ARHT5909 - Death and Disease in Renaissance Art (2006)

Postgraduate

 

Department: Art History and Theory School: School of Letters, Art and Media Semester(s): Semester 2 Credit Points: 6 Co-ordinator: Dr Louise Marshall Email: louise.marshall@arts.usyd.edu.au Telephone: 9351 3073

UoS Description

This unit explores the interplay between art and disease in Renaissance Italy. Issues to be investigated include: the religious and psychological effects of catastrophic disease, such as the Black Death, and the possible effects on art; images of death and disease before and after the plague; the prophylactic role of images; Renaissance conceptions of the workings of the celestial court; civic, corporate, familial and individual patronage of plague images.

UoS Objectives:

The course is interdisciplinary in its focus and methods, and students are encouraged to work across disciplinary boundaries and to apply a variety of methodologies to their own research. The course aims to foster student awareness of and engagement with recent debates on the topic in current scholarship.

UoS Outcomes:

By the conclusion of this Unit of Study, students will demonstrate:
• an understanding of the key issues raised by the topic
• an understanding of the varying interpretative approaches which have been brought to bear, and of the strengths and limitations of these differing methodologies
• the ability to use visual and spatial analysis of specific works of art and architecture in the service of a critical argument
• the ability to evaluate differing interpretations of works of art and to make critical judgements on the arguments advanced

UoS Learning Situations:

Seminars ,  2 hours per week
2 hours per week

UoS Assessment:

Class presentation and essay to a total of 4,500 words

UoS Readings/References:

P. Ziegler, The Black Death, London, 1969
M. Meiss, Painting in Florence and Siena after the Black Death, Princeton, 1951 (and later reprintings)
L. Marshall, “Manipulating the Sacred: Image and Plague in Renaissance Italy”, Renaissance Quarterly, 47, 1994, 485-532

Online Components:

Online components may include:
A listing of Lecture and Tutorial topics
Additional reading references
Assessment topics and assessment criteria

How the Online Components work with the rest of the UoS:

The on line component of this unit is optional. It provides a supplementary guide to information supplied in classes.

Minimum Requirements for Hardware/Software:

WEB BROWSERS:

* for Windows users( Microsoft IE 5.0 or higher, Netscape 6.2 or higher)

* for Macintosh users ( Microsoft IE 5.1 or higher, Netscape 6.2 or higher, Safari 1.2 or higher)

INTERNET CONNECTION: 56k modem