AP Art History Terms 2 – Flashcards
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Dada
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An art movement first emerging in Zurich in 1916 that rejected bourgeois culture and traditional artistic expression in favor of an art characterized by chance, feeling, freedom, indeterminate meaning, and a breaking down of the barriers between art and life
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dado
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The lower part of a wall, differentiated in some way from the upper section, often with a molding
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daguerreotype
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An early photographic process in which images were made on silver plates coated with a light-sensitive layer of silver iodide
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damnatio memoriae
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Literally, "damnation of memory;" the ritual destruction of an image or other artifact to erase the memory of an individual who has fallen out of favor for political reasons
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Daoism
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Dao means way or path. Spiritual attainment rather than a material achievement
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Dark Ages
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A now defunct name for the Middle Ages or Medieval Period, ca. 500 to 1400 CE
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De Stijl
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Dutch, "the style"; an art movement that emerged in the Netherlands around 1917 that sought to express the universe through abstraction
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decursio
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Ritual circling of a Roman funerary pile
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Deesis
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Enthroned Christ flanked by the Virgin Mary and St. John the Baptist, and sometimes by other saints
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deposition
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Christ's removal from the cross
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depth
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Real space or illusionistic space that relates to a surface and can be expressed horizontally or vertically
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ding
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Bronze ceremonial container for holding or cooking food, typically raised on three or four legs
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Dionysian
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Having to do with the Greek god of wine and revelry
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diptych
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An object consisting of two doors hinged together, like a book, used to hold wax for writing
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Diquís
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Mesoamerican civilization that enjoyed its most productive period from 500-1500 CE
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disegno
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Emphasis on line drawing as the foundation of artistic design
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divine deliverance
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Rescue, or deliverance, from an undesirable situation by the hand of God
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domino construction method
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Associated with Le Corbusier in which concrete reinforced by steel is supported by freestanding steel posts just at the points where the dots of a domino would be located and used as the building block for further construction
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donor portrait
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A representation of the patron of an artwork in the work itself, often smaller in scale and on the margins of the composition
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dressed stone
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Stone that has been cut to a desired shape, and the sides that will be exposed to view have been smoothed
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dromos
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Entryway to a tholos tomb
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drum
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The vertical circular wall supporting a dome
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drypoint
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A type of intaglio print; the artist scratches directly into a copper plate with a sharp needle. Process can be used alone or to strengthen details on an etched plate
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dyer
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A person who dyes cloth
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dynasty
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A succession of rulers of the same family or line
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Early English Gothic
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Late 12th century. Its characteristics include screening facades, lancet windows, and width rather than sheer verticality
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earspools
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Personal ornament inserted in stretched space of pierced earlobe
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earthwork
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A work of art constructed from a portion of modified land
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echinus
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The convex part of a Doric capital, just below the abacus
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Edict of Milan
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A proclamation issued jointly by the rulers Constantine and Licinius in 313 CE that made Christianity a tolerated religion
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Edo
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Period in Japanese history from 1603 to 1868 when imperial authority was restored
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effigy
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An anthropomorphic or zoomorphic form represented in a vessel. Like figurines, they are usually made from clay, wood, or stone
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en plein air
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French phrase for painting in the open air, outdoors
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encaustic
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A painting technique in which pigments are mixed with hot wax
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engaged columns
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Half-round columns built against a wall for support
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engraving
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The process of cutting a metal surface to produce decoration
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Enlightenment
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A philosophical movement of the 18th century marked by the reevaluation of social, political, and religious authority and beliefs, and emphasizing reasons
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entablature
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The part of a building between the columns and the roof, which functions as a lintel. In a Classical Greek temple, the entablature has three parts: the architrave or epistyle, the frieze, and the pediment
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Environmental art
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A style of sculptural art originated in the 1960s that uses earth, rock, and other organic material to altar the landscape.
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epic
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A long narrative poem recounting the deeds of a hero
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equinox
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Time in spring and fall when periods of daylight and dark are exactly equal
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etching
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A type of intaglio print; metal (usually copper) plate is covered with an acid-resistant coating and a design is scratched through the coating.
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Eucharist
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The symbolic consumption of bread or wafers that are blessed to represent the body of Christ
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evangelist portraits
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Portraits of the authors of the four gospels: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
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exedra
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Recessed area
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Existentialism
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A philosophy prevalent in the early 20th century that asserted the aloneness of the individual in an indifferent universe and the necessity for the individual to act without the certainty of moral knowledge
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Expressionism
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A mostly Germanic style of the early 20th century that is a visual projection of intense inner feelings rather than outer appearances
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expressionism
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A style of representation in which forms are created to evoke or express emotions.
