Art &Pilgr Parthenon to Disney

Catalog description

This course explores all sorts of journeys, with a focus on the emphasis on pilgrimage in different religious traditions, but also travel for other reasons such as warfare and exploration, or even touristic pilgrimages to places like baseball stadiums, or Disney parks around the world. We will pay particular attention to how these experiences are both reflected and shaped by material culture. While the primary focus of the course will be the pilgrimage experiences of the medieval Christian, we will also examine pilgrimage in the ancient world, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism. In addition to looking at the art and architecture of particular pilgrimage sites such as the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain, and Canterbury Cathedral in England, we will also discuss the significance of the cult of the saints in medieval religious belief and practice; relics and reliquaries; objects associated with pilgrims such as pilgrim badges; the Crusades as a form of pilgrimage; memory and spiritual journeys; and representations of pilgrims and travelers in all forms of visual culture.