Medieval Art: The Age of Faith          

  

                                                                              

                                       

• 400a.d. to 1400. a.d.• Rome Falls and the Church

gains power

Introduction          

  

                                                                              

                                       

• The Middle Ages included the millennium from the 5th to the 15th century, roughly from the fall of Rome until the renaissance. During its initial period, called the Dark Ages, after the death of the byzantine Emperor Justinian in 565 until the reign of Charlemagne in 800, barbarians destroyed what had taken 3,000 years to build. Yet the Dark Ages were only part of the Middle Ages story, There were many bright spots in art and architecture, from the splendor of the byzantine court in Constantinople to the majesty of gothic cathedrals.

Introduction          

  

                                                                              

                                       

• 3 Major shifts occurred that had far-reaching effects on Western civilization:

• Cultural leadership moved north from the Mediterranean to France, Germany, and the British Isles.

• Christianity triumphed over paganism and barbarism.

• Emphasis shifted from the here- and now- to the hereafter, and with it from the body as beautiful to the body as corrupt.

Introduction          

  

                                                                              

                                       

    Since the Christian focus was on salvation for a glorious afterlife, interest in realistically representing objects of the world disappeared. Nudes were forbidden, and even images of clothed bodies showed ignorance of anatomy. The Greco-Roman ideals of harmonious proportions and balance between the body and mind ceased to exist. Instead, medieval artisans were interested exclusively in the soul, especially in instructing new believers in church dogma. Art became the servant of the church. Theologians believed church members would come to appreciate divine beauty through material beauty, and lavish mosaics, paintings, and sculpture were the result.

  

              

                                                 

  

                                                          

  

          

                                                  

                                                           

                                    

         

                                                 

                                                    

                                                     

                                                 

             

  

                                                                              

  

                                           

Overview begins with the

fall of Rome and extends to the Renaissance

Rome diminishes and the Church gains power

Society ( life and death) are centered on the church

The Church is the major purchaser of Art

Constantine is the first Christian emperor, he moves the capitol from Rome to Constantinople, therefore,there is an Oriental influence in Art.

Most people are illiterate.

The knowledge from Antiquity is preserved and copied in monasteries.

The Book making industry is born.

Emphasis on Life after death.

Art distinguishing characteristics

• Flat, lack of environmental clues due to Oriental influence as well as determination to avoid any resemblance to earlier pagan work.

• Symbolic not realistic, figures meant not to remind one of earth but to elevate persons thoughts from the earthly realm to the spiritual .

• Collaborative efforts on Cathedrals, mosaics, etc.

• Byzantine Art•Romanesque•Gothic

Byzantine ArtConstantinople was close to

Asia as well as to Greece, and because of this proximity, Greek, Roman, and Asian art and culture all influenced Byzantine artists.

• Byzantine art featured very rich colors and heavily outlined figures that appeared flat and stiff.

Color choice symbolic(Gold or purple sky-kingdom of god)

•  John C. Weber Collection, New YorkIcon with the Virgin Eleousa, early 14th centuryByzantine4 3/8 x 3 3/8 x 1/2 in. (11.2 x 8.6 x 1.3 cm)Enlarge for more detail

Some of the world’s greatest art, in the form of mosaics, was created during the 5th and 6th centuries in Turkish Byzantium and its Italian capital, Ravenna. Mosaics were intended to publicize the now official Christian creed, so their subject was generally religion with Christ shown as teacher and all powerful ruler. Sumptuous grandeur, with halos spotlighting sacred figures and shimmering gold backgrounds, characterized these works.

• Human figures were flat, stiff, and symmetrically placed, seeming to float as if hung from pegs. Artisans had no interest in suggesting perspective or volume. Tall, slim human figures with almond-shaped faces, huge eyes, and solemn expressions gazed straight ahead, without the least hint of movement.

ROMAN Mosaics Byzantine MosaicsUsed opaque marble cubes Used reflective glass cubes

Pieces had smooth flat finish Surfaces left uneven so work sparkled

Colors limited due to use of natural stones

Glowing glass in wide range of colors

Typically found on floor of private homes

Found on walls and ceilings-especially church dome and apse

Subjects were secular, like battles, games

Subjects were sacred, like Christ as shepherd

Used minute pieces fr realistic detail

Used minute pieces for realistic detail

Large cubes in stylized designs

Background represented landscape Background was abstract, sky-blue, then gold

roman

Byzantine

Byzantine

Roman

Hagia Sophia(pronounced HAH zhee ah soh FEE ah; the name means

“holy wisdom”)Commissioned by Emperor Justinian and designed by 2 mathematicians, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, the Hagia Sophiais is a

completely innovative structure, recognized as the climax of Byzantine architectural style.

3 football fields long the Hagia Sophia merged the vast scale of Roman buildings with an Eastern mystical atmosphere. A Byzantine contribution to engineering: pendentives ( 4 arches forming a square) supported a dome. This structural revolution accounted for the lofty, unobstructed interior with its soaring dome.

40 arched windows encircle the base of the dome, creating the illusion that it rests on a halo of light.

The Romanesque Period 1050-1200• With the Roman Catholic faith firmly established, a wave

of church construction began throughout feudal Europe.• Builders borrowed elements from roman architecture,

such as rounded arches and columns.• Due to wooden roofs being prone to fire medieval

artisans began to roof churches with stone vaulting, barrel or groin vaults resting on piers could span large opening with fiew internal supports or obstructions.

• Interiors were dark and somber because due to the weight of the heavy stone roofs not many windows could be added.

