Course Syllabus

Course Content

The course focuses on 19th century developments in European art and begins with Neoclassicism and the Romantic-Classic conflict, followed by a discussion of Naturalism in landscape and the breakthrough of Realism. The importance of Manet, Monet, Degas, and the influence of Japanese woodprints on the period of Impressionism will be analyzed, followed by Cézanne, Van Gogh, and other Post-Impressionists. The consolidation of various types of Symbolism, such as Gauguin’s Synthetism and the Nordic evocative landscape is elaborated. Special attention will also be given to the achievements of Scandinavian artists during the period including the Danish Golden Age, the Skagen Painters, and the work of Munch.

Faculty

Maria Bordorff & Kirsten Astrup

Objectives

• Enable students to critically analyze the visual qualities of modern artworks and to contextualize their artistic practice.
• Identify key works, significant artists, characteristics and styles of 19th century European art.
• Develop art appreciation and evaluation of artistic expression during museum and gallery visits in the Copenhagen area.
• Become familiar with museums in Copenhagen.
• Examine specific artworks and topics from the period in written assignments.

Course Evaluation

To be eligible for a passing grade in this class you must complete all of the assigned work.

Field Studies

Thorvaldsens Museum, Bertel Thorvaldsens Plads 2, 1213 København K

The Hirschsprung Collection, Stockholmsgade 20, København Ø

Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Dantes Plads 7, 1556 København V

Statens Museum for Kunst, Sølvgade 48-50, 1307 København K

Literature

Adams, Laurie: A History of Western Art, McGraw-Hill Education, 2010

Baudelaire, Charles: “From the Painter of Modern Life,” in Art in Theory 1815-1900, ed.: Harrison, Charles; Wood, Paul and Gaiger, Jason, Blackwell Publishing, 1998

Berman, Patricia: "Picturing Denmark in the Golden Age” in In another Light, Danish Painting in the 19th Century. Thames and Hudson, 2007

Blake, Nigel and Francis, Fascina: “Courbet: Representing the Country to the Town" in Modernity and Modernism. French Painting in the Nineteenth Century. The Open University, 1993

Chu, Petra: Nineteenth Century European Art, Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006

Delacroix, Eugène: “On Romanticism” in Art in Theory 1815 –1900, ed.: Harrison, Charles and Wood, Paul. Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 1998

Gauguin, Paul: “Notes on Color" in Art in Theory 1815 – 1900 ed.: Harrison, Charles and Wood, Paul. Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 1998

Gombrich, Ernest: The Story of Art, Phaidon Press, Pocket Edition, 2006

Gossman, Lionell: “Unwilling Moderns: The Nazarene Painters of the Nineteenth Century” in Nineteenth Century Art Worldwide, vol. 2, 2003

Hamilton, George Heard: Painting and Sculpture in Europe 1880 -1940. 3rd ed. Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1987.

Heilbrun, Francoise: “Impressionism and Photography" in History of Photography, vol. 33, 2009

House, John: “Manet and the De-moralized viewer” in Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe, ed.: Tucker, Paul Hayes. Cambridge University Press, 1988

Ingres, J.A.D.: “From Notebooks” in Art in Theory 1815- 1900, ed.: Harrison, Charles and Wood, Paul. Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 1998.

Lukacher, Brian: "Nature Historicized" in Nineteenth Century Art: A Critical History, ed. Eisenman, Steven, 1994

Mallarmé, Stéphane: “The Impressionists and Edouard Manet” in The New Painting - Impressionism 1874-1886, ed.: Moffett, Charles et al. Phaidon, 1986

Monrad, Kasper: “The Copenhagen School of Painting” in The Golden Age of Danish Painting. Hudson Hill Press, 1993. pp.11-19.

Frascina, Francis et al.: Modernity and Modernism: French Painting in the Nineteenth Century. Yale University Press, 1993

Nochlin, Linda, “Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?” In Women, Art, and Power, and Other Essays, New York: Harper Collins, 1988

Rosenblum, Robert: 19th Century Art, Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005

Signac, Paul: “From Eugéne Delacroix to Neo-Impressionism” in Art in Theory 1815 -1900, ed.: Harrison, Charles and Wood, Paul. Blackwell Publishers Ltd., 1998

Academic Regulations  

Please make sure to read the Academic Regulations on the DIS website. There you will find regulations on: 

• Course Enrollment and Grading  
• Academic Expectations and Honor Code 

DIS - Study Abroad in Scandinavia - www.DISabroad.org