ARTHISTORY FINAL 101

Ekphrasis*

Greek for "description," a detailed, sometimes dramatic verbal description of a work of art.

Mirror (Arnolfini)

Convex mirror showing witnesses and Passion of Christ scenes, symbolizing truth and moral trustworthiness.

Single lit candle

Symbol of divine witness and good faith.

Canopy bed

Indicator of wealth, status, and fertility in bourgeois interiors.

Pregnancy illusion

Visual metaphor for fertility, productivity, and profit.

Rogier van der Weyden, Descent from the Cross (1435)

Combines deposition and elevation to link Christ's body to the Eucharist.

Deposition

Lowering Christ's body from the cross.

Elevation

Lifting Christ's body, referencing the priest elevating the Host during Mass.

Virgin's swoon

Emphasizes compassion by visually mirroring Christ's bodily pose.

Crossbow form

Composition mimics the curve of a crossbow, referencing prophecy and tension.

Joachim Patinir, Charon Crossing the Styx (1515-25)

Landscape painting mixing Christian and classical myth about moral choice.

Charon

Mythological ferryman transporting souls to the afterlife.

Two paths

Allegory for virtue vs. damnation (easy vs. hard path).

Lapis lazuli

Expensive blue pigment symbolizing preciousness and divinity.

Hieronymus Bosch, Garden of Earthly Delights (1490-1510)

Triptych showing creation, sin, and punishment.

Grisaille

Gray-scale painting used on the exterior of altarpieces.

Problem picture

Artwork designed to provoke moral and intellectual interpretation.

Center panel (Bosch)

Humanity ruled by bodily pleasure rather than reason.

Hell panel (Bosch)

Instruments of pleasure transformed into torture devices.

Renaissance

Cultural revival of classical antiquity and poetry.

Botticelli, Primavera

Allegorical 'painted poem' celebrating spring, love, and renewal.

Favola

Mythological fable in visual form.

Inventio

Combining multiple literary sources to create a new visual theme.

Dolce Stil Nuovo

'Sweet new style' of idealized, spiritualized love poetry.

Three Graces

Symbolize giving, receiving, and returning gifts (reciprocity).

Mercury (in Primavera)

Clears clouds and protects the harmony of the garden.

Mantegna, Parnassus

Allegory of harmony between love, art, and nature.

Contrapposto

Weight-shifted stance that creates naturalistic balance.

Pegasus

Symbol of poetic and artistic inspiration.

Titian, Feast of Venus

Bacchic celebration of sensuality and divine love.

Ekphrasis

Visual art inspired by a literary description of an artwork.

Titian, Abduction of Europa

Painted poem based on Ovid's Metamorphoses.

Colorito

Venetian focus on color, tone, and painterly brushwork.

Impasto

Thick application of paint creating texture.

Scumbling

Loose, dry brushing over thick paint.

Leonardo da Vinci, Virgin of the Rocks

Scene emphasizing divine protection and spiritual mystery using sfumato.

Sfumato

Smoky blending of tones to soften edges.

Proto-Gospel of James

Apocryphal source for scenes from Mary's early life.

Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa

Portrait embodying poetic ideals of love and inner beauty.

Raphael, School of Athens

Allegory of philosophy featuring Plato and Aristotle.

Figura serpentinata

Spiral twisting pose combining rest and motion.

Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel Ceiling

Monumental narrative of Creation, Fall, and Redemption.

Cangiantismo

Color modeling through contrasting hues instead of tonal shading.

Difficoltà

Michelangelo's pursuit of artistic difficulty and emotional intensity.

Bernini, Apollo and Daphne

Marble sculpture capturing the climactic moment of transformation.

Baroque

Art style emphasizing movement, drama, and emotional intensity.

Borromini, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane

Church with complex geometry and undulating walls.

Facade

Exterior face of a building.

Coffers (coffiers)

Sunken decorative ceiling panels.

