Explanation
Correct answer: C.
Choice C is the best answer because it presents a statement that, if true, would most strongly support the underlined claim that Baxandall’s period eye has significantly influenced the practice of art history since its introduction. The text explains that the period eye—an approach Baxandall introduced in the early 1970s—directs art historians to understand how artworks were originally understood by viewers from the same historical period in which the works were created. If numerous art historians working in the late twentieth and twenty-first centuries—that is, in the decades after Baxandall’s introduction of the approach—have focused on how artworks were interpreted at the time of their creation, their scholarship would correspond to the definition of period eye provided by the text, thereby supporting the claim that the period eye has been significantly influential.
Why the other choices are wrong
Choice A
Choice A is incorrect because, as the text explains, Baxandall explicitly recommended examining the social and cultural contexts in which older artworks were produced in order to appreciate the artists’ intentions. Thus, a widespread rejection of artistic intention as an interpretive guide would weaken, not support, the claim that Baxandall influenced the practice of art history.
Choice B
Choice B is incorrect because this statement considers a limitation in applying the period eye approach—namely, the difficulty of reconstructing original viewers’ understanding for some historical periods—instead of addressing whether the approach has influenced the practice of art history.
Choice D
Choice D is incorrect because the statement describes the practice of art historians working before the 1970s, prior to Baxandall’s introduction of the period eye. Pre-1970s scholarship cannot demonstrate Baxandall’s influence on art history; if anything, it would suggest that some elements of his approach predated him, which has no bearing on whether his particular formulation has shaped the field since.