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Italian Ren Art
Midterm Vocab
55
Art History
Undergraduate 1
10/09/2009

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Term
Contrapposto
Definition
the position of a human when the weight is on one leg while the other is relaxed. Can suggest that the figure has potential for movement
Term
Rilievo Schiacciato
Definition
Flattened relief. Perspective and distance are achieved via optical suggestion as opposed to sculptural projection
Term
Predella
Definition
Pedestal of an altarpiece - usually decorated with small narrative scenes
Term
Guild
Definition
Independent associations of bankers and artisans
Term
Gild
Definition
Coating with gold, gold leaf, or some gold colored substance
Term
Campo
Definition
Italian for field - used in some cities to denote a certain public square
Term
Tempera
Definition
Colors mixed with egg yolk.
Term
Maesta
Definition
Italian meaning Virgin in Majesty. A large altarpiece of the Virgin enthroned, adored by saints and angels
Term
Punchwork
Definition
the addition of patterned effects by using stamps that indent the surface of a panel painting
Term
Fresco
Definition
A painting made on wet plaster with pigments in the water so when the plaster dries the painting is part of the wall
Term
Golden Legend
Definition
A collection of saints' lives written in the 13th C by Jacopo da Voragine.
Term
Nave
Definition
the large central aisle, usually axial and often with a clerestory, that characterizes Basilicas.
Term
Side Aisle
Definition
One of the corridors parallel to the nave of a church, separated from it by an arcade or colonnade
Term
Franciscan Order
Definition
Founded by St. Francis of Assisi for the purpose of ministering to the spiritual needs of the poor and imitating as closely as possible the life of Christ
Term
Transept
Definition
In a cross-shaped Christian church, the crossarms placed perpendicular to the nave. Usually separate the nave from the chancel or apse.
Term
Apse
Definition
A large semicircular or polygonal niche, as seen in Leonardo's drawing of churches
Term
Basilica
Definition
a general term applied to any church that has a longitudinal nave that terminates in an apse and is flanked by side aisles.
Term
Altarpiece
Definition
a painted or sculpted religious image that stands upon and at the back of an altar.
Term
Arriccio
Definition
the layer of relatively coarse plaster that is the first layer applied to a wall in the making of a fresco
Term
A secco
Definition
fresco a secco is painting on dry plaster - not as durable as a fresco and paint tends to flake with time
Term
Sinopia
Definition
Preliminary brush drawing, in red earth mixed with water, for a painting in fresco usually done on the arriccio
Term
Intonaco
Definition
the layer of smooth plaster on which a fresco is painted
Term
Giornata
Definition
term for the individual patch that reveals how long it took a painter and his workshop to complete one days worth of painting
Term
Cartoon
Definition
Full-scale preparatory drawing on one or more sheets of heavy paper
Term
Pouncing
Definition
method of transferring a cartoon to a surface by pricking small holes along the outlines of the drawing then dusting the cartoon with charcoal so the lines of the composition are transferred to the wall
Term
Gesso
Definition
a mixture of finely ground plaster and glue used to prepare the surface of a wooden panel for tempera painting. Grosso is thicker and first and sottile is second.
Term
Polyptych
Definition
an altarpiece or devotional object consisting of more than three sections joined together.
Term
Palazzo
Definition
italian for palace and sometimes for large civic or religious buildings
Term
Pietra Forte
Definition
the tan stone traditionally employed by Florentine builders
Term
Pietra Serena
Definition
the gray Tuscan lime stone used in Florence
Term
Loggia
Definition
A gallery or arcade open to the air on at least one side
Term
Cathdral
Definition
the church in which a bishop has his permanent cathedra (town or city can only ever have one)
Term
Campanile
Definition
a bell tower either attached to a church or freestanding nearby
Term
Duomo
Definition
italian word for cathedral
Term
Opera del Duomo
Definition
Board of works of a cathedral, the organization that often functions as the patron for works of art created for the cathedral
Term
Cupola
Definition
another word for dome - a rounded, convex roof or vaulted ceiling, usually hemispherical on a circular base and requiring buttressing
Term
Pendentive
Definition
in a domed structure, the four carved triangular segments that provide a transition from the four supporting piers to the drum or to the circular base of a drum
Term
Clerestory
Definition
An area that is elevated above adjacent rooftops, usually along a central axis; it has windows on the sides and its purpose is to allow light into the interior
Term
Braccio
Definition
form of measurement - an arms length
Term
Entablature
Definition
The upper part of an architectural order
Term
Cornice
Definition
the crowning, projecting architectural feature; especially the uppermost part of an entablature
Term
Frieze
Definition
The middle part of the entablature (or any horizontal band decorated with molding, relief sculpture or paintings)
Term
Architrave
Definition
the lowest part of an entablature
Term
Capital
Definition
the decorated, crowning member of a column or pilaster on which rests the lintel (architrave) or the arches of an arcade
Term
Column
Definition
a freestanding cylindrical support, usually consisting of a base, a rounded shaft, sometimes fluted, and a capital
Term
Impost Block
Definition
a square block placed above the capital in an architectural order
Term
Pilaster
Definition
a shallow, vertical element having a capital and base. a pilaster is engaged in a wall, from which it projects and is decorative rather than structural
Term
Disengo
Definition
used to refer to the emphasis on precise figure drawing in Florentine and Roman art, especially of the High Ren.
Term
Chiaroscuro
Definition
in painting, the contrast of light and shade
Term
Neoplatonism
Definition
a school of Greek philosophy established in Alexandria in the 3rd century and received by Italian humanists in the 15th C. These scholars translated the works of PLato and Plotinus and tried to evolve a system that would reconcile Christian beliefs with Neoplatonic mystical thought.
Term
Sfumato
Definition
italian for smoky, used for the method developed by da Vinci of modeling figures by virtually imperceptible gradations from light to dark
Term
Spalliera
Definition
term for one of the large horizontal paintings placed in a Florentine Renaissance home high on the wall, above the paneled wainscoting.
Term
Dominican Order
Definition
Founded as a preaching oder at Toulouse in 1216 by St. Dominic. Live austerely and believed in having no possessions, surviving by charity and begging (SMN)
Term
Chapter House
Definition
Meeting hall within a monastery where residents gather to discuss things. (SC)
Term
Orthogonal
Definition
lones running at right angles to the plane of the picture surface, but in a representation using one point perspective, converging toward a common vanishing point in the distance.
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