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The importance of Christ's crucifixion to the Christian
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Rogier van der Weyden painted his vision of the biblical Deposition before the year 1443, likely between 1435 and 1438. The painting is oil on wood panel and was an altarpiece commissioned by the crossbowmen’s guild in Louvain, Belgium. Jesus’s body is at the center of the scene, being carefully lifted down from his cross. He is surrounded by mourners, his mother, Mary, swooning in her grief as John the Evangelist reaches out to support her and Mary Magdalene wringing her hands, her head bowed in sorrow. The figures in the artwork do not fit completely within the frame of the altarpiece and the only the lower part of the cross is shown in full. In his Deposition, Rogier van der Weyden attempts to capture the extreme grief apparent at Christ’s death and reflect the emotion onto the observer, placing him/her within the narrative. Jesus’s body is centered in the middle of the altarpiece, positioned in an elegant curve as his lifeless form is removed from the cross. His body is sickly thin, ribs easily visible …show more content…
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. Deposition, by the artist Rogier van der Weyden, attempts to capture the essence of the grief experienced when Jesus’s died on the cross, and to invoke the emotion in the altarpiece’s viewer, thus drawing him/her into the biblical
Another example of Christian iconography is The Transfiguration. It is located in the Church of Saint Catherine’s monaster...
The piece was chosen primarily because of the magnificent presence that is felt as one enters the room, or cathedral, where the piece may be located. The viewer's eye is drawn immediately to the central figure of Saint Peter who was seated as pope at the time. Giving the main focus of the work to the pope is representative of the importance that was placed on the papal seat. This importance was exemplified, during the time of this altarpiece's creation, by the crisis of the Great Schism. Furthermore, a scene of Christ's crucifixion can be seen directly above the panel of Saint Peter further emphasizing the importance of Christ in the painting, and in the medieval time period as well. Overall, the piece depicts four images from the life of Saint Peter, which surround the center panel on the left and the right sides. In addition, scenes from the lives of the Virgin Mary and St. Blaise, a fourth century martyr, are also present. All the characters in the panels more or less have halos and therefore are holy figures. The twelve apostles line the bottom of the panels, perhaps suggesting that they were the foundation of the Catholic religion. Basically, the painting is designed for a church altar, it has religious figures in it, and it is filled with Bibles and images of Christ's crucifixion. All of this relays a strong message to the viewer that this is what is important in life; one should pay close attention to religion and have respect for it.
Throughout the Renaissance, religion played a large role in the society. It was very common to make Christian-related paintings, for example, the crucifixion of the Christ or lamentations in late medieval Christ paintings at that time in order to spread the religion . Further explored by André Malraux, it is known within this period that art was made intentionally to tell a story, depicting a civilization through fiction, whereas their aesthetic value takes second place. One example that related to this argument is “The Lamentation with Saints and a Donor” by Bartolommeo Di Giovanni, a late Renaissance painting, made around 1480 – 1510 CE, a piece found in one ofs one of the collections at thein Art Gallery of Ontario Museum. This piece depicts
This painting of Christ Triumphant Over Sin and Death painted by Peter Paul Ruben is a majestic piece of art that stands about ten feet high and its width is around six feet wide. This exquisite piece was acquired from a museum in Holland 1964. The style of the painting is oil and canvas, which represents the glory and power of Christ over evil. The painting has an array of deep dark...
The Renaissance in Western Europe brought a “rebirth” to the arts. No longer was the church the only accredited patron for the arts. Instead, a wealthy middle class arose as patrons and were able to purchase artist’s works. Although many pieces still had religious themes, the styles, freedom of creativity, and less reserved pieces were created. The Renaissance was not only confined to Italy, although it is often mistaken as the birthplace of the movement. All over Western Europe artwork flourished. Artists from the north came to Italy to study the classical arts and the renowned Italian Renaissance artists. Many of the same themes and subject matters were depicted throughout Western Europe. One such subject matter, the Annunciation, was portrayed by Jan van Eyck, a Flemish panel painter, as well as, Fra Angelico, an Italian fresco painter. In short, the Annunciation occurred when God sends the angel, Gabriel to deliver the message to Mary that she will give birth to his only son. Although both artists had the same understanding of the biblical account, their styles varied to agree with the concerns and interests of the people of the time as well as where they lived. They were able to establish their individuality through their artwork, even with the same subject matter. The Annunciation by Jan van Eyck is a perfect reflection of Northern Renaissance panel painting while Annunciation by Fra Angelico is the essence of Italian Renaissance fresco painting.
At this time, Brussels was part of the Netherlands, and due to his geographical location, his artwork was different when compared to the Italian artists of the time. Van Der Weyden used oil paints to paint the Last Judgement, which was very common among the Northern European artists of the time, such as Jan Van Eyck. Many scholars agree that Van Der Weyden had an amazing talent of bringing out human emotions in his painting by creating very dramatic and intense scenes from the Bible, and the Last Judgement Altarpiece is no exception to this (Kleiner & Mamiya, 554). The Last Judgement Altarpiece was commissioned by Nicholas Rolin, and was to be placed in Hotel-Dieu, Beaune, France, a hospital. Many of the patients at the hospital believed that they were being punished by God. The Altarpiece provided a place for the inhabitants of the hospital to pray for God’s forgiveness (Kleiner & Mamiya,
Looking across the entire triptych certain visual elements can be seen. Lighting is carefully used to highlight many important details in the painting; the dramatic facial expressions of many of the people in this scene are clearly lighted and defined to illustrate the emotions felt by the witnesses. In the left panel of The Raising of the Cross, among the mourners appear to be St. John, another man that seems to be consoling St. John, Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptist), St. Mary (the mother of Jesus) and Mary Magdalene (hoocher.com). One of the mourners is actually looking directly at the viewer with a very distraught expression on her face. The mourner that I suspect is St. John in the back appears to be almost nauseous and his face is surrounded by darkness and is subordinate and his face is being emphasized. Also, the rocky background is subordin...
