AH 243: Medieval Art 2
Professor Donald L. Ehresmann

Requirements for the Course

in-class essay, February 11th. 25 points
mid-term examination, March 4th. 25 points
in-class essay, March 25th. 25 points
final examination, May 9th. 25 points

The two in-class essays will be written on the enameled triptych from Stavelot, circa 1154 in the Pierpont-Morgan Library in New York. On February 11th you will write on the iconography; on March 25th you will write on the style. You will have one hour in each case and will be expected to write the equivalent of 3-4 typed pages. Readings for the essays are assembled in the reserve section of the library.

The mid-term and final examinations will test you ability to identify and comment on a selection of works discussed in the lectures.

Required Reading

Parts Four and Five of Medieval Art. Painting, Sculpture, Architecture 4th-14th Century. by James Snyder. You should have completed Part Four by the mid-term examination and Part Five by the time of the final examination. There will be questions drawn from the reading on both examinations.

Selected Bibliography of Works in English

General Histories of Medieval Art

William Lethaby, Medieval Art, from the Peace of the Church to the Eve of the Renaissance, 312-1350. Rev. ed. by David T. Rice. New York, Philosophical Library, 1950. Reprint: N.Y., Greenwood, 1969.

First published in 1904. Lethaby was a supporter of the Arts and Crafts Movement in Britain and subscribed to Ruskin's appreciation of the medieval artist's dedication to the craft aspect of their work, to their preference for anonymity, and belief in the spiritual purpose of their art.

Henri Focillon. The Art of The West in the Middle Ages. 3rd. ed. Oxford, Phaidon, 1980. 3v.

First published in 1934 as Art d'Occident, le moyen age, roman et gothique. Emphasis is on architecture and sculpture, very little on painting and the applied arts. Not important as a history but rather as a highly influential interpretation of medieval art which accords great importance to the influence of techniques on the evolution of forms.

Charles Morey. Medieval Art. New York, Norton, 1942.

Once a standard history, it is now quite out of date. Nevertheless it is still useful to the beginning student for its effective organization and succinct language. Morey was the founder of the American "school" of medieval art history, which, among other accomplishments, established the famous Princeton Index of Christian art, a gigantic file of illustrations of medieval art arranged by iconographic subject.

George Zarnecki. Art of the Medieval World: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, the Sacred Arts. New York, Abrams, 1975.

Broad survey, well illustrated, and with emphasis on the history of style. Designed as a college text. Superseded by the three following texts:

Marilyn Stokstad. Medieval Art. New York, Harper & Row, 1972.
Ralph Calkins, Monuments of Medieval Art. New York, Dutton, 1979.
James Synder, Medieval Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture. 4th-14th Century. New York, Abrams, 1989.

Romanesque Art

Kenneth J. Conant. Carolingian and Romanesque Architecture: 800-1200. Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1959.

Once standard history of Romanesque architecture by expert on Cluny and the Burgundian school. More up-to-date is:

Hans Erich Kubach. Romanesque Architecture. New York, Abrams, 1975.

Millard Fillmore Hearn. Romanesque Sculpture. Ithaca, Cornell Univ. Pr., 1981.

Conservative history, but the best general survey in English.

Peter Lasko. Ars Sacra: 800-1200. 2nd ed. New Haven, Yale, 1994.

Good survey of the applied and decorative arts, i.e the art of church treasuries, in the early middle ages and the Romanesque.

Gothic Art

Henderson, George. Gothic: Style and Civilization. Harmondsworth, Penguin, 1967: Places the art of the Gothic in the general culture of the time.
Willibald Sauerländer. Gothic Sculpture in France: 1140-1270. London, Thames and Hudson, 1972.: Collection of plates is indispensable. Introduction by the leading authority. Notes to the plates are filled with information.
Jean Bony. French Gothic architecture of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries. Berkeley, Univ. of California Pr., 1987.: Comprehensive and deeply insightful history of French Gothic architectural style.
Otto von Simson. The Gothic Cathedral: Origins of Gothic Architecture and the Medieval Concept of Order. New York, Pantheon Books, 1956.: Classic study of the "meaning" of early Gothic architecture.
Louis Grodecki and C. Brisac. Gothic Stained Glass: 1200-1300. Ithaca, Cornell Univ. Pr., 1985.: Survey of French high Gothic stained glass by leading French experts.

Site maintained by Amasis. Please send corrections or comments to tmanni2@uic.edu