ARH 2002 - Exam 1
Winckelmann
1717-1768; The "Father of Art History", an influential Hellenist. Author of The History of Art in Antiquity published 1764. Influenced contemporary interest in Greek (as opposed to ancient Roman) leading to the popularity of the Neoclassical style. Winckelmann saw Roman art as a poorly done copy of Greek art.
Realism
1850s. An attempt to display the real and contemporary world through painting. An opposition to Neoclassicism and Academic Art as it is phrased as "art for the common man" and portrays everyday scenes of the masses, such as the rural poor. Whereas Neoclassicism and Academic Art focus on portraits and representations of the elite. Realist paintings were not really accepted by the French Salon exhibition, as they were not up to the "elite par" because they were more contemporary and different compared to the traditional art in the Salon. Included genre scenes of rural and urban working class life, scenes of street-life, cafes and night clubs, as well as increasing frankness in the treatment of the body, nudity and sensual subjects. Not surprisingly, this gritty approach shocked many of the upper and middle class patrons of the visual arts. Example: Manet's Luncheon in the Grass, Olympia (Not to be confused with Monet and Impressionism)
Manet, Luncheon on the Grass
1863 à A product of Realism. Was not accepted to the French Salon Exhibition because it was contemporary and unlike the Neoclassical and traditional style. Seems scandalous during the time because the women are naked and portrayed to seem like they have just taken their clothes off around the men in the painting. Emphasizes color and emotion over line and design (Realism inspired by Romanticism from the 1830s).
Roger Fry
1866-1934; A formalist scholar (along with Clive Bell and Clement Greenberg) who put emphasis on formal, aesthetic qualities of art. Coined the term, "post-impressionism" Studied and published work on how to read abstract/non-figural art. To Fry, the purpose of art was not the authentic portrayal of reality but the communication of emotion from the artist to the spectator. His claim that art can be more than just replicating reality was unconventional during his time. "Manet-and the Post-Impressionist" was an exhibition created by Fry, to feature post-impressionalists such as Van Gogh. People laughed and mocked his exhibition saying that it wasn't true art and that the pictures were childish. However, he was on to a major art movement of observing art for the formal qualities that evoked emotional experience, whereas representational art did not evoked as much raw emotion.
James Mcneil Whistler, (Whistler's Mother) Arrangement in Gray and Black No.1
1871, an example of Romanticism. Romanticism developed after the Enlightenment and changed the purpose of art as it was about the artist's unique subjective vision. Often romanticism was sublime, awe-inspiring, and even terrifying. Whistler's Mother is oil on canvas and displays the mother in a dark dress and white bonnet sitting before a gray wall. Whistler focuses on color play and artistic form as he was concerned with creating artistic value, not a narrative.
(The Falling Rocket) Nocturne in Black and Gold
1875 Most radically abstract work in west at this time, by James Whistler inspired by Cremorne Gardens (an industrial park) in London. An impressionist painting?? First shown at the Grosvenor Gallery in London in 1877. Detractors deemed the painting too slapdash, incomprehensible, and even insulting. Art critic John Ruskin dismissed Whistler's effort as "flinging a pot of paint in the public's face," as in his opinion it contained no social value. Whistler defended his painting by claiming that his painting transcended ideals of harmony and beauty.
Vincent Van Gogh, Starry Night
1889; a post-impressionist painting, one of the most recognized works of art in Western culture. Painted after his "breakdown" in 1888 in which he cut off his ear. After admitting himself to an asylum in 1889, and continued to produce some of his best work there including Starry Night. Oil on canvas, now in the Museum of Modern Art in NYC.
Paul Cezanne, Basket of Apples
1895; a post-impressionist painting?? Paul Cezanne= The Father of Modern Painting. He claimed that art runs parallel in harmony with nature, but is not an imitation of nature. In Basket of Apples, the table holding the basket is tilted and has no right angles. This painting is one of his rare "signed" works. Cezanne had spent the majority of his career in isolation in Provence; this was the first opportunity in almost 20 years for the public to see his work.
