Why We Study Art: Crash Course Art History #1

Summary

This script from 'Crash Course Art History' explores the multifaceted nature of art as a storyteller, reflecting diverse perspectives and historical interpretations. It challenges the traditional view of art history, emphasizing the subjectivity and evolution of artistic ideas. The video discusses the influence of the Medici family on the Renaissance, the role of art criticism, and the importance of considering race, class, and gender in art analysis. It also highlights the significance of surviving materials in shaping our understanding of history and art.

Takeaways

• 🎨 Art is multifaceted and tells various stories, reflecting different perspectives and historical events.
• 🏛 The biombo, a folding screen from Mexico, exemplifies how art can depict historical narratives, with varying accounts from different cultures.
• 📚 Historical accuracy in art is subjective and depends on the source material and the storyteller's perspective.
• 👩‍🏫 Sarah Urist Green introduces the concept of art history as a critical study of objects and images to understand their origins and the people behind them.
• 🌐 Art is a broad term that encompasses a wide range of creative expressions, from ancient to modern, and varies across cultures.
• 🖼 The Sistine Chapel ceiling by Michelangelo is a renowned example of art that has been shaped by historical narratives and the influence of powerful patrons like the Medici family.
• 🤝 The Medici family's patronage of artists significantly impacted the art scene and the development of what is considered significant in art history.
• 📖 Giorgio Vasari's 'Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects' was influential in shaping the Western European bias in art history and the establishment of the art historical canon.
• 🏛️ The concept of the 'Old Masters' emerged from Vasari's work, creating a standard for artistic greatness that later artists had to meet.
• 🔍 Modern art history has evolved to include critical lenses of race, class, and gender, offering a more inclusive and diverse understanding of art.
• 🌳 The survival of art and its historical context is crucial for understanding its full story, as seen with 'The Raft of the Medusa' and the contrast with the less-documented West African drum.
• 🔄 The series promises to explore art history's ability to reveal connections across time and culture and to question the creation and retelling of history.

Q & A

What is a biombo and how is it related to the script's discussion of art and history?

A biombo is a folding screen made in Mexico and inspired by Japanese decorative designs. It is used in the script to illustrate how art can tell different stories about historical events, depending on the perspective of the artist or the culture from which it originates.

How does the script suggest that historical events are not straightforward?

The script suggests that historical events are not straightforward by presenting two different accounts of the death of the Aztec emperor Moctezuma the Second, one from the Spanish perspective and one from the Indigenous people of Mexico, showing that history can be interpreted differently based on who is telling the story.

What is the role of a curator and art educator according to Sarah Urist Green?

As a curator and art educator, Sarah Urist Green's role is to help people understand that art history is about thinking critically by observing closely, studying objects and images to understand the people, places, and time periods they come from, and reflecting on how art reflects different perspectives and stories.

What does the script imply about the nature of art?

The script implies that art is subjective and can include a wide range of objects and expressions, from ancient cave paintings to modern street art. It also suggests that ideas about what constitutes art have changed and continue to change over time, and not all cultures may even have a word for 'art' in their language.

Why is the Sistine Chapel ceiling a well-known example in art history?

The Sistine Chapel ceiling is a well-known example in art history because it was painted by the influential artist Michelangelo, who was supported by the wealthy Medici family. Additionally, the story of its creation and the artist's fame were popularized by Giorgio Vasari in his book 'Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects,' which became a foundational text in art history.

What is the significance of Giorgio Vasari's book in shaping the Western European art narrative?

Giorgio Vasari's book, 'Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects,' is significant because it celebrated artists like Michelangelo and gave the Medicis credit for supporting a historic 'rebirth' of art. It became the basis of the canon of art history, influencing which artworks were considered important and how art history was written with a significant bias toward Western European art.

What does the script mean by the 'canon of art history'?

The 'canon of art history' refers to a collection or timeline of artists and artworks that are considered to be truly great and have furthered art's progress. These are the works and artists that are repeatedly discussed and studied in the field of art history.

How does the script discuss the evolution of art history?

The script discusses the evolution of art history by mentioning how, over time, the canon of great artists grew to include new masterpieces and makers while forgetting about others. It also touches on how art began to be sorted by style and how new ways of judging, explaining, and interpreting art emerged, including considerations of race, class, and gender by the mid-twentieth century.

