The Antiquities Craze in Italy

Reading: Strickland 32-45.

Viewing/Reading: Kelly Grovier on the Laocoön: link.

Viewing:

• Van Eyck, The Arnolfini Portrait (Bruges, 1434)
• Botticelli, Birth of Venus (Florence, 1482)
• Unknown, Spinario (Rome, 1st Cen BC)
• Antico, Spinario (Mantua, c.1501)
• Unknown, Laocoon (1st Cen BC)
• Michelangelo, Pietà (Rome, 1499)
• Michelangelo, David (Florence, 1499)
• Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel ceiling (Rome, 1512) and Last Judgement (1541)
• Michelangelo, The Rebellious Slave (Rome, 1513)
• Michelangelo, The Dying Slave (Rome, 1516)
• Raphael, The School of Athens (Rome, 1511)
• Raphael, The Disputation of the Sacrament (Rome, 1510)

Writing: Respond to ONE of the following prompts. Keep your response short, posting as a reply under the appropriate heading in the comments section:

1. Focus our attention on a compelling detail from one of the artworks above, and comment on what makes it appealing.
2. Based on your reading in Strickland or elsewhere, post the image of a Renaissance artwork and (briefly) make the case for why it should be included on today’s assignment.
3. Given Grovier’s story of Michelangelo witnessing the discovery of the Laocoon, what trace of its influence can you find in his sculptures?