art 110 3.2 ( and study questions )

Chapter 3.2

Art of the Middle Ages

PART 3HISTORY AND CONTEXT

Copyright © 2011 Thames & Hudson

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields


Chapter 3.2 Art of the Middle Ages

Introduction

• Middle Ages – Marks the end of the Classical world– Ends at the beginning of the Renaissance

• Medieval– End of Roman Empire in the west by 476 CE – The western part of the empire followed the Roman Catholic Church

• Byzantium– Roman Empire becomes Byzantine empire in the east– Roman capital becomes Constantinople– The eastern part of the empire followed the Greek Orthodox Church




Introduction cont.

• Romanesque– Begins in the 11th century CE

– Period of building large stone churches covered with sculpture

• Gothic– c. 1150 to the fifteenth century– Known for grand cathedrals




Some stylistic characteristics of art from the Middle Ages:

• Expresses spiritual concerns rather than humanist ones

• Made to support religion and pilgrimages• Centered around location of relics and

important sites• Religious subject matter• Richly decorated manuscripts• Fantastical animal-like forms• Elongated and twisted figures• Grand-scale cathedrals

3.31 Map of Europe and the Middle East in the Middle Ages




Art of Late Antiquity

• Marks the transition from the pagan polytheistic religions to three large monotheistic religions:– Judaism

• Descendants of Abraham• Yahweh’s (God’s) face is not shown in art• Few examples of Jewish art survive

– Christianity• Worships Jesus Christ as the son of God• Second Commandment

– Admonishes that Christians should not worship idols– Some sects believe that this warns against making images of religious

figures

– Islam• Muhammad as main prophet of Allah (God)• Does not show Allah in art, and rarely shows human figures

3.32 Interior west wall of synagogue at Dura Europos, Syria, 244–5 CE. Reconstruction in National Museum, Damascus, Syria

Interior west wall of synagogue at Dura Europos, Syria

• Oldest surviving Jewish painting (fresco)

• Narrative stories

• Torah– Stories of Jewish

History – Shrine for Torah in

center of west wall

3.33 Exodus and Crossing of the Red Sea, panel from west wall of synagogue at Dura Europos, Syria, 244–5 CE. Reconstruction in National Museum, Damascus, Syria

Exodus and Crossing of the Red Sea, panel from west wall of synagogue at Dura Europos, Syria

• Parting of the Red Sea

• Continuous narrative

3.34 Painted ceiling, late 3rd–early 4th century CE. Catacombs of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome, Italy

Painted ceiling, catacombs of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome, Italy

• Earliest Christian paintings were found in catacombs

• Imagery – Christ as Good Shepherd

• Centrally located in cross-like formation

• Youthful and beardless• Adapted from pagan

images of Orpheus and Apollo

– Jonah swallowed by whale• Four scenes shown in

semicircles• Story foreshadows Christ’s

resurrection

3.35 Good Shepherd, 425–6. Mosaic in lunette. Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna, Italy

Good Shepherd, mosaic in lunette, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia

• Family tomb of Roman emperor Flavius Honorius

• Imagery– Mosaic– Christ as Good Shepherd

• Centrally located• Appearance is regal• Sharply delineated rather

than fully three-dimensional

– Lambs in sets of three: symbolic of trinity




Byzantine Art

• Emperor Justinian great patron of the arts– Funded Hagia Sophia, Constantinople– Protected icons at monastery of St. Catherine,

Mount Sinai, Egypt

• Mosaic– Made from glass tesserae – Often placed in Byzantine churches to reflect light

• Icons– Encaustic paintings on wood– Venerated, believed to possess powers of healing




Some stylistic characteristics of Byzantine art:

• Christian subject matter

• Small icons promote personal mediation

• Glass mosaics made for churches

• Floating figures in which line is emphasized rather than volume

• Flat spaces with minimal sense of depth

• Light an important element for churches and mosaics

• Frequent use of gold, especially in the background

• Empty background to signify no connection to a specific time or place

3.36 Christ icon, 6th century. Encaustic, 33 × 18”. St. Catherine Monastery, Mount Sinai, Egypt

Christ icon, St. Catherine Monastery

• Protected at Mount Sinai during Byzantine Iconoclasm (see Chapter 4.8)

