Assignments
Tuesday, August 29: Introductory Class Images.
Tuesday, September 5: Read Stokstad, pp. 1-21. Review Web page entitled: Late Antiquity: The Imperial Image. Write your entries in your journal responding to the issues / questions raised on this web page.
Also review the Web Page entitled: Early Christian Art. Respond in your journal to the questions asked. Note that this page is linked to a page entitled: Early Christian Texts.
Tuesday, September 12: we will examine the crucial period of the alliance of Christianity and the Roman Empire. With the patronage of Christianity by Constantine the Great, neither Christianity nor the Roman Empire would be the same. Review the webpages entitled The Post-Constantinian Conception of Christ and the Early Christian Basilica. A major document of Early Christianity and its transformation under imperial patronage is the Nicene Creed.
Tuesday, September 19: we will be continuing are examination of Post-Constantinian Christian Art. We will be considering the nave mosaics of Santa Maria Maggiore. We will also be considering the interrelationship of Pagan and Christian Art.
Tuesday, September 26: we will begin our seminar dedicated to the mosaics of San Vitale. Review the webpage dedicated to San Vitale. Remember that a week after the completion of the seminar you are expected to turn in a 3-5 page paper dedicated to an aspect of this seminar.
Tuesday, October 10: San Vitale seminar papers are due. I want ot extend our discussion of San Vitale by looking at a series of Icons from the sixth century. Review the following web-page in preparation for the beginning of our discussion of Hiberno-Saxon art: Sutton Ship Burial.
Tuesday, October 17: Continuing our examination of the Hiberno-Saxon art, review the following webpages. Hiberno-Saxon Art. Chi Rho Page from the Book of Kells. One of the major monuments we will be considering is the Lindisfarne Gospels in the British Library. Examine the manuscript by following the link from the Turning the Pages site. Read Stokstad, 2nd edition, pp. 75-100 with special emphasis on pp. 89-100.
Tuesday, October 24: we will begin an examination of the Carolingian Renaissance by considering the Imperial Ideal created by the Carolingians. We will examine the important relationships to Roman models. Review the page entitled The Carolingian Empire and the pages linked to this. Pay special attention to the page including an excerpt from Einhard's biography of Charlemagne. Read the primary texts included on the page entitled Carolingian Culture. Also study the page dedicated the origins of the Carolingian scripts. Review page dedicated to the Lorsch Gospels.Also read Stokstad, pp. 101-126.
Tuesday, October 31: we will continue our discussion of Carolingian art. We will focus on some of the major monuments of Carolingian manuscript illumination in order to gain an understanding of the so-called Carolingian Renaissance. Read the primary texts included on the page entitled Carolingian Culture.
As an extention of our discussion of the images of Carolingian power review the webpage entitled Medieval Images of Power.
Tuesday, November 7: So far we have been following a chronology of the development of Medieval Art. Our focus has been primarily on the articulation of the characteristics of particular periods. This week I want to focus on a particular category of objects, those associated with Church Treasuries. This category can in turn be broken down into two sub-categories: liturgical objects and relics. Review the webpages entitled Liturgical Objects and Relics. Make sure to follow the links on these pages. Pay particular attention to the poem entitled the Dream of the Rood.
Tuesday, November 14: We will begin an examination of Romanesque Art. Read Stokstad, 1st ed. pp. 219-264. Focus on the discussions of Romanesque architecture. Review material on page entitled Divine Ordo. Also review the images of churches included on the pages dedicated to the First Romanesque and Romanesque Architecture. We will also be examining the so-called Pilgrimage Route churches and understanding them in the context in the idea of Pilgimage. Review page with excerpts from the Pilgrimage Guide.
Tuesday, November 28: Read Stokstad, 1st edition, pp. 219-264. Review the webpage entitled: Coming Face to Face: the Romanesque Portal. Although these works focus on different subject matters, all of them have the common theme of Theophany or manifestation of divinity. These portals mark the divide between the profane space and the sacred space of the interior of the church, the earthly symbol for the Heavenly Jerusalem. Consider the Romanesque conception of Christ, and how you feel in relationship to these visions. Also review the webpage with an excerpt from St. Bernard's Apologia. Be aware that these pages are works in progress, and that I might be up-dating them in the next couple of days. Read the excerpts from Georges Duby's "The Threshold."
Tuesday, December 5: Second Seminar: The Royal Portals of Chartres. Review the webpage I have constructed for the Royal Portals. Read Stokstad, 1st edition, pp. 277-285.
Thursday, December 7: Gothic Architecture. SL21