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Eyckian
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Working in the style of Jan van Eyck. It is a style noted for realism, with attention down to the minutest detail; rich color, including vista landscapes; and arranged compositions, embedded with strong symbolism
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eye paint
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Common egyptian cosmetic. Pigments were ground on a palette with water or gum to make a paste and applied with a rounded applicator made from wood, bronze, glass, or other material. During the New Kingdom it was mainly black "kohl."
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façade
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Front or principal elevation of a building
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fasces
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A bundle of rods bound with an ax in the middle and its blade projecting; originally used by lictors before the superior magistrates at Rome as an emblem of their power, it later became a standard feature of Neoclassical ornament.
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Fauvism
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A painting style developed by Henri Matisse in 1905 that formally lasted until 1908. The means "fierce animal." The style rejects Neo-Impressionism and expresses flat, bold, un-naturalistic color with impulsive brushwork; sometimes the blank canvas shows between brushstrokes.
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femmage
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A term coined by Miriam Schapiro meaning "feminine collage."
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fenestration
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The patterns of windows evident in a building
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fête galante
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An outdoor entertainment for the French nobility; a genre of painting
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fibula
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A clasp or pin
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figure serpentina
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The spiraling serpentine line that structures the composition of many Mannerist works of art
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figural representation
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The artistic representation of a body, especially a human body
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figurative
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Artwork representing the forms of humans or animals rather than ideas or patterns
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fillet
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The flat ridge between the flutes of a column, usually found in the Ionic order
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fin de siècle
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"End of the century" (1890s) in France and Western Europe; connotes an attitude of decadence and uncertainty that characterized the culture and art in a period when the faith in many conventions and institutions had been overthrown
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finial
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An architectural ornament usually found at the top point of a spire, pinnacle, or roof gable; a finial may also be found on furniture
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Flamboyant Gothic
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Style of architecture from the Late Gothic period. Means "flamelike."
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Flanders
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In the "Low Countries." The capital was Bruges, and later Ghent. It included parts of modern-day Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, northern France, and western Germany
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fleur-de-lis
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A stylized, heraldic lily used as the symbol of the French monarchy.
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flutes
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Vertical grooves in a column
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Fluxus
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A movement of the 1960s-1970s coordinated by George Maciunas to redefine art and create anonymous non-art for social change
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flying buttress
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A masonry structure that transfers the horizontal thrust of a wall or vault to a detached buttress or pier, forming an arch between the supporting structure and the wall. Typically Gothic
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font
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Vessel containing water used for a Christian baptism
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foreshortening
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Technique used to create perspective by shortening or compressing an object in the direction of depth
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form
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The shape of an object or figure. Also can refer to the formal elements that comprise the composition of an artwork and express the artist's intentions
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formal analysis
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An analysis of the form of a work of art by examining how all of the elements in the work are used and which ways they shape the work's perceive meaning and effect
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formal elements
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The visual, physical elements of an artwork: Line, color, light and shadow, pattern and texture, space, mass, volume, proportion and scale, composition
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formal visual analysis
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The analysis of an artwork's use of line, color, light, space, proportion, composition, and other visual elements
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Fortitude
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The abstract personification of courage and steadfastness
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forum
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In ancient Roman cities, a public square enclosed by colonnades that included temples, a basilica, and other public buildings
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Four Corners
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Area of the American Southwest where Utah, Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico meet
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Franks
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A people who entered Europe in the 5th century CE, settling first in northern Gaul and ruling a good part of Western Europe
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freestanding sculpture
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Independent of any architectural setting or frame. This term is interchangeable with "in the round" since both refer to sculpture that you can walk all the way round
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fresco
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Pigment is painted on plaster, either wet or dry
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fret
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A decoration, usually in bands, consisting of interlocking geometric lines
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frieze
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This decorative band located above the architrave which features sculpture in Classical Greek architecture
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frontal
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Viewed from the front
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frottage
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A technique involving rubbing a pencil over a paper placed on a textured surface to produce an image
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fusuma
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Paper-covered sliding doors in Japanese architectural structures
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Futurism
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A call for societal change and an artistic movement founded by F.T. Marinetti in 1909. The style depicts motion and dynamics, often with emphasis on machinery
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gallery
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The middle level of a church's interior elevation, second story of the side aisle
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Gauls
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A non-Greek people living in Asia Minor
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genius figure
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A representation of an innately divine nature or spirit
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genre painting
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Narrative art that shows scenes from daily life, particularly activities of ordinary folk
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genre scene
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Images that depict people engaged in everyday activities
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gentiles
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A non-Israelite or non-Jewish person; often refers to Christians
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geoglyphs
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Large images engraved into the ground
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gesso
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Paint that serves as a base upon which other paint is applied.
