Her eyes are partially closed, and her hands together in prayer, giving her a serene and holy appearance, despite the flurry of activity around her. The Virgin appears as if she is brightly illuminated, implying that she is an enlightened figure and accentuating her holiness. Mary, Queen of Heaven, by the Master of the Saint Lucy Legend is not only grand in size, but also in message. There is a great deal of symbolism, delicate details, and religious imagery. However, the Artist is successful in drawing the viewer in to the work, prompting them to carefully consider the skillfully rendered details and imagery, as well as the greater story and ideas that the piece represents.
They provoke us to imitate the virtues of the holy figures depicted on them. They help to transform and bless us. They serve as a means of worship and veneration (Cavarnos 30). The most obvious function of icons is to enhance the beauty of the church. The church is a house of God, which means that it should be decorated as beautiful as possible.
They dip their hand in the water and mark themselves anew with the sign in which they were bapt... ... middle of paper ... ...icance of each specific time, but it felt similar to my church. Although I did not attend a church service at a sacred space that was drastically different from my own, I feel as though I still was able to take a lot away from this assignment. Never before have I done anything like this. It was a very interesting and was a valuable experience to go into a building of worship that I was unfamiliar with; I was impressed with how welcoming a congregation full of strangers could be. It was also a unique experience to go into a church service more focused on my surroundings as well as specific movements and points of the service than I normally would.
(New York: Norton and Company, 1996). When I heard the learn’d astronomer, When the proofs, the figures, were ranged in columns before me, When I was shown the charts and diagrams, to add, divide, and measure them, When I sitting heard the astronomer where he lectured with much applause in the lecture-room, 5 How soon unaccountable I became tired and sick, Till rising and gliding out I wander’d off by myself, In the mystical moist night-air, and from time to time, Look’d up in perfect silence at the stars. — Walt Whitman (1865)1
Also, it brings in some of the surrounding beauty from St. Denis, such as the sapphire and stained glass, as well as the gold plating. After walking inside and trying to first experience, the church, and all its beauty and ornateness, I began examining the floor plan and elevations of the cathedral. Grace Cathedral was build in a gothic style, which it represents in its architecture inside and out. There were three huge rose windows. One at the very top of the main entrance and one on either end of the transept.
The essence of Gothic architecture most importantly has to do with revealing the properties of light for not only its decorative properties but, also its symbolic properties (Aldrich, Pg. 24). Due to the vaulting w... ... middle of paper ... ...ay with the morning coming through the apse and throughout the day slowly moving to the back rose (fig 8). Providing this light to the altar gives a more heavenly feel and connects your close to god. Since the sermons are in the morning the most divine light coming from the apse directly onto the altar makes it the ideal location.
Public television beamed to me quenched my insatiable need for history. While my counterparts were absorbed with the, then novel, music video I was reaching back to play with the Egyptians as they built the pyramids. Most every night I could bask in the cathode rays of emperors and kings, peasants, popes, and even the occasional murderer. Sometimes at night, I would go outside after a particularly interesting show and stare at the sky. In the heavens I saw the same sky as Napoleon Bonapart.
It is the iconostasis and is covered in beautiful, colourful icons and in the centre of it are the royal doors. These are only passed through by the elected priest (chosen as Gods representative) and ordained clergy who prepare the Divine Liturgy upon the high altar to be taken out for the communion ceremony. The royal doors usually carry icons of the evangelists and Annunciation. There are side doors to the iconostasis which are used by the deacons and servers and they sometimes show the archangels Michael and Gabriel ... ... middle of paper ... ... feel as though they are in the presence of God whilst in worship. This alone may be a very special feeling.
The Gothic structure allows for plenty of windows. Chartres has a significant collection of medieval stained glass, with over 150 early thirteenth century windows. The windows allowed sunlight to enter the dark, Gothic cathedral in order to highlight the story of Christ through the stained glass windows told throughout history to pilgrims alike. These windows create a spiritual and promising place for thought and prayer. Stained glass was used to help teach the stories of Christ to people that were illiterate during the medieval times.
In this painting there is a strong presence of the color element. There is a strong contrast in lighting between the mother and child and the angels worshiping on the outside. The mother and child are painted in a vibrant pinkish rose hue while the surrounding angels are a slightly darker mix of green shades. The painting also offers a good variation of saturation when it comes to the fading yellow brick background. The pallets used