Undergraduate Course: Nicolas Poussin in Rome, c. 1620-1660: 'Ancient Simplicity and Epick Style' (HIAR10085)
Course Outline
| School | Edinburgh College of Art |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Course type | Standard |
Availability | Available to all students |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Credits | 20 |
| Home subject area | History of Art |
Other subject area | None |
| Course website |
None |
Taught in Gaelic? | No |
| Course description | The purpose of this course is to situate the great French painter Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) within the cultural milieu of Baroque Rome where he lived from the early sixteen twenties until his death in the mid sixteen sixties. Through acquaintance with a selection of his greatest works spanning his career, students will be introduced to the response of Poussin to: the Classical heritage of Rome through its surviving material culture; the genres of sacred history; pagan history; myth; contemporary poetry; landscape; the modes of epic, elegiac, pastoral and heroic poetry mediated through Greek and Latin text (in translation). Poussin?s relationship with his patrons, a subject about which we are unusually well informed, will be a central thread throughout the course. Patronage will create a dialogue with the critical reception afforded the artist by art theorists amongst his contemporaries. The presence of the Second Series of Seven Sacraments in the National Galleries of Scotland will provide the opportunity of first hand study of one of the most intellectually challenging multiple project in the career of the painter. Poussin will also be compared with Titian and Rubens. |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | None |
| Displayed in Visiting Students Prospectus? | Yes |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Summary of Intended Learning Outcomes
The purpose of this course is to provide a clear outline of the major achievements associated with Nicolas Poussin, the leading painter in Rome during the seventeenth century. It is also expected that students will learn about: the cultural milieu of Baroque Rome, its patronage networks, the interface between the early modern City and its classical heritage. In addition the course will also provide a greater awareness of the heritage of classical literature as it impinged upon painting and was reinterpreted by a visual artist. It will be expected that students become acquainted with some of the leading theoretical debates current during the lifetime of the artist, especially the revival of the controversy over the relationship between art and literature, and in addition, disegno v colore (Poussin v Rubens). This will be accessed by demanding from the students, some familiarity with selected contemporary texts in the fields of: poetry (Marino), antiquarianism, and art theory (Agucchi, Cassiano dal Pozzo, Chantelou, Bellori), and not least, with Poussin himself via his correspondence. The course will seek to balance an in-depth acquaintance with the oeuvre of the prime exponent of the Classical Tradition in western painting, and orientation within the geography and culture of Counter Reformation Rome.
Learning outcomes will be set to enhance the skills of students in the following areas: pictorial analysis with direct access to paintings (NGS); analysis of documents (study of set texts in the theory of art); the contextualisation of the artist in a broad topographical and cultural milieu, taking full account of the evidence of material culture: comparative analysis of word and image within the context of the relationship between poetry and painting. They will also enhance their skills at learning to use a comprehensive multi-language bibliography.
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Assessment Information
1 two-hour examination paper (50%) and 1 extended 2,000 word essay (50%)
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Special Arrangements
| None |
Additional Information
| Academic description |
Not entered |
| Syllabus |
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| Transferable skills |
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| Reading list |
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| Study Abroad |
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| Study Pattern |
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| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr David Howarth
Tel: (0131 6)50 4111
Email: D.J.Howarth@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Sue Cavanagh
Tel: (0131 6)51 1460
Email: Sue.Cavanagh@ed.ac.uk |
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