Introduction to Baroque Art

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

Baroque Art (1600-1750) has long been derided as excessive, irrational, and grotesque. Many eighteenth- and nineteenth-century critics labelled the period as one of decline from the Renaissance, with its theatricality and ornamentation seen as over the top. This course seeks to present the period in a new light by looking at the diverse artistic traditions in Europe during this time, ranging from the Caravaggisti in Italy to Rembrandt and his followers in the Netherlands. We will examine major artists from the period, including Gianlorenzo Bernini, Annibale Carracci, Artemisia Gentileschi, Peter Paul Rubens, Diego Velázquez, and Johannes Vermeer. Other topics include the introduction of genre painting, responses to mannerism, and the Counter-Reformation’s impact on Baroque imagery. During the semester, we will visit the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art together. Grading will be based primarily on exams.