Madrid PAU Cultural and Artistic Movements key terms

A large stone used to build prehistoric structures, often arranged as tombs or alignments. Examples include dolmens, menhirs, and stone circles such as Stonehenge.

A prehistoric tomb made of two or more upright stones supporting a flat horizontal capstone. Typical of Neolithic Atlantic Europe, including sites in Spain such as Antequera.

A single upright standing stone, often erected in prehistoric times for ritual or astronomical purposes. Found across Western Europe, notably in Brittany and the Iberian Peninsula.

A painting technique in which pigments are applied to wet lime plaster, binding the color permanently to the wall. Common in Minoan, Romanesque, and Renaissance art.

A pose in which the weight of the body rests on one leg, causing the hips and shoulders to tilt in opposite directions. Used in classical Greek sculpture to create naturalistic balance.

An Archaic Greek statue of a nude male youth, standing stiffly with one foot forward and arms at his sides. Often used as a grave marker or votive offering.

A rectangular building with a central nave and side aisles, originally a Roman civic hall and later adopted as the standard plan for Christian churches.

An image or pattern made by assembling small pieces of stone, glass, or ceramic (tesserae) into a surface. Widely used in Byzantine churches and Roman villas.

The small individual tiles of stone, glass, or ceramic used to create a mosaic. Their size and color determine the level of detail and shading in the image.

A band of moldings following the curve of an arch, often decorated with sculpture on Romanesque and Gothic portals. It frames the tympanum and directs attention to the doorway.

The semicircular area above a doorway, enclosed by the lintel and the arch. Frequently carved with religious scenes in Romanesque and Gothic churches.

An external arch that transmits the thrust of a vault to a pier, allowing walls to be thinner and windows larger. A defining feature of Gothic architecture.

A vault reinforced by intersecting stone ribs, which carry the weight to supporting piers. It enabled taller, lighter Gothic structures with large windows.

A niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the direction of Mecca, toward which Muslims pray. Often highly decorated with tiles or carving.

A mathematical system for representing three-dimensional space on a flat surface, using a horizon line and vanishing points. Developed in the early Renaissance by Brunelleschi and Alberti.

The use of strong contrasts between light and dark to create volume and dramatic effect. A hallmark of Leonardo, Caravaggio, and Rembrandt.

A painting technique that produces soft, blurred transitions between colors and tones, creating a smoky effect. Famously used by Leonardo da Vinci in the Mona Lisa.

A style characterized by extreme darkness with a single source of light illuminating the subject. Associated with Caravaggio and his followers in the Baroque period.

A technique that creates the optical illusion of three-dimensional objects or spaces on a two-dimensional surface. Often used in Baroque ceilings and mural painting.

An art movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries that revived the ideals of classical Greece and Rome, emphasizing order, clarity, and moral virtue. A reaction against Rococo frivolity.

An artistic and intellectual movement of the late 18th to mid-19th century that emphasized emotion, individualism, nature, and the sublime. Often opposed to Neoclassical rationalism.

A mid-19th-century movement that sought to depict everyday life and ordinary people truthfully, without idealization. Associated with Courbet and Millet in France.

A late 19th-century French movement that focused on capturing fleeting effects of light and atmosphere through loose brushwork and unblended colors. Artists include Monet, Renoir, and Degas.

Painting outdoors, directly from nature, to capture the effects of natural light and atmosphere. Made practical by portable paint tubes and central to Impressionism.

An early 20th-century movement, pioneered by Picasso and Braque, that fragmented subjects into geometric planes and multiple viewpoints. It challenged traditional perspective and representation.

A literary and artistic movement of the 1920s that explored the unconscious mind, dreams, and irrational imagery. Key figures include Dalí, Magritte, and Breton.

An early 20th-century movement that sought to express subjective emotion through distorted forms and intense colors. Prominent in Germany with Die Brücke and Der Blaue Reiter.

Art that does not represent recognizable objects, instead using form, color, and line for their own expressive or formal qualities. Pioneered by Kandinsky and Mondrian.

A Greek-born painter (1541–1614) who worked in Toledo, Spain, known for elongated figures, dramatic lighting, and intense spirituality. A precursor of Expressionism.

A Spanish Baroque painter (1599–1660) and court artist to Philip IV, celebrated for his masterful use of light and space in works such as Las Meninas.

A Spanish painter and printmaker (1746–1828) whose work spans Rococo, Neoclassicism, and Romanticism, known for court portraits and dark, critical visions of war and society.

A Spanish artist (1881–1973) who co-founded Cubism and profoundly influenced 20th-century art. His Guernica is a landmark of political painting.

A Spanish Surrealist painter (1904–1989) known for dreamlike, meticulously rendered images and flamboyant public persona. Works include The Persistence of Memory.

A painting technique in which pigments are applied to dry plaster, often with a binding medium. Less durable than buon fresco but allows for finer detail and corrections.

A painting technique in which pigments are applied to wet lime plaster, becoming permanently fixed as the plaster cures. Durable but requires rapid execution.

An aesthetic concept of the late 18th century describing feelings of awe and terror inspired by vast, powerful natural phenomena. Central to Romantic landscape painting and philosophy.

The study and interpretation of the subject matter and symbolic meaning of images. It helps identify themes, attributes, and cultural references in artworks.