This thesis analyses the work Magic Mirror(Blue) by sculptor Ann Veronica Janssens from painterly, spatial, temporal and spectatorial perspectives. At the same time, it offers an alternative...Show moreThis thesis analyses the work Magic Mirror(Blue) by sculptor Ann Veronica Janssens from painterly, spatial, temporal and spectatorial perspectives. At the same time, it offers an alternative reading to the socio-political lecture that Dutch semiotician and cultural theorist Mieke Bal makes of Janssens' art. To this end, this thesis shows in which ways Magic Mirror (Blue) establishes a unique and private dialogue with the beholder.Show less
This thesis explores the early modern coffeehouse and its bourgeois clientele in Europe in the form of a case study on Dutch coffeehouses in Amsterdam in the 17th and 18th centuries. The chosen...Show moreThis thesis explores the early modern coffeehouse and its bourgeois clientele in Europe in the form of a case study on Dutch coffeehouses in Amsterdam in the 17th and 18th centuries. The chosen inquiry seeks to elucidate how a new social category – the bourgeoisie – developed over altered drinking habits, materials and the corresponding aesthetical codes within the social institution of the coffeehouse. Rather newly, the coffeehouse as an institution of publicness and consumption in the Enlightenment is researched from the angle of visual and material history. On the whole, this thesis contributes to the cultural historical field of early modern consumption. One result is that the consumer goods coffee and porcelain created a balance between rational forms of conduct and individual attitudes within the public sphere of coffeehouses. A multifarious historical approach by the means of visual and textual sources towards the early modern consumption of both coffee and porcelain considers the correspondent material qualities and suggests that porcelain from China has been remarkably suitable for the coffee ritual which entered Europe from the Middle and Near East. The thereby evolved tastes were groundbreaking for the rise of the bourgeoisie. This is demonstrated by the analysis of the design and arrangement of the vessels required for the individual and collective display of the tastes around coffee-drinking, on the basis of inventories and images. From a postcolonial perspective, the present thesis outlines which associations around the historical concept of luxury accompanied the adoption of Asian coffee and porcelain coffee ware into European consumption habits, while the world of coffee has always been represented as an oriental theme in travelogues, recipe books, medicinal treatises and fashion plates. Furthermore, the thesis describes how these ideas and values associated with coffee-drinking enabled the consolidation of the social construct of a specific regional group of the urban middleclass bourgeoisie, while locating the coffeehouse in the unique historical environment of early modern Amsterdam.Show less
The aim of this thesis is to understand the dynamics of the commissioning of public artworks and the role that the municipality of The Hague, Stroom and the citizens play in the process. Through...Show moreThe aim of this thesis is to understand the dynamics of the commissioning of public artworks and the role that the municipality of The Hague, Stroom and the citizens play in the process. Through the research on three public artworks in the public space of The Hague, the extent to which civic participation plays a role in public art projects will be discussed. The three public artworks that are discussed in this thesis are The Player by Folkert de Jong for the Koningsplein, Ling Zhi Helicopters by Huang Yong Ping for the city district of Leidschenveen-Ypenburg and the to be realized Commemorative Monument to (the abolishment of) slavery. Additionally, interviews with involved parties and themes such as political policies and theories on civic participation will demonstrate to what extent civic participation plays a role in the process of creating a public artwork in the public space.Show less
Art has always been a by-product of the human experience. Arthur Amiotte proudly displays his indigenous-American heritage through his multidisciplinary collages produced in the late twentieth...Show moreArt has always been a by-product of the human experience. Arthur Amiotte proudly displays his indigenous-American heritage through his multidisciplinary collages produced in the late twentieth-century, revealing a complex intermingling of influences and identities working against our increasingly polarized world. Through historical research, visual analysis, and an exhibition review, this thesis will decode such manifestations of identity in an attempt to show another side of assimilation, where First Nation peoples are given more credit and agency for their adaptation and survival, against all odds.Show less