Carlo Maderno, St. Peter's Basilica façade

Emphasizes Latin cross plan and Counter-Reformation values.

Bernini, Cornaro Chapel

Theatrical installation of St. Teresa in Ecstasy.

Annibale Carracci, Farnese Gallery

Illusionistic fresco cycle celebrating the 'Loves of the Gods'.

Quadro riportato

Painted illusion of framed canvas.

Caravaggio, Crucifixion of St. Peter

Dramatic, realistic religious scene using strong light and dark contrasts.

Chiaroscuro

Strong contrast between light and shadow.

Tenebrism

Extreme darkness with sharp light highlights.

Artemisia Gentileschi, Judith and Holofernes

Violent biblical scene emphasizing female agency.

Andrea Pozzo, Glorification of St. Ignatius

Ceiling illusion opening to heavenly space.

Olmec

Early Mesoamerican civilization known for monumental stone sculpture.

Colossal Heads

Basalt carvings representing rulers with individualized features.

Matthew Stirling

Archaeologist who identified Olmec as a precursor to later cultures.

Were-jaguar

Supernatural human-jaguar figure in Olmec belief.

La Venta Altar 4

Monument showing mythological rulership and cave symbolism.

Quatrefoil

Four-lobed cave opening symbolizing a sacred portal.

Las Limas Monument

Sculpture showing a youth holding a supernatural were-jaguar infant.

Greenstone

Precious material associated with fertility and water.

Materiality

Meaning conveyed through the substance of the artwork.

Jan van Eyck, Arnolfini Portrait (1434)

Oil painting famed for reflective detail; depicts a "vidimus" (legal contract) granting mercantile authority, not a wedding.

Vidimus

A legal act witnessed by others giving a wife power to act on her husband's behalf.

Botticelli, Primavera, 1478

Mantegna, Parnassus, 1497

Titian, Feast of Venus, 1518-19

Titian, Abduction of Europa, 1559-62

poesia

In art, a picture with the status of a lyrical poem.

Jan van Eyck, Arnolfini Portrait, 1434

Rogier Van der Weyden, Descent from the Cross, 1435

Joachim Patinir, Charon Crossing the Styx, 1515-25

Hieronymus Bosch, The Garden of Earthly Delights, 1490-1510

Leonardo da Vinci, Virgin of the Rocks, 1483-86 (Louvre)

Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa, 1503-06

Raphael, Stanza della Segnatura (Raphael Rooms), 1509-10

Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel ceiling, 1508-12

ignudi

nude corner figures on the Sistine Chapel ceiling

What does 'figura serpentinata' refer to in Renaissance art?

A contortion or twisting of the body in contrary directions.

Which artists are especially known for using figura serpentinata?

Michelangelo and the Mannerists.

Gianlorenzo Bernini, Apollo and Daphne, 1622-25

Francesco Borromini, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, Rome, 1638-41; 1665-76

Carlo Maderno, St. Peter's Basilica, Rome, 1608-12 (façade) and 1612-21 (bell tower bases)

Gianlorenzo Bernini, Cornaro Chapel, Rome, 1647-52

Saint Teresa of Ávila

nave

the central part of a church building, intended to accommodate most of the congregation

Latin cross

a cross in which the vertical member is longer than the horizontal member it intersects

façade

a deceptive outward appearance; a misrepresentation

Counter Reformation

Catholic Church's attempt to stop the protestant movement and to strengthen the Catholic Church

bel composto

The concept of unifying the arts of sculpture, painting, and architecture in a single interior.

Annibale Carracci, Farnese Gallery, 1597-1601

Caravaggio, Crucifixion of St. Peter, Cerasi Chapel, c. 1600-01

Artemisia Gentileschi, Judith and Holofernes, 1612-13

Andrea Pozzo, The Glorification of St. Ignatius, Ignazio, Rome, 1691-94

Council of Trent

A meeting of Roman Catholic leaders, called by Pope Paul III to rule on doctrines criticized by the Protestant reformers.