Lecture:

Catalog description

This course provides an overview of Medieval art and its major issues, moving chronologically from the Late Antique/Migration period to the Late Gothic. Students become familiar with key monuments and also the kinds of interpretations scholars have developed to give works meaning. Discussions focus especially on several wide-reaching themes: the aesthetic status of art and the theological role of images; the revival of classical models and visual modes; social rituals such as pilgrimage and crusading; the cult of the Virgin and the status of women in art; and, more generally, the ideology of visual culture across the political and urban landscapes. Assessment by two exams and a short interpretive paper. No interview required.