Art History

MARIA CHIARA PIVA

The main objective of the Course is to deepen the knowledge of a given moment in the history of collecting or of modern museology.
As regards specific objectives, students are expected to learn or assimilate:
- knowledge of the historiographical debate on the chosen theme;
- the ability to analyze the display of works o art of the period in question through contemporary sources;
- to elaborate an autonomous judgment on the historical moment analyzed through today's critical literature.
In order to pursue these targets, during the course students will be asked to take part actively in the analysis of the sources contemporary at the historical moment in question. The themes and topics of the course, such as the competencies and abilities to learn, are part of the core curriculum of the Study Programme in Art History.

The course aims to provide critical and methodological tools for in-depth study of the history of museums, in order to develop the ability to analyse the museological and museographic characteristics of an exhibition space, with the aim of understanding the current structure of a museum in light of its origins and transformations over time. Particular attention will be paid to the critical reading of historical sources (textual and iconographic) useful for reconstructing the history of museums, as well as the changing relationship between museums and the public.
In particular, the expected learning outcomes are:
- to have an in-depth knowledge of the specific vocabulary of museology; to know the museographic and museological characteristics of an exhibition space and their evolution over time; to understand the transformations of museums, with particular attention to the analysis of catalogues and the relationship with the public;
-knowing how to use specific vocabulary, in particular to present a personal in-depth analysis of the course topics, using appropriate historical and iconographic sources;
-knowing how to analyse the history of a museum, placing it in the cultural context of the time and in the broader history of museums;
-be able to use appropriate and specific terminology, introduced and explained in lectures or reference texts; be able to engage in respectful and productive discussions with teachers and colleagues on course topics;
-based on the reference study material, be able to analyse the characteristics of a museum, placing them in the history of museums, with particular reference to the analysis of catalogues and the relationship with the public.

No specific preparatory knowledge is required. A basic knowledge of art history and the subject matter is desirable.

The course aims to explore the creation and development of museum catalogues between the 18th and 19th centuries. It will analyse the different types of publications dedicated to museums and art collections, following the progressive development and refinement of a specific editorial and critical genre. In this sense, attention will be paid both to the material aspects of the catalogue and to the structure of its contents in relation to contemporary art criticism. Particular attention will be paid to the relationship between text and images in this type of publication and to the transformation of the type of illustrations from engravings to photographs.
The catalogue will also be examined as a mirror for reading the museographic strategies and museological arrangements of museums between the 18th and 19th centuries; investigating the changing editorial forms of the catalogue will allow for a parallel analysis of the management of art collections, the relationship with the public and, more generally, the links between the history of museums and the history of art criticism.
A variety of museum catalogues published in print between the 18th and 19th centuries will be considered, in order to analyse both their material characteristics (format, publisher, relationship between text and image, engravings, photographs) and content choices (structure of the work description, quality of information, personality of the curators). A broad chronological perspective will allow for reflection on progressive changes and their significance.

The exam texts are a series of short articles specially selected to enrich the course topics. Any bibliography not available in the Department Libraries will be made available in PDF format among the teaching materials on the page dedicated to the course on the Classroom platform:

Borea Evelina, Le stampe dai primitivi e l’avvento della storiografia artistica illustrata, in «Prospettiva», 69, 1993, pp. 28-40

Gaehtgens Thomas W., Making an illustrated catalogue in the Enlightenment, in Gaehtgens Thomas W. e Marchesano Louis (a cura di), Display & art history. The Düsseldorf Gallery and its catalogue, Getty Publications, Los Angeles, 2011, pp. 1-51

Leca Benedict, An Art Book and Its Viewers: The "Recueil Crozat" and the Uses of Reproductive Engraving, in «Eighteenth-Century Studies» vol.38, n.4, 2005, pp. 623-649

Miarelli Mariani Ilaria, Seroux d'Agincourt e Cicognara: la storia dell'arte per immagini, in Rossi Massimiliano e Caracciolo Daniela, Enciclopedismo e storiografia artistica tra Sette e Ottocento, atti della giornata di studi (26 maggio 2006), Congedo, Galatina 2008, pp. 129-150

Mondini Daniela, Apprendre à "voir" l'histoire de l'art : le discours visuel des planches de l''Histoire de l'art par les monumens' de Séroux d'Agincourt, in Histoire de l'histoire de l'art en France au XIXe siècle, Paris 2008, pp. 153-166, 510-513

Piva, Chiara, "Non si può parlare che agli occhi": cataloghi e libri d’arte a colori nel Settecento, in Stampare a colori. Prospettive di ricerca su editoria e arte in età moderna, numero monografico di “Ricerche di storia dell’arte”, n. 133, 2021, pp. 16-32

Piva Chiara, Per una storia dei cataloghi di museo nel Settecento: uno strumento per lo studio dei pubblici, in C. Mazzarelli, G. Capitelli, C. Piva (a cura di), Pubblici dei primi musei pubblici (XVIII–XIX secolo) I. Le fonti istituzionali, Accademia di architettura, Mendrisio 2025, pp. 31-48.

Rossi Pinelli Orietta, Per una "storia dell'arte parlante" : dal Museo Capitolino (1734) al Pio-Clementino (1771-91) e alcune mutazioni nella storiografia artistica, in «Ricerche di storia dell’arte», 84, 2004 (2005), pp. 5-23

Spalletti Ettore, La documentazione figurativa dell’opera d’arte nell’epoca moderna (1750-1930), in Storia dell’arte italiana, Einaudi, Torino, 1986, vol.II, pp.419-482.

The course will be divided into two parts: the first lessons will be lectures, with the aid of PowerPoint presentations. The second part of the course will be seminar-based: students will be required to present their research in class, which will then be discussed by the group.
The course will make use of the Classroom platform, where teaching materials presented in class, bibliographies not available in the Department Libraries, and in-depth studies presented by students will be made available.

Considering that the second part of the course (approximately one third of the lessons) will be seminar-based, attendance is strongly recommended.

Given the seminar-style nature of the course (see ‘Course structure’), considerable importance will be given to students' active participation during lessons.
Assessment will be based on individual research which, through in-depth study and presentation of a case study, will serve to demonstrate the acquisition of the course content.

The research will first be presented orally in class and then submitted in written form and assessed individually during the examination interview.
The individual written research paper must be submitted no later than 15 days before the date of the examination; it must also comply with the following parameters: maximum 10 pages of 2,000 characters each (excluding bibliography and illustrations). Footnotes and final bibliography in accordance with the rules for degree theses. Illustrations at the end of the text, with a list of illustrations.
The assessment will therefore be structured as follows:
20% of the mark for class participation + 40% of the mark for the in-depth research paper + 40% for the oral examination.

In the case of an oral examination, questions will focus on the bibliographic texts and topics covered in depth during the course, both by the lecturer and in the seminar section.
Students will be asked to illustrate the main formal and content characteristics of one of the catalogues presented during the course and to relate them to the museum culture of the period.

• Introduction to course topics and specific vocabulary (2 hours)


• The origins and characteristics of museum catalogues (16 hours)


• The evolution of museum catalogues from engravings to photographs (12 hours)


• Seminar lessons with contributions from students in the form of in-depth analyses (12 hours)