Advice to Future AP Art Historians

Make notecards for each image of each chapter before you get to class! Take notes on your notecards as Lovell lectures in class. I would suggest writing the name of the piece, artist (if applicable), the date, location, and important facts about the piece that you will be tested on. Study guides are very helpful to do before each test and spark your memory of the important pieces, artists and periods. Keep up with the reading and study study study. It's really not that bad. PAY ATTENTION IN CLASS! I think this is one of the biggest things. You can save so much time if you just listen in class and take notes. Good luck!


...Listen to Lovell.

One more time...

Many cultures use architecture to express or reinforce power and authority. Choose two works of architecture from different cultures, identifying each work as fully as possible. At least one work must come from beyond the European tradition. Discuss how each work conveys power and authority.

In the 14th century, Korea was still powerful despite the Yuan overthrow of the Song dynasty in China that threatened Korea as well. During the Choson dynasty in Korea, the leaders built an impressive stone gateway into the city of Seoul. The massive stone entrance with Chinese style wooden structures on top was a symbol of the remaining power and authority that still rested in the hands of the rulers in Korea. The gateway is meant to intimidate and display the power that the Koreans must have if they can erect such a structure as the entrance to their capital. Like the impressive entrance into Seoul, Constantine built an arch of his own in 4th century Italy. The Arch of Constantine consists of three smaller arches, detailed narrative art, and words on the stone walls of the arch. Constantine’s structure serves as a celebration of himself and of the defeat of Maxentius at the Battle of Milvian Bridge and an entryway to the city, or the land ruled by the powerful Constantine. Stone sculptures and pieces from former rulers monuments were taken away and placed onto Constantine’s arch; Constantine had the authority to do what he wanted, even if it meant taking apart art that commemorated previous leaders.

Outside the Western Tradition Again...

Buildings can relate to their sites in different ways. Choose two buildings, discuss one building in terms of its physical relationship to its site and the other in terms of its symbolic or historical relationship to the site. Identify each building by name and period.

St. Peter’s Basilica was built in 17^th century Rome during the Counter-Reformation. The domed church was erected atop the tomb of Saint Peter and surrounded by a large piazza and colonnade to welcome the members of the Roman Catholic Church. A heavily decorated baldacchino, built by Bernini, acts as the marker to St. Peter’s tomb and also plays the part of the altar inside the church. The church is physically placed on a saint and is considered to be a holy place for those belonging to the Roman Catholic Church. While the Roman basilica was placed atop a tomb to commemorate the saint, Dome of the Rock was built in Jerusalem to celebrate Islam. Built in the 7^th century, the shrine was placed in what the Muslims believed was the holiest land and was topped with a golden dome to announce its presence. The interior consists of bright mosaics and exquisite ornamentation that is similar to the Byzantine style and that give the effect that the ceiling continues upward. Dome of the Rock is said to have been placed on a historically important spot where Muhammad rose to Heaven and returned in the same day.

Let's Talk About Art That's Outside of the European Tradition!

Representations of the natural world or motifs from nature are found in the art of all times and places. Choose and fully identify two appropriate works of art from two different cultures. One of your choices must be from beyond the European tradition. Explain why and how each work uses representations of the natural world or motifs from nature.

Chinese artist Daosheng’s Bamboo Groves in Mist and Rain consists of a landscape on a handscroll from 1308. The ink lines that make up the bamboo are blurred in the back of the scroll to show that they are in the distance and to give depth. Bamboo was a popular subject in Chinese art and the symbol of a Chinese gentleman and demonstrated the popular art of calligraphy. Bamboo is flexible and does not break in half easily; the Chinese gentlemen were expected to have the same qualities as bamboo. In the 19^th century, Hudson River artist Bierstadt painted a landscape entitled Among the Sierra Nevada Mountains, California. He paints a lake with high cliffs and waterfalls, tall pine trees, green grass and wildlife. The sun breaks through the clouds above the view and gives the piece a heavenly feel. The open, untouched land points to the idea of Manifest Destiny and all of the land that has yet to be discovered in America. Bierstadt’s painting shows the beauty of the land in the west. Both Daosheng and Bierstadt depict the natural world but for different reasons; Daosheng draws a scroll to uphold the traditional value of calligraphy by using ink and scroll paper and drawing bamboo. Bierstadt’s is a piece encouraging Americans to move west and show the viewer how beautiful the unexplored country can be by painting a mystical landscape.

Summary of an Essay on German Expressionism

In the early twentieth century, the Fauves, who believed color was the most important aspect of a panting, and the Post-Impressionists, such as Cézanne and Van Gogh, inspired German Expressionism. Kirchner and Nolde were two of the main Expressionist artists; their work was very similar to that of the Fauves with bright colors but their lines were much harsher. Der Brücke and Der Blaue Reiter were two movements in which the Brücke artists portrayed contorted figures and cities as chaotic and alienating and the Der Blaue Reiter artists created works with deep spiritual meaning and took influence from Cubism and Futurism. The most common subjects for Expressionist art were city life, nudes, war, religion and sex. Otto Dix, a painter, printmaker, and watercolorist, was known for his “caustic portraits of German society” and joined the army during the First World War. During the 1920 Dada movement, he exhibited a work called Kriegskrüppel (War Cripples) and contributed to a series against the war, No More War!

Portrait of a Lady

Rogier Van Der Weyden's Portrait of a Lady is an example of private portraiture from 15th century Italy. In the portrait, Van Der Weyden portrays the young woman with a personality, unlike some formal Italian portraiture to come. Her lowered eyes and the way her hands are on top of one another, almost in prayer, suggest that she is a private woman and perhaps very religious; her dress shows that she is of noblility.
The dark background of the portrait puts all of the attention on the young woman and contrasts with some other artists' work in which there is a setting behind the people depicted. The slim woman's upper half is elongated and light in color, perhaps having been influenced by the Gothic period.

Kleiner, Fred S.. "Gardner's Art Through the Ages." 2009. Print.

Milan Cathedral

Milan Cathedral is one of the largest in Europe, and is often compared to Notre Dame in Paris and St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The cathedral was completed within 5 centuries, the façade being finished by Napoleon Bonaparte in the 19^th century. Before Milan, the church of Santa Maria Maggiore was in its place until 1386. Because it took so long to construct, many styles influenced the cathedral—it is built in a “classic-baroque style with classical and neo gothic elements” (Duomo of Milan). The gothic cathedral took five centuries to construct and has about 135 spires and 3,400 statues, each topped with a statue of an important person in Milan’s history or from the bible. The highest spire reaches 357 feet tall and holds the symbol of Milan, Little Madonna, and no other building in Milan may be built higher than the golden statue. The massive interior, shaped like a Latin cross, contains four aisles and can hold as many as 40,000 people. The walls are covered with stained glass windows, and the interior is much more somber than the bright exterior.

"Milan Cathedral History." N.p., 2010. Web. 3 Dec 2010. .

"Milan Duomo." N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Dec 2010. .

"Duomo of Milan." N.p., 2010. Web. 3 Dec 2010. .