Clement Greenberg
1909-1994; Made abstract impressionism a trend. Said that art must have purity (in medium and style) and that quality comes from the experience of art. Greenberg places emphasis on the experience of/with art. Greenberg was a major Formalist Scholar along with Roger Fry and Clive Bell. "Art must have purity of medium otherwise it is corrupted. A painting is a painting not an illusion of something else. Figural/Narrative painting provides information but not feeling or experience."
Vasily Kandinsky, Panel for Edwin R. Campbell No. 1
1914; In 1913, Kandinsky coined the phrase, "nonobjective painting" to refer to painting that depicted no recognizable objects or images. He stressed the impact of color and its association with music, explaining, "Color is a means of exerting direct influence upon the soul. Color is a keyboard, the eye is the hammer, the soul is the piano with its many strings." He was a pioneer of abstract modern art (abstraction).
Roland Barthes
A French intellect who advanced Saussure's linguistic theory to the analysis of visual and popular culture. He used semiotics to reveal not only the text but also to expose the underlying ideological assumptions of the society in which it was created. He believed that everything could be a sign that could be analyzed.
What does a psychoanalytic reading of works of art/artists offer that is different from Formalism or Iconography? What are some limitations of a psychoanalytic interpretation of artist's work?
A psychoanalytic reading of a work of art offers the ability to analyze the cognitive nature of an artist. It questions and answers why an artist paints in the way that he or she does by drawing conclusions about the artist from assumptions made by the psychoanalytic reading. This form of interpreting art does have its limitations. For example, it does not necessarily take into account the historical aspects of the art work. It is also may differ the meaning of a piece from what the artist intended. Formalism focuses purely on compositional elements which include colors, texture, and shapes. Roger Fry placed amplified emphasis on the formal, aesthetic qualities when reading abstract, non-figural art. Panofsky was interested in iconography. Iconography[1] establishes the meaning a work of art had at the time it was made. This may or may not include what the maker of the work intended or, usually a more important factor, what the person who paid for the work wanted.
The Gaze- (male gaze, cinematic gaze, female gaze?)
A result of the mirror stage, the gaze is a term used by Lacan that represented when an individual is aware that he or she is a visible object. The gaze in film is characterized by who is the gazer. Male gaze in cinema is when the camera takes the role of a heterosexual man's eyes which may trace the curves of a female's body or stare (so as to emphasis) at the beauty of a female. Female gaze would be the cameras role as the female's eyes looking at a male.
Can a photograph have cult value or aura? According to Benjamin, can a photograph have "authenticity?" What have attitudes towards photography and art made through reproducible means changed since his essay in 1935?
According to Walter Benjamin, art has an aura which is characterized by its place and time in space. Benjamin believes that "authenticity" is not applicable to mechanically reproduced art such as photographs and hence, the function of art is reversed. By this belief, a photograph cannot have a cult value or aura because it is not authentic and therefore does not hold a place and time in space. This notion has changed since Benjamin's 1935 essays. As technological advancements improved pictorial quality, important events were realistically and graphically documented. For example, photographs of global conflicts documented the hardships of war. These photos served to have an aura because it directly documented its place and time in space.
Post-Impressionism
After Impressionism ended at the end of the 1800s, a post-impressionism ignited. Has a similar style to impressionism, but in a style that is more similar to graphic design or photography by making impressionism look more structured. Van Gogh did a lot of post-impressionist work, such as Starry Night. Roger Fry coined the term in 1910 to describe the development from impressionism.
Formal Aesthetic Qualities
Analysis of the aesthetic compositional elements in art. Includes line, color/tonal value, shapes/volume, texture, and artistic style such as Cubism of Fauvism. Meaning and feelings are communicated by form, just as much as content and subject matter. Formalist scholars see the form of art as expression.
