VENETIAN ART AND ARCHAEOLOGY – 1 FROM THE ORIGINS OF VENICE TO THE BIENNALE

The course is addressed to students coming from all study areas.The course is designed for international students and therefore represents an opportunity for native Italian students to experience 'internationalisation at home'.
N.B. This class is organised by the Ca' Foscari School for International Education (SIE). Students cannot attend classes or take exams if they are not officially enrolled in the course. For further information on the SIE English-taught courses for exchange students, please visit this webpage: https://www.unive.it/pag/35228/

By the end of the course, and through a combination of lectures and guided tours, students will be able to:

- analyze and compare works of architecture, painting, sculpture, and archaeological sites, identifying their formal, stylistic, and material characteristics;

- interpret and contextualize these works and sites within their historical, cultural, and social frameworks, and within the broader development of European Art and Archaeology;

- evaluate the interconnections between archaeology and the environment, assessing how natural settings, resources, and ecological changes shape human activity, cultural production, and the preservation of material remains.

The course is conceived to introduce Venetian art to students who do not necessarily have a background in any field of Humanities, including Art. Students enrolled on a degree course in Classics, Arts or Humanities, especially MA students, are kindly asked to get in touch with the instructor.

The course examines the development and dissemination of Venetian art from the city's origins to the fall of the Serenissima. It emphasizes Venice's distinctive geo-morphological characteristics and their impact on its artistic achievements. Key architectural, sculptural, and painted works will be analyzed within their historical and cultural contexts, covering the high Middle Ages through the 19th century, while also addressing the global legacy of Venetian heritage from the 20th century to today. The course further explores artistic exchanges with other Veneto centers, including Treviso, Verona, Vicenza, and Padua. Through the study of selected masterpieces, students will gain insight into their historical settings, styles, and techniques. Special focus will be given to archaeological sites, underscoring their significance in understanding the unique heritage of Venice and its lagoon.

Recommended Reading List:

G. ORTALLI, G. SCARABELLO, A short history of Venice, Venezia, Pacini editore, 1999 (available on Moodle).

E. DURSTELER (ed.), A Companion to Venetian History, Leiden, Brill, 2013 (selected chapters).

C. BALDACCI, S. BASSI; L. DE CAPITANI, P. D. OMODEO (ed.), Venice and the Anthropocene. An ecocritical guide, Venezia, Wetlands, 2022.

Written test. Individual presentations on subjects previously discussed with the lecturer are welcome.
Attendance to classes is highly recommended.

written

30 with honors: maximum points in all items listed in the previous point (assessment method)
30: excellent evaluation of all points listed under assessment methods
28 - 29: very good evaluation of all points listed under assessment methods
25 - 27: overall good evaluation but some shortcomings in one or more points
18 - 24: fair evaluation with obvious shortcomings in all points
<18: overall failure

Frontal lectures, guided tours (if possible).

The distinctive feature of the course is the international composition of the class, generally including a variety of provenances both in geography and education. For this reason too, attendance to classes is highly recommended. Please note that students who cannot attend classes are required to prepare some additional readings to be agreed with the instructor.

Please note that there is only one exam session. It is not possible to repeat the exam at a later date.
Students regularly enrolled in the Master's Degree Programme in European, American and Postcolonial Languages and Literatures are allowed to take the exam on an additional date no later than the end of the following month (i.e. the end of January 2025 if the exam session is in December 2024).
N.B. Students in this case must discuss the additional exam date with the teacher during the first weeks of classes.

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Human capital, health, education" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development