UHVMN504 Iconography II

Faculty of Philosophy and Science in Opava
Summer 2021
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
Teacher(s)
PhDr. Ing. Jaromír Olšovský, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
PhDr. Marian Hochel, Ph.D.
Institute of Historical Sciences – Faculty of Philosophy and Science in Opava
Timetable of Seminar Groups
UHVMN504/A: Tue 14:45–16:20 M11, J. Olšovský
Prerequisites
The fundamental knowledge of terms from art history, history of Christianity and the Antic mythology.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
A series of lectures in the summer semester continues by the introduction to the profane iconography, especially to iconography from the late Renaissance and Mannerism until the late 18th century. Special attention is paid to specific iconographic phenomena of the late Renaissance as Emblematic, Renaissance hieroglyphic, using of allegories and personifications, the use of ancient mythology and ancient history in the Renaissance and Baroque iconography. It will also take account of the specific themes in the art of the 19th and 20th centuries. Final lectures would be dedicated to new approaches and iconographical trends applied in the interpretation of works of art (psychoanalytic approach, sociological, aesthetic receptively) as well as to contemporary theories of critical importance, including iconology, which is dealing with some non-critical approaches and dangers of over-interpretation of works of art.
Syllabus
  • 1. Introduction to the profane iconography: basic literature, manuals, dictionaries and sources of the Renaissance, Mannerist and Baroque iconography and themes
    2. Cyclic and numerological topics I: Seven Liberal Arts (Septem artes liberales), Vices and Virtues, Seven Deadly Sins
    3. Cyclical and numerological themes II: The Four Temperaments, Four Seasons, Five Elements, the problem of hidden symbolism
    4. Renaissance and Mannerist profane symbolism, Renaissance emblematic, Renaissance hieroglyphic, Renaissance allegory and personification, mythological themes, historical painting (istoria)
    5. Case iconographic interpretation: Leonardo's Homo bene figurata and themes of macrocosm and microcosm, Sandro Botticelli and his Birth of Venus, Albrecht Dürer and his Melancholy; Titian's Apollo and Marsyas in Kroměříž
    6. Iconography and themes of Early and High Baroque
    7. Iconography of the late Baroque and Enlightenment period, iconography and symbolism of Free Masonry, symbols and aesthetics of sentimentalism
    8. Themes and iconography in 19th century art
    9. Themes and iconography of modern art in the 20th century
    10. Other approaches to iconological interpretation: Erwin Panofsky and his iconological analysis of Gothic cathedral, Francis A. Yates and her research areas of analysis of Rosicrucian Movement (The Rosenkcrucian Enlightenment), Art of Memory, Giordano Bruno and the Hermetic Tradition
    11. Current approaches to iconological interpretation: Michael Baxandall´s sociological approach to art and its meaning; psychoanalytic attempt to interpret the artwork - a case of Sigmund Freud and his interpretation of Leonard´s St Anne and Meyer Schapiro´s critic, Michael Foucault and his interpretation of Las Meninas of Velazquez and a debate about his interpretation
    12. Critical iconology
Literature
    recommended literature
  • Pavel Preiss. Panoráma manýrismu. Kapitoly o umění a kultuře 16. století. Praha, 1974. info
  • Kol. autorů. Slovník antické kultury (kol. autorů). Praha, 1974. info
  • Guy de Tervarent. Attributs et symboles dans l´art profane 1450-1600. Dictionnaire d´un langage perdu. Geneve, 1958. info
  • A. Pigler. Barockthemen, Eine Auswahl von Verzeichnissen zur Ikonographie des 17. Und 18. Jahrhunderts, I-II. Budapest, 1956. info
Teaching methods
Lecturing
Presentation of seminar work
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course can also be completed outside the examination period.
Teacher's information
* Active participation in the seminar
* the ability to work independently with literature
* writing a seminar paper (iconographic description and analysis of the selected work of art)
* passing the test of practical iconography, including the identification of themes selected examples of works of art (painting, sculpture)
The course is also listed under the following terms Summer 2015, Summer 2016, Summer 2017, Summer 2018, Summer 2019, Summer 2020, Summer 2022.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Summer 2021, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.slu.cz/course/fpf/summer2021/UHVMN504