Art & Science of Painting

A historical and chemical grounding in the topic of painting and its impact on society, with focus on the 14th to 17th centuries. Topics include inorganic and organic pigments and binders used in the late medieval workshop, fresco, the tempera tradition, and oil painting in the Renaissance (properties of oil, mixing with pigments, glazing, drying). Students will work with primary sources and the secondary literature, and engage in laboratory experimentation.