Illusionism
Artwork that creates an illusion for viewers. Artists may create a work of art that appears to share physical space with the viewer (chapel ceiling with painting of angels that seem to be coming out of the ceiling and into the church). Illusionism is very similar to realism, but the point of illusionism is to represent something that is simply not there in a way to trick the viewer into feeling like the object is actually there. Faces, bodies and objects are painted extremely precisely as to look as realistic as possible. Illusionism and Realism are pretty much the same thing, except that with Realism we expect that the artist mirrored the scene he observed, and with Illusionism we expect that the artist wants us to believe that he/she mirrored a scene that is quite imaginary.
Automatic writing/drawing-Automatism
Automatic writing and drawing is a form of automatism where an artist either writes or draws by letting the hand move freely and randomly. It is considered to be a visual extension of the subconscious. This practice it is commonly used my surrealist writers and painters.
Byzantine Icon
Byzantine icons are sacred paintings (icons, frescoes and mosaics) of Jesus Christ, Mother of god, and of the Angels and Saints. Icons became an important part of the orthodox faith. They were characterized by vivid colors often gold colored backgrounds, the persons depicted in icons seem to float and often are longer than their natural counterparts. Everything shown in an icon is symbolic. They decorate about every orthodox church in both the east and west.
Unconscious
Capitalized by Freudian ideology, the unconscious includes the biologically based instincts that fuel the primitive urges for sex and aggression. Humans do not necessarily know all that is stored in the unconscious and it is typically suppressed because it contains disturbing, yet powerful material and it therefore has a significant influence on the conscious mind.
What is the purpose of a painting during the Renaissance?
Critiques phrased the "peak of painting" as art that mirrored reality or acted as a window into another world. An understanding of anatomy, perspective, atmosphere, etc. was all valued. Fore-shortening was utilized by great painters, in which they used painting to suggest depth with an object. For example, drawing a body to suggest that it is moving through space (angel floating in heaven) rather than drawing a body that is simply vertical.
Alfred Stieglitz- Hand of Man vs. Steerage
Culture: American Date: Negative 1902; print 1933 Medium: Gelatin Silver Print (Photograph) Alfred Stieglitz's composition is a treatise on the importance of the machine in the modern Industrial Age. The title of the photograph, The Hand of Man, sets up a comparison between the machine that is depicted and the human artistic impulse that created the image.
Dream works
Dream works art surrealist works of art that are reminiscent to that which is "seen" in a dream. There is often many symbolisms (see Symbolism above) in dreams that can be philosophically made known to the conscious mind through the utilization of a dream work.
E. Panofsky
Erwin Panofsky (famous iconlogist, made a system to help structure the analysis of challenging images, putting meaning to a painting). He is the person we most famously connect iconology with. He was a professor at University of Germany until 1933 and then became a professor Princeton University. He published a book called studies in iconology and it has remained influential ever since. Panofsky demonstrates iconology through case studies from the Renaissance and presents us with a logical system for iconological analysis that we can use on images.
Avant-Garde
Experimental or innovative works of art, exploring new artistic methods and techniques to produce enhanced art. Modern art has a lot of avant-garde work in which abstract sculptures and images are created
Psychobiography (Leonardo)
Freud's psychobiography of Leonardo da Vinci aims to further understand da Vinci by the exploration of his work through a psychological lens. Freud's analysis is called Leonardo da Vinci and a Memory of His Childhood. In this work (as mentioned in Sigmund Freud above), Freud hypothesizes that da Vinci was a homosexual. This form of biography is not without its flaws. Many critiques argue that psychobiography, including the Freudian perspective, selectively takes facts to align with what the biographer's theorems happen to be
Vasari- Lives of the Artists (1568)
Giorgio Vasari: "The Lives of the Most Eminent Architects, Painters, and Sculptors of Italy" is one of the first to catalog artists and their artwork. Promoted the idea of art as Genius. Focused on the "primacy on the individual and biological model of historical development in birth, peak, decay/death. Style included Early Renaissance's focus on nature and antiquity, and High Renaissance's focus on transcending nature and antiquity through the artist's unique ideas.
Henri Cartier Bresson- "Decisive Moment"
Henri Cartier-Bresson was a French photographer considered to be the father of photojournalism. The Decisive Moment included a portfolio of 126 of his photos from the East and the West.
