Art and the Neurosciences; Dutch, Flemish, French and Italian painting of the 16th and 17th centuries; 16th and 17th century history of science; theory and criticism D.Phil., Oxford, 1973

David Freedberg is best known for his work on psychological responses to art, and particularly for his studies on iconoclasm and censorship (see, inter alia, Iconoclasts and their Motives, 1984, and The Power of Images: Studies in the History and Theory of Response, 1989). His more traditional art historical writing has centered on the fields of Dutch and Flemish art. In more recent years he has turned his attention to seventeenth century Roman art and to the paintings of Nicolas Poussin. He has been involved in several exhibitions of contemporary art (eg. Joseph Kosuth: The Play of the Unmentionable (1992)). Following a series of important discoveries in Windsor Castle, the Institut de France and the archives of the Accademia dei Lincei in Rome, he has for some time been concerned with the intersection of art and science in the age of Galileo. While much of his work in this area has been published in catalogues and articles, his chief publication in this area is The Eye of the Lynx: Galileo, his Friends, and the Beginnings of Modern Natural History (2002).

Although Freedberg continues to teach in the fields of Dutch, Flemish, French, and Italian seventeenth century art, as well as in historiographical and theoretical areas, his research now concentrates on the relations between art, history, and the neurosciences. He is currently engaged in writing two books: 1) Dance, the Body and Emotion (from a historical and neuroscientific perspective); 2) Art and the Brain, with particular reference to emotion and vision. He continues to hope that he will be able to return to his work on the cultural history of the architecture and dance of the Pueblo peoples.

More information can be found at his department webpage.

tel. (212) 854-8761 (Italian Academy)
tel. (212) 854-8527 (Dept. of Art History)
email: freedberg@columbia.edu