The research focuses on the frontispieces from René Descartes' Opera philosophica, printed in 1664 in Amsterdam by Janssonius & Weyerstraten, addressing the role that images play in the...Show moreThe research focuses on the frontispieces from René Descartes' Opera philosophica, printed in 1664 in Amsterdam by Janssonius & Weyerstraten, addressing the role that images play in the understanding of a philosophical text. The first part offers a visual analysis and identification of the two prints, attributing them to artist Cornelis Hellemans. A brief account of the circulation and reprinting of these engravings is also given. The second part looks at the two prints from an embodied cognition perspective, investigating a deeper layer of visual understanding through bodily metaphors. The gestures and countenance of the figures are analyzed in depth through the theories of Lakoff & Johnson. Lastly, the third part investigates the role that images play in reading comprehension through contemporary accounts and studies, especially those pioneered by Glenberg. The possibilities and limits of the embodied cognition framework for art historical research are also taken into consideration here.Show less
In a globalizing world, the need for intercultural connection rapidly increases. The Dutch government responds to this need by giving civic education a more prominent position in primary and...Show moreIn a globalizing world, the need for intercultural connection rapidly increases. The Dutch government responds to this need by giving civic education a more prominent position in primary and secondary education. Dutch civic education focuses on fostering social cohesion and creating active citizenship. This research explores the extent to which museums, as important educational institutions, could contribute to these efforts. It aims to find out if and how critical pedagogy could contribute to civic education in museums. In the existing literature, there is no consensus about the usefulness of this theory. It is questioned in terms of its distinctiveness, applicability, usefulness in times of globalization and activistic character. In order to contribute to this debate, a new theoretical framework is set out by integrating Freire’s notion of critical pedagogy with museological observations about this theory. This framework is then used as a lens through which the educational program Achter het Goud of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam is critically analyzed. The research concludes that the new critical pedagogy framework helps students to become aware of various cultures, critically assess their position in the cultural stratification, and understand how cultural power relations are maintained, both in and outside the museum. Moreover, it helps students to become active citizens who improve society in terms in equality and justice. Thereby, when properly applied in museum education, critical pedagogy can foster the main aims of Dutch civic education by stimulating both social cohesion and active participation among students.Show less
The seventeenth century, especially in the second half, was a significant transitional era in the history of the study of insects. Some of the most famous names in this regard are Johannes Goedaert...Show moreThe seventeenth century, especially in the second half, was a significant transitional era in the history of the study of insects. Some of the most famous names in this regard are Johannes Goedaert, Maria Sibylla Merian, and Jan Swammerdam. All these naturalists carefully observed insects and turned their findings into illustrations; however, Goedaert and Merian, who possessed excellent painting skills, were described primarily as artists by certain researchers, while Swammerdam was described as a scientist. This phenomenon forms the research problem of this thesis, expressed in a question about the connection of artistic skills of entomologists and recognition of their scientific input. The objective of this research is to determine to what extent is the artistic level of the entomologists' illustrations of influence on the level to which they are considered scientists or artists by contemporary researchers. The methods of the research were data analysis of scientific illustrations history and biographical information of the entomologists as well as comparison of the three entomologists' illustrations of the transformation of insects with the use of the theory of the picture by Gabriele Werner. The key results of the research include the findings that the opinions of the researchers could be influenced by the artistic value of the illustrations and the reputation of the entomologists as artists and scientists. The results bring to the conclusion that although art and science go hand-in-hand and complement and reinforce each other, certain aspects of entomologists' life paths can contribute to the fact that researchers attribute them to only one type of activity.Show less
This thesis concerns the curatorial practices and public engagement surrounding two reproductions from the Victoria and Albert Museum collection in London. The cast copy of Michelangelo’s David ...Show moreThis thesis concerns the curatorial practices and public engagement surrounding two reproductions from the Victoria and Albert Museum collection in London. The cast copy of Michelangelo’s David (1856) and the various examples of the Temperance Basin held within the Cast Court galleries will underscore how material interacts with the concept of authenticity in the museum. Studying these reproductions involves examining their materials and associations alongside their display as individual artworks. Further assessment by modes of digital reproduction used to replicate the case studies in scans and 3D models question the basis of materiality in the 21st century museum. In an attempt to understand the Western European museums approach reproductions over time, this thesis examines certain material aspects of authenticity that aid display, conservation, and accessibility for cast collections.Show less
