Part 1 of the Basic Art History Course by Architect and Art History Writer Helena Lopes. Introduction to art and art history Prehistoric Art Mesoponamian art

1. Teacher Helena Lopes
Architect and art history writer

2. “The conscious use of skill
and creative imagination in
the production of an aesthetic
object”
Merriam Webster Dictionary
The word “art” is derived from
the Latin ars, which originally
meant “skill” or “craft.”
“All this might lead one to conclude“All this might lead one to conclude
that definitions of art, like those of
beauty, are subjective and unstable"
“Art history is the study of objects
of art considered within their time period”
”Art historians analyze visual arts' meaning (painting,
sculpture, architecture) at the time they were created. It is
the study of culture and the ways of living”

5. • When asked this question, students typically come up with several ideas. One is beauty. Much art is visually striking, and in the
18th, 19th and early 20th centuries, the analysis of aesthetic qualities was indeed central in art history. During this time, art that
imitated ancient Greek and Roman art (the art of classical antiquity), was considered to embody a timeless perfection. Art
historians focused on the so-called fine arts—painting, sculpture, and architecture—analyzing the virtues of their forms. Over
the past century and a half, however, both art and art history have evolved radically.

6. • Artists turned away from the classical tradition,
embracing new media and aesthetic ideals, and
art historians shifted their focus from the analysis
of art’s formal beauty to interpretation of its
cultural meaning. Today we understand beauty as
subjective—a cultural construct that varies across
cultural meaning. Today we understand beauty as
subjective—a cultural construct that varies across
time and space. While most art continues to be
primarily visual, and visual analysis is still a
fundamental tool used by art historians, beauty
itself is no longer considered an essential
attribute of art.
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/start-here-apah/intro-art-
history-apah/a/what-is-art-history

7. Why MakeArt?

8. The oldest form of art was made for religious or magical purposes as a way to control the
environment, or to appease the gods. Ceremonial art is made to celebrate or commemorate
something important in the culture, in ritual or worship, or in personal life
Image source:
http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/gods/home_set.html

9. Ceremonial
Most of art before the 18th, 19th and 20th century has
strong roots in religion or has religious purposes
Rose Window and Lancets, Chartres Cathedral
Saint Ignazio church, Rome

11. Narrative art is art used to tell a story

12. Eugene Delacroix – Liberty Leading the People, 1830

13. Narrative
We have been using art to tell stories since the very beginning of civilization
Royal Standard of Ur, c. 2600 BCE. British Museum

14. Functional art is made to be used in every day life,
aesthetic objects that serve utilitarian purposes
It includes pottery,quilts, and furniture

15. Our ancestors enriched their surroundings with decorative objects that
expressed wealth and status, or gave praise to their gods
Belt buckle, from the Sutton Hoo ship burial Anglo Saxon, early
7thc. British Museum
Hand-painted folding screens - Spanish Colonial Art

16. Persuasive art is made to persuade people to do something, or think a certain way
Advertising and propaganda are types of “persuasive art”

17. Persuasive
Many ancient rulers used art to promote their power, and
mold public opinion.
Augustus of Prima Porta, Early 1stc
Napoleon crossing the Alps

18. Expression focuses on the artist most of all, for it is a self-expression of the artist’s personal,
internal emotions, feelings, experiences or ideas. This type of art is sometimes, but not always,
abstract or nonobjective.

19. Expressive
The vangard movements from the end of the 19th century and beggining of 20th can
show how this particular porpouse had and has impacted our society and how visual art
(but nor only) is percieved by us
Edvard Munch, The Scream
Abaporu, Tarsila do Amaral

20. • literature (including poetry, drama, story, and so on),
• the visual arts (painting, drawing, sculpture, etc.),
• the graphic arts (painting, drawing, design, and other
forms expressed on flat surfaces),
• the plastic arts (sculpture, modeling),• the plastic arts (sculpture, modeling),
• the decorative arts (enamelwork, furniture design,
mosaic, etc.),
• the performing arts (theatre, dance, music), music (as
composition),
• architecture (often including interior design).

21. • A term that refers to Stone Age, Paleolithic,
and Neolithic art and artifacts, literally
referring to the time before recorded history.
Art from this period was a powerful form ofArt from this period was a powerful form of
communicating information between tribes
and generations;
• The Lascaux caves (dating back to 15,000 B.C)
• Venus of Willendorf (est. 24,000-22,000 B.C.)