What is the importance of considering multiple perspectives in studying art and history?

Considering multiple perspectives in studying art and history is important because it allows for a more comprehensive understanding of the subject matter. It helps to reveal the different stories and ideas that connect people across the world and acknowledges that history is a constructed account that can vary based on who is telling it.

How does the script use the example of Kara Walker's 'Fons Americanus' to illustrate a point about art and history?

The script uses Kara Walker's 'Fons Americanus' to illustrate how art can confront and challenge dominant historical narratives. The artwork provides an alternative view to the triumphant story told by the Victoria Memorial, highlighting the human toll of colonial violence and enslavement that is often left unspoken.

What does the script suggest about the relationship between the survival of materials and our understanding of history?

The script suggests that the survival of materials plays a significant role in shaping our understanding of history. It contrasts the extensive knowledge we have about 'The Raft of the Medusa' due to the survival of many related documents and materials with the limited information available about the West African drum in the British Museum, which has been pieced together from scraps.

Outlines

00:00

🎨 Art as a Narrative of History

The first paragraph introduces the concept of art as a storyteller, highlighting a specific example: a biombo from Mexico, influenced by Japanese designs, which dates back to the late seventeenth century. This piece of art is used to illustrate the complexities of historical narratives, as it depicts the conquest of Tenochtitlan and the death of Aztec emperor Moctezuma II from varying perspectives. The paragraph emphasizes the subjectivity of art and history, suggesting that they are both constructed through the lens of the observer. Sarah Urist Green introduces herself as a curator and art educator, setting the stage for a series on art history that challenges traditional perceptions and encourages critical thinking about the stories art tells.

05:03

📚 The Evolution of Art History and the Canon

The second paragraph delves into the history of art historical writings, noting the influential work of Giorgio Vasari, whose 'Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects' established a Western European bias in the art historical canon. The paragraph discusses the concept of the canon as a selective timeline of artists and artworks considered significant. It also touches on the evolution of art history, including the categorization of artworks by style and the emergence of art criticism. The narrative acknowledges the importance of considering race, class, and gender in the analysis of art. The paragraph concludes with a call to explore art history from diverse perspectives, using Kara Walker's 'Fons Americanus' as an example of art that challenges traditional narratives.

10:05

🌐 The Interconnectedness of Art and Culture

The third paragraph explores the idea that art reflects and creates meaning, emphasizing the importance of context in understanding art. It discusses how the survival of art and artifacts shapes our historical understanding, using 'The Raft of the Medusa' by Théodore Géricault as an example of a well-documented artwork that tells a powerful story about leadership and tragedy. In contrast, the paragraph also highlights the mystery surrounding an American Indian drum in the British Museum, which has a limited known history. The narrative concludes by setting the stage for a series that will uncover the interconnectedness of art, culture, and history, promising to raise questions about the creation and transmission of historical narratives.

Keywords

💡Art

Art is a diverse range of human activities involving the creation of visual, auditory, or performance-based cultural artifacts that express the creator's imagination, conceptual ideas, or technical skill. In the video, art is presented as a medium that conveys stories and perspectives from different cultures and time periods, exemplified by the biombo and its depiction of a historical event with varying narratives.

💡Biombo

A biombo is a type of folding screen originating from Japan and later adopted in other cultures, such as Mexico. In the script, the biombo serves as a tangible example of art reflecting historical narratives, specifically the story of the conquest of Tenochtitlan and the differing accounts of Moctezuma II's death.

💡Perspective

Perspective refers to a particular attitude, way of regarding, or analyzing something. The video emphasizes the importance of understanding different perspectives in art and history, as they shape the interpretation of events and cultural expressions, such as the contrasting stories of the Spanish conquest told by the Spanish and the Indigenous people of Mexico.

💡Art History

Art history is the study of the development and evolution of visual arts over time, encompassing painting, sculpture, and other forms of artistic expression. The video uses art history to explore how art is not just discovered but created, and how it reflects and shapes our understanding of history and culture.

💡Curator

A curator is a professional who manages a collection of artworks or artifacts, often for a museum or gallery. Sarah Urist Green, the narrator, is a curator and art educator, and she introduces the concept of art history as a critical and analytical discipline, not just a collection of facts.

