Art History

Part A    Briefly define art history as an academic field based on your understanding of the readings in the textbook Introduction. Next, discuss two of the natural and human threats to artworks that concern contemporary art historians. Provide specific examples of threats, the artworks involved, and how these threats affect the interpretation of the works by art historians.

Part B    Explain the construction of megalithic architecture and dome building, tracing its history from pre-historic art to the Renaissance. Begin your discussion describing the architectural innovations of the tomb in Newgrange, Ireland and connect these innovations with subsequent examples of the tholos tombs in Greece, to the Pantheon in Rome and conclude with the Florence Cathedral.

Works of architecture to include in your Part B discussion:
1.    Tomb, Newgrange, Ireland. c. 3000-2500 BCE.
2.    Interior of tholos tomb, Mycenae, Greece. c. 1300-1200 BCE.
3.    Pantheon, Rome. 110-128 CE.
4.    Filippo Brunelleschi, Dome of Florence Cathedral. 1420-1436 CE.