Short course
The Art and Architecture of Andalucía (c.750-1550CE)
Course status:
Applications being accepted
Dates and time:
19/01/2027 - 16/02/202714:00 - 16:00
Study format:
In-person weekly
Fees:
£190.00
A comprehensive introduction and historical framework to the rich and diverse artistic, architectural, and cultural legacy of Andalucía, Spain's most southerly region, produced between about 750 and 1550 CE, but with reference to its more ancient history, which was repeatedly drawn on and referred back to during those 800 years.
Andalucía's complex cultural past, with its periods of religious conflict and co-existence between the three Abrahamic religions, and multiple, cross-cultural, artistic influences (including with the Maghreb, the Near Middle East, and other parts of the Mediterranean Basin), left its major cities of Córdoba, Granada, and Seville with many iconic, beguilingly beautiful buildings and artefacts. This course will critically engage with the art, architecture, and cultural history of each the dynasties that ruled the region, then known as al-Andalus, from the eighth to the mid-sixteenth century. These dynasties include the Umayyad, who originally came from Damascus in Syria, the Almoravid and Almohad, who came from the Maghreb (in what is modern-day Morocco, Algiers, and Tunisia), and the Nasrid, whose origins are more obscure, but whose art and architecture developed the styles and decorative motifs of their predecessors in al-Andalus, leaving us with what is today Spain’s most visited monument, the Alhambra in Granada. The intriguing Renaissance art and architecture of Andalucía produced in the period from the Catholic Monarchs, Isabel of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon, who took control of Granada in 1492, to the death of Emperor Charles V (Charles I of Spain) in 1558, will also be explored. Also studied will be the complex, at times problematic, and oft-repeated, but frequently little understood, terms: Mudéjar, Convivencia, and Reconquista.
The course will study in detail the great Mesquita in Córdoba, the palace-cities of Madinat al-Zahra' (lost for centuries and only in recent years giving up its treasures) and the famous Alhambra palaces and Generalife gardens in Granada. The course will also cover the Real Alcázar in Seville (still the official residence of Spain’s monarchs) and the so-called Casa de Pilatos (the city’s best-preserved Mudéjar palace), as well as highlighting lesser known sites, such as Baeza, Úbeda, and La Calahorra. Each week’s lectures will be extremely well illustrated, and will make wide-ranging use of literature as near contemporaneous as possible with each of the periods considered, the tutor’s extensive archival and on-site research, and many significant scholarly works, including the very latest academic studies (all quotes and excerpts used will be translated into English).
Book this course
Book your place online using the button below.
Course starts Tuesday 19 January 2027
This is an in-person course which requires your attendance at the weekly meetings in Oxford on Tuesdays, 2.00-4.00pm.
Week 1: Introducing Andalucía: Its Arts, Architecture, and Ancient History
Week 2: Córdoba: The Umayyad, the Mesquita, and Madinat al-Zahra
Week 3: Almoravid and Almohad Al-Andalus, Convivencia and [Re]Conquista
Week 4: Granada: The Nasrid, the Alhambra: Construction, Survival, Decline, Revival
Week 5: Musing on the Mudéjar and Renaissance Art and Architecture in Andalucía
Course aims
To provide a comprehensive introduction to the major works of art and architecture of Andalucía produced between about 750 and 1550 CE.
Course Objectives:
- Study the key works of art and architecture of Andalucía, from about 750 to 1550 CE.
- Outline what is distinctive and most important about the cultural production of each city and period in Andalucía’s history within this time frame.
- Provide an intellectual framework and historical context for understanding the artistic and architectural legacy of Andalucía.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the course students will be expected to:
- Understand and distinguish the key factors and periods of Andalucía’s cultural history;
- Recognize and be able to interpret some of Andalucía’s most famous buildings and artefacts;
- Have developed an appreciation of what makes Andalucía’s artistic and architectural legacy particularly important and its influence on the artistic development of other cultures.
Level and demands
This will be an introductory course, for which no prior knowledge of the subject will be required.
The Department’s Weekly Classes are taught at first year undergraduate level.
Teaching methods
Each week there will be two or three highly-illustrated, well-referenced lectures, on related topics, each of approximately 20 to 40 minutes’ duration, followed by group discussion and questions.
Assessment methods
This course is not accredited, so there are no assessments or coursework.
Dr Philippa Joseph
Dr Philippa Joseph is an art, architecture, and design historian, whose research covers artistic and cultural exchange across Europe and the rest of the Mediterranean basin, especially in and between Andalucía and Sicily, and with the Maghreb and the Near Middle East. Dr Joseph also has an academic interest in twentieth-century Italian design and society. In addition to being a Departmental Tutor at Oxford Lifelong Learning (OUDCE), Dr Joseph is a Senior Fellow at the Institute of Historical Research (University of London), a lecturer for Martin Randall Travel in Italy and Spain, a member of the Editorial Advisory Board of History Today, and regularly public lectures to local history groups and societies.
Digital badge
Upon successful completion of this course, you will be issued with an official digital badge from the Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford. In order to be issued with your badge, you will need to have attended at least 80% of the course.
After the course, you will receive an email with a link and instructions on how to download your digital badge. You will be able to add this badge to your email signature and share it on social media if you choose to do so.
Fees
| Description | Costs |
|---|---|
| Course fee | £190.00 |
Funding
If you are in receipt of a UK state benefit, or are a care-leaver in the UK, you may be eligible for a reduction of 50% of tuition fees. Please see the below link for full details:
Concessionary fees for short courses
Recommended reading
Recommended reading is optional and you are not required to purchase these books to study this course.
Library facilities
All weekly class students may become borrowing members of the Rewley House Library, part of the Bodleian Libraries, for the duration of their course. Prospective students whose courses have not yet started are also welcome to use the Library for reference.
- More information about the Library can be found on the Bodleian Libraries website.
- This guide for Weekly Class students also provides further information.
Preparatory reading
- Spain: A History (OUP, Oxford, 2000) / Carr, Raymond (Ed.), and Richard Fletcher and Angus Mackay
- A Guide to Andalusia (Viking/Penguin, 1990, and later eds.) / Jacobs, Michael
- MWNF: Museum With No Frontiers / Multiple
- Islamic Arts from Spain (V&A Publishing, London, 2010) / Rosser-Owen, Mariam
Module code: O26P466ARW
How to enrol
Please use the ‘Book now’ button on this page.
