The art of the poor: the aesthetic material culture of the lower classes in Europe, 1300-1600

Abstract

"The history of art in the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance has generally been written as a story of elites: bankers, noblemen, kings, cardinals, and popes and their artistic interests and commissions. Recent decades have seen attempts to recast the story in terms of material culture, but the focus seems to remain on the upper strata of society. In his inclusive analysis of art from 1300 to 1600, Rembrandt Duits rectifies this. Bringing together thought-provoking ideas from art historians, historians, anthropologists and museum curators, The Art of the Poor examines the role of art in lower social classes of Europe and explores how this influences our understanding of medieval and early modern society. Introducing new themes and raising innovative research questions through a series of thematically grouped short case studies, this book gives impetus to a new field on the cusp of art history, social history, urban archaeology, and historical anthropology. In doing so, this important study helps us re-assess the very concept of 'art' and its function in society"--

Contents

Material culture without objects : artisan artistic commissions in early Renaissance Italy / Samuel Cohn (University of Glasgow, UK) -- The art of popular piety : pilgrim souvenirs from the Museum of London collection / Meriel Jeater (Museum of London, UK) -- Shakespeare's picture of 'We three' : an image for illiterates? / M.A. Katritzky (The Open University, UK)