François Boucher, Juno asking Aeolus to release the winds, 1769.
François Boucher, Juno asking Aeolus to release the winds, 1769.
Goal: to improve the research and written skills of visual analysis and contextual historical analysis.
Assignment: To examine a painting at the Kimbell Art Museum and analyze its artistic elements and art-historical context; and secondly to contextualize the artwork in terms of its Nazi-era provenance.
Compose your paper under the following requirements. Pay close attention to the format requirements listed in the rubric appended to these instructions. Grade is based on Format (40%) and Content (60%).
Paragraphs on Identification and Original Context (when the artwork was created): 30 points
1. Identify the artist’s name and nationality, title of the work, date created, medium, and subject matter. Describe the painting’s subject matter in your own words. Subject matter = who or what can we identify in the picture, and what (if anything) is happening? If some of your description is informed by the museum label, please cite the label as your source of information (regardless: please use your own words and phrasing).
2. Discuss your artist’s contemporary context – what is his/her period; in what cities/countries did they live and work; with what styles or art movements are they associated? Define and cite characteristics of this art style or movement; then cite specific details in your artwork that demonstrate how it relates to that style/movement.
3. What is the artwork’s origin (commissioned or not) and/or function, if known? That is, why did the artist create the work? If unknown, you are permitted to speculate based on historical facts. You can determine the origin by looking at the object entry on the Kimbell website: read the description as well as the provenance; and listen to the recording (if available). Ask instructor for help, if needed.
Paragraphs on Nazi and World War II-Era Provenance: 30 points
4. Trace the ownership of the work from its inception until the 1930s (just before World War II). Identify owner names, dates, locations, and how the artwork changed hands (e.g., by inheritance, or through a dealer sale, or an auction, etc.). Focus especially on the last owner of the artwork prior to the Second World War. Provide a description of that owner’s identity, family, and background. (Consult and cite the artwork’s entry on the Kimbell website, and any other databases or sources of provenance information).
5. Describe how the work was “displaced” as a result of Nazi policy; that is, why was it targeted by the Nazis (refer to and cite the provenance record listed on the Kimbell website)? What specific Nazi policies, organizations, and people were likely involved (if the record is vague, please speculate narrowly, based on historical facts discussed in class or in readings). *If you choose the Turner painting, translate the French text on the provenance record and ask the instructor for assistance, if necessary.
6. When, how, and to whom was the work restituted? How and when did the Kimbell come to acquire it?
7. The study and appreciation of a work of art is influenced by many factors. As exemplified by your artwork,
what role does (or should) provenance play in the understanding of a work’s overall significance? Why is it important to know the provenance of a work of art?
RESEARCH RESOURCES (PRINT): museum label, textbooks, other scholarly publications, newspapers
ONLINE RESOURCES: Kimbell Art Museum: www.kimbellart.org/collection – see the entry for your painting **Google Scholar – https://scholar.google.com/ – to find reliable resources on virtually any topic
–Database of E.R.R.-looted artworks at the Jeu de Paume, Paris: https://www.errproject.org/jeudepaume/ –NARA (National Archives and Records Administration), US government archives: https://www.archives.gov/ –General Art History Research: http://research.frick.org/
NOTE: Any student who uses Wikipedia, social media, Mental Floss, or any other source without corroboration from another reputable source will lose points, as well as dignity.
If you use outside sources, cite them using MLA format and use a Bibliography. If you use information from the museum, it is fine to say something like “According to the Kimbell Art Museum, …” Your paper, however, should reflect your own independent thinking and processing of historical facts, and should be written as a formal academic paper. THEREFORE, avoid the following:
– quoting, copying or paraphrasing from outside sources
– first and second-person nouns (I, you, we, our)
– qualifying statements like “I think”, “I believe” (such statements weaken your analysis)
