Art History (exam 2)

ambulatory

a place for walking, especially an aisle around a sacred part of a religious space.

atmospheric perspective

in two-dimensional artworks, a means of representing distance based on the way atmosphere affects the human eye, where details are lost, outlines are blurred, colors become paler, and color contrasts less pronounced.

Baroque

style of art and decoration in western Europe c. 1600–1750, characterized by a sense of drama and splendor achieved through formal exuberance, material opulence, and spatial projection in order to shape the viewer's experience.

bilateral symmetry

a symmetrical arrangement along a central axis so that the object or plan is divided into two matching halves.

Book of Revelation

the final book of the Christian New Testament

burin

a specialized cutting tool for incising grooves into metal

carpet page

a decorative page resembling a textile; often used to introduce a gospel in early medieval manuscripts.

chiaroscuro

in two-dimensional artworks, the use of light and dark contrasts to create the impression of volume when modeling objects and figures.

continuous narrative

multiple episodes combined within a single pictorial frame or successively over the span of a wide background.

cruet

a small, flat-bottomed container with a narrow neck and a spout, stopper, or lid, used to hold and pour condiments or religious liquids

engraving

a printmaking technique where the artist gouges or scratches the image into the surface of the printing plate; the engraved lines are filled with ink, which is transferred to the paper during the printing process.

four humors

Blood, yellow bile, black bile, phlegm

genre scene

an art-historical category for paintings that show scenes of everyday life.

goldleaf

an extremely thin sheet of gold—typically around 0.1 micrometers (or 4 millionths of an inch) thick—hammered or rolled from pure gold or gold alloys

historiated initial

an enlarged, decorated letter at the beginning of a paragraph, chapter, or section in a medieval manuscript or early printed book that contains an identifiable scene, narrative, or specific figure

horizon line

a horizontal reference line at the exact height of the viewer's eyes where the earth and sky appear to meet.

humanist/humanism

an ideology based on the celebration of human achievements and civic virtue.

illuminated manuscript

an illustrated, handwritten book, with such decorative elements as ornate initials; chapter headings; text borders; and framed images that supplement the text.

illusionism

making objects and space in two dimensions appear real; achieved using such techniques as foreshortening, shading, and perspective.

inscription

writing added to an artwork, either by the artist or by admirers and later collectors.

Interlacing

combining, weaving, or alternating different parts or elements together.

linear perspective

a system of representing three-dimensional space and objects on a two dimensional surface by means of geometry and one or more vanishing points.

Mannerism, maniera

particular stylistic characteristics—intellectual sophistication and artificial elegance—found in sixteenth-century European art.

marginalia

ny notes, comments, glosses, doodles, illustrations, or markings written or drawn in the margins of a book, manuscript,

melancholia

a state of deep, persistent sadness, despondency, or a condition of clinical depression.

memento mori

an artistic reminder of the passing of time and eventual death.

millefiori

plants and flowers; literally translates as “a thousand flowers.”

Nuremberg

a historic city in Bavaria, Germany

orthogonals

when creating perspective in two dimensions, the diagonal parallel lines (visible or invisible) that recede from an object in the foreground or midground to a vanishing point on the horizon line.

parchment

a writing surface prepared from the skin of certain animals that has been treated, stretched, and polished.

patronage

a person or institution that commissions artwork or funds an enterprise.

pilgrimage

a journey to a holy place or sacred site undertaken for religious or spiritual reasons.

predella

the lowest part, base, or step of an altarpiece, often featuring a long, narrow horizontal strip of small paintings or sculptures

relic

the bodily remains of saints or items believed to have come into physical contact with the divine.

reliquary

a container for relics (items associated with a deceased sacred individual), often elaborately decorated.

Renaissance

a period of Classically inspired cultural and artistic change in Europe from approximately the fourteenth to the mid-sixteenth centuries.

roemer

a traditional German wineglass with a globular top, a cylindrical stem decorated with applied glass knobs (prunts), and a wide conical foot, traditionally made of green forest glass.

rubrication

adding text, titles, headings, or decorative elements in red ink (or other distinct colors) to a manuscript

Saint Jerome

4th-century Latin Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian. He is most famous for translating the Bible into Latin, a version known as the Vulgate

Sfumato

an Italian term meaning “toned-down smokiness” that refers to an atmospheric haziness in painting.

Sistine Chapel

the official papal chapel in the Apostolic Palace of Vatican City

Sutton Hoo

an early medieval archaeological site near Woodbridge in Suffolk, England, famous for its 7th-century Anglo-Saxon ship burials and rich treasure

tazza

a shallow, wide-rimmed saucer or bowl that is mounted on a raised stem, foot, or pedestal

tempera

a fast-drying paint made from a mixture of powdered pigment and a binding agent, typically egg yolk.

tenebrism

a style of painting using very pronounced chiaroscuro, where there are strong contrasts of light and dark, and where darkness becomes a dominant feature of the image.

triptych

a three-part work of art, often three panels attached together.

trompe l’oeil

from the French meaning to “deceive the eye”; artworks, usually on a two-dimensional surface, that create the illusion of real objects and of three-dimensional space.

tympanum

a semicircle shaped space above a entrance/door/window; often filled with relief sculpture.

typology

the study, analysis, or systematic classification of items, people, or concepts into distinct types based on shared characteristics.

vanishing point

when depicting perspective in two dimensions, the point on the horizon at which parallel lines seem to converge and disappear.

Vasari

was an Italian painter, architect, and art historian best known as the author of The Lives of the Most Excellent Italian Architects, Painters, and Sculptors

woodcut

a relief printing process where the image is carved into a block of wood; the raised areas are inked.