DU1906 Laboratory research in Humanities A

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2026
Extent and Intensity
0/2/6. 15 credit(s). Recommended Type of Completion: z (credit). Other types of completion: zk (examination), k (colloquium).
In-person direct teaching
Teacher(s)
doc. Mgr. Radka Nokkala Miltová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Ing. Marcela Rusinko, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Jan Galeta, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Mgr. Tomáš Valeš, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Radka Nokkala Miltová, Ph.D.
Department of Art History – Faculty of Arts
Prerequisites
No prerequisites.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is offered to students of any study field.
Abstract
Topic title: From wood, from stone, or from flash and bone? Materiality of Art Pieces and Environments of their Origin

A seminar focused on the materiality of objects and works of art and on the natural environment from which the materials for these objects originate. After consultation between students and teachers, the subject of study will be an object (work of art) from the collections of a major European museum. The choice will be possible within a broad timeline and geographical framework. The task of the students will then be to colaborate in research of the material aspects of this object in the sense of Ernst Gombrich's "cupology" - that is, to reveal what the object is actually made of, where the materials come from, how they were obtained and processed, what traces this acquisition left in the given place, how the materials were transported, how they were transformed during the creation of the work of art, etc. The research can also focus on other, more general questions, such as the work's reception, its restoration in light of the object's long "life," the commissioning framework, etc.The case study under investigation will be the city of Bari. Differently to the existing literature, the goal of this project will be to present selected cityscape on the longue durée from the 11th to the 20th century. The main output will be a small booklet devoted to the wider audience.
Learning outcomes
After completing the course, a student will be able to:
- work in a research group;
- gain proficiency in writing in collaboration with other scholars;
- disseminate and mediate research to academic and non-academic audiences;
- work in archives, libraries, research institutions, etc.;
- develop the capacity of receiving and implementing information stemming from other research fields, e.g., archaeometry, restoration, etc.;
- display practical skills in copy-editing and editorial process of academic work.
Key topics
    • selection of object (artwork) of study
    • draft of the research topics
    • Autonomous research in attributed segments of research;3
    • first draft of the text and presentation
    • Investigation of the object in museum 
    • draft of the final text
    • writing the final text

    • Feedback from teachers and colleagues in every step and also as  needed
Study resources and literature
    required literature
  • Georg Kubler, The Shape of Time, Yale 2008
  • WARSH, Molly A. American baroque : pearls and the nature of empire, 1492-1700. Williamsburg, Virginia: Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture, 2018, xviii, 275. ISBN 9781469638973. info
  • A greene country towne : Philadelphia's ecology in the cultural imagination. Edited by Alan C. Braddock - Laura Turner Igoe. University Park, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania State University Press, 2016, xii, 231. ISBN 9780271077130. info
  • Rotes Gold : das Wunder von Herrengrund. Edited by Andreas Herzog - Dušan Buran - Marius Winzeler. Dresden: Sandstein, 2024, 200 stran. ISBN 9783954988235. info
  • Coral : something rich and strange. Edited by Marion Endt-Jones. First published. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2013, 128 stran. ISBN 9781846319594. info
  • Crafting enlightenment : artisanal histories and transnational networks. Edited by Lauren R. Cannady - Jennifer Ferng. Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 2021, xix, 418. ISBN 9781800348141. info
  • GOMBRICH, E. H. Topics of our time : twentieth-century issues in learning and in art. London: Phaidon, 1991, 223 s. ISBN 0714827916. info
  • CUTLER, Anthony. The craft of ivory : sources, techniques, and uses in the Mediterranean world : A.D. 200-1400. Washington, D.C.: Dumbarton Oaks, 1985, 58 s. info
Approaches, practices, and methods used in teaching
Interactive seminar with field research, archival research, and collective work.
Method of verifying learning outcomes and course completion requirements
The students will receive partial tasks into the process of gathering materials and will be evaluated on the basis of reports emerging from this field research. Subsequently, they will participate to the writing the final texts. Each student will have a dedicated part and will be evaluated on this specific part.
Language of instruction
English
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
Teacher's information
The course will begin with a meeting with teachers on XXXX February. It will continue with independent work in small groups, and there will also be excursions during the semester.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025, Spring 2027.
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