💡Subjectivity

Subjectivity pertains to the quality of being based on or influenced by personal feelings, tastes, or opinions. The script mentions that art is subjective, meaning that what one person finds beautiful, another might find disturbing, highlighting the personal nature of interpreting art.

💡Canon

In art history, the canon refers to a collection of artists and artworks that are considered to have significantly contributed to the field and are often the focus of study. The video discusses the concept of the canon as a selective and sometimes arbitrary collection of works that have been historically privileged.

💡Old Masters

Old Masters is a term used to describe artists of the past who achieved a legendary status and whose works are often considered the standard of excellence in art. The script mentions them in the context of the canon and the influence of Vasari's writings in shaping the perception of art history.

💡Context

Context refers to the circumstances or setting in which something occurs, and it influences how things are perceived or understood. The video script uses the drum in the British Museum as an example to illustrate how context can change our understanding of an artifact and its history.

💡Interpretation

Interpretation is the process of understanding and explaining the meaning of something, such as an artwork. The script discusses how art historians interpret art from multiple angles, including race, class, and gender, to gain a deeper understanding of the cultures and histories they represent.

💡Historical Narrative

A historical narrative is a story or account of past events that provides a framework for understanding history. The video emphasizes that historical narratives are not always straightforward and can vary depending on the source, as illustrated by the different stories of the Spanish conquest of Mexico.

💡Cultural Artifacts

Cultural artifacts are objects made by humans that have cultural significance, reflecting the social practices, beliefs, and values of a particular society. The drum from the Akan culture and the biombo are examples of cultural artifacts in the script, which provide insights into the history and culture of their origin.

Highlights

Art tells multiple stories, as illustrated by the biombo, a folding screen with a history rooted in both Mexican and Japanese cultures.

The biombo reflects historical events, such as the conquest of Tenochtitlan and the death of Aztec emperor Moctezuma the Second, from different perspectives.

Art history is not just about memorizing names and dates but involves critical thinking and close observation of objects and images.

Art reflects different perspectives and stories, revealing the ideas that connect people across the world.

The concept of 'art' is subjective and varies across cultures, with some not even having a specific word for 'art'.

The Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted by Michelangelo, is a well-known example of art that has become iconic in art history.

The Medici family's influence on art and their support of artists like Michelangelo shaped the narrative of art history.

Giorgio Vasari's 'Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects' was a significant work that celebrated artists and the concept of the Renaissance.

The canon of art history is a collection of artists and artworks considered great, but its formation is somewhat arbitrary and biased towards Western European art.

Art history has evolved to include new masterpieces and makers while sometimes forgetting others, reflecting changes in societal values and interests.

Artworks began to be sorted by style in the 18th century, leading to new ways of judging, explaining, and interpreting art.

By the mid-20th century, factors like race, class, and gender were recognized as important lenses for examining art.

Studying art helps us understand history as a constructed account and the limitations of our own perspectives.

Kara Walker's 'Fons Americanus' confronts historical narratives, showing the importance of considering what is included and excluded in art.

The survival of materials affects what we remember and understand about history, as seen with 'The Raft of the Medusa' by Théodore Géricault.

The drum in the British Museum exemplifies how much history can be shaped by the survival of artifacts and the uncovering of lost stories.

Throughout the series, the exploration of art history will reveal connections across time, space, and culture, and how context can change our understanding of art.

Transcripts

Every piece of art tells a story.

Usually, more than one.

I’ll show you.

This is a biombo, a folding screen made in Mexico  and inspired by Japanese decorative designs.

It existed before we had pianos  or bicycles or even sandwiches.

This one would have decorated a wealthy Spaniard’s  home in late seventeenth-century Mexico.

And while it might look like mere decoration,  if you lean in, it'll tell you a story.

A story of a battle, where Spain conquered  Tenochtitlan, or modern day Mexico City,  

and the Aztec emperor Moctezuma the Second  was killed by one of his own subjects.

But records from the Indigenous people of  Mexico tell a different story of the same event.

In their account, the Spanish killed the  Aztec emperor, as part of their conquest.

Historical events like this — and history  itself — aren’t exactly straightforward.

The story you get varies, depending  on which documents, or artworks,  

you look at, and who’s doing the telling.

By studying this centuries-old screen we  learn about more than just the object itself.

We learn about history — and how history,  

like art, is not something we  discover, but something we create.

Hi!