Heterosexual normativity
Heteronormativity is the belief that people fall into distinct and complementary genders (man and woman) with natural roles in life. It asserts that heterosexuality is the only sexual orientation or only norm, and states that sexual and marital relations are most (or only) fitting between people of opposite sexes. Consequently, a "heteronormative" view is one that involves alignment of biological sex, sexuality, and gender identity and roles. Heteronormativity is often linked to heterosexism and homophobia.
Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Stills (1977-1980)
In 1977, Cindy Sherman began to make pictures that aimed to highlight the clichés of women at the time. She was the actual person in her 69 film-like stills. She stopped in 1980 when she felt like she ran out of clichés.
Pagan Cult Statue/Idol
It is a material object, which represented a God. It was used by Protestants to describe the Orthodox Christian practice of worshipping the Christian God through the use of icons.
Gianlorenzo Bernini, Ecstasy of St. Teresa, interior of the Cornaro Chapel, Rome (1645-1652)
It is a sculpture made from white marble. It shows the moment of "ecstasy" of when an angel pierces St. Teresa's heart with divine love in a moment of grace and religion. It is also a representation of sexual climax. Bernini represents something that cannot be explained, religious setting but erotic natures, expression of face and shock value. Baroque features: movement, capturing a moment in climax, open form, different textures and drapery.
John Berger-Ways of Seeing
John Berger is a Marxist art critic who claims in his book, "Ways of Seeing" published in 1972, that mystification creates what is defined as "great art" in our society. He claims that as an art critic gives his/her opinion on the art, the perspective of every viewer afterwards is mystified with preconceived notions from the art critic's opinion. His book evoked controversy in the art world in the 1970s as it decayed the authority of established art critics and critiques, and made people look at art in a whole new unstructured fashion. This new, unstructured perspective of art made art critics angry as a 4-year-old's painting might be of the same value as the Mona Lisa according to Berger's claim that the quality of art simply depends on perspective.
Jacques Lacan
Lacan was a French psychoanalyst and psychiatrist who played a significant role in many psychoanalytic theories and philosophy. His importance to art history were his views on film theory. He theorized three orders: (1) The Imaginary (2) The Symbolic (3) The Real
Laura Mulvey
Laura Mulvey is a British feminist film theorist and is a professor cinema at the University of London. (According to Dr. Winn, this lady is crazy)
What is the difference between looking AT and looking THROUGH photographs? (i.e. Mirror vs. Window) ... What can photographs do that painting cannot? What are the different uses/genres of photography?
Looking AT art merely means viewing the physical aspects of a photograph. The "who", "what", and "when" is answered by looking AT the picture. But the "why" is answered when looking THROUGH a photograph. Looking through a photograph serves as a window to look beyond just the aesthetics of photo and opens the opportunity to soak in its importance. For example, if one were to look AT the famous photo of the U.S. Marines raising the flag at Iwo Jima in World War II, he or she would notice a black and white picture of four military men raising an American flag on top of a pile of war-torn wreckage. However, if one were to look THROUGH the photograph, several other aspects arise. He or she may gain a sense of patriotic pride because the photo realistically shows American victory and interest during extreme adversities. It also highlights a sense of perseverance and shows the world what the fight for freedom may look like. It also aids to commemorate the Marines that fought at Iwo Jima in WWII. Photographs do something that a painting cannot; it documents a moment in history with what was actually happening in that time and space. It is a real snap shot of an event, unlike its imaginary counterpart, the painting (even if the painting is realistic). All photography is used to illicit emotion. However, there are different genres which include the preservation of history, religion, humor, pornography, advertisement, and many others.
Marxism- how is Marxism applied to artistic interpretation?
Marxism is derived from the theories of Karl Marx, which involves using art to represent life truthfully so that aesthetic exposure is equally valuable to all social classes. It is often difficult for some to view art through a Marxist perspective as Marxism mainly criticizes the affect of art on society. Berger hits upon this idea as he claims that art mystification is a method for privileged social classes to separate themselves from the masses as art "belonged" for a long time to only the elite in both the subject matter of the art and the critics of the art.
