Course: Interpretation of works of art in a historical context

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Course title Interpretation of works of art in a historical context
Course code KHI/PBS23
Organizational form of instruction Lecture + Seminary
Level of course Bachelor
Year of study 1
Semester Summer
Number of ECTS credits 3
Language of instruction Czech
Status of course Compulsory
Form of instruction Face-to-face
Work placements This is not an internship
Recommended optional programme components None
Lecturer(s)
  • Sekyrka Tomáš, Mgr. Ph.D.
Course content
Thematic blocks: 1. Images and their functions in Christianity, Judaism and Islam. Evolution of the understanding of the function of the religious image in the European environment. 2. Images of saints and national patrons in Bohemia and Europe from the Middle Ages to the modern era. 3. National myths and legends in Czech art from the Middle Ages to the modern era. 4. Czech Baroque Gothic and political ideas of the Czech Baroque - ideological assumptions and social context. 5. National myths and legends in the art of European nations of the 19th century. 6. Work motifs and the history of everyday life in European art from the Middle Ages to the end of the 19th century. 7. Social conditions of the emergence and development of portraiture from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. 8. Social conditions of the emergence and development of landscape, still life and genre painting. 9. The image of man and the world in the graphic production of the Renaissance, Baroque and 19th century. 10. Historical painting in Bohemia and Europe in the 19th century. 11. Organisation of artistic creation, the position of the artist in society and the relationship between artists and commissioners from the Middle Ages to modern society. 12. Emergence and development of art exhibitions in European art as a new platform for communication between artists and mass audiences. 13. Social conditions of the emergence and development of modern art. 14. Art in totalitarian political systems of the 20th century.

Learning activities and teaching methods
unspecified, unspecified, unspecified
Learning outcomes
The aim of this course is to acquaint students with the use (and abuse) of the visual arts and visual culture in general in the life of society from the Middle Ages to the middle of the 20th century. The role of works of art in promoting the various interests of individuals as well as broader groups and layers of society, national groups or - in the modern period - political parties or totalitarian state systems is examined. The relationship between the artists and specific commissioners, patrons of the arts and the wider public is also addressed.
Course graduates gain knowledge of the environment of analysis and interpretation of works of art. They acquire a basic idea of the changes in the way we view works of art in the period from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Overall, they deepen their understanding of visual culture.
Prerequisites
none

Assessment methods and criteria
unspecified
Elaboration of a seminar paper, meeting credit conditions.
Recommended literature


Study plans that include the course
Faculty Study plan (Version) Category of Branch/Specialization Recommended year of study Recommended semester