History of Art, Architecture, and Archaeology Commons^™

The Reproductive Politics Of Maiolica: Birth, Abortion, And Gendered Authority During The Italian Renaissance, Rose Brookhart

Honors Projects

In the aftermath of several plagues that decimated the population of the Italian peninsula since 1348, men and women from all socioeconomic backgrounds safeguarded their individual corporeal health and collective societal well-being through a variety of routines and rituals, which were prescribed but at the same time extremely personalized. This increased attention in personal and civic health promoted new trends in both literal and material consumption during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. Purgative drugs and medicines were a common facet of medicine during the Italian Renaissance and were ingested regularly to alleviate commonplace bodily discomforts in addition to more serious …

Fra Angelico In San Marco: A Comparison Of Fra Angelico’S Frescoes And Altarpieces During His Time In San Marco, Isaac Copeland

Tenor of Our Times

Fra Angelico stood at the crossroads of two major art movements in the early 15th century, the old International Gothic style, and the new Renaissance style. During his stay at San Marco between 1436, when the monastery moved to Florence, and 1445, when Fra Angelico was summoned to Rome, his work reflected elements of both the International Gothic style and the Renaissance style. However, in his works at San Marco, his panel paintings were more conservative, painted with more Gothic conventions than his frescos, which exhibited elements of the rising Renaissance.

The “Trans-Historical Community Of Women” And The Paintings Of Artemisia Gentileschi, Grace T. O. Ray

The Confluence

Though the term feminism did not yet exist, Artemisia Gentileschi’s embrace of the vital force of feminine strength is a distinctive component to her paintings. The woman painter’s life and art were affected by her sex, in a time when women were not only considered property but had to deal with the repercussions of an oppressive patriarchal society. From her youth onwards, Gentileschi witnessed women unjustly convicted and punished for crimes that had men committed, the law would have allowed them to walk free. Sadly, Artemisia was later privy to the misogynistic laws herself with the famous rape trial. It …

Leonardo’S Ancient Inspiration, Willem N. Roelandts

CAFE Symposium 2023

Investigating the hidden ancient inspiration in Leonardo de Vinci’s 'Battle of Anghiari' and it’s significance to the city of Florence. How and why Leonardo chose to incorporate Greco-Roman aesthetics into his art.

Botticelli's Adoration Of The Magi: The Power And Beauty Of Individual, Trang B. Nguyen

CAFE Symposium 2023

Adoration of the Magi in Uffizi was a commission from banker Guasparre dal Lama for his chapel in Santa Maria Novella. The altarpiece was painted by the famous artist Sandro Botticelli. It illustrates one of the most famous scenes in the Bible: The Epiphany of the three Magi greeting the birth of Jesus who would bring salvation and peace to the world of sins. This beautiful piece now resides in Uffizi Museum in Florence. Adoration of the Magi represents the peak of Renaissance art, and carefully reflects the political message of Florence in the 15th century through the figures of …

Michelangelo Buonarroti And Homophobia In The Renaissance, Grace T. O. Ray

The Confluence

Tommaso de’ Cavalieri was a young man with an aristocratic background when he first met famous artist Michelangelo Buonarroti in Rome. Tommaso was known to be an incomparable physical beauty, with intelligence and elegant manners, as well as being a member of one of the most illustrious families of Rome—the Orsini. Some have said this is what drew the artist to Cavalieri from the start. Though not much is known about their encounter, it is confirmed that Cavalieri remained a close and loyal companion to Michelangelo for thirty-two years until the artist’s death in 1564. Furthermore, throughout their years together …

Feminine Monstrosity: Medusa Through The Ages, Meredith Kate Wolkom

Senior Projects Spring 2022

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

The Literary Controversies Of Michelangelo's Sistine Ceiling, Victoria Duehring

The Forum: Journal of History

This literary review will focus on Michelangelo’s most significant work of color: the Sistine ceiling. Michelangelo’s work has spawned a plethora of literature, but this paper will focus on three main controversial topics: assistants (or lack thereof), the ignudi’s purpose, and restoration. I will also apply a psycho-historical approach to these controversies and identify potential avenues for future research.

