History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons^™

Of Word And Stone: The History Of Medieval Spain Through The Lens Of Architecture And Language, Samantha Hernandez

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

Medieval Spain is a unique summation of religious and cultural communities. Through the built forms of Al-Andalus, there is unique preservation of societal imprints that parallel the formation of the Castilian language. These two mediums—architecture and language—are a telling of the culture and history of the region. By first observing the historical formation of Spanish, and in turn the various communities which inhabited the Iberian Peninsula, one may find many correlations with architecture created at the same time. After understanding the historical making of the Spanish language, it is important to analyze the language itself and how it differs from …

Salzburg's Baroque Architecture: A Historical Analysis And Poetic Response, Rebecca Malzer

Honors Projects

Salzburg, Austria is a city full of history. During the Baroque era from about the mid sixteenth century to the end of the eighteenth century, the Prince-Archbishops of Salzburg designed and modeled the city with Rome, Italy in mind. Their loyalty to the Holy Roman Empire and with the Reformation in full swing, these Italian influences helped to build a pro-Roman Catholic style throughout the city. The Prince-Archbishops and their architects demonstrated Salzburg’s loyalty to Rome through the structures of Schloss Mirabell, Schloss Hellbrunn, and the Franziskannerkirche. In addition, these structures make for great inspiration for creative work, to which …

Ritual, Spectacle, And Theatre In Late Medieval Seville (Chapter 1), Christopher B. Swift

Publications and Research

From the fall of Islamic Išbīliya in 1248 to the conquest of the New World, Seville was a nexus of economic and religious power where interconfessional living among Christians, Jews, and Muslims was negotiated on public stages. From out of seemingly irreconcilable ideologies of faith, hybrid performance culture emerged in spectacles of miraculous transformation, disciplinary processionals, and representations of religious identity. Ritual, Spectacle, and Theatre in Late Medieval Seville reinvigorates the study of medieval Iberian theater by revealing the ways in which public expressions of devotion, penance, and power fostered cultural reciprocity, rehearsed religious difference, and ultimately helped establish Seville …

Anthropomorphism In Architecture: An Investigation Into Anthropomorphism Through Ancient Greco-Roman Religious Structures, Emily Wilcox

Architecture Undergraduate Honors Theses

This paper will outline and detail an investigation into religious Greco-Roman structures of antiquity through the lens of anthropomorphism. Through defining anthropomorphism, three lenses of thought have presented themselves as means of inquiry: metaphor, scale and proportion, and ergonomics. Previous research into these structures and cultures has shown that there was indeed consideration for the human body in designing in construction; this project hopes to solidify these claims and present new supporting information regarding specific relationships to the body using anthropomorphism. Many contemporary buildings approach the relationship to the human body as a mask or an afterthought, disregarding what reflecting …

Cartographier L’Essor D’Un Modèle : Le Chapiteau Ionique De Michel-Ange De L’Invention Au Début Du Xviie Siècle, Federica Vermot

Artl@s Bulletin

This study proposes to map the propagation of an alternative type of ionic capital invented by Michelangelo in 1563. We proceed to a comparative analysis of the new buildings erected in Rome from the invention of the new capital to the beginning of the 17th century, in order to highlight spatial and temporal correlations peculiar to its diffusion. The study of this issue allows to understand the perception of the capital that the next generation of roman architects developed, which is a less known aspect of Michelangelo's reception. Overall, it invites to shape the stylistic evolution of an architectural motif.

Viewing Heaven: Rock Crystal, Reliquaries, And Transparency In Fourteenth-Century Aachen, Claire Kilgore

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

This thesis examines reliquaries and objects associated with medieval Christian practice in fourteenth-century Aachen. The city's cathedral and treasury contain prestigious relics, reliquaries, and liturgical items, aided by its status as the Holy Roman Empire's coronation church. During the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV (r. 1349-1378), reliquaries, pilgrimage, and architecture reflect late medieval interests in vision, optics, and transparency. Two mid-fourteenth century reliquaries from the Aachen Cathedral Treasury, the Reliquary of Charlemagne and the Three-Steepled Reliquary, display relics through rock crystal windows, in contrast to the obscuring characteristics of earlier reliquaries. Not only do the two reliquaries visually …

Abbot Suger’S St. Denis And The Cult Of Relics, Kathryn Funderburg

The Expositor: A Journal of Undergraduate Research in the Humanities

No abstract provided.

Visigothic Spain And Armenia: Masonry Consideration, Anahit Ter-Stepanian

Art & Design Faculty Publications

Visigothic monuments display architectural and sculptural features which are hard to explain in 7th c. Western Europe. These features include high level of stone craftsmanship, cruciform plans, tall and narrow sprayed windows, horseshoe shaped arches, vaulted spaces, monumentality combined with small size, figural, geometric, and floral ornamental motifs applied to unusual areas for Western Christian architecture. Since many individual Visigothic features can be traced to Roman, Syrian, or Byzantine monuments, these traditions are considered instrumental in creation of Visigothic architectural vocabulary. More recently, a growing number of studies point to Islamic art as a possible source of influence and thus …

Divine Interiors: Meaning, Spirituality, And Evolution In Baptismal Ritual Space., Mirabai Dorothy Bright-Thonney

Senior Projects Spring 2016

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College

The Loggia: Renaissance Revival Of Ancient Roman Villa Ideology As Manifest In A Liminal Space, John Francisco Cherichello

Senior Projects Spring 2016

Senior Project submitted to The Division of Arts of Bard College.

