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Why art is important for christian religions
Conclution of christian art
The role of art in christianity
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Beginning with the reign of Charlemagne, the Carolingians focused their money on small, highly decorated pieces. The Book Cover for the Lindau Gospels is just one of many ornate, religious, and portable works of art that the Carolingians created. The cover was created circa 870 for the Lindau Gospels, with the main focus of the cover being the crucifixion of Christ. The cover is made of gold with additions of precious jewels and pearls. This book cover represents the typical Carolingian style during this time period.
The Book Cover for the Lindau Gospels is rectangular in shape, it features a cross in the center with a depiction of Christ being crucified on it. This is the area of the work that your eyes are immediately drawn to. This work uses hierarchy of scale, the act of making important figures much larger than other figures, when depicting Christ to show that he is important. Implementing this technique also draws all of your attention to the largest figure, Christ. The body of Christ is depicted realistically and youthfully. His body fills the majority of empty space in the lower part of the cross but, the cross is slightly bigger than Christ. However, Christ’s face lacks a great amount of detail and he is shown with a solemn facial expression with his eyes shut. Around his head is a halo made of metalwork and jewels. In the upper part of the cross, the portion that the body of Christ does not fill, there is a short inscription and two small figures that are conformed into a circular shape. The small figures are depictions of the sun and the moon.
The cross in the middle of the book cover creates four quadrants that are adjacent to the cross. The entire book cover is laid out very symmetrically, it can also be said that th...
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...n creating the mosaics of San Vitale. The jewelry that is worn by figures in the mosaics are made of real precious stones and metals which, just like the book cover, were costly. Mosaics are made of tesserae, which are small pieces of stone or glass cut to create a picture. The mosaic in San Vitale was likely very time consuming to create just like the book cover. Religion was, and still is, very important to people so it was common to devote time and money to creating religious art.
In conclusion, the Book Cover for the Lindau Gospels is a prime representation of Carolingian art in early medieval times. The book cover is just one of many ornate, religious, and portable works they created. The book cover shares multiple themes and characteristics with the Mosaics of San Vitale. Both works were very important to the Christian community which influenced their creation.
which cover his waist and some of his torso. He is holding a very tall, slender cross in his left hand, while looking with a diffused look to the right. Also, to the left of him (to the right from the viewer’s perspective) there is a sheep lying upon a rock.
At the top of the artwork the upper part of the cross extends beyond the altarpiece. The edge of John the Evangelist’s red robe on the left of the altarpiece and the edge of Mary Magdalene’s pale blue skirt on the right are cut off when the panel ends, giving the viewer the feeling that, rather than looking in on the scene, the viewer is actually taking part in the scene. This, added to the empathy invoked through the delicate, heart-wrenching rendering of the figures in the artwork, let the observer directly interact with the painting and places him/her within the narrative.
The Merode Altarpiece is a triptych painting that represents the Annunciation of the Virgin Mary. This work displays the main characteristics of the Northern Late Gothic period. There is so much detail in this work of art. Campin utilizes many symbols in this altarpiec. The setting of the painting is in a Flemish middle class house. The Annunciation theme is being depicted in the central panel. A scene of Saint Joseph at work as a carpenter occupies the right-hand panel. The portraits of the donors are depicted in the left hand panel. Campin failed to understand the scientific perspective. To illustrate, there is no focal point in the painting and the table looks tilted. Campin used no aerial perspective. To illustrate, the background is still very crisp when seen from a distance. The most important aspect of the painting is the symbolism. For example, the lilies represent Mary's purity, the candle represents the Holy Spirit, even the mouse traps represent trapping evil. Campin also made use of bright, rich colors. In the central panel, the drapery of the figures are filled with colors of red and white. Campin has also made a good use of illusion of the space by making the town seem to be far away by distance by making them appear blurry. Furthermore, Campin has created figures that are not in proper proportion. To illustrate, the figure’s head is small and the bodies are big and it seems that if they get will hit their head if they get up. They look very unrealistic. Although they are not in proportion, the figures seem to have very sharp edges. The figures also look very stiff and rigid. In Merode Altarpiece, the light is arbitrary and the figures do not cast any...
Art is a window to the past and there is no place other than the many museums of the world where this is more strongly felt. More specifically, it is also seen through Martin de Soria's work, The Altarpiece of Saint Peter, which was completed around 1480.
The depiction of Madonna and Christ is among the most ancient and common in Christian iconography and has an extensive number of variations because apart from its symbolic religious functions, it allows one to interpret the link between mother and child in many aspects. (8)
... the Old Testament and the Virgin Mary as precursors or preparations for Christ. Statues of the Cathedral show narrative scenes of the Old Testament. “The use of color within the stained glass is also important. By using contrasting color, the images of the saints and other subjects in the Biblical oriented glass windows stand out against paler, less pronounced backgrounds.” (Melton.) “Stained glass served a myriad of purposes...the light that flowed into the cathedral through the various shades of colored glass inspired, invoked, and educated the masses that attended the service.” (Melton.) “The Cathedral, like a fortress, overlooks and controls the town...it seems to draw the town upward, as if to extend into the clouds its bridges, its mills, its tree-lined boulevard, its fortified gateway, and its churches...” (Branner, 115.)
