AP Art History Baroque Terms

Balustrade

A railing supported by balusters (molded shafts); typical ornamental on a balcony, bridge, or terrace

Baroque classicissm

A style within the Baroque period that purposefully recalls art from ancient Greece and Rome

Decorative program

A work of art with multiple components, panels, or images that are all united through subject matter

Di sottu in sú

“from the bottom up”, ceiling paintings seem to be hovering above the viewers; space moves vertically

Gestural

Vigorous application of paint where the movement of the artist’s hand are visible

Impasto

Thick and very visible application of paint on the painting surface

Painterly

The look of a painting with thick vigorously applied paint

Radical naturalism

Everyday characteristics; figures are not ennobled; they are gritty, dirty, realistic

Rosette

Rose-shaped decoration

Tenebrism

A dramatic dark and light contrast in a painting; created by Caravaggio

Trompe l’oeil

Literally in French, “trick of the eye”; artwork that is painted illuisonistically to trick the viewer into thinking it is real

Biombo

Latin American colonial folding screen

Enconchado

Placing tiny fragments of mother-of-pearl or other shell onto a wooden support or canvas, and then covering with thin glazes of paint

Lacquer

Clear, thick, and highly glossy wood finish that dries clear; popular in Japanese decorative arts; copied in the Latin American enconchado technique

Camera Obscura

Latin, “dark room;” a lens projects an image on a wall of a box; used by artists as an aid in drawing from nature

Etching

A metal plate is covered with a waxy coat; the artist scratches into the wax the design; the plate is dipped into acid; wax is cleaned off the plate; ink is applied into the lines, paper is laid down, and pressure is applied to transfer the ink to the paper

French garden

A 17th c. style of gardening that promoted a controlled and constructed look; not constructed to look natural but to show how man can manipulate nature to match his will

Grad Manner

Art that is painted with grandiose subjects, such as battles, royalty, heroic actions, or religious or classical themes

Memento mori

Artistic or symbolic reminders or mortality

Vanitas

A type of symbolism especially associated with Dutch and Flemish still lifes in the Baroque period; used to indicate vanity, futility, and human excess

Classicists

Artists who believed in subdued painting, with a controlled use of line

Hierarchy of Genre

Organized by the Académie; 1) history painting; 2) portraiture; 3) genre; 4) landscape; 5) animal scenes; 6) still lifes

Naturalists

Artists who believed in intense imagery, with a dramatic use of color

Poussinstes vs. Rubenistes

Debate regarding line vs. color; Poussinistes argue for a linear rationalism whereas Rubenistes values evocative and dramatic colors