Unit HISTORY OF SCULPTURE
- Course
- Archaeology and history of art
- Study-unit Code
- A003371
- Curriculum
- Generico
- Teacher
- Tommaso Giovanni Mozzati
- Teachers
-
- Tommaso Giovanni Mozzati
- Hours
- 36 ore - Tommaso Giovanni Mozzati
- CFU
- 6
- Course Regulation
- Coorte 2024
- Offered
- 2025/26
- Learning activities
- Affine/integrativa
- Area
- Attività formative affini o integrative
- Academic discipline
- L-ART/02
- Type of study-unit
- Opzionale (Optional)
- Type of learning activities
- Attività formativa monodisciplinare
- Language of instruction
- Italian
- Contents
- Outline of modern Italian sculpture, with monographic, thematic, and methodological insights. In analyzing specific works and periods, the course will consider both formal and technical aspects, with the aim of highlighting the connection between different materials and the specific expressive qualities translated into three-dimensional creations (from sculpture in the round to relief). Following a perspective that takes into account an historical approach and more contemporary critical perspectives (such as visual studies and material turn), the course will relate production systems and labor economies to the taste requirements and aesthetic imperatives of each creative moment, using a multidisciplinary approach stressing the preeminence of sculpture in the development of the “arts system.”
- Reference texts
- For an overview of the history of modern sculpture: - R. Wittkower, Sculpture processes and principles, London, Allen Lane, 1977 [italian translation: R. Wittwkower, La scultura raccontata da Rudolf Wittkower: dall’Antichità al Novecento, trans. by R. Pedio, Torino, Einaudi, 1985 (Biblioteca umanistica: BSA Op. Gen. B 05)]. - G. Gentilini, Scultura, in L’arte. Arte e artisti di tutto il mondo, a cura di G. C. Sciolla, Milano, Garzanti, 2002, V, pp. 255-268. Sources: - Estetica della scultura, a cura di Luigi Russo, Palermo, Aestethica, 2003. Sculpture techniques: - S. Rinaldi, Storia tecnica dell’arte. Materiali e metodi della pittura e della scultura (secc. V-XIX), Roma, Carocci, 2011. The study must be supplemented with an in-depth analysis of one of the periods covered in class. Each student must choose one of the books listed below to discuss during the exam. The texts must be studied in their entirety. The books recommended for these in-depth analyses are: - F. Negri Arnoldi, La scultura del Quattrocento, Torino, Utet, 1994 (ex Biblioteca centrale: Cons. Art-6-6). - G. Mariacher, La scultura del Cinquecento, Torino, Utet, 1987 (ex Biblioteca centrale: Cons. Art-6-9). - A. Nava Cellini, La scultura del Seicento, Torino, Utet, 1982 (ex Biblioteca centrale: Cons. Art-6-12). - A. Nava Cellini, La scultura del Settecento, Torino, Utet, 1981 (ex Biblioteca centrale: Cons. Art-6-15). If students wish to explore a specific area of interest in greater depth, one of these volumes may be replaced by another scientific book (essay, exhibition catalog, etc.), approved by the professor.
- Educational objectives
- The course covers the history of modern Italian sculpture, teaching students how to interpret works and analyze figurative experiences with an adequate methodological awareness.
- Prerequisites
- During their university years, students should have acquired a general knowledge of the historical, cultural, literary, philosophical, and geographical context relating to the period under examination. In addition, a basic knowledge of the main stylistic trends and major figures that characterize the history of Early Modern Italian Art is required. The course covers Early Modern Italian sculpture and it aims to provide students with the ability to interpret works of art and analyze figurative experiences with an adequate methodological awareness.
- Teaching methods
- Lectures with projections, exercises, visits. Blended learning (in-person and telepresence simultaneously) will be used in synchronous and/or asynchronous modes.
- Learning verification modality
- The exam consists of a final oral test, which is a conversation on stylistic approaches, figurative issues, schools and centers of artistic production, the most significant figures and their catalogues. These topics are covered in the recommended reading list and explored in greater depth during the course. The interview is mainly structured around questions on different topics and periods, followed by a discussion of the book chosen by the candidate from the recommended supplementary bibliography. The interview will also assess methodological knowledge of the subject and the ability to read works of art with correct language skills. For students attending the course, active participation in lectures and exercises will be an additional element of positive assessment.
- Extended program
- The course aims to analyze the development of Early Modern Italian sculpture and its relationship with the main European experiences, highlighting the work of masters and workshops, movements and schools, genres, and salient figurative issues, placed in their historical, geographical, and cultural context. Some significant episodes will be explored in depth, which will also serve to illustrate the various interpretative methodologies of the discipline and guide the reading, analysis, and recognition of the works.