Assignment #1 Women in Art

On the 2008 AP art history test, the first essay section focused on images of women in art and how these images defined aspects of the culture for which they were created.

I read approximately 600 of the 20,000 essays written for this topic. The unique aspect of this essay was the unconscious consenus among students who chose roughly the same ten artworks in their essays.

The Venus of Willendorf
Mona Lisa
Andy Warhol's Marilyn triptych
portrait bust of Nefertiti
statue of Hatshepsut holding offerings
Manet's Olympia
Titian's Venus of Urbino
Judy Chicago's The Dinner Party
self-portrait by Frida Kahlo (usually not specifically defined)
Judith Slaying Holofernes by Artemesia Gentileschi

Images of women abound in art. Just check out this fantastic video 200 Years of Women in Art by Philip Scott Johnson



How does this video illustrate images of women throughout centuries of art. What similarities can you find between the various artworks as they dissolve into each other. Are there artworks that seem incongruous or unusual? How much do aesthetics of beauty factor into our perceptions of women?

Welcome

In reading, as in eating, an appetite is half the feast.- Anonymous

Welcome to the long seemingly endless march through art history. We will be slogging through at an alarming rate and, as this is a university level course, it good to remember that this class is also a community of intelligent and innovative people.

We will be using this blog to explore artworks, short and long essay questions, and cool constructive sites and resources to this class.

We'll start with some links that you will want to access constantly throughout this term

Gardner's Book Site: http://www.wadsworth.com/cgi-wadsworth/course_products_wp.pl?fid=M20b&product_isbn_issn=0534642004&discipline_number=37
Stokstad Book Site: http://www.prenhall.com/stokstad/
Janson Book Site: http://www.prenhall.com/janson/
Art History Resources on the Web: http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHLinks.html