TAD2133*

Sicily and its visual culture B

8 points - 130 hours of lectures, tutorials, and site visits on locations in Europe and 78 hours of independent study - Third semester - Prerequisites: TAD1101 and TAD1102, or permission of the subject coordinator - Corequisites: none - Prohibited combinations: TAD2123 - Elective - May be taken as an elective subject by students of any faculty except art and design - TAD2123 is a 6 credit points version of this subject - Note: Incurs substantial travel and accommodation costs which are to be paid by the student to the tour provider.

Objectives On the successful completion of this course students will be able to identify in detail pivotal examples of art and design which have influenced European visual culture; identify and describe major Sicilian locations in which Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Norman, Schwarbian and baroque development have taken place; critically comment on works in several major collections of art, a range of important archaeological rites and a variety of architectural forms from different periods; participate in critical evaluation of the styles, concepts, cultural contents and values of selected examples of art and design; refer to documentation in a research journal which catalogues their critical and analytic responses to what they have seen; recognise and understand how art, architecture, space and even cities work as documents of events; perceive and experience the deeper level of European art rather than to study it second hand; and identify ways in which Sicily contributed to the development of European culture.

Synopsis This course traces the development of Sicilian culture from the first colonies of Greece to its absorption into the kingdom of Italy in the 1860s. The program explores the archaeological sites surrounding early Greek settlement and the relationship between these and the Greek mainland. It looks at the legacy of Roman and Byzantine occupation, the impact of Arab culture and the developments of the Normans, Schwarbians, Angevins, Spanish and Bourbon rulers. Historic developments are traced through the legacy of the vast visual cultures which have survived them. Some of the grandest examples of European art and architecture testify to the splendour and power of the cultures that controlled the island. The study continues on the mainland of Italy visiting parallel and related developments from the 6th century BC to the 19th century. The course studies the Greeks, Romans, Normans and the baroque as major themes with reference to the full spectrum of influences that have shaped the visual culture of Sicily and Southern Italy. Places visited includes Palermo, Cefalu, Monreale, Agrigento, Silinunte, Enna, Piazza Armerina, Syracuse, Taormina, Messina, Naples, Herculaneum, Pompeii, Tivoli and Rome.

Assessment One essay, 3000 words: 50% - Research book, 3000 words: 50%

Recommended texts

Ahmed A A history of Islamic Sicily Edinburgh University Press, 1975
Blunt A Southern baroque revisited Any edition
Boardman J The Greeks overseas 1980
Demus O The Mosaics of Norman Sicily 1949
Finley M, Mack Smith D and Duggan C A history of Sicily Chatto and Windus,1986

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