The document is an introduction to art history, outlining its scope, methodologies, and distinctions from related fields such as art criticism and appreciation. It emphasizes that art history focuses on understanding artworks within their historical and cultural contexts, rather than judging their greatness. Key points include the importance of iconography, style evolution, and how personal responses to art can be informed by knowledge of societal influences.

1. Introduction: What is Art History??
Art 109: Renaissance to Modern
Spring 2013
© Dr. Melissa Hall

2. What is Art History?
So what, exactly, will we learn in an
art history course?
Image source: http://www.marshall.edu/cofa/art/arthistory/

3. What is Art History?
Will we learn what makes a work of
art a “masterpiece”?
Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa, c. 1503-1505

4. Judgment
What makes one work of art
“better” than another is highly
subjective
Michelangelo, David, 1501-1504

5. Judgment
Who is to say if something is a
masterpiece or not?
In 1919 Marcel Duchamp questioned
the idea of the “masterpiece” by drawing
a mustache on a postcard of the Mona
Lisa and calling it a work of art!
Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa, c. 1503-1505

6. Judgment
So art history is not involved with
judging “greatness,” or what
qualifies as a “masterpiece”
That is the job of art criticism, and
art connoisseurship
Image source: http://www.marshall.edu/cofa/art/arthistory/

7. Judgment
In fact, it might be useful to define
art history by differentiating it from
related fields:
•Art Connoisseurship
•Art Criticism
•Art Appreciation
Image source: http://www.marshall.edu/cofa/art/arthistory/

8. Connoisseurship
Estimating the market value of a
work of art is the job of the art
connoisseur
Sotheby’s auction, May 3, 2006, where Picasso’s Dora Maar with Cat sold for $95.2 million
Art Knowledge News

9. Art Criticism
Art criticism also involves
evaluation and judgment
Image source:
http://www.theinsider.com/news/857730_Simon_Cowell
_Back_In_Touch_With_His_First_Love
Mr. Art Critic, written and directed by Richard Brauer, 2008

10. Judgment
In this class you will be encouraged
to form your own opinion about
what you like and dislike
Image source: http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/gowhere-hip-hop/2009/12/

11. Art Appreciation
Do art historians help us appreciate
art?
Norman Rockwell, The Connoisseur, 1962

12. Art Appreciation
Learning about works of art can
certainly help us “appreciate” them
more
Artcphoto, Metropolitan Museum of Art - Fifth Avenue - Manhattan - NYC
Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/artcphoto/2813520288/

13. Art Appreciation
But art appreciation is primarily
concerned with our personal
response to art
Sharon Lipps, Art Appreciation,The Getty, LA, CA, 2009
http://www.pbase.com/elips/image/73508927

14. Art History
Art history is more concerned with
the story behind the work
Ben Shahn, The Passion of Sacco and Vanzetti, 1931-1932

15. Art History
Art History is the study of works of
art in historical context

16. Art History
It is concerned with what art meant
to the people who made and used it
Francois Joseph Heim, Charles X Distributing Awards to Artists Exhibiting at the Salon of 1824 at
the Louvre, 1827
Metapedia

17. Personal Response
Does this mean your personal
response is not important?
David Choi, 9:48 a.m. Greek Galleries
Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/8007731@N07/3407100463

18. Personal Response
Your personal response can be an
important component of
understanding
Laura P. Russell, At the Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY,
Flickr

19. Personal Response
But to qualify as “art historical,” it
must be informed by what you have
learned about the society and the
culture
Merode Altarpiece with Viewers
Image source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/82032880@N00/4014610392/

20. Biography
Do art historians study the lives of
artists?
Vincent Van Gogh,Self-Portrait as an Artist, 1887-88. Oil on canvas, 65 x 50.5 cm.
Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam
Artchive

21. Biography
Artistic biography is only one
component of art history, but it is
not always the most important
Rembrandt van Rijn, Self Portrait, c. 1659-1660

22. Role of the Artist
Prior to the Renaissance, the artist
was was merely a craftsman
NannidiBanco, Sculptors at Work, 1416. Orsanmichele, Florence
lib-art.com

23. Role of the Artist
Artists were expected to be skilled,
not creative
Image source: http://www.thekiesels.com/VA_2003vacPg2.html

24. Role of the Artist
Works of art were commissioned
by patrons who gave specific
instructions about what they
wanted

25. Role of the Artist
Art historians must therefore learn
about the patrons who
commissioned works of art
Raphael, Pope Julius II, 1511
London National Gallery

