Gothic and Renaissance works will take place in cities like Florence, Siena, Orvieto (see image, below), and Rome, under the gaze of actual works of art such as ’s Maestà and Brunelleschi’s Florence dome. A Gothic monument like the Cathedral of Siena holds, in fact, artistic treasures by some of the greatest sculptors of the Medieval, Renaissance and periods, including , , , and Bernini (see image).

Left: Gothic Cathedral of Orvieto; Center: Bernini’s St. Jerome in Siena’s Gothic Duomo; Right: Castiglion Fiorentino’s Vasarian loggia 2 We will also have numerous opportunities to see and discuss works from other eras in Italy’s rich artistic tradition. Our own town of Castiglion Fiorentino was originally an Etruscan settlement, and there is an outstanding Etruscan collection in nearby Cortona. We will visit many of ancient Rome’s most famous monuments during our long stay in Rome; our hotel is adjacent to several Roman temples, and many students can see the roof of the Pantheon from their hotel window! Rome was also the artistic center of Europe during the Baroque period, and we’ll see many of Bernini and ’s major works during our stay. Rome, Florence, and Venice also offer numerous venues for seeing both modern and , both in and gallery settings. Even in our home town of Castiglion Fiorentino, we see examples of art and architecture from every major period, including Etruscan artifacts, medieval castles, churches and palazzi, Renaissance churches and civic structures, and numerous Baroque and interiors. Contemporary artists display their works throughout the city. Even our home base of Santa Chiara has a rich history, with much of the building dating back to the Renaissance.

This course will be taught in tandem with the studio art class offered by Michael Mogavero. All students will be enrolled in both classes. Our aim is twofold: we want your studies and observations about older artistic practices to enrich the art you create over the course of 6 weeks, and we hope that both your on-site and studio projects will enhance your understanding of the art of the extraordinarily beautiful region of Tuscany.

Michael and Ann teaching together in Florence (left, ) and Rome (right, Ponte Sant’Angelo)

Global Cultures flag (GC): This course carries the Global Cultures flag. Global Cultures courses are designed to increase your familiarity with cultural groups outside the United States. You should therefore expect a substantial portion of your grade to come from assignments covering the practices, beliefs, and histories of at least one non-U.S. cultural group, past or present.

Visual and Performing Credit (VAPA): This course may be used to fulfill the visual and performing arts component of the university core curriculum and addresses the following four core objectives established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board: communication skills, critical thinking skills, teamwork, and social responsibility.

Readings: You do not have a textbook; all of your readings will be available in the class packet. This packet will include materials for both the studio and the art history class, and thus it is mandatory. You will purchase this at our April meeting.

You must also purchase the MANDATORY field trip course packet, containing maps, plans, and important information for our various field trips. You will also purchase this at our April meeting.

3 Grading: See the separate handouts for explanations and directions of the following assignments. All handouts and assignments are also posted on the program’s Canvas site, under “course information”, and I will repost them on our class site once it becomes available.

Quiz: 10% (due date: Monday, 5/30) Five Short Reading Responses: each 5%, for a total of 25% (due date: no later than Thursday, 6/19) Blog Entries: 2 entries, each 10% (due dates: blog 1—no later than Wednesday, 6/22; blog 2—no later than Thursday, 6/30) On-site Presentation: 15% (finish by Thursday, 6/23) Participation and Attendance: 10% Group Project: 20% (due date: Friday, 6/27 or Monday, 6/30; short report due Wednesday, 7/2, but these dates are very much subject to change)

Please note that unexcused absences or tardiness to classes or other appointments will greatly affect your grade. An unexcused absence or tardiness to a field trip will HUGELY and NEGATIVELY affect your grade. On field trips, we leave when the train or bus leaves, so if you are late, you will be left on your own. So plan accordingly.

We will use the +/- system of grading, which is as follows: A (4.00) = 93-100; A- (3.67) = 90-93; B+ (3.33) = 87- 89; B (3.00) = 84-86; B- (2.67) = 80-83; C+ (2.33) = 77-79; C (2.00) = 74-76; C- (1.67) = 70-73; D+ (1.33) = 67- 69; D (1.00) = 64-66; D- (0.67) = 60-63; F (0.00) = 0-59 If you show up, participate, work hard, and have a good attitude, you will get a good grade. In other words, it is your “A” to lose.

There is NO final exam.

Classes: Our class will (most likely) meet in CLASSROOM C (courtyard level) from 9-12. Most days, we will spend the first part of the class in the classroom and the second part of the class in the city of Castiglion Fiorentino. Classes meet on the days listed, below.

Office Hours: I’m around all the time at Santa Chiara: before class, after class, before dinner, and on the weekends, usually in the courtyard. Call or text me at 339-186-1085 to set up another time, or email me at: [email protected].

Learning Differences and Disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides, upon request, appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-6441 TTY. Please inform me privately, well in advance of any exam or assignment, if you have the official University paperwork, and we will accommodate your special needs.