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gestural abstraction
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Another term for action painting, emphasizing expressive mark making and the evidence of the human hand in the creation of Abstract Expressionist paintings
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Gestural line
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A sketchy, rapidly drawn line emphasizing force and movement
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Gigantomachy
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A battle between the Olympian gods and the Giants
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Gilded Age
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A period of expansion and prosperity at the end of the 19th century in the US; a play on the idea of the "golden age" through a reference to the superficially opulent decoration characteristic of the period
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Gilded
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Painted with pigment that has been mixed with gold
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Glaze
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A form of glassy or vitreous liquid that, when fired, renders a ceramic waterproof and forms a decorative surface
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Glazed brick
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Requires a two-part process in which mud-bricks are first fired to strengthen the bricks and then covered with a glaze and fired a second tome to melt the glaze into glass making the bricks waterproof
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Gopuram
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A rectangular tower with a pyramidal roof in a Hindu temple, found especially in India
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Gospel Book
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A Christian manuscript containing the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John
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Gothic sway
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The s-shaped, graceful, pronounced torsion of a figure's body that is characteristic of Gothic sculpture
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Grand Manner
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English term for idealized, classically influenced art that showcased history as well as virtue
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Grand Tour
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An educational journey through Europe often lasting a year or more, undertaken by English gentry and wealthy Americans for the purpose of studying the monuments of antiquity and artistic achievements of the past
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Grave goods
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Objects placed in a grave along with the body of the deceased for use in the afterlife
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Gravitas
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Serious and dignified manner
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Greenberg, Clement
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An important American formalist critic and the earliest advocate of Abstract Expressionism
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Greenstone
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A generic term for any green stone in Mesoamerican archaeology
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Grisaille
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A style of gray monochromatic painting used to represent sculpture within a painting
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Ground line
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The real or imaginary line representing the base or ground on which the figures in a painting are positioned, and which remove the appearance of floating
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Guilds
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Specialized medieval economic organizations for artists and craftsmen
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Gum bichromate
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Photographic printing process (1855-1930) using paper coated with gum Arabic, a photosensitive solution, and pigment. Finished picture often resembles charcoal drawing rather than a photograph
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Hammurabi
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A Babylonian leader who used cuneiform to record the code of laws for his territory
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hard-edge painting
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A type of Post Painterly Abstraction in which painters produced sharp, geometric compositions on the canvas
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hatching
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The engraving or drawing of fine, closely placed parallel lines
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Hellenic
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the Greeks term for themselves
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Hellenistic period
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(323-1st century BCE)The period of Greek history marked by the spread of Greek culture throughout territories conquered by Alexander the Great and his successors
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Hellenophile
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A lover of Greek culture
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heraldry
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Aristocratic dynastic iconography meant to differentiate knights in full armor from one another; also used as a mark of specific noble houses on a wide range of objects
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herm
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Plain shafts topped by human (usually male) torsos
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Herodotus
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Greek historian often known as the "father of history" who wrote a lengthy account of the wars between Persia and the Greeks
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Herreran style
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A Spanish style of architecture characterized by cold, monumental austerity
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Hiberno-Saxon
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Refers to art produced on the British islands during the early medieval period.
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hierarchical scale
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A scale of representation in which size indicates the political, social, or spiritual significance of one figure relative to others in the same composition
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hieratic writing
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A formal, non-hieroglyphic script used by the Ancient Egyptians for religious texts
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hieroglyphic writing
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A pictorial writing system used by the Ancient Egyptians that uses over 700 symbols to represent sounds, things, and ideas
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Hinduism
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A major world religion that originated in India and includes a variety of philosophies, beliefs, and rituals
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Hippodamian plan
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An urban plan built on a grid and divided up into three social districts
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Hittites
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A people who dominated Anatolia (the central part of modern Turkey) in the ancient world; known for their monumental use of stone sculpture
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Hodegetria
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A type of icon named for a painting preserved in the Hodegon monastery in Constantinople, usually showing the Virgin pointing to the child with her right arm
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Holy Communion
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The ceremonial consumption of blessed bread and wine to symbolize the body and blood of Christ
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Homer
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Greek epic poet, ca. 8th century BCE. Author of the Iliad and the Odyssey
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horror vacui
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Latin for "fear of empty space." In art, it is filling an entire space with detail
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hue
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The name of a color
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Huitzilopochtli
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The Aztec sun god
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Humanism
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A cultural movement that emerged in the 14th and 15th centuries, tied to the Classical revival in the arts and letters.
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hypostyle hall
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A hall filled with columns supporting a roof
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icon
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A piece of religious art, usually in portrait form
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Iconoclasm
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A movement against the worship of religious icons, involving icons' destruction
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iconoclast
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A person who objects to the worship of icons or images
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iconography
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Literally "image writing," the study of the significance and interpretation of the subject matter of art.
