Congratulations! You found it! Each day after our class, I will post key points from the new material we covered that day. Try www.sweetsearch.com! 12/12/12 Women Artists You will research a female artist from one of the time periods we have covered in class. For your book page you will have:
Your homework: You will write an introductory paragraph talking about women artists in history:
You will write bullet points about a female artist from one of the time periods we covered. BY 7PM TONIGHT, you will send me 2-3 images of this artist's work. You may send more if you like but we will be able to spend less time on each if you send many. My email and phone number are on the syllabus. Let me know if you are switching artists. Tomorrow in class, when we do the slides, you will each present your artist in the same way you have been presenting your research each day in class. http://arthistoryresources.net/ARTHLinks.html is a great place to start researching! 12/5 Northern Renaissance/High Renaissance 12/4 Proto-Renaissance/Early Renaissance
12/3 Medieval Art Key points:
11/30 Roman Art Key points:
Homework:
11/29 Greek Sculpture Ancient Greek sculpture showed the influence of the Egyptian aesthetic but over time the rigid, stylized forms became more and more realistic. Greek sculpture has 3 main periods: Archaic- In the archaic period that started around 600 BC, statues shows a lot of similarities to the rules of the Egyptians. They were stylized, with clenched hands and stiff postures. But Greek sculpture did have one important difference- the human figure was freestanding, unsupported by a backing or other form. Common in this period were statues of young men (kouros) and young women (kore). They were used as temple offerings or in graves. They were clothed and painted in bright colors. Classical- Something interesting happened in the Classical period- a change in stance or posture. It was called 'contraposto' and was essentially the shifting of weight to one leg. It was developed by sculptor and mathematician, Polychitus. The first example we have of it in art is in a sculpture called the Kritios Boy 480 BC. This one is actually attributed to a sculptor named Kritios (notice how here, unlike in Egypt, we actually know who some of the artists are!). Sculptors in this period were interested in making sculptures that looked like real live bodies. They portrayed bodies capable of movement and bodies in motion. They often used young male athletes as models and worked to work very realistically. But as often happens when you focus on something visual, it becomes exaggerated in interpretation. Human form very quickly went from realistic to exaggerated. Hellenistic- In the Hellenistic period, sculptors really pumped up the exaggeration of fabrics- this started in the Classical period but reached its height in the Hellenistic. Folds in clothing became epic and poetic (imagine the soundtrack to the video we watched about Ployclitus!). Sculptors in the Hellenistic period were interested in expression of emotion and expressive posture or position- think of the anguish of the Dying Gaul. 11/28 Ancient Egyptian Art Life in Ancient Egypt
The term ‘ancient Egypt’ refers to a very long period of time from 3,000 BC to 300 AD. Egypt was ruled by a succession of pharaohs during this time and most of the artwork we can refer to today comes from the tombs of the pharaohs. The religion of ancient Egypt had many gods and goddesses. The ancient Egyptians had a strong belief in an afterlife and took very seriously the need to be prepared after death with material things they would need to live that afterlife. Painting Paintings in ancient Egypt varied very little over that long expanse of time, and they generally followed a strict set of rules set forth in the early part of the period. Images were symbolic and stylized. Humans were portrayed in orderly but unrealistic form- with torsos usually facing forward, feet facing to the side, heads in profile and the one visible eye looking forward. In a similar manner, animals were stylized as well. Unruly groupings like a team of horses or a herd of animals being hunted were layered and often looked almost stacked up on each other. People tended to look very much the same and were idealized in perfect proportion. Things like skin tone and the sizes of hands and feet were very symbolic; for instance, pale skin was usually reserved for women and brown skin for men, and hands and feet were bigger on people who worked for a living like farmers, and smaller on royals. Sculpture Ancient Egyptian sculpture was usually carved of limestone or granite, or sometimes cast in bronze. It is a mystery how the Egyptians, who used copper tools, were able to carve granite, one of the hardest stones in the world. Sculpted figures were stylized and not usually very realistic. In a sculpture of Menkaure (aka Mycerimus or Mycerinus), the pharaoh and his queen stand together, upright and symmetrical. Their faces and bodies are stylized and not very natural looking. The queen stands slightly behind the pharaoh and both figures have one foot slightly in front of the other as if taking a step. Art in the Amarna Period A notable exception to the stylization of ancient Egyptian art was during the Amarna period which took place during the reign of Akhenaten. Akhenaten made a radical change in the religion of the time. There had always been many gods and goddesses but Akhenaten declared there to be one god- Aten, a sun god and for his relatively brief reign only Aten was worshipped in Egypt. Art also changed during this time, becoming more fluid with more curved lines. Paintings and sculptures depicting the pharaoh and his queen, Nefertiti and their children were unusually loving and casual compared the tradition of very formal art up to this time. Akhenaten was also always depicted with an elongated head and a very curvy, almost feminine body. One theory is that he had a sickness that had deformed his body. Another theory is that in the new monotheistic (one god) religion, male and female qualities were both present in one god, therefore the pharaoh was also represented as being androgynous. After Akhenaten died, his son Tutankhamen became pharaoh and re-established the many gods and goddesses. For the most part, art also returned to its traditional style. What was important to people in ancient Egypt? The religion of ancient Egypt with its many gods and goddesses had a strong emphasis on the afterlife. It was of great importance to prepare for that afterlife. People wanted to do whatever they could to make sure they had all the comfort, prestige, and support from the gods in their afterlives that they had enjoyed in their lives on earth. They believed that preserving things from their physical life would ensure that those things would be available to them in the next life. They wanted to take it all with them, and did many things to that end, from preserving their own bodies right down to mummifying their cats! Great riches and beautiful things were stored in the tombs in preparation for the life beyond. They believed in a kind of magic that would make these physical things accessible to them when their lives on earth were over. How is this reflected in their art? Because of their need to provide for themselves and their departed loved ones in the afterlife, ancient Egyptians created many beautiful works of art that were part of or put into tombs. They believed that this beauty and wealth and comfort would follow the deceased onto their next life. Janson, H W. "Egyptian Art." History of Art. 2nd ed. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1981. 50-65. Print. Homework:
11/27 Today we covered Prehistoric Art. Some key points:
Homework:
11/26 Nice job setting up your noodlebib accounts today! Key Points-
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