Economics of art in the ancient world
Prerequisiti
The class is devoted to undergraduate and PhD students.
Programma
"Artists and agency" and "Materials, itinerant artists, costs" aim at highlighting some aspects of the economics of art in the ancient world. Thanks to the investigations of a selection of monuments and offerings, in particular in the panhellenic sanctuaries, the course focuses on the role and the figures of the agents (from the polis to the private citizen), on their self-representation, on the competition among peers and on the relationship with itinerant artists in the ancient Mediterranean through a wide gamut of cases, in term of geography, typology and chronology. In-depth discussion will be dedicated to the economic aspects of the artistic achievements, to the supply and costs of the raw materials, to the labour costs and the specialization with the workshops, according to the information provided by literary sources and epigraphic evidence.
Supplementary activities will be held by Dr Kenneth Lapatin, curator at the J.P. Getty Museum , Los Angeles, and focus on museography, in particular on the display of archaeological artifacts, in a two-fold perspective: the permanent display of a museum and the ephemeral display of an exhibition.
Obiettivi formativi
The course aims at providing with tools and methodological approaches to understand some issues related to the agency in the ancient world, to the chronology of the artworks and monuments, to the style, in an economic and social perspective. In the past, scholars have sought to identify the "hand" of the most celebrated masters, as we know from literary sources; on the contrary, this course will focus on material, technical, technological, economic aspects realted to the creation of artworks, from sculpture to painting to architecture.
Supplementary activity will provide with notions and instruments related to the display of archaeological artifacts in museums and exhibitions and is mainly thought for those students who are interested in a study and research career connected to the museum institutions, to conservation and protection of the cultural heritage.
Riferimenti bibliografici
G. Adornato-G. Cirucci-W. Cupperi (eds.), Beyond "Art Collections". Owning and Accumulating Objects from Greek Antiquity to the Early Modern Period, Berlin-Boston 2020.
A. Burford, The Greek-Temple Builders at Epidauros, Liverpool 1969.
S. Cuomo, Technology and Culture in Greek and Roman Antiquity, Cambridge 2007.
W.B. Dinsmoor, Attic Building Accounts.I. The Parthenon, AJA 17, 1913, 53-80.
W.B. Dinsmoor, Attic Building Accounts.IV. The Statue of Athena Promachos, AJA 25, 1921, 118-129.
G. Donnay, Les comptes de l'Athéna Chryséléphantine du Parthénon, BCH 91, 1967, 50-86.
K. Lapatin, Greek and Roman Glyptic: Alibi Ars, Alibi Materia, in H. Hochscheid-B. Russell (eds.), The Value of Making. Theory and Practice in Ancient craft Production, Turnhout 2021, 189-231.
G. Marginesu, Il costo del Partenone. Appalti e affari dell'arte greca, Roma 2020.
R. Pitt, Inscribing Construction. The Financing and Administration of Public Building in Greek Sanctuaries, in M.M. Miles (ed.), A Companion to Greek Architecture,
Malden-Oxford 2016, 194-205.
P. Schultz, Style and Agency in an Age of Transition, in R. Osborne (ed.), Debating the Athenian Cultural Revolution. Art, Literature, Philosophy, and Politics 430-380 B.C.,
Cambridge 2007, 144-187.
A. Stewart, Why Bronze?, in J. Daehner-K. Lapatin (eds.), Power and Pathos. Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World, Los Angeles 2015, 35-45
A. Stewart, Patronage, Compensation, and the Social Status of Sculptors, in O. Palagia (ed.), Handbook of Greek Sculpture, Berlin-Boston 2019, 50-88.
Moduli
| Modulo | Ore | CFU | Docenti |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modulo 2: Artisti e committenza (per ordinari e PhD) | 20 | 3 | Gianfranco Adornato |