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illuminated manuscript
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Illustrations and embellished text, often painted with gold or silver
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illusionistic space
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The painted or drawn image of a three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional surface
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impasto
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Thick application of paint where the marks of the paintbrush or palette knife are still visible
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Imperial type scenes
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Stereotyped scenes in which the emperor performs conventional actions that illustrate his authority or virtue
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implied line
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A line that is not explicitly drawn, but one that is perceived to exist
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Impressionism
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The artistic period directly following Realism. Discards the details of Realism and instead studies that momentary effects of light and color
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in situ
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In original place or position
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in the round
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Sculptures independent of any architectural setting or frame
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Inca
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Quechua-speaking people who built an empire in western South America, ca. 1438-1533. Known for their stonework and textiles
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incipit
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opening words in a text in a medieval manuscript
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indigenous peoples
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People belonging to a particular locale, particularly inhabitants seen as aboriginal to that locale
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Individualists
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A group of Chinese landscape painters during the Ching Dynasty who emphasized radically individualized style and less emphasis on tradition
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initial
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The decorative first letter in a sentence
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insula
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Roman urban buildings, three to sox stories high, usually with storefronts on the bottom and middle-to lower-income housing above, with the least desirable housing at the top
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intaglio printmaking
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Process of making a print from an etched or engraved metal plate that has been inked, wiped clean to leave ink only in the incised lines, and printed under great pressure directly onto paper
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interlace
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Decoration made of intertwined lines
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intermediate colors
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Also known as tertiary colors, A range of colors between each primary color and secondary color of the color wheel
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International Gothic
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A late form of the Gothic style that is a blending of styles characterized by elegance, naturalism, and realism; it is found across Western Europe circa 1400 CE
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International Style
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A timeless-looking architectural style from the 1930s-1970s that emphasizes pure geometric form over ornamentation. Characteristics include smooth lines, rounded corners, flat roofs, utilitarian construction materials, and neutral colors
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Investiture Controversy
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A debate between the pope and the Holy Roman Emperor as to who had the right to "invest" bishops with authority
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Italo-Byzantine style
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Italian art of the 12th and 13th centuries, strongly influenced by Byzantine art
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iwan
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A vaulted hall open on one end that often open onto a courtyard
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Jainism
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A religion of India that teaches a path to spiritual purity and enlightenment through a disciplined mode of life. it emerged between the 7th and 5th centuries BCE, and is founded upon the tradition of nonviolence to all living creatures
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jamb
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One of the vertical sides that forms a door frame
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jeremiads
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A type of sermon, based on the teachings of Jeremiah, that combats decreasing personal piety with warnings of doom
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Jung, Carl
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A Swiss psychoanalyst and student of Freud
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kapu
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Taboos; a system of right and wrong used to reinforce the social caste system
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katholikon
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The largest church in a given area. Loosely translated as "cathedral."
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key
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The stone that holds a vault together at its apex
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Kinetic Art
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A style of art that includes movement in its design
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kiva
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An enclosed ceremonial chamber, wholly or partially underground, in a pueblo reached by ladder through a hole in the ceiling
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Koran
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Holy text of Islam
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kore
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A statue of a young mortal woman
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kouroi
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Greek for "young man." These are statues of mortal youths, typically nude
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lamassu
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Large composite supernatural creatures sculpted as intimidating guardian figures and designed to flank gates with an Assyrian citadel
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Lamentation
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The scene immediately after the descent from the cross in which Christ's mother and other followers mourn over his dead body
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lancet
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A slender, pointed window. Often separated by mullions
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lapiths
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A people in Greek mythology whose home was Thessaly
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lekythos
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A flask to hold oil, often left at Greek graves as offerings to the dead
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Liber divinorum operum
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Book of Divine Works, written by Hildegard von Bingen, ca. 1160 CE
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line
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The mark left by a moving point. It can be actual or implied and can have various attributes such as width, density, and direction
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linear perspective
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All parallel lines or surface edges converge on one, two, or three "vanishing points" located with reference to the eye level of the viewer. objects are rendered smaller the farther from the viewer they are intended to seem
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liturgy
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Text and written directions for an official church service
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loculus
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A "place;" a space carved into the walls of a catacomb where a body could be placed
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Lombardy
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A region of Northern Italy
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lost-wax process
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Method of bronze-casting in which a figure molded in wax is covered with clay, then fired. The wax melts and molten bronze is poured into the space left behind.
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lunette
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Semicircular area below an arch
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madras
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Religious schools predating universities
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malachite
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Copper carbonate; a green stone used extensively in Mesoamerican art
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mandala
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Generally a square form, it is a diagram of the cosmic realm that represents order and meaning in the spiritual universe
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mandorla
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Italian for almond. The oval-shaped frame or light that surrounds Christ, usually after his Resurrection
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Manifest Destiny
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The mid-19th century philosophy that white settlers were divinely ordained to explore and pioneer the wilderness and bring civilization to the indigenous people living there
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