22. A term that refers to Stone Age, Paleolithic, and Neolithic art and artifacts, literally referring to the time before recorded history. As the first
building blocks of art history, prehistoric artifacts provide crucial insights into the origin of image- and craft-making; they take the form of
tools and small objects, as well as a select few architectural ruins. Art from this period was a powerful form of communicating information
between tribes and generations; for instance, the Lascaux caves in Southern France demonstrate hunting techniques through the use of
basic narrative structure and iconography dating back to 15,000 B.C. Another iconic Prehistoric artwork is the Venus of Willendorf (est.
24,000-22,000 B.C.) a bulbous, palm-sized figurine of a woman, thought to be a symbol of fertility and also the earliest surviving depiction
of the female nude.

23. Cave painting, fertility goddesses,
megalithic structuresmegalithic structures
STONE AGE/PALEOLITHIC (BUT LITTLE SURVIVED): The Art of the Upper
Paleolithic includes carvings on antler and bone, especially of animals, as
well as the so-called Venus figurines and cave paintings.
NEOLITHIC: Megalithics

24. is the setting of a complex of caves near the village of Montignac, France.
It has over 600 paitings.
age of the paintings is estimated at around 17,000 years
The paintings represent primarily large animals, typical local and contemporary fauna that correspond with the
fossil record of the Upper Paleolithic time. The drawings are the combined effort of many generations, and with
continued debate, the age of the paintings is estimated at around 17,000 years (early Magdalenian)

25. Great Serpent Mound, a 411-meter long (1,348 ft) effigy
mound in Adams County, Ohio, ca. 1070 CE
Long-horned cattle and other rock art in the Laas Geel
complex., Africa

26. c. 28,000 BCE – 25,000 BCE
found in a village in Lower Austria near the town of Krems.
Traditionally referred to in archaeology as "Venus figurines", due to the
widely-held belief that depictions of nude women with exaggerated sexual
features represented an early fertility fetish, perhaps a mother goddess.

27. Archaeologists believe it was constructed from 3000 BC to 2000 BC. The surrounding circular earth bank
and ditch, which constitute the earliest phase of the monument, have been dated to about 3100 BC
Wiltshire, England
There is strong
archaeological evidence
that Stonehenge was
used as a burial site, at
least for part of its long
history, but most
scholars believe it served
other functions as well—
either as a ceremonial
site, a religious
pilgrimage destination, apilgrimage destination, a
final resting place for
royalty or a memorial
erected to honor and
perhaps spiritually
connect with distant
ancestors

28. Mesopotamia—a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates
The Sumerians of lower Mesopotamia founded the first cities, invented writing, developed poetry, andThe Sumerians of lower Mesopotamia founded the first cities, invented writing, developed poetry, and
created vast architectural structures.
Warrior art and narration in stone
relief

29. • The rise of the non-Semitic-speaking Sumerian culture spans a period of about two millennia, and saw the
development of sophisticated artistic traditions, as well as the invention of writing, first through pictographic
signs, and then through cuneiforms.
The Sumerian Period introduced the rise of monumental religious structures, ziggurat. They typically
constructed two forms of temples: a platform variety and a structure built at ground level. Platform temples
originally stood within walled, oval enclosures. They contained accommodation for priests.

30. Sculptures served as adornment or ritual equipment for the temples. Though identifiable cult statues—those that were venerated or worshipped
for the deity that they represented—of gods or goddesses have yet to be found, some had common themes worth mentioning

31. Throughout this period, household items like vases and seal cylinders were
also created, often decorated with human forms or animals.

32. By the 9th century, the vast palaces of the Assyrian kings emphasized a new interest in secular building and reflected
the ostentatious grandeur of those who ruled during this time.
Ruins of Resafa from the Assyrian period.

33. Ishtar Gate in Pergamon Museum in Berlin, Germany.
Many of the grandiose architectural achievements of this time period are reflected in the inner city gates that were constructed. The most elaborate example
is the Ishtar Gate, which today resides in the Pergamon Museum in Berlin. Created in 575 B.C., the gate is known for its bas-relief dragons and accompanying
Processional Way, which was additionally lined with statues of dragons. It is covered in lapis lazuli-glazed bricks, which created a gleaming, blue surface.

34. Stele of Hammurabi’s Code
The Hammurabi code of laws, a collection of 282 rules, established
standards for commercial interactions and set fines and punishments
to meet the requirements of justice. Hammurabi's Code was carved
onto a massive, finger-shaped black stone stele (pillar) that was looted
by invaders and finally rediscovered in 1901

35. • A brief history of representing the body in
Western painting
• https://youtu.be/0WxPx3_ZSBI
• A brief history of representing of the body in
Western sculpture
• https://youtu.be/4eNX_xFt-sU