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Main article: Art history § Historical development The field of "art history" was developed in the West, and originally dealt exclusively with European art history, with the High Renaissance (and its Greek precedent) as the defining standard. Gradually, over the course of the 20th century, a wider vision of art history has developed. This expanded version includes societies from across the globe, and it usually attempts to analyze artifacts in terms of the cultural values in which they were created. Thus, art history is now seen to encompass all visual art, from the megaliths of Western Europe to the paintings of the Tang Dynasty in China. The history of art is often told as a chronology of masterpieces created in each civilization. It can thus be framed as a story of high culture, epitomized by the Wonders of the World. On the other hand, vernacular art expressions can also be integrated into art historical narratives, in which case they are usually referred to as folk arts or craft. The more closely that an art historian engages with these latter forms of low culture, the more likely it is that they will identify their work as examining visual culture or material culture, or as contributing to fields related to art history, such as anthropology or archeology. In the latter cases art objects may be referred to as archeological artifacts. Canonical Art History A useful way to examine how art history is organized is through the major survey textbooks, which reflect the canon of great art. The most often used textbooks published in English are Ernst Gombrich’s Story of Art, Marilyn Stokstad’s Art History, Anthony Janson’s History of Art, David Wilkins, Bernard Schultz, and Katheryn M. Linduff’s Art Past, Art Present, Helen Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, Hugh Honour and John Flemming’s A World History of Art, and Laurie Schneider Adams’s Art Across Time. One of the best places to find information on canonical art history is the Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, sponsored by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Ludovisi Battle sarcophagus (250-260 CE), with battle between Roman soldiers and barbarians. The general may be Hostilian, Emperor Decius' son (died 252 CE). Global Prehistory Venus of Willendorf, Naturhistorisches Museum Main article: Prehistoric art The first tangible artifacts of human art are found from the Stone Age (Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic), periods when the first demonstrations that can be considered art by humans, appear. During the Paleolithic (25 000-8000 BCE), man practiced hunting and lived in caves, where cave painting was developed.[3] After a transitional period (Mesolithic, 8000-6000 BCE), in the Neolithic period (6000-3000 BCE), when man became sedentary and engaged in agriculture, with societies becoming increasingly complex and religion gaining importance, the production of handicrafts commenced. Finally, in the Bronze Age (c. 3000-1000 BCE), the first protohistoric civilizations arise. Paleolithic Main articles: Paleolithic art and List of Stone Age art The Paleolithic had its first artistic manifestation on 25,000 BCE, reaching its peak in the Magdalenian period (±15,000-8000 BCE). The first traces of man-made objects appear in southern Africa, the Western Mediterranean, Central and Eastern Europe (Adriatic Sea), Siberia (Baikal Lake), India and Australia. These first traces are generally worked stone (flint, obsidian), wood or bone tools. To paint in red, iron oxide was used, in black, manganese oxide and in ochre, clay.[4] Surviving art from this period is small carvings in stone or bone and cave painting, this especially from in the Franco-Cantabrian region; there are pictures with magical-religious character and also pictures with a naturalistic sense, which depict animals, notably the caves of Altamira, Trois Frères, Chauvet and Lascaux. Sculpture is represented by the so-called Venus figurines, feminine figures which were probably used in fertility cults, such as the Venus of Willendorf.[5] Other representative works of this period are the Man from Brno[6] and the Venus of Brassempouy.[7] Neolithic Main article: Neolithic Cave painting at Roca dels Moros, in El Cogul This period—from c. 8000 BCE in the Near East—was a profound change for the ancient man, who became sedentary and engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry, new forms of social coexistence and religion developed.[8] The rock art of the Iberian Mediterranean Basin—dated between Mesolithic and Neolithic—contained small, schematic human and figures, with notable examples in El Cogul, Valltorta, Alpera and Minateda. This kind of painting was also similar in northern Africa (Atlas, Sahara) and in the area of modern Zimbabwe. Neolithic painting was schematic, reduced to basic strokes (man in the form of a cross and woman in a triangular shape). There are equally noteworthy cave paintings in Pinturas River in Argentina, especially the Cueva de las Manos. In portable art, the Cardium Pottery was produced, decorated with imprints of seashells. New materials were produced like amber, crystal of rock, quartz, jasper, etc. In this period there appear the first traces of urbanistic planimetry, noting the remains in Tell as-Sultan (Jericho), Jarmo (Iraq) and Çatalhöyük (Anatolia).