Intro to Art History Midterm

Prehistoric

Usually describes a period before the invention of writing, or before writing that we have not yet been able to decipher

Hand stencil

An image created by by placing a hand on the wall of a rock shelter or other surface and blowing paint over it to create a silhouetted image of the hand

Figurative

Art that portrays human or animal forms

Painterly

Characterized by color and texture, rather than line

Incised

Cut or engraved

Ziggurat

A stepped pyramid or tower-like structure in a Mesopotamian temple complex

Façade/Facade

Any exterior vertical face of a building, usually the front

Pictorial narrative

Storytelling in pictures that presents a connected sequence of events

Register

A horizontal section of a work, usually a clearly defined band or line

Votive

An image or object created as a devotional offering to a deity

Hierarchical scale

The use of size to denote the relative importance of subjects in an artwork

Hieroglyph

Type of written script that uses conventionalized signs to represent concepts, sounds, or words

Mastaba

A massive, flat-topped rectangular tomb building with slanted side walls; Built of either mud brick or cut stone

Step pyramid

A monumental stone pyramid built using stacked platforms or steps

Sunken relief

Relief that is carved into a sunken area and does not project above the surface

Bust

A sculpture of a person’s head, shoulders, and chest

Sarcophagus

A container for human remains

Fresco, Buon Fresco

Wall or ceiling painting on wet plaster; Wet pigment merges with the plaster, and once hardened, the painting becomes an integral part of the wall

Fresco secco

Wall or ceiling painting on dry plaster

Continuous narrative

Multiple events combined within a single pictorial frame

Relieving triangle

A triangular space above the lintel, intended to relieve the weight of the masonry

Apotropaic

Possessing the power to ward off evil influences

Icon

An image of a religious subject used for contemplation

Aniconic

Symbolic or abstract, rather than figurative; Without icons or images

Circumambulation, pradakshina

The ritualistic walking or moving around of a sacred place, especially in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism

Relics

The bodily remains of saints, or items believed to have come into physical contact with the divine

Architrave

A beam resting on top of columns or extending across an entranceway

Stupa

A mound-like or hemispherical structure containing Buddhist relics

Torana

A gateway marking the entrance to a Buddhist, Hindu, or Jain sacred structure

Rock-cut

Carved from solid stone where it naturally occurs

Chiaroscuro

In two-dimensional artworks, the use of light and dark contrasts to create the impression of volume when modeling objects and figures

Linga

An abstract representation of the Hindu god Shiva that denotes his divine generative energy

Akroteria

Sculptures that adorn the roof of a temple

Necropolis

A large cemetery; From the Greek for “city of the dead”

Verism

Preferring realism, especially in portraiture, to the heroic or ideal; Comes from the Latin verus, meaning “true”

Peripteral

Having a single row of columns surrounding a building, such as in a Greek temple

Foreshortening

In two-dimensional artworks, the illusion of a form receding into space: The parts of an object or figure closest to the viewer are depicted as largest, those furthest depicted as smallest.

Linear perspective

A system of representing three-dimensional space and objects on a two-dimensional surface by means of geometry and one or more vanishing points