• Imagery of Christ– Bearded, long hair– Dual nature

3.37 San Vitale, apse, c. 547, Ravenna, Italy

San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy

• San Vitale– Central-plan church– Covered with mosaics– Apse mosaics

• Christ enthroned on Earth

• Emperor Justinian across from Theodora and attendants

3.38 Theodora and Attendants, c. 547. Mosaic on south wall of apse, 8’8” × 12’. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy

Theodora and Attendants, San Vitale

• Mosaic– Figures flat and appear to be

floating– Figures lined in a procession

towards the actual altar of San Vitale

– Set in a garden because in reality women were not actually allowed near the apse in the church

• Theodora– Rose from lower classes to become

wife of Emperor Justinian– Rich robe shows Three Magi on the

hem– Carries a chalice of wine that, when

combined with the bread held by Justinian in the nearby mosaic, signifies the Eucharist ceremony




Manuscripts and the Middle Ages

• Books written and decorated by hand

• Artists and scribes were often monks

• Beauty and detail of manuscripts encouraged long contemplation

3.39 Page from the Koran, probably late 12th century. Maghribi on vellum, 7½ × 7½”. British Library, London

Page from the Koran

• Late twelfth- or thirteenth-century artwork from Spain

• On the page– Beauty of script signifies beauty

of word of Allah– Image of Allah is not shown

• Script– Written from right to left– Headings in kufic (oldest script)– Everything else is maghribi

(regional script)– Large gold design signifies the

beginning of a new chapter

3.40 Cross-carpet page introducing the Gospel according to St. Matthew. Lindisfarne Gospels, fol. 26b. British Library, London, England

3.41 Detail of 3.40

Cross-carpet page, Lindisfarne Gospels

• Illuminated manuscript – Resembles stained glass

– Filled with decorative lines and animals

– Cross and Carpet page to signify beginning of new gospel

• Scribed by the bishop Eadfrith in northeast England

3.42 The Fifth Vision of Hildegard of Bingen, frontispiece for Liber Scivias, c. 1230, original manuscript lost. Biblioteca Governativa, Lucca, Italy

The Fifth Vision of Hildegard of Bingen, frontispiece for Liber

Scivias• Hildegard of Bingen

– Christian nun and visionary– Very educated and advisor

to kings and popes– Wrote popular book Scivias

• Manuscript– Hildegard shown receiving

a vision– Scribe shown near her

3.43 The Ascent of the Prophet Muhammad on his Steed, Buraq, Guided by Jibra’il and Escorted by Angels, 1539–43. Miniature painting from a manuscript of Nizami’s Khamsa (Five Poems), originally produced in Tabriz, Iran

The Ascent of the Prophet Muhammad on his Steed, Buraq …

• Islamic manuscripts– Do show humans, although

not Allah– Stories often taken from life

of Muhammad

• Muhammad in manuscript– Shown in the center

surrounded by flames – Face is veiled– Being led by angel Gabriel




Pilgrimage in the Middle Ages

• Central to the practice of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

• Pilgrims traveled to:– Places where relics were kept– Sites of important religious events

3.44 Reliquary of the Head of St. Alexander, 1145. Silver repoussé, gilt bronze, gems, pearls, and enamel, 7½” high. Musées Royaux d’Art et d’Histoire, Brussels, Belgium

Reliquary of the Head of St. Alexander

• Relics– Body parts of saints or holy

figures– Sacred objects

• Tunic of Mary• Piece of the wooden cross

on which Christ was crucified

• Reliquary for head of St. Alexander– Face is beaten silver, hair

is gilded bronze– Small portraits below show

Pope Alexander flanked by two saints

3.45 Dome of the Rock, 688–91, Jerusalem, Israel

Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem, Israel

• Jerusalem – Popular pilgrimage site

in the Middle Ages– Stone in Dome of the

Rock is sacred to three monotheistic religions

• Dome of the Rock– Built as a site for pilgrims– Funded by Adb al-Malik– Dome originally built of

solid gold – Octagonal walls below

3.46 Kaaba, Al-Masjid al-Har¯am, Mecca, Saudi Arabia

Mecca

• Most important pilgrimage site in Islam

• Five “Pillars” of Islam: devotion to Allah, prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimage to Mecca

• Birthplace of Muhammad

• Site of the Kaaba– Built by Abraham for

God– Surrounded by mosque

3.47 Mihrab from the Madrasa Imami, Isfahan, Iran, c. 1354. Mosaic of polychrome-glazed cut tiles on stonepaste body, set into plaster, 11’3” × 9’5¾”. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York

