(EECA3) Module Overview

Early Europe and Colonial America III

Introduction

Like the Gothic period, the term Baroque was derogatory and literally means distorted or grotesque. The term was used to slander the art, which dominated the Seventeenth Century; however, it came into widespread use and lost its negative connotations. Characteristics of Baroque art are dynamic, theatrical paintings with high-contrast lighting and sculptures showing action and emotion. The Baroque period is primarily associated with the Catholic Church and the Counter-Reformation, but as the century progressed the style moved into Protestant countries. In the north, Baroque art tended to be more secular. Subjects favored by countries like Holland and Germany are still life's, genre scenes, and landscapes. One of the great periods of art history, Baroque Art masters of note were Caravaggio, Annibale Carracci, and Gianlorenzo Bernini. This was also the age of Rubens, Rembrandt, Velazquez, and Vermeer outside of Italy.

Collage depicting themes of this period: Harmony, balance, and proportion; dynamic, drama, and passion.

Rococo was the favored style of French aristocracy and royalty. This style, used primarily in interior decoration, was derived from the French word "rocaille", which means round pebble. This reference refers to the stones and shells used to decorate the interiors of caves; therefore, shell forms became a main motif in Rococo. The paintings are characterized by pastel colors showing frivolous themes of the upper class enjoying their life of ease and elite status. Rococo is known for excessive decoration, ornamentation, and the emphasis on curvilinear and organic forms. Though delicate and elegant, largely it represents a very unrealistic and superficial view of the world. King Louis XIV was one of the greatest supporters of this type of painting. The architecture of his palace, Versailles, also follows the Rococo ideal, which is extremely elaborate, decorative, and even gaudy in its richness.

The Spanish conquest led to 300 years of colonial rule, but art production in Mexico remained tied to religion—most art was associated with the construction and decoration of churches once Christianity was introduced. Almost all Mexican art produced was heavily inspired by the European tradition, but some indigenous elements remained. This module reflects the balancing act between European and indigenous traditions.

Module Lessons Preview

In this module, we will study the following topics:

  • Why and how does art change?
  • How do we describe our thinking about art?
  • How does religion influence art and architecture?
  • How has art been utilized to foster political beliefs?
  • Is art a reflection of its culture or a force to form or shape culture?

Key Terms

In this module, we will study the following key terms:

  1. Altarpiece - An altarpiece is a panel, painted or sculpted, situated above and behind an altar.
  2. Apse - An apse is a recess, usually semicircular, in the wall of a Roman basilica or at the east end of a church.
  3. Baldacchino - The baldacchino is a canopy on columns, frequently built over an altar.
  4. Basilica - In Roman architecture, a basilica is a civic building for legal and other civic proceedings, rectangular in plan with an entrance usually on a long side. In Christian architecture, a church somewhat resembling the Roman basilica, usually entered from one end and with an apse at the other.
  5. Buttress - A buttress is an exterior masonry structure that opposes the lateral thrust of an arch or a vault. A pier buttress is a solid mass of masonry; a flying buttress consists typically of an inclined member carried on an arch or a series of arches and a solid buttress to which it transmits lateral thrust.
  6. Chiaroscuro - In drawing or painting, the treatment and use of light and dark, especially the gradations of light that produce the effect of modeling is chiaroscuro.
  7. Codex (pl. codices) - A codex is separate pages of vellum or parchment bound together at one side; the predecessor of the modern book. The codex superseded the rotulus. In Mesoamerica, a painted and inscribed book on long sheets of bark paper or deerskin coated with fine white plaster and folded into accordion-like pleats.
  8. Diptych - A diptych is a two-paneled painting or altarpiece; also, an ancient Roman, Early Christian, or Byzantine hinged writing tablet, often of ivory and carved on the external sides.
  9. Engraving - The process of incising a design in hard material, often a metal plate (usually copper); also, the print or impression made from such a plate is an engraving.
  10. Etching - An etching is a kind of engraving in which the design is incised in a layer of wax or varnish on a metal plate. The parts of the plate left exposed are then etched (slightly eaten away) by the acid in which the plate is immersed after incising.
  11. Fresco - Fresco is a painting on lime plaster, either dry (dry fresco or fresco secco) or wet (true or buon fresco). In the latter method, the pigments are mixed with water and become chemically bound to the freshly laid lime plaster.
  12. Humanism - Humanism, in the Renaissance, is an emphasis on education and on expanding knowledge (especially of classical antiquity), the exploration of individual potential and a desire to excel, and a commitment to civic responsibility and moral duty.
  13. Parchment - Parchment is lambskin prepared as a surface for painting or writing.
  14. Woodcut - A woodcut is a wooden block on the surface of which those parts not intended to print are cut away to a slight depth, leaving the design raised; also, the printed impression made with such a block.

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