From Private Piety to Princely Pomp: The Art of Northern Renaissance

• Credit value: 30 credits at Level 6
• Convenor: to be confirmed
• Assessment: to be confirmed

In this module we explore the riches of the visual arts of Northern Europe in the fifteenth century and examine the circumstances of artistic production and the devotional and ceremonial uses to which art was put. We will concentrate on the arts associated with the territories of the Dukes of Burgundy and will treat the Netherlandish tradition of oil painting in detail. We will also look at works in a diverse range of media from sculpture and tapestry to book illumination and work in precious metals and will look at the export and impact of Netherlandish art throughout Europe.

We begin with a detailed study of the basic structures framing the production and uses of art:

• the characteristics of the Burgundian court
• the commercial and cultural environment of the great cities
• the overarching framework of Christian belief and religious practice. 

This will include a consideration of the patterns of court, civic and church patronage; the art market and the role of the guilds; the characteristics of the principal urban centres; and the basic components of public and private devotion.

We will then trace the impact of the Netherlandish tradition throughout Europe through the export of art works and the movement of artists. We conclude by pursuing a number of themes, including portraiture, landscape and the status of the artist. These topics will be used to structure an approach to the works of the most celebrated artists of the Netherlandish tradition including:

• Jan van Eyck
• Rogier van der Weyden
• Dieric Bouts
• Hugo van der Goes
• Hans Memlinc.