As I walked into the first gallery, I saw a wood sculpture that stood in the center of the room. This carving depicted “the crucified Christ, flanked by the Virgin Mary and St. John the Evangelist with Angels holding instruments of the Passion”. It was painted oak and very appealing to the eye. It stood approximately 15 feet in the air. The origin of this sculpture is unknown, but it was found in a Belgium church. This kind of sculpture usually stood at the entrance or at the center of the alter in the church facing the congregation. This image of the suffering Christ relates to the Christian ideas of suffering and Christ’s salvation of all mankind.
1432.) is a magnificent work of Christian art. The painting of the Lord is covered with symbolism from top to bottom. The background has Christian’s symbols of wine and pelicans which relates to blood of Christ. The Lord wore clothing such as the headgear that represents the trinity, and sash that reveals the Sabbath. The phrases in the painting that reveal about eternal life and power of the Lord. Finally the painting has symbols of power: the large amount of gold presented in the painting and the crown below his feet. The painting is rich with symbolism, and the work of art need to be carefully overserve to see the full
The purpose of these boundaries was not only to separate the temporal world from the divine, but also to facilitate a specific response from the viewer. The devotional triptych was meant to establish a mode of communication that is well illustrated in a miniature from the Hours of Mary of Burgundy, (fig. 1). This book of hours was completed c. 1477 by an unknown artist for Mary of Burgundy, the only child of Charles the Bold. The miniature shows the owner of the book, Mary of Burgundy, attired in a yellow-brown gown, seated with a dog and a book of hours in her lap. She sits next to an open window that shows the interior of a church. In the center of the church is the Virgin dressed in blue and holding the Christ child in front of an altar.
For example, Masaccio used the medium fresco. It dries quickly and requires the artist to work fast with color broadly applied. This medium enables Masaccio to create generalized forms over the precise details of oil and tempura painting. However, Campin used the oil medium. This gave him the ability to create jewel-like illusions of reality. Campin and others of this era were motivated to paint the external world and all the different facets that create it. On the other hand, Masaccio wanted to create a painting that is more realistic and wanted the people to be able to relate to the art. Also, both artists use light and shadow to highlight and emphasize different parts of the paintings. For instance, Campin lit the room with sunlight and put a focus on Mary’s dress. This lighting causes the dress to turn into a shape of a star. This can symbolize the presence of the star of Bethlehem. Many other religious symbols are found in the painting. The eyes are not drawn to a particular object. This is not the case in Masaccio’s painting. He does not particularly shine light on one object. Even though the eyes are drawn to Jesus, we get a sense of balance between all the objects. This portrays faith and it’s mysteries as well as the perfection symbolism that comes with God. Masaccio creates a three dimensional like form even though it is on a two-dimensional surface. The painting shows
Within Sant’Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Italy on the top register of the nave wall stands the stunning mosaic Miracle of Loaves and Fishes. This piece—created by an unknown artist in 504 CE—depicts a miracle performed during the life of Jesus Christ in which a starving crowd was gifted with an increased supply of bread and fish. Overall, this piece tells the story of just one event in the life of Christ, with other mosaics around this piece telling other narratives from his life.
The positions of the stories in the apse show the importance of the figures represented in the images. Christ's placement the center of the apse holding a book with his left hand provides a direct relationship to the Bible. His right hand held up in blessing illustrates his divine power towards the people, who receive the sacrament on the altar below him. Christ is also surrounded by stars, wh...
The immediate background consists of natural mounds of dirt and a brick wall that enclose the Virgin, Child, and St. John, amplifying the protective effect that Mary’s figure has. The dirt mounds roll inward with a brick wall bordering them on the right, drawing the viewer’s attention towards the three figures. The background is painted in broad terms, with a simple, uniform depiction of tree leaves and smooth rock faces on the horizon. This contrasts with the fine-lined detail and texture of Mary’s hair, facial features, and veil, which further contribute to her elegance and highlight her
The ability to create a picture of The Annunciation in one’s mind is a key factor in understanding the analysis of the work. Francisco de Zurbaran approaches the painting with a naturalistic style. The painting features a room in which a woman – like angel is seen at the left kneeling on the ground before the Virgin Mary. The figure of Mary is placed between a chair and a small wooden table draped with a green cloth. Mary disregards an open Bible on the table, as she appears solemn while staring at the floor. Floating above the two main figures in the upper left side of the painting are cherubs resting on a bed of clouds. They happily gaze down at Mary with eyes from Heaven.
The Book of Kells is an illuminated manuscript from the eighth century. It is currently located at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland. The images and icons in this book of gospels are Christian; however, the style of the work is pre-Christian in origin. Since the illustrations show both Irish and Germanic influences, they are referred to as Hiberno-Saxon art. The Book of Kells is called an insular manuscript, because its script is in a style known as “Insular majuscule,” a style that was common at that time in Ireland (Meehan 9). The Book of Kells represents a high point in the development of Hiberno-Saxon illumination. In the words of the art historian Carl Nordenfalk, the manuscript is a work of “exquisite perfection” (118). This paper will discuss the Book of Kells in an effort to examine its artistic and historic contribution.