Mihrab from the Madrasa Imami, Isfahan, Iran

• Mihrab– Prayer niche identifying

direction of Mecca– Tiles decorated with

geometric design and calligraphy

– Arabesque style– Pointed arch– Script bordering edges

of frame quotes from the Koran




Symbolism in Medieval Churches

• Imagery used to teach the faithful stories from the Bible

• Many parishioners and pilgrims were illiterate

3.48 St. Trophîme, west portal with tympanum, 12th century, Arles, France

St. Trophîme, west portal with tympanum

• Last Judgment– Placed above entrance and

exit to church– Blessed on Christ’s right;

damned on his left

• Christ – Hierarchical scale– Central position

• Four Evangelists:– Matthew (angel)– Mark (lion)– Luke (ox)– John (eagle)

3.49 Diagram of the west portal tympanum in 3.48




Medieval Church Plans

• Churches were sites of relics and made for pilgrimages

• Romanesque churches– Some architectural features reminiscent of

ancient Rome– Pointed arch a new aspect at this time– Use of tympanum

3.50 St. Sernin, c. 1070–1120, Toulouse, France

St. Sernin, Toulouse, France

• St. Sernin Church– Designed in shape of

Latin cross– Entrance on the west;

entrance on the east– Towers show

generations of building– Bell tower shows

evolution of pointed arch in upper levels

– Entrance on the west via a portal featuring Last Judgment tympanum

– Altar to the east

3.51 Latin cross plan




The Rise of the Gothic

• Gothic architecture– Increased height– Rib vaults– Flying buttresses

3.52 Chartres Cathedral, completed 1260, France

Chartres Cathedral

• Chartres – exterior

• Rib vaults make great height possible

• Flying buttresses

• Large stained-glass windows

3.53 Chartres Cathedral, interior view showing labyrinth

Chartres Cathedral, interior

• Chartres – interior

• Famous for blue windows

• Designed for pilgrims:– Large size

• Ceiling 118 feet high• Nave 50 feet wide

– Labyrinth at entrance, symbolic of spiritual and physical journey




Click the image above to launch the video

3.54 Cimabue, Virgin and Child Enthroned, c. 1280. Tempera and gold on wood, 12’7½” × 7’4”. Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy

3.55 Giotto, Virgin and Child Enthroned, c. 1310. Tempera on wood, 10’7”× 6’9”. Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy

Cimabue and Giotto, two different artworks of Virgin and Child Enthroned

• Transition from Gothic to Renaissance

• Cimabue’s Virgin and Child Enthroned– Figures seem to rise

toward top (mirroring Gothic architectural style, which emphasized height)

– Suggestion of three-dimensional throne

– Focus on spiritual, heavenly forms

• Giotto– Student of Cimabue– Father of the Renaissance

Cimabue and Giotto cont.

• Giotto’s Virgin and Child Enthroned– A more convincing

three-dimensional throne

– More three-dimensional, earthly figures

– More sense of depth in the background

PowerPoints developed by CreativeMyndz Multimedia Studios



This concludes the PowerPoint slide set for Chapter 3.2

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts By Debra J. DeWitte, Ralph M. Larmann, M. Kathryn Shields

Copyright © 2011 Thames & Hudson

PowerPoints developed by CreativeMyndz Multimedia Studios



3.31 Drazen Tomic

3.32, 3.33 Zev Radovan/www.BibleLandPictures.com

3.34 Canali Photobank, Milan, Italy

3.35 Photo Scala, Florence

3.36 Monastery of St. Catherine, Sinai, Egypt

3.37 Photo Scala, Florence

3.38 Cameraphoto/Scala, Florence

3.39, 3.40, 3.41 British Library, London

3.42 Biblioteca Governativa, Lucca

3.43 British Library/akg-images

3.44 Musées Royaux d’Art et d’Histoire, Brussels

3.45 © Hanan Isachar/Corbis

3.46 Mohamed Amin/Robert Harding

3.47 Metropolitan Museum of Art, Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1939, Acc. no. 39.20. Photo Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art Resource/Scala, Florence

3.48 © Matthew Lambley/Alamy

3.49 Ralph Larmann

3.50 © Rolf Richardson/Alamy

3.51 Ralph Larmann

3.52 Hervé Champollion/akg-images

3.53 Sonia Halliday Photographs

3.54, 3.55 Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

Picture Credits for Chapter 3.2

1. To where did Constantine move the center of the Roman empire in 330?

a. Rome b. Ravenna c.Constantinople d. Dura Europos

a.

