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1. Dancing with the Devil: Salvator Rosa’s Manifestations of Witchcraft in Seventeenth Century Italy
- Type:
- Student Work
- Description/Abstract:
- Throughout the seventeenth century, ideas of the occult and mystique of witchcraft consumed public interest in artistic circles in Florence, Italy. Salvator Rosa (1615-1673), an Italian artist from Naples, participated in this movement from 1640 until his death. As interests in the occult heightened during his time in Florence, he participated in suspicions of witchcraft through his Scenes of Witchcraft (1645-1649). Located at the Cleveland Museum of Art, the series consists of four tondi, each portraying a witch with harrowing spectators at different times of the day. However, to ensure his esteemed prominence, he returned to Rome and produced religious works. The macabre interests that captivated Rosa in Scenes of Witchcraft (1645-49) became a vehicle of undermining the church through The Shade of Samuel Appears to Saul (1668) when the artist returned to Rome. In this paper I propose that through shared iconography, The Shade of Samuel Appears to Saul is a painting of witchcraft, and serves to undermine the authority of the church. Witches or other necromancing subjects were accepted solely to elevate the morality of biblical characters. By giving the witch of Endor agency, Rosa is offering an alternative subject that serves to rival the power of God.
- Creator/Author:
- Banks, Claire
- Submitter:
- Claire Banks
- Date Uploaded:
- 04/26/2026
- Date Modified:
- 04/26/2026
- Date Created:
- April 26, 2026
- License:
- CC0 1.0 Universal
- Type:
- Article
- Description/Abstract:
- The young boy in Francisco de Zurbarán’s (1598-1664) Saint Peter Nolasco Recovering the Image of the Virgin of El Puig (1630) has been suggested to be either Zurbarán’s son, Juan de Zurbarán (1620–1649), or the son of James I of Aragon, Alfonso of Castile (1229–1260). Despite visual dominance, most scholars do not address the boy, and those who do offer conflicting identifications. This paper bridges the gap between these varying opinions, and concretely identifies the most formally important figure in this commission that defined Zurbarán’s career. The argument is built on the writings of Zurbarán scholar Martin S. Soria, as well as a comparison to Zurbarán’s body of work at large, primarily his tendency to create from life, and his suspected self-portrait, The Crucified Christ with a Painter (1650). I conclude that the child in the piece is likely a culmination of Juan and Alfonso and explore the implication of Zurbarán depicting his child in the noble and pious role of James the Conqueror’s son, paying witness to the rediscovery of the Virgin of El Puig. The combined figure of Juan and Alfonso gains significance through an exploration of historical context surrounding the legend of the Virgin of El Puig and its key figures. By drawing parallels between 17th-century Spanish colonialism contemporary to Zurbarán’s time and 13th-century Reconquista depicted in the painting, Zurbarán uses this composite figure to assert a vision of his lineage as triumphant and divinely favoured. Ultimately, this paper continues and expands upon Soria’s writings on the subject, and places Zurbarán within a Baroque tradition of artists, such as Velázquez, who used painting to assert their profession as divinely-inspired, nobel, and distinct from craftsmen.
- Creator/Author:
- Krimmer, Ruby
- Submitter:
- Ruby Krimmer
- Date Uploaded:
- 04/28/2025
- Date Modified:
- 04/28/2025
- Date Created:
- April 25, 2025
- License:
- All rights reserved
- Type:
- Document
- Description/Abstract:
- While DeCamps "Woman Drying Her Hair (1898)" may appear at first glance to be a conventional nude, its composition, technique, and context suggest that DeCamp intended it as a deep investigation into form and style- a study rather than a narrative work. Through his study in Europe like Munich, Germany and mentorship provided by Frank Duveneck, DeCamp refined his ability to portray the figure in a way that was both perpetually rigorous and resonant to anatomical paintings in America.
- Creator/Author:
- Cruz, Maleya
- Submitter:
- Maleya Cruz
- Date Uploaded:
- 04/22/2025
- Date Modified:
- 04/29/2025
- License:
- All rights reserved
- Type:
- Document
- Description/Abstract:
- Turning things that were once seen as inappropriate or undesirable to being widely accepted and loved. This can be seen in all aspects of culture, even visual culture and the arts. Two seemingly unrelated practices that have a changed perception are Tattooing and the production of Kitsch. Throughout the last century, views on tattoos have shifted tremendously in all features such as styles, techniques, symbolism, and social acceptance. Tattoo styles have changed drastically since their earliest documentation from tribal styles to commemorative memorials, and being used as a way to permanently decorate the body, in a way jewelry (although similar) cannot. Tattoos were predominately a sacred practice highlighting aspects of a culture, religion, and social class. As tattooing, was adopted by more cultures, people began to adapt the art form to fit their specific interests. In the Western world, specifically America the individuals getting these tattoos were usually seen as lower class, outcasts, and rebels. Kitsch has a long and verifying history that starts in Germany making its way to the United States just under a century ago. In the 85 years since its debut it has been great discussed and interpreted and continuously evolving. It was originally associated with low class works of art that were not thought provoking and tended to be masses produced. The association of the low class with tattoos and kitsch is very similar to how Norman Rockwell’s illustrations were seen in his early years of production. Rockwell was an American illustrator who was known for creating a romanticized depiction of American life through a photorealistic style. The evolution of tattoo acceptance and kitsch reflects a path similar to Norman Rockwell’s art. All turn towards a more positive, socially accepting, and new understanding entirely. The painting “Tattoo Artist” by Norman Rockwell is an uncanny comparison to how himself as an artist and tattoos both being seen as kitsch has changed with the times. The paralleled change in acceptance of tattoos, kitsch and Norman Rockwell all show that nostalgia is a strong factor in deciding what modern culture deems permissible.
- Creator/Author:
- Lutz, Kennedi
- Submitter:
- Kennedi Lutz
- Date Uploaded:
- 04/04/2024
- Date Modified:
- 04/23/2024
- Date Created:
- 2024/04/28
- License:
- Public Domain Mark 1.0
- Type:
- Document
- Description/Abstract:
- Joan Miró, a Catalan artist, was religiously dedicated to the work of poets. In 1925, Miró felt it necessary to begin incorporating poetry into his paintings, shifting the essence of his work towards poetic impression. While his early works incorporated more obvious references to poetics, his large-scale murals of Blue I, II, and III from 1961 embody many of his earliest poetic influences in a less-obvious form. I will trace how poetics from the 20th century manifested in the works of Joan Miró to form the triptych of Blue I, Blue II, and Blue III.
- Creator/Author:
- Morriss, Lizie
- Submitter:
- Elizabeth Morriss
- Date Uploaded:
- 04/04/2024
- Date Modified:
- 04/23/2024
- Date Created:
- 4/17/2024
- License:
- Attribution 4.0 International
- Type:
- Document
- Description/Abstract:
- An examination of Yayoi Kusama’s works through the lens of disability studies.
- Creator/Author:
- Delgado, Amanda
- Submitter:
- Amanda Delgado
- Date Uploaded:
- 04/20/2023
- Date Modified:
- 04/25/2023
- License:
- Public Domain Mark 1.0