| Kommentar |
Much new literature in the field of Early Modern art history and visual culture has focused on the impact of novel materialities in this era. Many of these materials were introduced by shifts in commercial and trade routes connecting different parts of the globe, by technological breakthroughs and by the circulation of knowledge. The breadth and revolutionary impact of of new materials in late medieval and Early Modern Europe are manifold, if one considers, for example, the history of paper, a material made from cotton and linen rags that became widespread in Europe only in the fifteenth century. Some materials had been known for centuries but were given new life: porphyry, for example, was a stone quarried in Egypt that had been a prestigious medium for sculpture in antiquity, but which was revived in the sixteenth century, after new technologies of stone cutting were developed. The production of high-quality canvas in Venice to make sails popularised the use of this support in painting, leading to innovations of vast significance for the history of art. Pigments and dyes imported from the Americas were used for the first time in Europe, notably red dyes made from materials native to the Americas: dyes extracted from brazilwood or from cochineal insects. There are numerous other examples of material novelties, even sugar (which became more easily available only in the 15th century in Europe) could be an artistic medium when it was used to create sculptures for elite banquets.
We will consider objects and art works made in metals, in natural materials, and in rare, precious materials such as rock crystal, coloured marble, coconut shell, silk, feathers, ivory, gold, mother of pearl, or porcelain. Some of these materials were novel in the Early Modern era, some were made more accessible, some were imitated, produced or worked in new ways. We will focus on the material properties of objects and art works, the role of global trade networks, innovations in artistic production, and shifts in the cultural meanings of materials.
Materials open up an alternative history of the visual arts, offering insight into connected histories and artistic 'geographies'. By looking at objects and materials which traveled between Europe and the Americas, Africa and Asia, within trade networks, as part of a market for luxury goods and rarities, or as part of the exchange of diplomatic gifts, one can gain new perspectives and imagine alternatives to a traditional history of art, in which artistic culture is defined by the political boundaries of nation-states.
Recent research that will be considered include the exhibition 'Albrecht Dürer's material world', or studies about global art histories and connected histories (such as The Global Lives of Things. The Material Culture of Connections in the Early Modern World, 2016) and Tales Things Tell: Material Histories of Early Globalisms, 2023). We will also consider the gender dimensions of Early Modern material culture with reference to the book Cinderella's Glass Slipper: Towards a Cultural History of Renaissance Materialities, 2022), a study of objects in the 'feminine' sphere in an early era of European colonialism (e.g. textiles, perfumes, jewellery, sugar, and diamonds). |
| Bemerkung |
The lecture is hybrid and will involve video/audio lectures and meeting in presence once a month. To better understand materials and techniques through up-close study, some audio lectures will recommend itineraries in museums and will include discussions of objects visible in Berlin. Students can optionally follow these itineraries on their own time to study objects in the original.
There will be four meetings in presence, on Mondays, 14.15-15.45 on the following dates: 29.04., 27.05., 24.06., 15.07.2024. |