26. Role of the Artist
Often, the work is more about the
patron than it is about the artist who
made it
EnricoScrovegni giving the gift of his
chapel to angels, Last Judgment, Arena
Chapel, Padua, c. 1305
Jacques Louis David, Napoleon Crossing the St. Bernard Pass, 1801

27. Methodology
How do art historians study works
of art?

28. Methodology
1. Subject Matter (iconographic
analysis)
2. Style (formal analysis)
3. Context (cultural analysis)
Image source: www.thinkandthrive.com

29. Identification
Artist
Title
Period/Region
Date
Medium
Dimensions
Collection
Georgia O’Keefe, Jack-in-the-Pulpit No. 4, 1930
Oil on canvas, 3’ 4” X 2’ 6”
National Gallery of Art
http://www.nga.gov/fcgi-bin/tinfo_f?object=70179

30. Identification
Note: titles of works of art are
treated like book titles
“Georgia O’Keefe painted Jack-in-
the-Pulpit in 1930.”
“The Mona Lisa is a painting by
Leonardo da Vinci.”

31. Subject Matter
What is the subject matter?
Georgia O’Keefe, Jack-in-the-Pulpit No. 4, 1930
Oil on canvas, 3’ 4” X 2’ 6”
National Gallery of Art

32. Subject Matter
Who or what is represented

33. Visual Literacy
How do we know who this
person is?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

34. Visual Literacy
Sometimes we will need to learn
the story behind the picture
Jacques Louis David, Death of Socrates, 1787
Metropolitan Museum

35. Subject Matter
Recognizing subject matter in
modern art can be more
challenging because the work is
abstract
Pablo Picasso, Bottle of Suze, 1912

36. Abstraction
Simplification of form into simple
shapes
Theo Van Doesburg, Cows, 1917

37. Subject Matter
This collage represents an oval
table top with a glass and a bottle
of Suze
Pablo Picasso, Bottle of Suze, 1912

38. Non-Objective Art
Some works of art have no
recognizable subject matter at all
This is called non-objective art
"Jackson Pollock painting "One: Number 31, 1950" at the Museum of Modern Art", 2007
Image source: http://www.imaginify.org/post/index.php?catid=&name=News&topic=8

39. OK, so the
Subject Matter subject matter
of this painting
is George
Washington.
Am I done?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

40. Subject Matter
Who was George Washington, and
why is he significant?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

41. OK, George
Washington
Subject Matter
was the first
President of
the United
States. Am I
done?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

42. Description
Analysis of subject matter also
involves description:
How does he appear
How is he standing (pose)
What is he wearing?
What else is in the room?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

43. Narration
What is happening?
What is he doing?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

44. Interpretation
Analysis of subject matter also
involves interpretation:
Why is he posed that way?
Why were those particular objects
chosen?
What purpose was this portrait
meant to serve?
What was the message?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

45. Subject Matter
Subject Matter:
The “what” of the work
(who, what, where)
Content:
The “why” of the work
(meaning, purpose, message)
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

46. Iconography
To get from subject matter to
content involves iconography
Iconography: the interpretation of
signs and symbols
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

47. Subject Matter
How do we know these two people
are “tourists”?
What are the visual clues?
Duane Hanson, Tourists, 1970
National Galleries of Scotland

48. Iconography
Pose (the way they are standing
and gesturing)
Attributes (clothing and
accessories)
Duane Hanson, Tourists, 1970
National Galleries of Scotland

49. Subject Matter
Painted portraits of political leaders
were the “media” of their day
They were supposed to
communicate a message about the
person represented
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

50. Subject Matter
What message was Stuart’s portrait
intended to convey?
What are the visual clues?
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

51. The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), Allan Ramsay, King George III (in coronation robes), 1761-1762
1796. Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery National Portrait Gallery

52. The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait),
1796. Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

53. The Clothing
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait),
1796. Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

54. The Clothing
“Stuart painted Washington from life,
showing him standing up, dressed in a
black velvet suit with an outstretched hand
held up in an oratorical manner (which
could be characterized as "commanding
and stern yet open and inclusive"). In the
background behind Washington is a row of
two Doric columns, with another row to the
left. Wrapped around and between the
columns are red tasseled drapes.”
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait),
1796. Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

