Johann Joachim Winckelmann
Johann Joachim Winckelmann was a German art historian and archaeologist. He was a pioneering Hellenist who first articulated the differences between Greek, Greco-Roman and Roman art. "The prophet and founding hero of modern archaeology", Winckelmann was one of the founders of scientific archaeology and first applied the categories of style on a large, systematic basis to the history of art. Many consider him the father of the discipline of art history. He was one of the first to separate Greek Art into periods, and time classifications.
Portrait by Raphael Mengs, after 1755
Johann Joachim Winckelmann by Ferdinand Pettrich, 1866, Albertinum, Dresden
Portrait of Johann Joachim Winckelmann against classical landscape, after 1760 (Royal Castle in Warsaw)
Winckelmann, in luxurious undress, by Anton von Maron, 1768: an engraving of an Antinous lies before him (Schlossmuseum Weimar)
Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today, art history examines broader aspects of visual culture, including the various visual and conceptual outcomes related to an ever-evolving definition of art. Art history encompasses the study of objects created by different cultures around the world and throughout history that convey meaning, importance or serve usefulness primarily through visual representations.
Venus de Milo, at the Louvre
Giorgio Vasari, Self-portrait c. 1567
Anton von Maron, Portrait of Johann Joachim Winckelmann, 1768
Photographer unknown, Aby Warburg c. 1900