A Sculpir Qui Cose Divine: The Spiritual Non-Finito In Michelangelo's Pietà, Kaitlin Arbusto

Theses and Dissertations

The evolution of Michelangelo Buonarroti’s faith – rooted in his contemplation of salvation and his own mortality in art and the written word – is explored in this thesis via an investigation of his four surviving Pietà. Each of these artworks, like the nature of his spirituality, is considered in relation to the non-finito.

Don’T Die A Woman If You Want Your Own Way: Idealization Of Florentine Noblewomen Through Posthumous Renaissance Portraiture, Asha Fletcher-Irwin

Art History Senior Papers

Renaissance women’s portraiture served a narrative purpose for the patron, always informed by whether the painting’s subject was alive at the time of painting. My own interest in posthumous portraiture came from a single sentence in renowned Renaissance scholar Patricia Simons’ article on the identification of Tornabuoni women in the Santa Maria Novella. She wrote of Ghirlandaio’s fresco of Giovanna Tornabouni, painted after her death, in which he copied a profile portrait done during her lifetime but decided to further idealize it.^[1] Renaissance portraiture was never accidental, and female Florentine portraiture of the era was particularly riddled with symbolism. …

Spectacle, Spectatorship, And A New Reading Of The Nine Heroes Tapestries, Katherine L. Rachlin

Theses and Dissertations

This theatrical and performative interpretation of The Nine Heroes tapestries (1390–1410) argues for their connection to civic spectacles, courtly rituals, and enactments of the Nine Worthies in medieval performance traditions such as entry ceremonies. Consideration is given to the tapestries’ materiality, mediality, and their visceral impact on viewers.

The Spiritual Nature Of The Italian Renaissance, Kaitlyn Kenney

Senior Honors Theses

This study seeks to investigate the influence of faith in the emergence and development of the Italian Renaissance, in both the artwork and writing of the major artists and thinkers of the day, and the impact that new expressions of faith had on the viewing public. While the Renaissance is often labeled as a secular movement by modern scholars, this interpretation is largely due to the political motives of the Medici family who dominated Florence as the center of this artistic rebirth, on and off again throughout the period. On close examination, the philosophical and creative undercurrents of the movement …

Afterlife Of A Renaissance Sculpture: Reception History Of Michelangelo's Pietà, Yanhan He

Senior Projects Spring 2020

This project explores three significant moments in the history of reception of Michelangelo's Pietà, demonstrating changes of the Pietà's meaning according to that of its location, the era, and groups of spectators. The project first introduce reception of the Pietà around the time of its creation, focusing on the polemic opinions of Renaissance artists who have seen the sculpture in person. It then analyzes reception of the sculpture during the age of Grand Tour, when the audience group of British aristocrats shows notably limited interest in the sculpture. Finally, it talks about reception of the Pietà during the …

Disruption And Recovery In The Work Of Botticelli And Piero Di Cosimo, Ellen G. Birger

Theses and Dissertations

Florence underwent major destabilization during the 1490s, creating an extremely stressful time for its citizens. Chief amongst these events were the death of Lorenzo dei Medici and the ascendance, then demise, of the charismatic preacher Girolamo Savonarola. The impact on the work of Botticelli and Piero di Cosimo is evaluated.

