Kunst und Künste der Renaissance
Erwin Panofsky stellte als einer der Ersten fest, dass die Verbindung zwischen praktischer künstlerischer Tätigkeit und deren theoretischer Reflexion zu den größten Leistungen der italienischen Renaissance zählt. Sowohl in der Antike als auch im Mittelalter war die Tätigkeit des bildenden Künstlers (sic!) nicht im theoretischen System der „artes liberales“ verankert, sondern den „artes mechanicae“, also dem Handwerk zugeordnet, gemeinsam mit Webern, Tischlern und Ackerbauern. Die Bestrebung der bildenden Künstler am Beginn des 15. Jahrhunderts, einen den Dichtern gleichkommenden Status zu erlangen, ihrer Kunst den Rang einer ars liberalis zu verleihen, war nur durch eine Intellektualisierung ihrer Tätigkeit zu erreichen. Daher stand zu Beginn der Renaissance die Forderung von Künstlern und Kunsttheoretikern, allen voran Lorenzo Ghiberti und Leon Battista Alberti, nach einer wissenschaftlichen Ausbildung, d.h. nach einer Integration in das humanistische Bildungswesen. Alle Künstler sollten sich in den artes liberales (Grammatik, Rhetorik, Dialektik, Mathematik, Geometrie, Astronomie und Musik) bilden. Lorenzo Ghiberti forderte weiters eine zusätzliche Ausbildung im „theoretischen Entwerfen“. Die Entdeckung der Zentralperspektive löste zudem einen regelrechten Boom an Traktatliteratur von Künstler-Theoretikern aus, beginnend mit einer „Grammatik des Sichtbaren“ von Leon Battista Alberti bis hin zum ersten Mathematikbuch in deutscher Sprache von Albrecht Dürer. Zentrales Medium der wissenschaftlichen Erkenntnis ist dabei die Zeichnung (disegno), wobei neben der Proportionslehre, der Anatomie und dem Studium der unterschiedlichen Sach- und Figurenmodelle die objektivierbare Darstellung der Natur zu den zentralen Forschungsthemen zählt. Das Konzept des disegno hatte aber auch weitreichende Folgen für die konkrete Bildproduktion der Frühen Neuzeit an sich, indem diese, als geistige Tätigkeit definiert, als eine wissenschaftliche Tätigkeit interpretiert werden konnte. Ziel der Vorlesung ist es, die Kunstproduktion dieser Epoche von einer rein handwerklichen Tätigkeit zu einer intellektuellen Leistung nachzuzeichnen. Zudem soll ein Überblick über die wegweisenden Kunstwerke in den Jahren von ca. 1400 bis 1550 gegeben werden.
Ein weiterer Schwerpunkt der Vorlesung wird die Rekonstruktion der Rahmenbedingungen für das Entstehen von weiblichem Kunstschaffen im 16. Jahrhundert sein. Die italienische Renaissance brachte nicht nur unzählige männliche Künstler hervor, sondern schuf auch die Voraussetzungen dafür, dass sich Künstlerinnen etablieren und internationale Karrieren anstreben konnten.
Art and the Arts in the Renaissance Erwin Panofsky was one of the first to recognize that the connection between practical artistic activity and its theoretical reflection was one of the greatest achievements of the Italian Renaissance. In both ancient times and the Middle Ages, the activity of the visual artist (sic!) was not anchored in the theoretical system of the “artes liberales,” but was assigned to the “artes mechanicae,” i.e., the crafts, together with weavers, carpenters, and farmers. The aspiration of visual artists at the beginning of the 15th century to achieve a status equal to that of poets, to elevate their art to the rank of an ars liberalis, could only be achieved through an intellectualization of their activity. At the beginning of the Renaissance, artists and art theorists, led by Lorenzo Ghiberti and Leon Battista Alberti, therefore demanded a scientific education, i.e., integration into the humanistic education system. All artists were to be educated in the artes liberales (grammar, rhetoric, dialectics, mathematics, geometry, astronomy, and music). Lorenzo Ghiberti also called for additional training in “theoretical design.” The discovery of central perspective also triggered a veritable boom in treatise literature by artist-theorists, beginning with Leon Battista Alberti's “Grammar of the Visible” and culminating in Albrecht Dürer's first mathematics book in German. The central medium of scientific knowledge was drawing (disegno), whereby the objective representation of nature was one of the central research topics alongside the study of proportions, anatomy, and various models of objects and figures. However, the concept of disegno also had far-reaching consequences for the concrete production of images in the early modern period itself, in that it could be defined as an intellectual activity and thus interpreted as a scientific activity. The aim of the lecture is to trace the development of art production in this era from a purely craft activity to an intellectual achievement. In addition, an overview of the groundbreaking works of art from around 1400 to 1550 will be provided. Another focus of the lecture will be the reconstruction of the conditions that enabled female artists to emerge in the 16th century. The Italian Renaissance not only produced countless male artists, but also created the conditions for female artists to establish themselves and pursue international careers.
Art and the Arts in the Renaissance Erwin Panofsky was one of the first to recognize that the connection between practical artistic activity and its theoretical reflection was one of the greatest achievements of the Italian Renaissance. In both ancient times and the Middle Ages, the activity of the visual artist (sic!) was not anchored in the theoretical system of the “artes liberales,” but was assigned to the “artes mechanicae,” i.e., the crafts, together with weavers, carpenters, and farmers. The aspiration of visual artists at the beginning of the 15th century to achieve a status equal to that of poets, to elevate their art to the rank of an ars liberalis, could only be achieved through an intellectualization of their activity. At the beginning of the Renaissance, artists and art theorists, led by Lorenzo Ghiberti and Leon Battista Alberti, therefore demanded a scientific education, i.e., integration into the humanistic education system. All artists were to be educated in the artes liberales (grammar, rhetoric, dialectics, mathematics, geometry, astronomy, and music). Lorenzo Ghiberti also called for additional training in “theoretical design.” The discovery of central perspective also triggered a veritable boom in treatise literature by artist-theorists, beginning with Leon Battista Alberti's “Grammar of the Visible” and culminating in Albrecht Dürer's first mathematics book in German. The central medium of scientific knowledge was drawing (disegno), whereby the objective representation of nature was one of the central research topics alongside the study of proportions, anatomy, and various models of objects and figures. However, the concept of disegno also had far-reaching consequences for the concrete production of images in the early modern period itself, in that it could be defined as an intellectual activity and thus interpreted as a scientific activity. The aim of the lecture is to trace the development of art production in this era from a purely craft activity to an intellectual achievement. In addition, an overview of the groundbreaking works of art from around 1400 to 1550 will be provided. Another focus of the lecture will be the reconstruction of the conditions that enabled female artists to emerge in the 16th century. The Italian Renaissance not only produced countless male artists, but also created the conditions for female artists to establish themselves and pursue international careers.
- Trainer/in: Elisabeth