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.
In his Crucifixion, with the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist Mourning (c.1460), a piece within the Northern Renaissance collection of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, Rogier van der Weyden portrays a stark image of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The right panel of the diptych depicts the gruesome image of a crucified Christ. Weight pulls the emaciated body down into a Y-shape, contrasting the T-shape of the cross it is mounted on. The only movement comes from the loincloth wrapped around Christ’s waist that dances in the wind. Blood visibly trickles from the corpse’s wounds. Behind the body, a red cloth is draped down the grey wall. At the base of the cross sits a skull and bone. The left panel portrays the Virgin Mary swooning in despair as Saint John attempts to support her weight. Her hands are clasped in prayer as she gazes up at her lifeless son. Both figures are clothed in pale draping robes. The vibrant red of the cloth that hangs from the grey wall in the background contrasts the subdued colors of the
...tism. The dove which has been tactfully placed above the Christ’s head, symbolizes the Holy Spirit. The other characters are angels who believed to be witnessing the baptism. The nakedness of the Christ on the other hand symbolizes humility. The general landscape in this picture displays an extraordinary naturalism. The Francesca’s work also marked the era of excessive antiquarian style of sculpturing and tactful use of oil in painting (Prescott, 2005).
Another of Eyck’s paintings is Adoration of the Lamb. It was made for the Church of St. Bavon, Ghent. Jan worked with his brother Hubert making this altar piece. It was one of the first altar paintings in North and West Europe.
I open with this statement to help provide the context and content of this essay. It is my opinion, like that of the great conceptual artist Sol Lewitt, that many individuals misinterpret art, especially the art of the past. In connection with this, I also believe each person has a right to their own opinions and thoughts. It is my hope that you as the reader will permit my upfront opinion found in this essay. It is my desire to compare and contrast the two pieces I have chased through their formal characteristics, the symbols they contain, and the cultural backgrounds of each piece of art. I have chosen two paintings depicting the same story, Christ being adored at his birth. The first piece, painted by Pietro Perugino in the years of 1470 to 1473, is titled Adoration of the Magi. The second painting is entitled Adoration of the Shepherds, and was painted by El Greco between 1612 and 1614. While both of these paintings depict similar scenes centered on the adoration of Christ they both differ in their functional purposes, the symbols they include, along with their formal or stylistic characteristics.
The painting is of a young St. John the Baptist preaching to his congregation. St. John is an important figure in Catholicism not only for his preaching and baptisms in the River Jordan, but for his role as the last prophet and the forerunner of Jesus Christ. His preaching foretells the coming of Christ as the Messiah, and thereupon Christ’s baptism, the voice from Heaven told St. John that Jesus was God’s son. This piece by Calabrese captures John at the height of his oration. Fixed atop a decrepit tree trunk yet grappling for stability, John is shown here in his ascetic attire composed of camel hair, holding his staff and scroll bearing the words “Ecce Agnus Dei,” which translates into Beho...
... the way that the artwork is resembled in the religious background of the gospel but reconstructed in to a celebrating impression. Throughout the fresco painting it depicts the myth of the Christ’s three fold temptations relating back to the article that “distinction between fresco and panel painting is sharp, and that painters are seen as competitors amongst themselves discriminating also, between the difference in genuine attempts in being better then the other.” Baxandall, “Conditions of Trade,” 26. in relation, the painting concerns the painter’s conscious response to picture trade, and the non-isolation in pictorial interests.
The artists of the Baroque had a remarkably different style than artists of the Renaissance due to their different approach to form, space, and composition. This extreme differentiation in style resulted in a very different treatment of narrative. Perhaps this drastic stylistic difference between the Renaissance and Baroque in their treatment of form, space, and composition and how these characteristics effect the narrative of a painting cannot be seen more than in comparing Perugino’s Christ Delivering the Keys of the Kingdom to St. Peter from the Early Renaissance to Caravaggio’s Conversion of St. Paul from the Baroque.Perugino was one of the greatest masters of the Early Renaissance whose style ischaracterized by the Renaissance ideals of purity, simplicity, and exceptional symmetry of composition. His approach to form in Christ Delivering the Keys of the Kingdom to St.Peter was very linear. He outlined all the figures with a black line giving them a sense of stability, permanence, and power in their environment, but restricting the figures’ sense of movement. In fact, the figures seem to not move at all, but rather are merely locked at a specific moment in time by their rigid outline. Perugino’s approach to the figures’themselves is extremely humanistic and classical. He shines light on the figures in a clear, even way, keeping with the rational and uncluttered meaning of the work. His figures are all locked in a contrapposto pose engaging in intellectual conversation with their neighbor, giving a strong sense of classical rationality. The figures are repeated over and over such as this to convey a rational response and to show the viewer clarity. Perugino’s approach to space was also very rational and simple. He organizes space along three simple planes: foreground, middle ground, and background. Christ and Saint Peter occupy the center foreground and solemn choruses of saints and citizens occupy the rest of the foreground. The middle distance is filled with miscellaneous figures, which complement the front group, emphasizing its density and order, by their scattered arrangement. Buildings from the Renaissance and triumphal arches from Roman antiquity occupy the background, reinforcing the overall classical message to the