Renaissance Art: International Gothic - PDF

ARTH 3850: Renaissance Art The Early Renaissance: The “International Gothic”: from Siena to the courts of France  Today’s Tasks Finish up Siena & 14th–c. central Italy Transition to Fourteenth- century (1300s) France: International Gothic & Court culture in Fr...

ARTH 3850: Renaissance Art The Early Renaissance: The “International Gothic”: from Siena to the courts of France  Today’s Tasks Finish up Siena & 14th–c. central Italy Transition to Fourteenth- century (1300s) France: International Gothic & Court culture in France: – Visual & literary aesthetics of courtliness – Christine de Pisan’s City of Ladies – Jean Pucelle & manuscript illumination Key terms: International Gothic Allegorical debate Manuscript painting Key players: Jean Pucelle (1300–1355) Christine de Pisan (1364–1430)  Palazzo Pubblico Siena’s Cathedral (Duomo) Cathedral Square and Piazza del Campo, Plan, Siena Siena Cathedral, Siena, Italy, (major early building campaigns 1215–63, 1284–99, and 1339–48) Florence Cathedral (Duomo), 1296-1378 Designed by Arnolfo di Cambio, Francesco Talenti, Andrea Orcagna, & others; Bell tower (Campanile) by Giotto, Andrea Pisano, & Francesco Talenti, c. 1334-50 (Drum and dome by Brunelleschi, 1420-36) Siena Cathedral, Siena, Italy, (major early building campaigns 1215–63, 1284–99, and 1339–48) Royal Portal, West Façade, Chartres Cathedral, France, ca. 1145-55 (Gothic cathedral) Giovanni Pisano (1245-1319), Detail of façade of Siena Cathedral, marble, 1284–99 New nave – suspended when Black Death arrived in Siena, 1348 -- notice: Groin Vaults Interior, Siena Cathedral Black and white marble may refer to the black and white horses ridden by the mythical founders of the city, Senius and Aschius, Remus’ sons (which is why the city emblem for Siena is the same as Rome’s – the she-wolf suckling the twins, Romulus & Remus). Lorenzetti, Allegory of Good Government, fresco, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, 1338-40, Sala dei Nove (or Sala della Pace) “The holy virtue [of Justice] where she rules, induces to unity the many souls [of the citizens], and they gathered together for such a purpose, make the Common Good their Lord; and he, in order to govern his state, chooses never to turn his eyes from the resplendent faces of the Virtues who sit around him. Therefore to him in triumph are offered taxes, tributes and lordship of towns; therefore, without war, every civic result duly follows – useful, necessary and pleasurable.” Lorenzetti, Allegory of Good Government, Detail of Common Good, fresco, Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, 1338-40, Sala dei Nove (or Sala della Pace) “The holy virtue [of Justice] where she rules, induces to unity the many souls [of the citizens], and they gathered together for such a purpose, make the Common Good their Lord; and he, in order to govern his state, chooses never to turn his eyes from the resplendent faces of the Virtues who sit around him. Therefore to him in triumph are offered taxes, tributes and lordship of towns; therefore, without war, every civic result duly follows – useful, necessary and pleasurable.” Siena’s coat of arms Interior, Siena Cathedral Interior, Florence Cathedral Duccio, Maestà, Tempera and gold on wood panel, 1308-1311, for Siena Cathedral, 7 ft x 13 ft (Scenes from the Life of the Virgin, top and bottom [predella]) “Holy Mother of God, be thou the cause of peace for Siena and life to Duccio because he painted thee thus.” Term: International Gothic Style Duccio, Maestà, Tempera and gold on wood panel, 1308-1311, for Siena Cathedral (Scenes from the Life of the Virgin, top and bottom [predella]) “Holy Mother of God, be thou the cause of peace for Siena and life to Duccio because he painted thee thus.” Term: International Gothic Style Giotto, Ognissanti Madonna, Tempera and gold on panel, Florence, 1305-1310 Reverse of altarpiece, Scenes from the Life of Christ (reconstruction) Detail of Crucifixion, Duccio, Maestà, for high altar of Siena Cathedral, Tempera on panel, 1308-1311 Royal Portal, West Façade, Chartres Cathedral, France, ca. 1145-55 (Gothic cathedral) “Gothic” treatment of figures in Sienese art is compared to sculpture from Gothic cathedrals in France & Germany It’s associated with “courtliness”, the aesthetics of court, especially in France Royal Portal, West Façade, Chartres Cathedral. Detail: Prophets and Ancestors of Christ (Kings and Queens of Judea) court·ly (adjective) courtliness (noun) 1. Polite, refined, or elegant: courtly manners. 2. Noting, pertaining to, or suitable for the court of a sovereign. Simone Martini, Annunciation, tempera and gold on panel, 1333, for Siena Cathedral “Punching” & “Tooling” = Techniques for working the surface of a panel painting, especially for adding details to goldleaf or gold- ground: a Sienese specialty Part of the “sumptuous”, luxury quality of “International Gothic” Europe, ca. 1360 International Gothic: Simone Martini, Annunciation, tempera and gold on panel, 1333 Virgin and Child, c. 1324–1339, height 27 1/8”, donated by Jeanne d’Evreux to the abbey church of St. Denis in 1339. Note “Gothic” lines married to the greater intimacy and personal details of the relationship between the baby and mother (verisimilitude). The stylistic exchange goes both ways between France & Italy!  Jean Pucelle, The Hours of Jeanne D’Évreux (Queen of France; wife of King Charles IV), ca. 1325–1328, each page 3 1/2 × 2 1/4” Books of hours were manuals of personal piety and alternatives to daily church ritual, integrating spiritual and everyday life. Reading as meditative practice, especially on lives of Jesus & Mary (Vita Christi).  For Next Class Study for Exam I & work on your timelines! Start thinking about potential final project ideas! Fourteenth-Century England & Holy Roman Empire READ: – OIHR, Long & Morrall, “Craft & Technology,” pp. 338- 340, 342-347. Listen & explore: MET Cloisters “The Unicorn Purifies Water (from the Unicorn Tapestries)” Explore: The V&A Museum’s “A-Z of Opus Anglicanum”