81723 - History of Indian Art (1) (LM)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course the student will have acquired a thorough knowledge of the main art-historical topics regarding South Asia. He will be able to discuss them effectively orally and/or in writing, using the appropriate terminology and with suitable bibliographic references. He will be in possession of the skills required to place artworks from the area in question in their proper context.

Course contents

Forms of Śiva – iconography and iconology of representations of the Hindu god from the earliest examples to the medieval period.

The course will examine the earliest iconographic forms of Śiva and their development up the the 13th century. The first part of the course will present the art historical features that serve to set the images in their proper context and will address particular issues, such as the birth and first uses of images in relation to religious practice and the development of the iconographies of Hindu deities as a whole. The second part of the course will analyse the chief iconographic forms of Śiva in relation to the associated mythological themes and will compare iconological interpretations of certain iconographies. The final lecture will summarize the salient topics and problems explored during the course and will include exercises in preparation for the exam. A detailed programme of the topics discussed in each lecture will be provided in the first lecture and will be included among the teaching materials on the "Insegnamenti OnLine" platform.

Course timetable:

From THURSDAY 3rd October 2019

MONDAY, 15–17, Aula 2, Dipartimento di Storia Culture Civilità, via Zamboni, 33.

TUESDAY, 15–17, Aula 2, Dipartimento di Storia Culture Civilità, via Zamboni, 33.

THURSDAY, 15–17, Aula 2, Dipartimento di Storia Culture Civilità, via Zamboni, 33.

Readings/Bibliography

- S. Huntington, The Art of Ancient India, New York–Tokyo, Weatherhill, 1985, pp. 125-162; pp. 187-219; pp. 220-237; pp. 275-290; pp. 291-350.

- S. Kramrisch, The Presence of Śiva, Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1981, chs. 1, 7, 8, 9, 10, 12.

- S. Kramrisch, Manifestations of Śiva, Philadelphia, Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1981, pp. xiv-xxiv; figg. 1-2, 6-8, 9-27, 29-41, 47-55, 59; p. 74 e figg. 61-63; p. 79 e figg. 64-66, 81-85, 88; p. 114 e figg. 94-96; p. 128 e figg. 104-6; p. 134 e figg. 109-111; pp. 138-147 e figg. 112-122 (download it here).

- Michael W. Meister (a cura di), Discourses on Śiva, Bombay, Vakils, Feffer & Simons, 1984, pp. 1-61, 103-118, 143-169 (download it here).

The PDF course tools made available to students are required reading for the exam. They will be put on the 'Insegnamenti OnLine' platform at the beginning of each week (every three lessons).

Teaching methods

Frontal lesson: presentation, reading and analysis of selected works

Assessment methods

The exam will be conducted orally and will assess the student's command of the material studied in the course. The student will be asked to provide a commentary on images selected from among those found in the course texts and will be judged on his ability to summarise and critically discuss topics raised in the course, making use of the exam bibliography and the course tools provided.

The assessment will thus consider the student's:
- competence in commenting on the images, i.e. in identifying, dating and contextualizing the works illustrated;
- knowledge and understanding of the topics covered;
- ability to summarise and analyse themes and concepts;
- familiarity with the terminology associated with the subject and his ability to use it effectively.

Top marks will be awarded to a student displaying an ability to provide a full description of the images and an overall understanding of the topics discussed during the lectures, combined with a critical approach to the material and a confident and effective use of the appropriate terminology

Average marks will be awarded to a student who has memorized the main points of the material and is able to summarise them satisfactorily and provide an effective critical commentary, while failing to display a complete command of the appropriate terminology.

A student will be deemed to have failed the exam if he displays significant errors in his understanding and failure to grasp the overall outlines of the subject, together with a poor command of the appropriate terminology.

Teaching tools

Power point presentations available on the 'Insegnamenti OnLine' platform.

Office hours

See the website of Nicoletta Celli