Ansel Adams
Moonrise over Hernandez New Mexico Date: 1975 redeveloped from 1941 negative Medium: Photograph Description: The picture has three separate elements, the town of Hernandez in the foreground, a rim of clouds illuminated on the horizon by the setting sun and the glowing moon alone in the dark sky above.
Brassaï- "involuntary sculptures" (1933)
One key figure of the surrealist movement is 'Brassai, who's 1933 series "Involuntary Sculpture" displays strong surrealist influence, portraying everyday objects in an unusual light, leading the viewers to question the purpose and original intent of these newly abstract items.
Kodak Brownie Box
Photography for everyone! Dry Plate Method and plastic for photographic emulsion.
Photojournalism
Photojournalism-is a particular form of journalism (the collecting, editing, and presenting of news material for publication or broadcast) that employs images in order to tell a news story. Life Magazine is an example of a weekly magazine that uses photojournalism as a means of telling the news.
Linear Perspective- How does perspective change painting?
Provides the illusion of 3D space on a 2D plane. An invention of western Linear Perspective by Brunelleschi. Developed from the rebirth in Europe, bringing perspective and the illusion of depth to the early renaissance by organizing sight into mathematical terms. Perspective changes painting as it creates a more realistic replica of an image. It provides traditional art perspectives with greater art value because the purpose of a painting during the Renaissance was to mirror reality accurately, or to provide a believable life-like mirror into another world (like the heavens), and to draw from artifacts, philosophy, literature and observation from nature (which perspective enhanced). Perspective was discovered and utilized at the turn of the Early Renaissance in the 1400s-1500s. Moved art away from the gothic/byzantine flatness and stylization.
E.M. Gombrich-The Story of Art
Published in 1950, now in its 16th edition with over 6 million copies sold, translated into 32 languages. Has been criticized for attempting to categorize art in a linear, chronological, structured order when in reality, the past is a continuous building of events leading into the present and then the future. Critics say that art history cannot be catalogued as history is a continuous creation that is always expanding. History doesn't have a start and end point. Critics also say that Gombrich poorly encompasses what art truly is through his book, as Gombrich fails to include many pieces and types of art. Gombrich should have called the book, "MY Story of Art" as it was more-so a recording of every work that he considered art leading up to the 50's. Plus, the catalogued art ended leading up to the mid twentieth century, not including much contemporary art of the time.He is a good example of an art-mystification catalyst according to Berger's definition. Helpful in creating an art canon!
Salvador Dali, Persistence of Memory (1931)
Salvador Dali is perhaps the most notable surrealist painter in history. His famous work Persistence of Memory is a prime example of surrealist art. Its abnormal juxtaposition of "melting" clocks in a desert-like environment provokes the same feeling that a weird dream would. Dali coined his art as "hand-painted dream photographs."
Scopophilia
Scopophilia is defined as the act by which an individual obtains sexual pleasures by viewing nude bodies or erotic photographs. Literally it means the "love of watching." Freud believed that scopophilia began in the anal stage (see above) of development.
Sigmund Freud
Sigmund Freud's contribution to art history deals with the psyche, where he used an artist's paintings to analyze them. For example, Freud wrote a psychoanalytic book about Leonardo da Vinci in which he deduced that da Vinci was probably a homosexual (by studying da Vinci's work). Examination of posthumous art work via psychoanalytics is typically disregarded by many art historians because the norms in throughout history are not always the same as when it is being analyzed. For example, Freud's analysis of de Vinci's work does not necessarily take into account the sexual customs and culture of da Vinci's time. Therefore, it is an unfair investigation.
Surrealists
Surrealists are members of the cultural movement known as surrealism which started in the 1920s. Surrealism is an expression of the unconscious. Surrealist painters utilized vibrant colors and shapes. They typically depicted everyday objects in illogical ways or formed them in such a manner that illustrated something creature-like. Surrealism aimed to match the "roller-coaster" and confusing nature of a person's dreams. For a surrealist, their work was philosophical while the actual exhibition value was just a by-product of the philosophy.
