ARH 299: Northern Art in the Renaissance

In Bologna, art can mean Greek gods, farmers, saints, political power, and even everyday scenes of people eating, drinking, and living in the city. This course explores the lively and eccentric world of Bolognese art in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, when the city’s position between Rome, Florence, and Venice helped shape a distinctive artistic identity known as the Bolognese School. Through lectures, discussions, museum visits, and on-site learning in churches, palaces, and museums, students will examine how Bologna transformed the influence of Renaissance masters such as Raphael, Michelangelo, and Titian into a new and deeply human form of realism. The course connects major artistic developments to the city’s political, religious, and cultural history, including the rise of Papal rule, the Council of Trent, and the revolutionary work of the Carracci family, whose innovations helped usher in the Baroque period. By studying works of art in the spaces for which they were created, students will gain a richer understanding of Bologna’s artistic legacy and a deeper appreciation for the city itself.