I'm Sarah Urist Green.

I’m a curator and art educator, and  this is Crash Course Art History.

You might think that art history  is a stuffy subject that’s only  

useful for clinching a trivia night victory.

Or you might think it’s just  memorizing a bunch of names and dates,  

with the occasional jump-scare  from a creepy, long-limbed baby.

But art history is really about thinking  critically by observing closely.

It’s the study of objects and  images to understand the people,  

places and time periods they come from.

Art reflects different perspectives and stories  

but also reveals the ideas that  connect people across the world.

And that three-letter word —  “art” — holds some big ideas.

It can include ancient cave paintings and pride  flags, state-funded monuments and street art,  

works designed for function and  works designed to ruffle feathers.

And since art is subjective, what’s  a beautiful sculpture to one person,  

might be the stuff of nightmares to another.

Plus, ideas about what art is have  changed—and continue to change—over time.

Not all cultures think of art the same way, or  even have a word for “art” in their language.

Like, the Lega people from what’s now  the Democratic Republic of the Congo  

have a category of objects called  masengo, which roughly translates  

to “heavy things” and refers to items  with great significance or “weight.”

As for you, when you hear “art history,”  you might think of something like this.

Whoops, sorry, I meant, this: The  well-known Sistine Chapel ceiling,  

painted by Michelangelo di  Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni.

No clue why we call him by his first name.

But let’s explore why that ceiling  comes to mind when you think about art,  

and why you’ve heard of the guy who painted it.

Let’s go to the drawing board!

The story of the Sistine Chapel doesn’t  actually begin with Michelangelo,  

but with a wealthy Italian  family called the Medicis.

The Medicis ruled Florence and, later,  Tuscany, from the 15th to the 18th centuries.

They also controlled the what, where,  and how of the local art scene.

They financially supported several  huge artists—including Michelangelo.

So with the Medici Brand behind him, Michelangelo  was basically one of Italy’s biggest influencers.

He even caught the eye of Pope Julius  the Second, who commissioned him to  

paint the now famous Sistine Chapel ceiling.

Now, the Medicis were also sponsors of the  painter and architect Giorgio Vasari, who  

wrote a book called “Lives of the Most Excellent  Italian Painters, Sculptors, and Architects.”

It celebrated Michelangelo  and other artists like him,  

and it gave the Medicis credit for  supporting a historic, quote, “rebirth.”

In fact, before the French term “Renaissance”  became prominent in the 19th century,  

Vasari described this artistic moment in time as  “rinascita”— Italian for “renewal” or “rebirth.”

So yeah, the book was basically  sixteenth-century sponsored content,  

and it became the bedrock of  what we know now as art history.

It shaped not only the way  art history would be written,  

but which artworks were considered important,  talked about, and eventually meme-ified.

Of course, writing about art  didn’t start with Vasari.

By the fifth and fourth centuries B.C.E.,  Plato was wrestling with art’s imitation  

of reality in his writings, and Aristotle  was exploring how art can conjure emotions.

And in the ninth century, Zhang Yanyuan  wrote “Famous Paintings of Successive  

Dynasties,” the oldest comprehensive written  history of Chinese painting known to exist.

So, there’s evidence of art historical  writings throughout the world,  

and through much of recorded history.

But Vasari’s series of biographies strongly  shaped how the story of art would be told  

from then on, with a significant  bias toward Western European art.

It was this text that became the basis of  what is called the canon of art history:  

a collection or timeline of artists and  artworks believed to be truly great,  

to have furthered art’s progress,  that get talked about again and again.

So, yeah, who's in the canon and  who's out is pretty arbitrary!

And because this is my series —  and I don't think Vasari's gonna  

mind — allow me to introduce.... my canon cannon.

With its help, I, according to my own whims,  

will launch people into my  personal canon of beloved artists.

And you better watch out, Gauguin,  I may also kick a few out, too.

Many of Vasari’s chosen artists  became known as the Old Masters,  

a kind of legendary status that later  artists needed to measure up to.

Over time, art history continued to  evolve, and the canon of greats grew  

to include new masterpieces and  makers, and forgot about others.

By the eighteenth century, artworks began  to be sorted by style, or groupings based  

on time periods, creators, or  elements of their appearance.

With that sorting came new ways of judging,  

explaining, and interpreting art,  through the field of art criticism.