[9] Metal Age Megalithic complex of Stonehenge The last prehistoric phase is the Metal Age, as the use of elements such as copper, bronze and iron proved to be a great material transformation for these ancient societies. In the Chalcolithic (also called Copper Age) the Megalith emerged, monuments of stone, i.e. the dolmen and menhir or the English cromlech, as in the complexes at Newgrange and Stonehenge.[10] In Spain the Los Millares culture was formed, characterized by the Beaker culture and pictured human figures with big eyes. In Malta, noteworthy are the temple complexes of Mnajdra, Tarxien and Ggantija. In the Balearic Islands notable megalithic cultures developed, with different types of monuments: the naveta, a tomb shaped like a truncated pyramide, with an elongated burial chamber; the taula, two large stones, one put vertically and the other horizontally above each other; and the talaiot, a tower with a covered chamber and a false dome.[11] In the Iron Age the cultures of Hallstatt (Austria) and La Tene (Switzerland) mark the significant phases in Europe. The first was developed between the 7th and 5th century BCE by the necropoleis with tumular tombs and a wooden burial chamber in the form of a house, often accompanied by a four-wheel cart. The pottery was polychromic, with geometric decorations and applications of metallic ornaments. La Tene was developed between the 5th and 4th century BCE, and is more popularly known as early Celtic art. It produced many iron objects such as swords and spears, which have not survived well, but bronze continued to be used for highly decorated shields, fibulas, and other objects, with different stages of evolution of the style (La Tene I, II and III). Decoration was influenced by Greek, Etruscan and Scythian art.[12] In most of the continent conquest by the Roman Empire brought the style to an end. Venus of Brassempouy, Musée des Antiquités Nationales, Saint-Germain-en-Laye Menhir in the region of Brittany (France) Circular talaiot in the island of Mallorca (Spain) Solar cart of Trundholm (Denmark) The history of art is the history of any activity or product made by humans in a visual form for aesthetical or communicative purposes, expressing ideas, emotions or, in general, a worldview. Over time visual art has been classified in diverse ways, from the medieval distinction between liberal arts and mechanical arts, to the modern distinction between fine arts and applied arts, or to the many contemporary definitions, which define art as a manifestation of human creativity. The subsequent expansion of the list of principal arts in the 20th century reached to nine: architecture, dance, sculpture, music, painting, poetry (described broadly as a form of literature with aesthetic purpose or function, which also includes the distinct genres of theatre and narrative), film, photography and comics. At the conceptual overlap of terms between plastic arts and visual arts were added design and graphic arts. In addition to the old forms of artistic expression such as fashion and gastronomy, new modes of expression are being considered as arts such as video, computer art, performance, advertising, animation, television and videogames. The history of art is a multidisciplinary science, seeking an objective examination of art throughout time, classifying cultures, establishing periodizations and observing the distinctive and influential characteristics of art.[1] The study of the history of art was initially developed in the Renaissance, with its limited scope being the artistic production of western civilization. However, as time has passed, it has imposed a broader view of artistic history, seeking a comprehensive overview of all the civilizations and analysis of their artistic production in terms of their own cultural values (cultural relativism), and not just western art history. Today, art enjoys a wide network of study, dissemination and preservation of all the artistic legacy of mankind throughout history. The 20th century has seen the proliferation of institutions, foundations, art museums and galleries, in both the public and private sectors, dedicated to the analysis and cataloging of works of art as well as exhibitions aimed at a mainstream audience. The rise of media has been crucial in improving the study and dissemination of art. International events and exhibitions like the Whitney Biennial and biennales of Venice and São Paulo or the Documenta of Kassel have helped the development of new styles and trends. Prizes such as the Turner of the Tate Gallery, the Wolf Prize in Arts, the Pritzker Prize of architecture, the Pulitzer of photography and the Oscar of cinema also promote the best creative work on an international level. Institutions like UNESCO, with the establishment of the World Heritage Site lists, also help the conservation of the major monuments of the planet.[2] |
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