Copyright issues: The materials used in this class, including, but not limited to, exams, quizzes, and homework assignments are copyright protected works. Any unauthorized copying of the class materials is a violation of federal law and may result in disciplinary actions being taken against the student. Additionally, the sharing of class materials without the specific, express approval of the instructor may be a violation of the University's Student Honor Code and an act of academic dishonesty, which could result in further disciplinary action. This includes, among other things, uploading class materials to websites for the purpose of sharing those materials with other current or future students.

4 Schedule of Classes, Readings, and Excursions (subject to all manner of changes once we get to Italy)

Week of Monday, May 23 5/24 (T): Arrive Castiglion Fiorentino (CF) 5/25 (W): CF orientation Class: Making art in Gothic and Renaissance Italy; pre-Florence orientation. Reading: John Paoletti and Gary Radke. Art in Renaissance Italy, 3rd ed. New York: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2005, 12-45. Note: our classes will be in the morning, exact time and place TBA

5/26 (Th): Florence. San Miniato, , , Duomo complex Reading for this field trip: Berger, John. Ways of Seeing, Chapter 1. London: BBC and Penguin Books, 2008, 7-34.

5/27 (F): Class: Artist and Patron in Renaissance Italy; post-Florence discussion; pre-Arezzo orientation Reading: Michael Baxandall, “Conditions of Trade” (1-27) and “The Period Eye” (parts 1-5, 29- 56), in Painting and Experience in Fifteenth-Century Italy. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press, 1988. 5/28 (Sa): free 5/29 (Su): free

Week of Monday, May 30 5/30 (M): Arezzo. Pieve di Santa Maria, frescoes at San Francesco, Duomo. 5/31 (T): Class: Gothic and Renaissance Style in Italy; post-Arezzo discussion; pre-Siena orientation. Reading: Ackerman, James, “Style,” in Ackerman and Rhys Carpenter, Art and Archaeology (Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1963), 164-186.

6//1 (W): Siena. Palazzo Pubblico, lunch, Duomo and Duomo museum; dinner in Siena 6/2 (Th): Class: Gothic and ; post-Siena discussion and pre-Cortona orientation Reading: Trachtenberg, Marvin, “Gothic/Italian ‘Gothic’: Toward a Redefinition,” Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians 50 (1991), 22-37.

6/3 (F): Cortona. Le Celle Hermitage, Museo Diocesano, Etruscan Museum. 6/4 (Sa): free 6/5 (Su): free

Week of Monday, June 6 6/6 (M): Class: QUIZ!!!; Gothic and Renaissance Sculpture; pre-Orvieto orientation. Reading: Turner, Richard “Speaking ,” in Renaissance Florence: the invention of a new art. (Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1997), 50-67.

6/7 (T): Orvieto Duomo complex and Signorelli frescoes

6/8 (W): Class: Gothic and Renaissance Painting; post-Orvieto discussion Reading: Ahl, Diane Cole. Fra Angelico (New York and London: Phaidon, 2008), 70-93.

6/9 (Th): Class: Gothic and Renaissance Painting; pre-Florence orientation. Reading: Manca, Joseph, “The Gothic Leonardo: Towards a Reassessment of the Renaissance,”: Artibus et Historiae, Vol. 17, No. 34 (1996), 121-158. 3 reading responses due by midnight of June 9 5

6/10 (F): Florence. Santissima Annunziata, San Marco, Medici Palace, New Sacristy 6/11 (Sa): free 6/12 (Su): free; mandatory pre -Rome departure meeting at 6:00 (DO NOT MISS THIS MEETING IF YOU ARE TRAVELING OVER THE WEEKEND!!!) Last possible day to turn in Blog #1

Week of Monday, June 13 6/13 (M): Rome: the ancient city. Campidoglio, Roman Forum, Colosseum, Column of Trajan, Pantheon 6/14 (T): Medieval Rome. Walking tour in Trastevere; afternoon free 6/15 (W): Renaissance Rome. St. Peter’s and the Vatican 6/16 (Th): Baroque Rome. Caravaggio walk, Borghese Gallery, Bernini’s St. Teresa 6/17 (F): Depart for long weekend!!! 6/18 (Sa): free 6/19 (Su): free

Week of Monday, June 20 6/20 (M): free 6/21 (T): free; return from long weekend 6/22 (W): Class: Rome review Development of Group Projects Last chance to turn in remaining two reading responses (5 in total), before dinner 6/23 (Th): Florence. , Santa Croce and Santa Felicita 6/24 (F): Class: Work on Group Projects 6/25 (Sa): free 6/26 (Su): free

Week of Monday, June 27 6/27 (M): Class: Work on Group Projects; La Pievuccia visit 6/28 (T): Class: Work on Group Projects 6/29 (W): Class and Group Presentations 6/30 (Th): Class and Group Presentations Last possible day to turn in Blog #2 7/1 (F): Studio Exhibit in the evening 7/2 (Sa): Group Presentations 7/3 (Su): Group Project Write-ups due

Week of Monday, July 4 7/4 (M): Check out and depart

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