• The exteriors were plain except for sculptural relief around the main portal. Most church-goers were illiterate, so sculpture taught doctrine by telling stories in stone.

Romanesque Architecture

St. Sernin facade

ILLUMINIATED MANUSCRIPTS

•With hordes of pillagers looting and razing cities of the former Roman empire, monasteries were all that stood between Western Europe and total chaos. Here monks and nuns copied manuscripts, keeping alive both the art of illustration in particular and Western civilization in general.

•The papyrus scroll used from Egypt to Rome was replaced by the vellum (calfskin) or parchment (lambskin) codes, made of separate pages bound at one side. Manuscripts were considered sacred objects containing the work of god. They were decorated lavishly, so their outward beauty would reflect their sublime contents. Covers were made of gold studded with precious and semiprecious gems.

•Until printing was developed in the 15th century, these manuscripts were the only form of books in existence, preserving not only religious teachings but also Classical literature.

    

      

  

    

  

Page from illuminater Gospel, early 15th centuryEthiopia, Lake Tana regionWood, vellum, pigment; H. 16 1/2 in. (41.9 cm)Rogers Fund, 1998 (1998.66)

•Painters mainly worked on elaborate decorations for Bibles and Prayer books

• Elongated figures and elegant insignificant details are rendered with so much care that they become the dominant feature.

      

                                                 

    

Leaf from a Beatus Manuscript: Christ in Majesty with Angels and the Angel of God Directs Saint John to Write the Book of Revelation, ca. 1180Spanish; Made in Burgos, Castile-LeónTempera, gold, and ink on parchment, metal leaf; 17 1/2 x 11 13/16 in. (44.4 x 30 cm)Purchase, The Cloisters Collection, Rogers and Harris Brisbane Dick Funds, and Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, 1991 (1991.232.3)

Gothic Art/ Height and Light

1200-1500• The Gothic

Cathedral Medieval architecture’s greatest triumph

• The solid, heavy Romanesque structures were replaced with structures of lightness and grace

Gothic Style• In Europe in the twelfth century, many people moved into

towns. Workers (stone carvers, carpenters, etc.), organized into guilds (unions) , where apprentices were taught by masters. A wealthy merchant class, with pride in their growing cities, and religious faith led to the building of huge cathedrals.

• Two developments in architecture_ the pointed arch and the flying buttress, along with the use of the vault allowed them to make taller buildings whose walls were perforated with stain glass windows that changed the light to a rich, glowing color and educated the illiterate with Biblical Stories being reveled in glass.

• Gothic cathedrals were such a symbol of civic • Pride that an invader's worst insult was to pull down the

tower of conquered town’s cathedral. Communal devotion was• So intense that Lords and ladies worked beside butchers and

masons, dragging carts loaded with stone from quarries. Buildings were so elaborate tat construction literally took ages—6 centuries for Cologne Cathedral.

Chartres CathedralBuilt to hose the veil of the Virgin given to the city by Charlemagne's grandson. Charles the Bald, in

876, it is a multi-media masterpiece. Its Stain glass windows, the most intact collection of medieval

glass in the world, measure 26,900 feet in total area. Illustrating the Bible, the lives of saints, even

traditional crafts of France, the windows are like a gigantic, glowing, illuminated manuscript.

Stain glass windows s

Stain glass windows replaced frescos to instruct illiterate masses

Arches

Arches (formed by narrow stone ribs extended from tall pillars)

Ribbed vault

(ceiling supported by pointed arches)

Flying buttresses

Flying buttresses are arm like stone beams.

Ribbed Vault

Vault Review

3 Common types of Vaults

1. Barrel vault

2.A groin vault

3.A rib vault

GiottoLate Gothic Period 1266 or 7-1337

Giotto was an artist that formed a bridge between the Medieval times and the Renaissance.He moved toward realism in his depiction of figures and used naturalistic backgrounds (his skies were blue).He led the way to a new manner of painting that transformed the flat surface into what appears to be an open space filled with people,see The Kiss of Judas.

  

                                                                                                                                                     

           Giotto, Kiss of Judas (228 K)Scrovegni (Arena) Chapel, near Padua

Art of the Middle Ages ReviewThroughout the middle Ages, in a succession of 3 styles, art was concerned with religion. The

main forms of art and architecture associated with each style were:

Byzantine Romanesque Gothic

Art Mosaics, icons Frescoes, stylized sculpture

Stained glass, more natural sculpture

Architecture

Central-dome church

Barrel-vaulted church

Pointed-arch cathedral

Example Hagia Sophia St. Sernin Chartres

Date 532-37 Begun 1080 1194-1260

Place Constantinople, Turkey

Toulouse, France Chartres, France

Romanesque vs. Gothic

Romanesque Gothic

Emphasis Horizontal Vertical

Elevation Modest height soaring

Layout Multiple units Unified, unbroken space

Main trait Rounded arch Pointed arch

Support system Piers, walls Exterior buttresses

Engineering Barrel and groin vaults

Ribbed groin vaults

Ambiance Dark, solemn Airy, bright

Exterior simple, severe Richly decorated with sculpture

Questions

   What distinguishes medieval art from the art of other historical periods?

What was the main focus of life for the average citizen during the medieval period?

What institution took the place of Rome (after it’s fall) in power and influence?

How was the knowledge of antiquity preserved during the medieval period?

How are Roman mosaics different from Byzantine Mosaics?

How do Romanesque and Gothic Cathedrals differ?