Study-Unit Description

Study-Unit Description



CODE BST2006

 
TITLE Artists and Architects of the Baroque Age

 
UM LEVEL 02 - Years 2, 3 in Modular Undergraduate Course

 
MQF LEVEL 5

 
ECTS CREDITS 6

 
DEPARTMENT International Institute for Baroque Studies

 
DESCRIPTION By way of introducing the prodigious architectural and artistic output of the Baroque age which will be dealt with extensively in the MA in Baroque course lectures on the subject, this study-unit will first address a number of themes associated with the principal personalities in the architectural and artistic fields in pre-Baroque Italy.

It will then explore the replacement of the objectivity of the Renaissance with the subjective criteria that dominated the age of Michelangelo, as a prelude to the Baroque attitudes to architecture, painting and sculpture that characterised the later sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, as seen in the works of Borromini, Bernini, Cortona, Caravaggio and so many other architects and artists who collectively contributed to the emergence of the culture of Baroque Italy and its dissemination throughout Europe, reaching a high point in Versailles.

Study-unit Aims:

This study-unit will serve as an introduction to the lectures in BST5003 - The Baroque Route 2: Architecture, BST5004 - The Baroque Route 3: Sculpture, and BST5005 - The Baroque Route 4: Painting, associated with the MA in Baroque Studies taught course. With reference to specific aims, the study-unit aims at disseminating knowledge about the architectural and artistic output in pre-Baroque Italy, treated in the context and an introduction to its Baroque sequel.

Learning Outcomes:

1. Knowledge & Understanding:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:
- Demonstrate understanding of the sequential developments of architecture and art in pre-Baroque Italy;
- Demonstrate knowledge of the principal achievements and developments in the visual arts during the Renaissance and its Mannerist and Baroque sequels;
- Demonstrate knowledge of the main personalities who contributed to the development of the visual arts during the Renaissance and its Mannerist and Baroque sequels.

2. Skills:

By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to:
- Distinguish between Renaissance, Mannerist and Baroque works of art;
- Critically comment on the most significant works of prominent architects and artists who collectively contributed to the emergence of the Baroque culture in Italy and its dissemination throughout Europe;
- Relate the artistic achievements of the Baroque Age to other areas of intellectual and artistic output during the same period.

Main Text/s and any supplementary readings:

- R Toman, Baroque: Architecture, Sculpture and Painting, Cologne 1998.
- R Wittkower, Baroque Art and Architecture in Italy: Early, High and Late Baroque, Yale 1999.
- J. Quentin Hughes and Norbert Lynton. Renaissance Architecture. London: Longmans, 1965.

 
STUDY-UNIT TYPE Lecture

 
METHOD OF ASSESSMENT
Assessment Component/s Sept. Asst Session Weighting
Assignment Yes 20%
Examination (2 Hours) Yes 80%

 
LECTURER/S Denis De Lucca

 

 
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints.
Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice.
It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years.


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