HOA300.1 Empires of Exchange: The Visual Cultures of Power, Mobility, and Erasure in the Mediterranean (Signature Seminar; Fall)

LIMITED ENROLLMENT This traveling seminar investigates artistic exchange between the medieval and early modern cities of Ravenna, Venice, and Trieste to discover Roman, Slavic, Byzantine, Spanish, German, French, Arab, Ottoman, Muslim and Jewish influence on Italian art and culture. Throughout the seminar, we will experience the rich diversity of the Italian Peninsula’s north-eastern territories, arriving all the way to its border. Through the themes of political power, cultural mobility and erasure, as well as the dynamics of shared urban spaces, we analyze how the Mediterranean Sea connected Jewish, Christian, and Muslim peoples. While the course focuses on the art and architecture of each region in the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period (1000-1700), consideration is also given to the modern afterlives of these sites. Ultimately, we will examine how the medieval and early modern past still inform contemporary concerns on immigration and European political identity.

The three credits earned for this seminar will be included in the maximum 19 credits that you can earn for your semester abroad. You must enroll in a minimum of 16 credits – including this seminar – for the semester.

This Signature Seminar is optional and travel destinations are subject to change. Seminar either takes place before semester classes start or after classes conclude.

Department: History of Art

Location: Florence

Semester: Fall

Credits: 3