b

c

d

2. What is the period that followed the end of the Western Roman Empire known as?

◦ a. Classical◦ b. Renaissance◦ c. Post-Roman◦ d. Middle Ages

3. Which of the following is a characteristic of Romanesque architecture?

◦ a. Rounded arches◦ b. Flying buttresses◦ c. Rib vaults◦ d. All of the above

4. On which type of medieval architecture can spires be found?

◦ a. Romanesque◦ b. Gothic◦ c. Late Antique◦ d. all of the above

5. What type of art decorated the interior walls of Dura Europos?

◦ a. Mosaics◦ b. Reliefs◦ c. Frescoes◦ d. Tempera painting

6. Which of the following works of art is not considered "didactic"?

◦ a. Exodus and Crossing of the Red Sea from Dura Europos

◦ b. Painted ceiling from Catacombs of Saints Peter and Marcellinus from Rome

◦ c. Cross-carpet page from the Lindisfarne Gospels

◦ d. The Fifth Vision of Hildegard of Bingen from Liber Scivias

ab

c d

7. Which religion commonly used calligraphy in its art?

◦ a. Christians◦ b. Muslims◦ c. Jews◦ d. all of the above

8. Which of the following is an example of a continuous narrative?

◦ a. Painted ceiling from the Catacombs of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome

◦ b. Good Shepherd from Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna

◦ c. Exodus and Crossing of the Red Sea, Dura Europos

◦ d. Sculpture in the west portal of St. Trophîme, Arles

a. b.

c.

d.

8. Which of the following is an example of a continuous narrative?

◦ a. Painted ceiling from the Catacombs of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome

◦ b. Good Shepherd from Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna

◦ c. Exodus and Crossing of the Red Sea, Dura Europos

◦ d. Sculpture in the west portal of St. Trophîme, Arles

9. The visual appearance of Christ was similar to the appearance of pagan gods until which century?

◦ a. 3rd ce◦ b. 4th ce◦ c. 5th ce◦ d. 6th ce

10. Emperor Justinian I was the patron for which work?

◦ a. Good Shepherd from Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna

◦ b. St. Catherine Monastery at Mount Sinai

◦ c. Hagia Sophia in Constantinople

◦ d. All of the above

11. Which is a central-plan church?

◦ a. Chartres Cathedral◦ b. St. Sernin◦ c. San Vitale◦ d. None of these a. b.

c.

12. What is the central space of a cathedral called?

◦ a. Apse◦ b. Altar◦ c. Choir◦ d. Nave

13. In which area(s) of the church were women, such as Theodora, allowed?

◦ a. Altar◦ b. Courtyard◦ c. Choir◦ d. None of the above

14. In which manuscript were the visions of Hildegard of Bingen recorded?

◦ a. Lindisfarne Gospels◦ b. Koran◦ c. Liber Scivas◦ d. Five Poems

a. b.

c.

d.

15. Which of the following is an element of a royal portal?

◦ a. Transept◦ b. Aisle◦ c. Apse◦ d. Trumeau

16. Which of the following is used to represent the evangelist John in the west portal of the Church of St. Trophîme, built

in the 12th century?

◦ a. An angel◦ b. An ox◦ c. An eagle◦ d. A lion

17. In medieval churches, where is the scene of the Crucifixion of Christ depicted?

◦ a. North side◦ b. South side◦ c. East end◦ d. West end

18. In a Latin cross-planned church, such as Chartres or St. Sernin, what is the shorter axis located near the east end of

the church called?

◦ a. East axis◦ b. Apse◦ c. Nave◦ d. Transept

19. What is one major difference between the figures in Cimabue’s Virgin and Child Enthroned and Giotto’s painting

of the same name?

◦ a. Giotto’s figures are flat, while Cimabue’s are volumetric.

◦ b. Cimabue invokes the Gothic style, while Giotto recalls the Byzantine.

◦ c. Giotto’s creates a realistic space, while Cimabue focuses on the spiritual aspect.

• d. Giotto’s figures seem to hover between earth and heaven, while Cimabue’s do not.

art 110 3.2 ( and study questions )

Education

examples of jewish art

middle east

visual arts

middle agescopyright

kathryn shieldschapter

imagery of christ

christ icon

good shepherd