Ferdinand de Saussure
Swiss linguistic who wanted to know how language worked. He showed that language was a system of signs or signals that enabled people to communicate with each other. Came up the with terms: 'sign', 'signifier' and 'signified' also known as the 'lexicon of signification.'
Symbol
Symbolism - often appears as a symptom w/in dreams, myths folklore or religion. Freud understands symbolism as a mental operation. Psychoanalytic symbols are restricted to the body and its functions (particularly sexual ones). Symbols can represent family members, birth, and death. Symbols can be transitional object- teddy bear to help sleep away from mother.
Catholic Counter Reformation-(how do these two religions used art differently?)
The Catholic Church was slow to respond systematically to the theological and publicity innovations of Luther and the other reformers. The Council of Trent, which met off and on from 1545 through 1563, expressed the Church's answer to the problems that triggered the Reformation and to the reformers themselves. The Protestant Reformation during the 16th century in Europe almost entirely rejected the existing tradition of Catholic art, and very often destroyed as much of it as it could reach. This resulted in fewer religious art to be produced but more humanistic art. In turn, the Catholic Counter-Reformation both reacted against and responded to Protestant criticisms of art in Roman Catholicism to produce a more strict style of Catholic art. Protestant religious art both embraced Protestant values but the amount of religious art produced in Protestant countries was hugely reduced.
Visual Literacy
The ability to interpret, negotiate, and make meaning from information presented in the form of an image. Visual literacy depends on perspective, as a Formalist like Roger Fry may see a work of art a certain way based on the formal qualities, while an Illusionist may see a work of art for the narrative intent behind the image.
Id, ego, and super-ego
The id, ego, and super ego are three parts of Freud's psychoanalysis. The id is the part of the psyche that is involuntary and is considered instinct (the entire unconscious). The id includes everything inherited at birth. The ego is the branch that maps the id and the super-ego. It is the organized and realistic actions; it seeks what is real and it helps us to organize our thoughts and make sense of them and the world around us. The super-ego is the third part of the psychic apparatus and it aims for perfection. The super-ego is the internalization of the ideals taught by parents, or other role models. The super-ego strives to act in a socially appropriate manner, whereas the id seeks instant self-gratification. The super-ego controls our sense of right and wrong and guilt; our conscience. The ego therefore sometimes has a hard time reconciling the id and the super-ego because they do oppose each other.
Abstraction
The idea that art must have purity of medium otherwise it is corrupted. A painting is not an illusion of something else, and representative/narrative painting provides only information but not feeling or experience. It is art unconcerned with the literal depiction of things from the visible world. It can, however, refer to an object or image which has been distilled from the real world, or, another work of art. Artwork that reshapes the natural world for expressive purposes is called abstract; that which derives from, but does not imitate a recognizable subject is called nonobjective abstraction (Kandisky's Panel for Edwin No 1.). In the 20th century, the trend for abstraction coincided with advances in science and technology. Vasily Kandinsky= a founding father of abstract art.
Subjectivity
The intentions of an artist and artistic vision that comes out of Romanticism and becomes abstracted. Artists use formal qualities to express their subjectivity. Subjectivity of each artist changes with each artists' perception and artistic vision.
Subject/Object of the Gaze
The subject or object of the gaze is what is being emphasized in a film. The subject is the object of the gaze, and the audience is experiencing firsthand what the character in the film is gazing at, which aims to make the scene convey more meaning.
Figural/Representative Art
The word "representational," when used to describe a work of art, means that the work depicts something easily recognized by most people.
Giovanni Battista Gaulli, Ceiling Fresco of Il Gèsu in Rome (1670-1683)
This is a Church in Rome, which was considered the Mother Church. The ceiling fresco, which is a technique of mural painting, was painted by Giovanni Battista Gaulli. The painting had great technique of combining mediums and showing the illusion that the clouds and angels have floated down through the opening of the church's fault. The baroque artwork is focused off- center around the letters IHS which is short for JESUS in Greek.
Mirror Stage
This is a concept in Lacan's 1930s psychoanalytic theory. It states that infants as a part of development, starting at six months, are able to develop the idea that they see themselves when they look at their reflection.
