Seeing inside paintings

What is the course about?

Engage with artists’ materials and techniques of Early Modern Europe, focussing on key Old Master artists from 14th to 19th centuries (including, Tudor and Stuart court painting, Rembrandt, Rubens and Netherlandish painting, Fuseli and British painting) and learn about historic materials and techniques.

We consider the use of pigments, stories of trade and manufacture (at times, colonialism) involved in their production to offer an overview of developments in paint media, techniques and workshop practice. Sources for understanding historic painting techniques, including artists’ treatises, contemporary accounts of artists’ practice and relevant aspects of the socio-historic context offer a holistic understanding of these periods of painting.

We'll introduce how scientific techniques are used to analyse painting techniques, detect forgeries and conceal underlying elements, including hidden paintings. Case studies include the tutor's discovery of an underlying contemporary portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the forgeries of Han van Meegeren, amongst others. We'll introduce the physical history of artworks, including how alteration and historic conservation/restoration can impact how a painting appears.

Tutor Caroline Rae is an art historian specialising in early modern northern European easel painting. Caroline uses the interdisciplinary methodology of technical art history to address questions of materiality, workshop practice, attribution and cross-cultural influence. Her current research interests are Netherlandish émigré artists who worked at court in England and Scotland in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, Tudor, Stuart and Jacobean portraiture, and the history of artists' materials and techniques. Caroline has recently published on portraiture of Mary, Queen of Scots, and she has also published previously on the materials and techniques of artists including John de Critz the Elder, Adrian Vanson, and Henry Fuseli RA.

What will we cover?

• Artists’ materials and techniques in the Early Modern period in Europe
• Scientific examination of artworks
• Physical history of artworks.

What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...

· Identify the use of some typical techniques and approaches used in creating works of art produced in the Early Modern period in Europe
· Discuss some major trends in artists’ practice throughout the Early Modern period in Europe and apply this in your visual analysis of paintings when you visit galleries and museums
· Understand a range of materials and techniques which were used in the period and their benefits/ limitations for artists. Understand some key differing approaches to conservation of paintings, and how these can impact on viewing an artwork.

What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?

This course is suitable for all levels.

You should be able to follow simple written and verbal instructions, demonstrations, and health and safety information. You should be able to operate the basic elements of Zoom, including camera and microphone. You will be invited to take part in group discussion.

How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?

You will be taught online with slide presentations and group discussions. You will be sent an invitation to join the Google Classroom within a week of the course start date.

This is a live lesson course - sessions are not recorded or available on demand for reasons of copyright, data protection and digital infrastructure.

Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?

You might wish to purchase a notebook for taking notes. You might wish to buy some of the books on any reading list provided.

When I've finished, what course can I do next?

Study day: Rembrandt and 17th century printmaking
Looking at paintings.