Michael Baxandall
Encyclopedia
Michael David Kighley Baxandall, FBA
(August 18, 1933 – August 12, 2008) was a British-born art historian
and a professor emeritus of Art History at University of California, Berkeley
. He taught at the Warburg Institute
, University of London
, and worked as a curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum
.
, the only son of David Baxandall, a curator who was at one time director of the National Gallery of Scotland
. He went to Manchester Grammar School
and studied English at Downing College, Cambridge
, where he was taught by F. R. Leavis
. In 1955 he departed for the Continent. He spent a year at Pavia University
(1955–56), then taught at an international school in St. Gallen
in Switzerland (1956–57), and finally went to Munich to hear the art historian Hans Sedlmayr
and where he worked with Ludwig Heydenreich on the court of Urbino
at the Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte. On his return to London in 1958 he began a long association with the Warburg Institute
, initially working in the photographic collection, where he met Kay Simon, whom he married in 1963. From 1959 to 1961 he was a junior fellow, working on his never-completed PhD, Restraint in Renaissance behaviour, under Ernst Gombrich
.
From 1961, he was Assistant Keeper in the Department of Architecture and Sculpture at the Victoria and Albert Museum
, returning to the Warburg Institute in 1965 as lecturer in Renaissance Studies. He was appointed to a chair by the University of London in 1981, but increasingly spent his time in the United States. He was A. D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University
and became a half-time Professor of the History of Art at the University of California, Berkeley
in 1987. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
in 1991.
. These were followed by The Limewood Sculptors of Renaissance Germany (1980), Patterns of Intention (1985), Tiepolo and the Pictorial Intelligence (1994, with Svetlana Alpers
), Shadows and Enlightenment (1994) and Words for Pictures (2003). In all his work, Baxandall was concerned to illuminate artworks by a thorough exploration of the conditions of their production – intellectual, social, and physical. In Limewood Sculptors this took the form of using "carvings as lenses bearing on their own circumstances".
British Academy
The British Academy is the United Kingdom's national body for the humanities and the social sciences. Its purpose is to inspire, recognise and support excellence in the humanities and social sciences, throughout the UK and internationally, and to champion their role and value.It receives an annual...
(August 18, 1933 – August 12, 2008) was a British-born art historian
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
and a professor emeritus of Art History at University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
. He taught at the Warburg Institute
Warburg Institute
The Warburg Institute is a research institution associated with the University of London in central London, England. A member of the School of Advanced Study, its focus is the study of the influence of classical antiquity on all aspects of European civilisation.-History:The Institute was founded by...
, University of London
University of London
-20th century:Shortly after 6 Burlington Gardens was vacated, the University went through a period of rapid expansion. Bedford College, Royal Holloway and the London School of Economics all joined in 1900, Regent's Park College, which had affiliated in 1841 became an official divinity school of the...
, and worked as a curator at the Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
.
Career
Baxandall was born in CardiffCardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
, the only son of David Baxandall, a curator who was at one time director of the National Gallery of Scotland
National Gallery of Scotland
The National Gallery of Scotland, in Edinburgh, is the national art gallery of Scotland. An elaborate neoclassical edifice, it stands on The Mound, between the two sections of Edinburgh's Princes Street Gardens...
. He went to Manchester Grammar School
Manchester Grammar School
The Manchester Grammar School is the largest independent day school for boys in the UK . It is based in Manchester, England...
and studied English at Downing College, Cambridge
Downing College, Cambridge
Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1800 and currently has around 650 students.- History :...
, where he was taught by F. R. Leavis
F. R. Leavis
Frank Raymond "F. R." Leavis CH was an influential British literary critic of the early-to-mid-twentieth century. He taught for nearly his entire career at Downing College, Cambridge.-Early life:...
. In 1955 he departed for the Continent. He spent a year at Pavia University
University of Pavia
The University of Pavia is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. It was founded in 1361 and is organized in 9 Faculties.-History:...
