ASSIGNMENT
Select 3 artworks from the Baroque era. Each work should be from a different geographic region and a different artist. Thus, you would need to choose three works from three of the following five regions: Italy, Spain, Flanders, the Netherlands, and France.
• Identify 2 major themes that unify your chosen artworks across geographic and cultural boundaries. While the works you choose will come from different regional and governmental authorities, your goal is to identify themes that unite them despite these separations. Themes encompass broad cultural and stylistic attributes of a work or stylistic approach.
• Write an 8+ page paper describing the influence that your artist and chosen art/architectural works had on European society, and the way that they embody the cultural ideals of the 17th Century.
• Provide a strong introduction that provides an overview of the ideals of the Baroque and addresses the artists/architects, chosen works and two themes that will be addressed. Thoroughly reference your objects citing the artist, title, medium and date for each work. What will you attempt to prove and how will you do so? What questions will you be addressing and why?
• Provide strong and thorough visual analysis for each of your chosen objects focusing on style, composition, form, color and materials. What is the subject matter and how is it revealed? Go beyond simple discussion of what is depicted to specific discussion of HOW it is depicted. Approach your visual analysis as though you are describing the work to someone who has never seen it before. Your goal is to form a precise visual image of the work through your writing. For further guidance on strong visual analysis, see the guide to Visual Analysis on page 4 of this assignment.
o 5 points for each visual analysis = 15 points
o Approximately 2–3 pages
• Discuss each of your 2 themes with each of your 3 art/architectural works and relate them to the societal, religious and/or artistic ideals of the Baroque era. How does each work specifically embody the themes that you have selected? How are these themes embodied across cultural boundaries? Both themes must be discussed thoroughly with each work of art!
o 5 points for thorough discussion of each theme with each artwork = 10
points for each artwork = 30 points
o Approximately 2–3 pages
• Provide strong and thorough artistic, cultural and symbolic analysis for each of your chosen objects. Examine why your artist/architect created the chosen artworks. Provide biographical details and stylistic approaches from each artist/architect that support the visual and thematic ideals that have been discussed. How does each work embody its regional Baroque ideals as well as broader European Baroque ideals? Who were they created for? What significance did they have from a social/political perspective? A religious perspective? A cultural perspective? What role did they play in contemporary society? Did the materials used to create your objects hold special significance? What underlying symbolism played into the importance of each artwork? What do the artworks say about the social status of the owner? The artist? ADDRESS
• Provide a strong conclusion that summarizes the main ideas and themes of your paper. Link the topic(s) presented in your conclusion with the goal(s) presented in your introduction.
