Welcome to the newest feature of the Art Historians of So Cal. website... a blog. Below please read and add to the posted question: Why Does Art History Matter?
While there are various ways of thinking about both art and history, and how they matter affects both practitioners and the public in different ways, from the perspective of a reader or viewer I would say the following. The art history that matters to me considers the art work in its context: where and why it was made; how that set of facts helps to understand the time and circumstance in which it appeared; how the art work can be understood in the light of other works of and outside its time; and finally what various speculations about a work tell us about its place in history and the values of those who write about it. In other words, the art history that matters to me treats the art work as a living document whose meaning and value is never static. --Paul Zelevansky
Art history matters to me, at least, because it's an exciting visual timeline that stretches outwards like a web. As with any history, one set of facts leads to another and another. For me, history is addictive, much like Flaming Hot Doritos are.
As we can see (Get it?? See? Haw!) with contemporary visual mediums, art history holds an open invitation for movies, TV, magazines and graphic novels to skim information from. To be visually literate in today's world, and to be "in on the joke," as I like to explain it, you must have some education in art history so that all of the mass media in-jokes don't go right over our pretty little heads.
There is something quite satisfying about being able to outwit detectives on TV whose writers insert clumsily-researched art history "clues." (Ooh, splattered paint means that he/she was crazy!)
Also, nothing is more fun than spotting a guy in line at Starbucks who is the spitting image of Albrecht Durer...then TELLING HIM!
And nothing, I repeat, NOTHING is more fun than watching original series Star Trek, where in the episode "Requiem for Methuselah" Leonardo da Vinci is immortal, and is found by Mr. Spock to be alive and well on another planet.
Art History Graduate Studies, $100,000.00 Being in on the joke: Priceless.
3 comments:
WHY ART HISTORY MATTERS1
While there are various ways of thinking about both art and history, and how they matter affects both practitioners and the public in different ways, from the perspective of a reader or viewer I would say the following. The art history that matters to me considers the art work in its context: where and why it was made; how that set of facts helps to understand the time and circumstance in which it appeared; how the art work can be understood in the light of other works of and outside its time; and finally what various speculations about a work tell us about its place in history and the values of those who write about it. In other words, the art history that matters to me treats the art work as a living document whose meaning and value is never static.
--Paul Zelevansky
I agree with Paul's basic impulses. Art makes history come to life and history makes art livelier.
Pursuing the history of art is to be on a limitless road of expansion and illumination.
Some of the art I like best reveals how permeable the world's political, religious and physical borders have always been.
Nina Berson
Art history matters to me, at least, because it's an exciting visual timeline that stretches outwards like a web. As with any history, one set of facts leads to another and another. For me, history is addictive, much like Flaming Hot Doritos are.
As we can see (Get it?? See? Haw!) with contemporary visual mediums, art history holds an open invitation for movies, TV, magazines and graphic novels to skim information from. To be visually literate in today's world, and to be "in on the joke," as I like to explain it, you must have some education in art history so that all of the mass media in-jokes don't go right over our pretty little heads.
There is something quite satisfying about being able to outwit detectives on TV whose writers insert clumsily-researched art history "clues." (Ooh, splattered paint means that he/she was crazy!)
Also, nothing is more fun than spotting a guy in line at Starbucks who is the spitting image of Albrecht Durer...then TELLING HIM!
And nothing, I repeat, NOTHING is more fun than watching original series Star Trek, where in the episode "Requiem for Methuselah" Leonardo da Vinci is immortal, and is found by Mr. Spock to be alive and well on another planet.
Art History Graduate Studies, $100,000.00
Being in on the joke: Priceless.
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