Psychosexual development
This is the Freudian ideology that all humans innately hold certain sexual energies starting at birth. It is a five stage development: (1) Oral stage - Starts at birth and ends on average around one year. The infant's libido is satisfied through oral fixation which includes the mother's breast for feeding and is an explanation for why infants tend to explore objects by putting them into their mouths. (2) Anal stage - Typically spans 18 months to approximately three years old. This is the point in time where the child's id (instant gratification) conflicts with the super-ego (parental demands) on the matter of toilet training. (3) Phallic stage - Spanning ages three to around six. At this stage, the child's genitalia becomes the subject of curiosity and exploration. At this point the child becomes increasingly aware that his or her body parts are different than that of adults. The curiosity of peer genitalia increases, and hence the physical differences between males and females becomes evident. At this stage the boy experiences what Freud calls the "Oedipus complex" where the son unconsciously competes with his father for the possession of the mother. And vice versa, the stage is also the psychosexual competition between mother and daughter for the attention of the father. (4) Latency stage - Starting around age six to puberty, the latency stage is characterized by the character habits that the child has formed from the previous three stages. Also, libido gratification is satisfied through external activities that include school, sports, and interactions with friends. Oedipal conflicts hopefully resolves and the ego should drive the child to ignore the id and do socially acceptable things. However inadequate resolution of these clashes will typically carry on to the final stage. (5) Genital stage - This starts as puberty and is carried on throughout the person's adulthood. It marks a psychological independence from parents. Any psychosexual conflicts are attempted to be resolved through the sexual nature of the person. Like the genital stage, there is a fixation on the genitals, however this time it is sexual and consensual and therefore the ego is established in the genital stage. This is what drives people to find life-long friendships and a love relationship which leads to the desire for a family. The process is then repeated with the person's children.
Damnatio Memoriae
This is the Latin phrase for damnation of memory. It is a judgment that a person shall not be remembered. It was a form of dishonor that could be passed by the Roman Senate upon traitors or others who brought discredit to the Roman State. The intent was to erase someone from history, a task somewhat easier in ancient times, when documentation was much sparser. The sense of the expression Damnatio Memoriae and of the sanction is to cancel every trace of the person from the life of Rome, as if he had never existed, in order to preserve the honor of the city.
Sublimation
This is the act of consciously transforming socially unacceptable urges to sociably acceptable. In psychoanalytic theory, sublimation is carried out through various forms of art. Art acts as an outlet for socially taboo ideals to become accepted. Freud sees sublimation as a way to release the erotic energy and stress that lies in the id. If it is not released then there will result in some sort psychosexual imbalance.
Subconscious
This is the portion of the mind that holds information that is not currently being thought about, but it is easily accessible. It is also known as available memory. Together the instinctual unconscious and the subconscious play as an important role in the conscious state. The subconscious holds past experiences that influences the present thought process and actions.
Martin Luther, 95 Theses (1517)
This was the start of the Protestant reformation. Martin Luther posted theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg. The door functioned as a bulletin board where announcements related to the church were posted. Luther was calling for a debate between money and religion. Indulgences became a huge instrument for granting forgiveness of sins.
Iconology (occasionally referred to as iconography)
a method that helps us to study the subject-matter of the works of art. This method helps to devise a meaning behind the face value of a work of art. Panofsky uses a three point system which he applied to art. First level: PRIMARY/NATURAL level. this level is divided into factual and expression sections. In the level we identify only the very basic subject matter of the painting and we only need our practical experiences to identify with it. This is the what we see is what we get level. 1) The type or genre (Landscape? Portrait?) 2) the central or basic subject matter (male or female? Young or old?) 3) the location or setting of a particular scene. 4) The historical period which the work depicts 5) the season or time or year 6) the particular instant captured by the work in question. (what would happen if this work was captured seconds before, would it change the meaning?) looking at something beneath the face value, the successful communication between the viewer and the painter is part of visual literacy. Second Level: this is also known as the conventional/secondary level. We have to know the conventions in use in order to understand a painting at this secondary deeper level. this is where you bring your existing literacy and cultural knowledge into play. For ex: knowing symbol of owl means wisdom, or being able to identify a casual meal or the Last Supper. Third Level: this is where we find the intrinsic meaning to a work. Basic attitudes, period, class, religious or philosophical persuasion. This is almost like an unconscious process that the artist probably does not intend to do.