And by the mid-twentieth-century, race, class,  and gender became recognized as important lenses  

through which to examine art, both in terms  of who made it and who is looking at it.

So, today, art historians analyze images  and materials from multiple angles to  

explore what they can tell us about each other,  ourselves, and the cultures that connect us.

Studying art helps us understand  history as a constructed account,  

something that’s built in its telling.

And it helps us remember that our  own perspectives are always limited.

The more we learn about how  other people see the world,  

the better we understand…pretty much everything.

Like, here’s an artwork by Kara Walker, where  one account of history confronts another.

It’s called “Fons Americanus,”—“American Fountain”  in Latin—and it’s inspired by the Victoria  

Memorial in London, a monument celebrating  the British Empire under Queen Victoria.

The Victoria Memorial tells a triumphant story  about colonial rule in Africa and the Americas.

But Walker’s monument tells another  part of the story from a different view.

A weeping boy and a noose hanging from a tree,  for example, give voice to the unspoken parts  

of the Victoria Memorial: the human toll  of colonial violence and enslavement.

As Walker’s work shows us, it’s as important to  think about what isn’t included in art as what is.

And the same goes for history.

So, yeah, let’s launch her right into the canon.

And often, what is remembered comes  down to what materials have survived.

Take this painting: “The Raft of the Medusa,”  painted by Théodore Géricault in 1819.

It’s a massive artwork that  tells an even bigger story.

In 1816, a French ship set  off for the coast of Senegal,  

captained by a pal of King Louis the 18th,  who hadn’t been at sea in twenty years.

The results were disastrous: the captain wrecked  the ship, which didn’t have enough lifeboats,  

so the crew cobbled together a raft  to carry the remaining passengers.

About 150 people were set adrift on  the makeshift vessel, and during the  

next thirteen days at sea, they fought,  killed, and even resorted to cannibalism.

When rescue finally arrived,  only fifteen survivors remained,  

with five more dying before ever seeing land.

It took Géricault over a year to paint the scene,  

which we know from documents that have survived:  sketches, drafts, and letters about his work.

He interviewed survivors of the  Medusa, drew their portraits,  

and consulted a book that two of  them wrote about what happened.

And he wrestled with how to paint it,  

arranging the scene until he was  satisfied with the story it would tell.

We even know how the work  was received by the public.

At the time, opinions on the French monarchy  ranged widely, so when Géricault depicted  

a tragedy caused by the king’s incompetent  leadership, many interpreted that as a sick burn.

The point is: We know so much  about this one painting because  

lots of material evidence about it has  survived the past two hundred years.

But that’s not the case for so many other works.

Like this drum, which sits in the British Museum.

We don’t know exactly who made it or when.

What little we know right  now is from museum records,  

which say an Irish scientist procured the  drum in Virginia in the early 18th century.

The museum labeled it an American  Indian drum made of a hollowed tree.

Then, over 150 years later,  

an anthropologist noticed it looked  a lot like drums made in West Africa.

But it took about seventy more years  before researchers figured out the  

drum was made of wood from a  West African species of tree.

It’s likely that someone from the Akan  culture, in what’s now Ghana, made the drum.

In its original context, it would have  been played as part of a whole ensemble.

But at some point, the drum probably ended  up on a ship from Africa to North America.

We have stacks of information to help  us understand “The Raft of the Medusa.”

But with the drum, we’re piecing  together a story from scraps.

Artifacts like these show  us how much what survives  

our history shapes our understanding of it.

But the flip side is also true: the  more we uncover what’s been lost,  

the more missing stories we fill in.

So, throughout this series, we’ll explore art  history to discover how art reflects different  

perspectives — but also reveals unexpected  connections across time, space, and culture.

We’ll see how art-making is also meaning making.

And how context can change  everything we thought we knew.

We’ll raise juicy questions about  how history is created and told,  

how cultures swap ideas and materials, how artists  respond to social issues, and so much more.

Next time, we’ll learn about exactly  how to carefully look at a work of  

art — and uncover ideas beyond the surface.

I’ll see you there.

Thanks for watching this episode of Crash  Course Art History, which was filmed at the  

Indianapolis Museum of Art at Newfields and was  made with the help of all these delightful people.

If you want to help keep Crash  Course free for everyone forever,  

you can join our community on Patreon.