VSA3530

Baroque visual culture: from Caravaggio to Neo-Baroque

(ART)

John Gregory

6 points + 2 hours per week + First semester + Clayton + Prerequisite: A second-year sequence in Visual Culture + Prohibition: VSA2530

Synopsis: This unit will address selected aspects of the Baroque aesthetic in both 17th/18th Century and contemporary visual practice and theory. Emphasis will be given to key concepts including theatricality and excess, spectacle, sensation, and the intensification of emotional expression and response, and to central topics, especially religion, sexulaity and death. Following substantial attention to major steps in the historical development from Caravaggio and Bernini to Rembrandt and Tiepolo, the focus will shift to the recent resurgence of "Neo-Baroque" in both traditional and new visual media, together with relevant theoretical responses.

Assessment: One seminar paper(1500 words): 25% + One research paper (1000 words): 25% + One essay (2500 words): 50% + Third-year students will be expected to read more widely and work at a higher level than second-year students.