Photos of Medieval Georgian Churches

The Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz gives us the opportunity to broaden our medieval architectural offerings with an online exhibition of photos of medieval Georgian churches (that's the Georgia on the Black Sea, not the American one, of course). A joint research project commissioned a photographic survey in 2006, which was "completed under the most challenging conditions and in regions that were to a certain extent impenetrable." The result is "a globally unique documentation of the medieval monuments of Georgia" with more than one thousand photographs, which can be seen either in the online exhibition or by searching the digital photo library. The latter link gives details on copyright for the database images, which extend far beyond the Georgian collection.

Images from Wikipedia

Professors have mixed feelings about Wikipedia. It's a wonderful resource, but the changeable and potentially incorrect nature of the information makes it a source we hesitate to let students cite.

Without getting into this debate just now, I'd like to point out that Wikipedia offers a surprisingly good selection of useful images, which are by definition freely available for download.

While Wikipedia is unlikely to replace other resources for images of paintings, it can be great for photos of sculpture and buildings. This morning, for example, I was able to get several hi-res photos of works by Czech cubist sculptor Otto Gutfreund, and also to get hi-res photos of buildings designed by the Czech modernist architect Josef Gočár. These are original photos taken onsite by Wikipedia contributors, not scans from books. They come with photo date and various other information about the shot, so that in your PowerPoint presentation you can contrast your scan of a 1920s photo of Gočár's Legiobanka with the Wikipedia photo Petr Vilgus took in 2006.

Wikipedia is, of course, always looking for contributions. Consider photographing significant buildings or monuments in your town and uploading them to the page for that architect. You can find out about Wikipedia's photo policies here, useful whether you are uploading or just downloading.

The Early Americas at Library of Congress

Useful for those doing courses in American or Precolumbian art, the Library of Congress's Exploring the Early Americas

"features selections from the more than 3,000 rare maps, documents, paintings, prints, and artifacts that make up the Jay I. Kislak Collection at the Library of Congress. It provides insight into indigenous cultures, the drama of the encounters between Native Americans and European explorers and settlers, and the pivotal changes caused by the meeting of the American and European worlds. The exhibition includes two extraordinary maps by Martin Waldseemüller created in 1507 and 1516, which depict a world enlarged by the presence of the Western Hemisphere."

If you follow the links to the Exhibition Themes, there are images of numerous objects with copious information. There are also interactive presentations.

It's not clear from the website how long this exhibition will be up at the Library, but the online content should be up indefinitely.

Image Resources Online at Library of Congress

The Library of Congress has loads of amazing images online, and is adding more regularly (see Exhibitions page). Here are just a few of the many to consider when putting together courses.

The Empire That Was Russia: The Prokudin-Gorskii Photographic Record Recreated is an amazing collection of early twentieth-century color photographs from Czarist Russia. Prokudin-Gorskii traveled all over the empire photographing its inhabitants using a system of three cameras with separate filters. This would be great for use in history of photography courses and for Russian art.

Online exhibition on Leonardo's Study for Adoration of the Magi.

Arthur Szyk: Artist for Freedom. Work by a Jewish antifascist cartoonist and miniaturist, mostly around the time of World War II.

The Floating World of Ukiyo-E: Shadows, Dreams, and Substance. "This exhibition showcases the Library's spectacular holdings of Japanese prints, books, and drawings from the 17th to the 19th centuries. These works are complemented by related works from the Library's collections created by Japanese and Westerns artists into the 20th century."

Frank Lloyd Wright: Designs for an American Landscape, 1922-1932.

A Heavenly Craft: The Woodcut in Early Printed Books.

The Work of Charles and Ray Eames: A Legacy of Invention. Showcases the designs of this legendary team. Lots of images.

Life of the People: Realist Prints and Drawings from the Ben and Beatrice Goldstein Collection, 1912-1948. Includes works by Sloan, Benton, and other American artists of the first half of the twentieth century. This would make a good supplement to Frances Pohl's Framing America text.

The Library of Congress has many more exhibitions, plus images such as early photographs and daguerreotypes, early sheet music covers, and so forth.