Hand-Eye, Michael S. Pszczonak

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This integrated article thesis has two distinct chapters: The first chapter is a case study on a selection of works by German artist Sigmar Polke using Hal Fosters writing on the historical and neo-avant-gardes. The study traces the way Polke revisits the first avant-garde project and comprehends its attempted traumatic rift from dominant ideologies for the first time. The second chapter is a comprehensive artist statement which simultaneously outlines the theoretical underpinnings of my work as well as the process leading to the body of work on display at McIntosh Gallery. The research sets out to answer the following question: …

The Western Façade Of Santiago De Compostela: Christian Dominion And Ecclesiastical Rivalry From The Medieval To The Baroque Period, Louisa M. Raitt

Summer Research

As a prominent world power through much of western history, Spain was a fundamental player in creating several western cultural establishments especially regarding the realm of Christianity. As the culminating shrine of the Pilgrimage Road to Santiago de Compostela, the shrine to Saint James in the northwest corner of Spain boasts a rich history of religious, political and cultural significance. Through a visual and contextual analysis, this paper asserts that the two primary renovations of the western façade at Santiago de Compostela (the Portico of Glory in the 12^th-13^th century and the Façade of Obradoiro in the …

The Mayaarch3d Project: A 3d Webgis For Analyzing Ancient Architecture And Landscapes, Jennifer Von Schwerin, Heather Richards-Rissetto, Fabio Remondino, Giorgio Agugario, Gabrio Girardi

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

There is a need in the humanities for a 3D WebGIS with analytical tools that allow researchers to analyze 3D models linked to spatially referenced data. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) allow for complex spatial analysis of 2.5D data. For example, they offer bird’s eye views of landscapes with extruded building footprints, but one cannot ‘get on the ground’ and interact with true 3D models from a pedestrian perspective. Meanwhile, 3D models and virtual environments visualize data in 3D space, but analytical tools are simple rotation or lighting effects. The MayaArch3D Project is developing a 3D WebGIS—called QueryArch3D—to allow these two …

Romanità A Roma: Le Basiliche Del Xii Secolo Fra Tradizioni E Innovazioni, Dale Kinney

History of Art Faculty Research and Scholarship

The “Romanness” (romanitas) of the cathedral portico in Civita Castellana is obvious, but within Rome the criteria of “Romanness” are not so clear. This article takes the architecture of twelfth-century churches as a case in point. Scholars generally agree that romanitas is retrospective and evocative of local tradition, but many of the signature features of these churches – bell towers, marble cloisters, Ionic trabeated porches, marble altar ciboria, paschal candlestands, the “schola cantorum” – were eleventh- or twelfth-century innovations, some- times imported from elsewhere. It is proposed that these features were “invented traditions” as defined by Eric Hobsbawm, which create …

The Discourse Of Columns, Dale Kinney

History of Art Faculty Research and Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Metallurgy In The Roman Forts Of Scotland: An Archaeological Analysis, Scott S. Stetkiewicz

Honors Projects

Investigates the presence of metalworking in thirty-seven Roman forts in Scotland during the Flavian, Antonine, and Severan occupations largely through analysis of published documentation concerning relevant archaeological excavations.

Architecture In Archaeology: An Examination Of Domestic Space In Bronze Age Mesopotamia, Megan E. Drennan

Honors Scholar Theses

The study of architecture within archaeology has not had a direct, well-defined history nor a singular academic pursuit. Yet over time, four branches have developed; they examine: 1) the object itself; structures as artifacts, 2) activity areas within a structure, 3) the specific way in which a building confines space, and 4) the relationship between human behavior and architecture.

This investigation surveys domestic space in the Bronze Age Mesopotamian urban centers of Tell Asmar, Nippur, and Ur. The analysis uses methods from the study of space, such as space syntax, access analysis, and visibility angles, to demonstrate the probability of …

Metrology And Proportion In The Ecclesiastical Architecture Of Medieval Ireland, Avril Behan, Rachel Moss

Conference Papers

The aim of this paper is to examine the extent to which detailed empirical analysis of the metrology and proportional systems used in the design of Irish ecclesiastical architecture can be analysed to provide historical information not otherwise available. Focussing on a relatively limited sample of window tracery designs as a case study, it will first set out to establish what, if any, systems were in use, and then what light these might shed on the background, training and work practices of the masons, and, by association, the patrons responsible for employing them.

Centum Homines: The Prototype Of The Alexander Mosaic And The Military Museum In The Hellenistic World, Peter Nulton

Peter E. Nulton Ph.D.

Although it is generally accepted that the Alexander Mosaic copies a painting of the 4th Century BCE, the attribution of this prototype has never been settled. Numerous attempts have been made to associate it with painters recorded in Pliny's Natural History, notably Philoxenos of Eretria, and Alexander's court painter, Apelles.

