Court Chapel in the Würzburg Residence, Germany
From the bold and the beautiful art of the 17th century to the exuberant Rococo architecture of the 18th, nothing tells the creative story of this period more eloquently than the profusion of great masters and masterpieces it produced. From Italy to France, Spain to England and the far north, art in the Age of Absolutism was rich, dynamic, and complex, ranging from elegant works of extraordinary classical beauty to highly dramatic, emotive and spiritual visions, and to those of quiet restraint.
Art historian Rocky Ruggiero places the Baroque and Rococo movements within a historical and cultural context; emphasizes artistic styles and the expansion of subject matter; and focuses on major masters and pivotal masterpieces.
MAY 6 A Bold Classicism: Rome and the Italian Foundations of the Baroque
Renaissance versus Baroque; late 16th-century eclecticism and 17th-century developments; creating a bold new classicism; the importance of Rome; the completion of St. Peter’s; Bernini, Caravaggio, and Carracci.
MAY 13 A Sublime Beauty: Royal and Imperial Grandeur
The triumph of academic classicism; the French- and German-speaking worlds, England, and Sweden; the Holy Roman Empire; the splendor of Vienna and Prague; the sublime and the beautiful; Versailles and Schonbrunn Palace; Poussin and Lorrain; French painting and sculpture, pastoral and classical landscapes.
MAY 20 A Golden Age: The Genius of Flanders and the Dutch Republic
Netherlandish traditions and Flemish masters; the dramatic synergy and emotive art of Rubens; van Dyck and portraiture; Dutch masters: Rembrandt, Vermeer, Hals, Steen, Leyster, Ruisdael, Hobbema, Heda.
MAY 27 Elegance and Exuberance: From Baroque Sobriety to Rococo Sensuality
El Greco, Velasquez, Ribera, and Murillo; Gainsborough, Romney, and Hogarth; the English country house; Canaletto; Chardin, Fragonard, and Boucher.
4 sessions
World Art History Certificate core course: Earn 1 credit*
Patron Information
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*Enrolled participants in the World Art History Certificate Program receive 1 core course credit. Not yet enrolled? Learn about the program, its benefits, and how to register here.