Snapshot
a photograph that is "shot" spontaneously and quickly, most often without artistic or journalistic intent
Disdéri -Carte-de-Visite
a type of small photograph which was patented in Paris, France by photographer André Adolphe Eugène Disdéri in 1854. It was usually made of an albumen print, which was a thin paper photograph mounted on a thicker paper card
Pictorialism
an approach to photography that emphasizes beauty of subject matter, tonality, and composition rather than the documentation of reality; Emphasis on Aesthetic choices and handmade qualities
Aniconic Art
is the practice of or belief in the avoiding or shunning of images of divine beings, prophets or other respected religious figures, or in different manifestations, any human beings or living creatures.
Iconoclasm
refers to the destruction of images or hostility toward visual representations that were presented in the churches. This took place in the Byzantine Empire for more than 100 years. Iconoclasm has generally been motivated by people who adopt a literal interpretation of the Ten Commandments, which forbid the making and worshipping of "graven images or any likeness of anything.
Protestant Reformation
reform the Roman Catholic Church. Martin Luther is widely acknowledged to have started the reformation due to his 1517 work 95 theses. He said that the pope had no authority over purgatory (determining whether a person is purified and goes to heaven) and the catholic doctrine of merits & saints had no foundation in the gospel. Although the core reason for these changes was religious, the new learning of the renaissance questioned much traditional thought. Also, the spread of technology rose, which meant a rapid distribution of religious materials.
Semiotics/Semiology
semiotics is a way of putting into words something that many of us already know, at least intuitively. It helps us understand how people are able to sell us particular brands of cars, perfume or hamburgers. The 'lexicon of signification' is used to explain how words or other items mean or symbolize another thing.
Signifier
something that stands for something else
Signified
the idea of the thing it stands for.
Arbitrary-
the idea that there is no intrinsic relationship between a signifier and a specific signified and therefore makes the sign arbitrary. This allows for there to be more than one language in the world. Words are arbitrary signs, which only give meaning to things because we agree that they do.
Sign
the union of the two signifier and signified.
Iconography
the way in which an artist writes the image, as well as the story the image tells. The studies focus on content but not on form.
Pieter Aertsen, Butcher's Stall (1551)
this is an oil painting on a wood panel. It is a picture of a slaughtered animal as symbolizing the death of a believer. This painting was a combination of still life and genre art, which were scenes from everyday life with a biblical background. This painting shows that an abundant amount of meat has been spread out. The painting has an underlying religious theme. The Virgin Mary and Joseph are on the far left going on a journey to Egypt to escape the Herod. There is no divine representation of the pilgrimage; it is only showing that the holy family is giving back to the less fortunate despite their own troubles. This shows that there is a choice between living a materialistic life or a moral one.
Mythology of signs
this is the idea multiple signs can be used together to signify something completely different than the individual meaning of each sign. It is a second-order semiological system (the sign for something becomes the signifier for a second idea. This mythology of signs can strip an original sign of its identity, such as the case where a solider looses his personal identity when he becomes a signifier for a war.
Robert Campin, Merode Altarpiece (ca. 1425-1428)
three-fold work of art that is divided, hinged together and can close or display. Campin was a southern Netherlandish master who produced this work that was filled with bright translucent colors and showed the household setting of medieval Europeans. The Altarpiece was small so it was mostly used for private use instead of the church. The left panel showed the patron kneeling with his wife as he is witnessing the Annunciation, Mary reading the bible. The center panel has a lot of symbolism, god representing the burned out flame and the sunrays representing a new god on its way and the books representing the old and New Testament. The far right panel is Joseph in the workshop making mousetraps, which resembled that to live was God capturing the devil.