Sub Lege To Sub Gratia: An Iconographic Study Of Van Eyck’S Annunciation, Christopher J. Condon

Student Publications

When the Archangel Gabriel descended from heaven to inform the Virgin Mary of her status as God’s chosen vehicle for the birth of Jesus Christ, she was immediately filled with a sense of apprehension. Gabriel’s words, “...invenisti enim gratiam apud Deum [you have found favor with God],” reassured the Virgin that she would face no harm, and the scene of the Annunciation (what this moment has come to be called) has forever been immortalized in Christian belief as a watershed moment in the New Testament. While many Byzantine icons of the Medieval period sought to depict this snapshot in time …

Marsilio Ficino's Astral Psychology: The Inner Cosmos Of Cardinal Alessandro Farnese On The Astronomical Ceiling Fresco Of Sala Del Mappamondo At Caprarola, Renata R. Nagy

Honors Undergraduate Theses

This thesis intends to explore the relationship between the Neoplatonist doctrines of the Renaissance philosopher, Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499), and astrological images in the Renaissance. The astrological ceiling fresco located in the Room of Maps in the Villa Farnese at Caprarola is in the center of the argument, which I analyze based on the metaphysical works of Ficino, the Platonic Theology (1482) and the Three Books on Life (1492). Authors have examined the fresco decoration and Ficinian philosophy individually, but never together. This study is the first to recognize Ficino's influence on Renaissance astrological images in its entirety.The present work synthesizes …

The Presentation Of The Chasuble To San Ildefonso: An Exploration Of Its Origins, Nikolyn Garner

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Presentation of the Chasuble to San Ildefonso is a 15^th-century Spanish altarpiece panel that has been part of the Montana Museum of Art and Culture’s permanent collection since 1957. However, it was donated with little information about the artist who created it, the circumstances of its commission, the area of Spain where it originated, or its provenance from the time of its creation to the time of its donation to the University of Montana. Without research into these questions, this unique piece has not been exhibited as often as it deserves. I have explored these questions as …

Jasper Skulls And Memento Mori, Kathleen C. Paul

Wonders of Nature and Artifice

The jasper skulls in this Curiosity Cabinet sit on the scale atop the touch-ables table. Jasper, a type of impure silica usually a reddish color, is commonly carved for small sculptures, as we see in the skulls.

The reddish tones of both skulls match the overall tone of the cabinet nicely, as well as complimenting the rich medium blue of the walls. Thematically, skulls perfectly align with other objects in the cabinet.

A ubiquitous theme of curiosity cabinets in the 16th and 17th century is the inevitability of death. Symbols of this notion in art work are known as …

Romanticism And Religion: The Superb Lily, Alexis Marie Michelle Zilen

Wonders of Nature and Artifice

“The Superb Lily,” was donated by Geoff Jackson, class of 1991 and beloved benefactor of Gettysburg College, to Special Collections. This first edition piece was published in the twenty first page of the book, Temple of Flora. This text is considered the greatest and most famous florilegia of the twentieth century due to its accuracy of descriptions and vast size. It contained a total of thirty five floral prints. The publisher, Robert Thornton, produced numerous copies of this book in the same year, however, the exact number of copies is unknown. (excerpt)

Wonders Of Nature And Artifice, Schmucker Art Gallery

Schmucker Art Catalogs

A stuffed blowfish, a meticulously-drawn insect, a ravishing lily, and a rhinoceros horn carved with scenes of plants and animals—these were among the wonders of nature and artifice, the marvels that fueled the Renaissance quest for knowledge. This exhibition explores the intellectual and aesthetic motivations of Renaissance naturalists and collectors, whose wonders of nature and artifice were displayed in elaborate gardens, illustrated books, and remarkable cabinets of curiosities. Collectors were driven by curiosity and a sense of wonder about what seemed to be an ever-expanding world. Students from Prof. Felicia Else’s upper-level art history course and Kay Etheridge’s First Year …

Homage To The Florentine Tondo, Geraldine Karnbach

Theses and Dissertations

Tondi were circular paintings or relief carvings, popular in fifteenth-century Florence. They were placed in households and predominantly devotional, featuring the Madonna and Child. By uncovering dual meanings from religious/gender perspectives, I will confirm the importance women and Marian devotion played in the popularity and disappearance of the tondo.

