Biron, Camille (2022) The Artist and the Artisan— The Venetian Glassmaker of the Sixteenth Century. Masters thesis, Concordia University.
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Abstract
The separation between art and craft in the contemporary fine art context is less black and white than before, although some mediums are still associated with crafts as opposed to fine arts. When considering the academic distinctions between craft and art, what could we learn from looking at a moment in time when the boundaries between arts and crafts were blurred, unsettled, or in the process of being created? Although these questions have been studied by scholars before, this thesis will re-examine the division between fine art and craft from the point of view of Renaissance glassmaking – a craft technique which shared many similarities with painting and sculpture, but which was not recognized as fine art at the time that painting was. Despite not being recognized as a fine art, Venetian glassmaking stood at an equal, if not at a higher position, than other visual arts of the fifteenth century. The art was thriving in the Renaissance, even before certain mechanical arts were elevated to the status of a fine art or liberal art. Looking at the concept of liberal arts—the intellectual and gentlemanly arts—and the concept of mechanical arts—the manual and instrumental arts—this thesis will examine the line separating the two categories and will challenge standard narratives about why some mechanical arts (namely painting) eventually became recognized as liberal arts, while others (namely glassmaking) did not. The art of Venetian glassmaking will also be studied through the intimate connection it shared with the city’s image of itself as a divine state, and how certain socio-political aspects might have influenced the elevation of some crafts, and perhaps limited others.
| Divisions: | Concordia University > Faculty of Fine Arts > Art History |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
| Authors: | Biron, Camille |
| Institution: | Concordia University |
| Degree Name: | M.A. |
| Program: | Art History |
| Date: | 30 August 2022 |
| Thesis Supervisor(s): | Stowell, Steven |
| Keywords: | Art, Craft, Renaissance, Glass, Glassblowing, Mechanical arts, Liberal Arts. |
| ID Code: | 990973 |
| Deposited By: | Camille Biron |
| Deposited On: | 27 Oct 2022 14:00 |
| Last Modified: | 27 Oct 2022 14:00 |
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