55. The Clothing
“Washington's suit is plain and simple, and
the sword that he holds on his left side is a
dress sword and not a battle sword
(symbolizing a democratic form of
government, rather than a monarchy or
military dictatorship). In the sky, storm clouds
appear on the left while a rainbow appears on
the right, signifying the American
Revolutionary War giving way to the peace
and prosperity of the new United States after
the 1783 Treaty of Paris. The medallion at the
top of the chair shows the red, white, and blue
colors of the American flag.”
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait),
1796. Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

56. The Clothing
“On and under the tablecloth-draped table to
the left are two books: Federalist—probably
a reference to the Federalist Papers—and
Journal of Congress—the Congressional
Record). Another five books are under the
table . . . . The pen and paper on the table
signify the rule of law . . . .”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lansdowne_portrait
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait),
1796. Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

57. Subject Matter
A detailed description helps us see
the work more clearly
Gilbert Stuart, Portrait of George Washington (The Landsdowne Portrait), 1796
Smithsonian Institution, National Portrait Gallery

58. Style
What is style?

59. Style
Style refers to the visual
characteristics of a work of art
Pablo Picasso, Les Demoiselles d’Avignon, 1907
Museum of Modern Art

60. Style

61. Period Style
A style that is typical of a particular
time period
Jacopo daPontormo, Entombment of Christ, Parmigianino, Madonna with the Long Neck,
1525-1528 1534-1540

62. Regional Style
A style that is typical of a particular
region
Jean Hey? or the Master of Moulins, Portrait AlessoBaldovinetti, Portrait of a Lady, tempera and
of Margaret of Austria, oil on panel, c. 1490 on wood, c. 1465 (National Gallery, London)

63. Personal Style
An individual artist’s unique
“personal” style
Vincent Van Gogh, Starry Night, 1888

64. Evolution of Style
How style changes over time
Unknown Master, Virgin and Child Enthroned with
St Dominic, St Martin and Two Angels, c. 1290
Web Gallery of Art
Giotto diBondone, Ognissante Madonna, c. 1310

65. Evolution of Style
Changing attitudes towards the body
Expulsion of Adam and Eve, Hunterian Psalter, c. 1170
Albrecht Dürer, Fall of Man (Adam and Eve), 1504

66. Evolution of Style
Composition and lighting
Jan Vermeer, Young Woman with a Water Pitcher,
c. 1662
Caravaggio, Deposition, c. 1600-1604

67. Evolution of Style
Concepts of “realism”
Gustave Courbet, the Stone Breakers, 1849
Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, Princesse de
Broglie, 1851-1853

68. Evolution of Style
Capturing effects of atmosphere and light
Jacob Van Ruisdael, View of Haarlem from the Dunes at
Overveen, c. 1670
Claude Monet, Boulevard des Capucines, 1873

69. Evolution of Style
Rejection of realism
Ernst Kirchner, Head of a Woman, 1913
Paul Gauguin, The Yellow Christ, 1889

70. Evolution of Style
Evolution towards abstraction
Marcel Duchamp, Nude Descending a Staircase, 1912
Georges Braque, The Portuguese, 1911

71. Evolution of Style
Elimination of subject matter
Wassily Kandinsky, Improvisation 28, 1912
Constantin Brancusi, Bird in Space, 1924

72. Art and Context
Art does not mean in a vacuum!
The cultural context of art is an
integral part of its meaning or
content
Jeff Koons, New Hoover Convertibles, Green, Red, Brown, New Shelton Wet/Dry 10 Gallon
Displaced Doubledecker1981-87

73. Renaissance
Humanism
Humanist scholarship and the
secularization of learning
Shift in patronage
Andrea del Castagno, Giovanni Boccaccio, c. 1450

74. The Reformation
St. Peters Basilica, Rome
Workshop of Lucas Cranach, Martin Luther
Metropolitan Museum

75. Absolutism
Hyacinth Rigaud, Louis XIV, 1701

76. The Enlightenment
Jacques Louis David, Antoine-Laurent Lavoisier and his Wife, 1788
Metropolitan Museum

77. The Age of Democracy
Eugene Delacroix, Liberty Leading the People, 1830
Jean-Antoine Houdon, George Washington, 1788-1792

78. The Industrial
Revolution
Jean-François Millet, The Gleaners, 1857

79. The Rise of Cities
GustaveCaillebotte, Rue de Paris, Temps de Pluie, 1877
Claude Monet, Boulevard des Capucines, 1873

80. The Machine Age
Fernand Léger, the City, 1919

81. War
Pablo Picasso, Guernica, 1937

82. Atomic Age
Hans Namuth, Jackson Pollock, 1950

83. Consumerism
Andy Warhol, 32 Campbells Soups, 1962