Admission requirements
See M.A. Art History program guide and Exam regulations.
Description
Intimate friendships, collegial exchanges and informal gatherings all affected the existence and activity of the early modern artist. Recent studies on art patronage and the role of the academies have largely overshadowed the more personal dimension of the social life of 16th and 17th-century painters and sculptors. This dimension has not yet been the subject of systematic study.
This seminar aims to analyse the behaviour of the individual artist in his more immediate living circle, among friends and professional associates. We will try to define how such behaviour fits into the whole complex of economic-material, social and cultural circumstances and preconditions under which artists worked. The workshop will focus on artists from Northern Europe who resided in Italy. The cosmopolitan atmosphere of Venice, Florence and Rome attracted many artists from abroad. Those who came from the Netherlands and Germany used to establish close and intimate relationships: they shared studios, helped each other getting important commissions, and reunited in brotherhoods and clubs. They thus created their own social networks within the system. The most famous example is the Roman Schildersbent, notorious for its Bacchic rituals and opposition to the orthodox methods of teaching and practice at the Accademia di San Luca. Themes that deserve closer attentions are: the phenomenon of sharing workshops, the production of portraits of friends and (initiation) rituals.
For this seminar we will make use of the research facilities of the Nederlands Interuniversitair Kunsthistorisch Instituur in Florence (www.niki-florence.org). Travel grants will be available.
Course objectives
To develop skills in the use and interpretation of different sources: written evidence, literary texts and visual sources
To gain insight into the relationship between art and its social and cultural context
To refine academic writing and communication skills
Timetable
See the timetable on the department website.
For this seminar we will make use of the research facilities of the Nederlands Interuniversitair Kunsthistorisch Instituur in Florence (www.niki-florence.org). Travel grants will be available.
Mode of instruction
Seminar
Assessment method
Papers (70%), presentation (20%), discussion (10%)
Blackboard
No
Reading list
To be announced
Registration
Students have to register for this course in uSis, the registration system of the university: http://www.usis.leidenuniv.nl. General information about registration in uSis you can find here in Dutch and in English.
Exchange and Study Abroad students, please see the Study in Leiden website for information on how to apply.
Contact
g.j.j.van.der.sman@hum.leidenuniv.nl
or
0039055221612
Remarks
This course is only available for the Free component.
This is a course that will only be offered this semester.