If the painting were the work of any artist whose name survives, as strong a case can be made for Aristeides of Thebes as for Apelles or Philoxenos. Since Pliny's comment that Aristeides painted a battle against the Persians follows his treatment of the works of Apelles, he is likely …

The Science Behind Francesco Borromini's Divine Geometry, John G. Hatch

Visual Arts Publications

No abstract provided.

The Science Behind Francesco Borromini's Divine Geometry, John Hatch

John G. Hatch

No abstract provided.

A Classical Stage For The Old Nobility: The Strada Nuova And Sixteenth-Century Genoa, George Gorse

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

Sixteenth-century Genoa produced a distinctively new type of urban space in the Strada Nuova (or, since 1882, the Via Garibaldi)—the residential palace street or linear piazza—designed to legitimize and enhance the authority of a ruling elite.¹ Laid out in 1550-51 and built between 1558 and 1591, the Strada Nuova (Fig. 1), when taken as a whole, represents two significant themes for the history of Genoa and the interpretation of Renaissance cities. First, this major example of Italian Renaissance architecture and urban planning was conceived, and indeed, functioned as a classical stagelike space for the old nobility, who governed and controlled …

Silenced Sacred Spaces: Selected Photographs Of Syrian Synagogues By Robert Lyons, Exhibition Essay, Lowe Art Gallery, Syracuse University, Samuel D. Gruber Dr.

Samuel D. Gruber Dr.

No abstract provided.

Silenced Sacred Spaces: Selected Photographs Of Syrian Synagogues By Robert Lyons, Samuel Gruber, Samuel D. Gruber

Religion - All Scholarship

Discusses the history and architecture of the synagogues of Syria documented by photographer Robert Lyons in a survey sponsored by the Jewish Heritage Council of the World Monuments Fund.

Review: Il Trionfo Della Miseria, Gli Alberghi Dei Poveri Di Genova, Palermo E Napoli, George Gorse

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

Since Michel Foucault's seminal essays on the asylum, prison, and hospital in the Age of Reason, architectural historians have begun to examine these major public institutions in the life and pathology of the early modern city. This volume extends the disciplinary focus to public assistance and monumental housing for the poor, which was often closely related in ideology and building type to asylums, prisons, monasteries, and hospitals. Foucauldian intellectual history and urban history, with its concomitant interest in vernacular traditions, converge in this comparative study of Genoa, Palermo, and Naples during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.

Les Linteaux En Batière Romans D'Auvergne. Recherche Sur La Typologie Et Les Origines, William Folkestad, Joan Nilsson

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of Arts and Humanities

The pentagonal lintel common to Romanesque churches of the Auvergne region of France appears first in Carolingian church architecture. There are indications that, because pentagonal lintels result from the same sculptural technique used to produce sarcophagi lids from the Roman through the Ottonian periods, this peculiar lintel form may have been derived from a widespread quarry practice that facilitated its adoption as a regular architectural element. The pentagonal lintels of the Auvergne are characterized by three distinct lintel formats consisting of various combinations of plain, painted, or sculpted lintels and plain, ornamented, or sculpted tympana. Pentagonal lintels provide insights into …

"Representations Of Domestic Space In Medieval Italian Painting" Paper Delivered At The Fordham Medieval Conference: The Family In The Middle Ages, Samuel D. Gruber Dr.

Samuel D. Gruber Dr.

This paper, presented at a conference in 1995, presents impressions about the interior spaces of medieval Italian urban houses based on architecture, literature and painting. The paper in its present state refers to many works of art but is not illustrated or annotated.

Nace Una Ciudad. Origen Y Evolución De Las Murallas De Alicante., Pablo Rosser

pablo rosser

Se resume la historia de Alicante y su evolución urbanística a partir de la creación, desarrollo y evolución de los distintos anillos defensivos que se construyeron en Alicante desde la edad media hasta época contemporánea.

Review: Naomi Miller, Renaissance Bologna: A Study In Architectural Form And Content, George Gorse

Pomona Faculty Publications and Research

Bologna is a uniquely beautiful Italian city with broad, arcaded streets, richly textured brick and sandstone facades, majestic piazzas, public sculpture, high towers, and a cuisine to take time over. However, the previous historiographic emphasis upon Florence, Rome, and Venice has diverted attention from more fully preserved medieval and Renaissance cities such as Bologna, where urbanism—the urban fabric—takes precedence over individual buildings and architects, and where the urban context defines the architectural monument. Bologna is the work of art. And for this reason, one welcomes the fine book on this major, yet understudied, urban center by Naomi Miller, a distinguished …

The Future Of Jewish Monuments, Samuel Gruber, Samuel D. Gruber

Religion - All Scholarship

Exhibition essay from first exhibition focused on the documentation, protection and preservation of Jewish monuments and historic sites. The exhibition opened in conjunction with the international conference "The Future of Jewish Monuments," organized by the Jewish Heritage Council of the World Monuments Fund. The exhibition focused on the needs of historic sites in Eastern Europe, North Africa, the united States and elsewhere, and made the case for international support.