A Cabinet of Curiosities: ART HIST 1A03: Tutorials (Oct. 6

In anticipation of the course assignment (which I will address in class on Wednesday Oct. 6), I have asked the TAs to lead a discussion on visual analysis. The images presented below will be used in the tutorials to open questions on the formal properties of objects and images. The task, here, is not to finalize discussion by researching each object. Rather, we are aiming to open up useful questions and develop ideas from preliminary, group observations. Studies in art history and cultural heritage generally begin with the object or image and, most importantly, with the process of looking. Consider the following object for instance:

Gold belt buckle from the Sutton Hoo ship burial, Anglo-Saxon (early 7th century AD), Sutton Hoo, Suffolk, England

This is the belt buckle from the Sutton Hoo burial site in England. Even without prior knowledge of Anglo-Saxon art we can make important observations about the object by simply looking and asking relevant questions. Consider the following for instance:

What size is the object?

Does the scale of the object influence the design?

What are the materials used?

Is colour important?

Is it richly decorated or not?

Is the decoration abstract or figurative?

What are the motifs used and can we determine anything meaningful from them?

By considering such questions and weighing up our answers against the basic information provided by the identification, we can begin to explore more complex questions. If the material is gold, would it be safe to assume that the object was less functional than symbolic, ceremonial, etc.? The design appears intricate and, although it consists largely of geometric patterns and shapes, it includes subtle references to animal forms (eyes and mouths for instance). Why should animal references be made in what are, otherwise, abstract decorations? The interwoven lines that create the complex patterns seem to have a logical flow (try tracing them with your eyes!). Is this significant? Could this have some bearing upon the nature / animal references made in the abstract patterns?

These are but a few questions but, as you can see, they open up possibilities for interpretation. For instance, the abstract patterns with animal references reveal a logical orderliness which, in turn, is born of human imagination. These patterns signify an artful orderliness imposed upon the forms of nature. This, in turn, may be quite significant if we consider that such a seemingly luxurious object reflects a very high level of craft (also underscored by the luxurious material and the fact that it was found at a burial site). Add these observations together and we begin to form a potentially useful picture of the object in its time and place.

Even specialists must begin with such questions. Consider, now, the following works. Which questions would you ask and how would you respond? Give this some thought and be prepared to come to your tutorial with your observations.