Body, Blood, And Flood: The Ripple Of Kinesics Through Nature In Leonardo Da Vinci's Art, Rachael Herrera

Scripps Senior Theses

Leonardo da Vinci's art and science have a dynamic relationship that can be used to better understand the role of the individual and the human body within his art. Leonardo believed that movements of the body were expressions of the soul. He also thought that the body was as a microcosm of the physical world. The theories, based in ancient tradition, would be challenged by his work with the human anatomy. By studying his notebooks it becomes evident that Leonardo held nature to be the highest creator of the world but as he worked to understand the human body and …

A Fearsome Beauty: Material And Cultural Exchange Between Venice And The Islamic Near East, Tahera H. Tajbhai

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis will explore the relationship between Venice and the Islamic Near East. By examining works from various media, this paper argues that Venetians viewed the Islamic Near East as being ‘awesome,’ and that this view was twofold, as Venetians were both enamored with and fearful of this rising power.

Old Masterpieces, New Mistress-Pieces: Cindy Sherman's Reinterpretations Of Renaissance Portraits Of Women, Caitlyn D. Marianacci

Scripps Senior Theses

This thesis examines a selection of eight photographs in the History Portraits series by American photographer, Cindy Sherman, produced from 1989 to 1990. The photographs are based on Renaissance paintings of biblical and secular women painted by old master artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, and Raphael. Sherman focused on the female types of Biblical mother and femme fatale, as well as wives and models. These types are defined in their relation to men and are depicted by men. In Sherman’s reinterpretations of their portraits, she retells the stories of these women in ways that reaffirm their independence …

Visual Culture Of Baptism In The Middle Ages: Essays On Medieval Fonts, Settings And Beliefs, Harriet Sonne De Torrens, Miguel Torrens

Harriet M Sonne de Torrens Dr.

Under the guidance of the leading experts on baptismal fonts and the co-directors of the Baptisteria Sacra Index, the world’s only iconographical inventory of baptismal fonts, a research project at the University of Toronto, this collection of essays by a group of European and North American scholars extends the traditional boundaries associated with the study of baptismal fonts. The ‘visual’ is privileged, whether it is in the metaphysical, literary or empirical realms of scholarship, offering a rich understanding of the powerful role of baptism played in medieval and renaissance society. In the quest for a holistic understanding of the vessels, …

Veronese’S Goblets: Glass Design And The Civilizing Process, Pascale Rihouet, Theory & History Of Art & Design Department

Faculty & Librarian Work

Taking its cue from Veronese’s lavish Wedding at Cana (1563), this article explores the meanings of fine and ordinary glassware, focusing on the performative value of Renaissance goblets. Drinking vessels are analyzed here as tools for the gradual transformation of human behavior, or the ‘Civilizing Process’ that sociologist Norbert Elias expounded. In the mid-sixteenth century, new designs for fine glasses supported and shaped the proper conduct expected of guests and servants in banquets. Iconographic sources such as the exquisite wine cups depicted by Veronese, didactic literature and the objects themselves document the kind of challenges and expectations that handling glass …

Mapping Jews: Cartography And Topography In Rome's Ghetto, Samuel D. Gruber Dr.

Samuel D. Gruber Dr.

This paper examines how the Ghetto of Rome was represented in the many view-plans and maps of Rome from the 16th through 18th centuries, and how this mapping both tells us much about the physical appearance of the Ghetto and also how it was perceived by others in particular and presented to others more generally.

Memory In Paintings Of Quattrocentro Renaissance Florence: Religious Paintings And Secular Portraits, Ashley Matcheck

Psi Sigma Siren

Collective memory studies as a field has always been the interdisciplinary study of how and why memories have been created. The difference between collective or cultural memory studies and that of a strictly historical study is often discussed and debated as people question whether memory or history is more valuable regarding past events. Jan Assmann explains that “in the context of cultural memory, the distinction between myth and history vanishes. Not the past as such, as it is investigated and reconstructed by archaeologists and historians, counts for the cultural memory, but only the past as it is remembered.” Assmann has …

Masterpieces Of Italian Literature In Translation, Silvia Valisa

Silvia Valisa

No abstract provided.

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.