(1955–56), then taught at an international school in St. Gallen
St. Gallen
St. Gallen is the capital of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. It evolved from the hermitage of Saint Gall, founded in the 7th century. Today, it is a large urban agglomeration and represents the center of eastern Switzerland. The town mainly relies on the service sector for its economic...
in Switzerland (1956–57), and finally went to Munich to hear the art historian Hans Sedlmayr
Hans Sedlmayr
Hans Sedlmayr was an Austrian art historian. Sedlmayr was University Professor of Art History in Vienna from 1936 until 1945, then in Munich from 1951 until 1964, and finally at the University of Salzburg from 1965-69, where he established the art history curriculum...
and where he worked with Ludwig Heydenreich on the court of Urbino
Urbino
Urbino is a walled city in the Marche region of Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of Federico da Montefeltro, duke of Urbino from 1444 to 1482...
at the Zentralinstitut für Kunstgeschichte. On his return to London in 1958 he began a long association with the Warburg Institute
Warburg Institute
The Warburg Institute is a research institution associated with the University of London in central London, England. A member of the School of Advanced Study, its focus is the study of the influence of classical antiquity on all aspects of European civilisation.-History:The Institute was founded by...
, initially working in the photographic collection, where he met Kay Simon, whom he married in 1963. From 1959 to 1961 he was a junior fellow, working on his never-completed PhD, Restraint in Renaissance behaviour, under Ernst Gombrich
Ernst Gombrich
Sir Ernst Hans Josef Gombrich, OM, CBE was an Austrian-born art historian who became naturalized British citizen in 1947. He spent most of his working life in the United Kingdom...
.
From 1961, he was Assistant Keeper in the Department of Architecture and Sculpture at the Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
, returning to the Warburg Institute in 1965 as lecturer in Renaissance Studies. He was appointed to a chair by the University of London in 1981, but increasingly spent his time in the United States. He was A. D. White Professor-at-Large at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
and became a half-time Professor of the History of Art at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
in 1987. He was elected a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
American Academy of Arts and Sciences
The American Academy of Arts and Sciences is an independent policy research center that conducts multidisciplinary studies of complex and emerging problems. The Academy’s elected members are leaders in the academic disciplines, the arts, business, and public affairs.James Bowdoin, John Adams, and...
in 1991.
Books
His book Giotto and the Orators was published in 1971, followed by Painting and Experience in Fifteenth Century Italy in 1972 in which he developed the influential concept of the period eyePeriod eye
The period eye is an analytical method used by art historians. The concept was devised by Michael Baxandall and described in his innovative Painting and Experience in Fifteenth-Century Italy: A Primer in the Social History of Pictorial Style where he used it to describe the cultural conditions...
. These were followed by The Limewood Sculptors of Renaissance Germany (1980), Patterns of Intention (1985), Tiepolo and the Pictorial Intelligence (1994, with Svetlana Alpers
Svetlana Alpers
Svetlana Leontief Alpers is an American artist, art historian and critic. She is a university professor and a consultant to both National Public Radio and the National Endowment for the Humanities. She was born at Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her father was Wassily Leontief, a Nobel laureate in...
), Shadows and Enlightenment (1994) and Words for Pictures (2003). In all his work, Baxandall was concerned to illuminate artworks by a thorough exploration of the conditions of their production – intellectual, social, and physical. In Limewood Sculptors this took the form of using "carvings as lenses bearing on their own circumstances".
Death and legacy
Baxandall died from pneumonia associated with Parkinson's Disease. His concept of the period eye has continued to gain in importance since his death.Publications
- Giotto and the Orators
- Painting and Experience in 15th century Italy, first published (1972), (Oxford University PressOxford University PressOxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
). - The Limewood Sculptors of Renaissance Germany, published (1980), (Yale University PressYale University PressYale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
) (paperback released in 1982). - Patterns of Intention: On the Historical Explanation of Pictures, (1985)
- Tiepolo and the Pictorial Intelligence, (with Svetlana Alpers), (1994)
- Words for Pictures, (2003)
- Pictures for words, (2004) (published under a pseudonym)
- Shadows and Enlightenment (2005)
External links
- The New York Times
- "Obituary", Daily Telegraph, 17 August 2008
- Elizabeth McGrath "Obituary: Michael Baxandall", The Guardian 26 August 2008
- Charles Saumarez Smith "Obituary: Michael Baxandall", The Independent, 19 August 2008
- "Obituary", The Times, 27 August 2008
- Allan Langdale, ‘Interviews with Michael Baxandall, February 3rd and 4th, 1994, Berkeley, CA’ Journal of Art Historiography Number 1 December 2009