Week 3 Gothic Architecture Lecture Presentation PDF

GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE ARC 1467 HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE 3 GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE A style of architecture that flourished during the High and Late Medieval period It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE Originated in F...

GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE ARC 1467 HISTORY OF ARCHITECTURE 3 GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE A style of architecture that flourished during the High and Late Medieval period It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE Originated in France in the 12th century and existed in the western half of Europe through the middle of the 16th century Characterized by progressive lightening and heightening of the structure, use of the pointed arch, ribbed vault and a system of richly decorated fenestration ABBOT SUGER Father of the Gothic style, his innovative new choir for the abbey church of St. Denis reflected the rise of France as a political and cultural force and inaugurated a glorious outburst of French cathedral-building that lasted until the 13th century PERIODS OF GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE French Gothic Architecture English Gothic Architecture  South Façade of Notre- Dame de Paris FRENCH GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE EARLY FRENCH STYLE First phase of French Gothic architecture Characterized by the pointed arch and geometric tracery RAYONNANT STYLE Middle phase of French Gothic architecture from the end of 13th through the late 14th century Characterized by circular windows with radiating lines of tracery FLAMBOYANT STYLE Final phase of French Gothic architecture from the 14th through the middle of the 16th century Characterized by flame- like tracery, intricacy of detailing, and frequent complication of interior space ENGLISH GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE EARLY ENGLISH STYLE First phase of English Gothic architecture from the late 12th through the 13th century Characterized by the lancet window and plate tracery DECORATED STYLE Second of the three phases of English Gothic architecture from the late 13th through the late 14th century Characterized by rich tracery, elaborate ornamental vaulting and refinement of stonecutting techniques Geometric Style – late 13th and early 14th century characterized by the use of geometric tracery Curvilinear Style – second half of the 14th century characterized by the use of curvilinear tracery PERPENDICULAR STYLE Final phase of the English Gothic architecture prevailing from the late 14th through the early 16th century Characterized by perpendicular tracery, fine intricate stonework and elaborate fan vaults Also called Rectilinear Style THE TERM ‘GOTHIC’ It came to be used as early as the 1530s by Giorgio Vasari to describe culture that was considered rude and barbaric In English 17th-century usage, "Goth" was an equivalent of "vandal", a savage despoiler with a Germanic heritage and so came to be applied to the architectural styles of northern Europe from before the revival of classical types of architecture REGIONS At the end of the 12th century, England was divided into a multitude of city states and kingdoms Throughout Europe at this time there was a rapid growth in trade and an associated growth in towns Germany and the Lowlands had large flourishing towns that grew in trade and competition with each other, or united for mutual wealth, as in the Hanseatic League Map of Europe during the 12th Century MATERIALS In France, limestone was readily available England had coarse limestone, red sandstone as well as dark green Purbeck marble In Northern Germany, Netherlands, Scandinavia, Baltic countries and northern Poland local building stone was unavailable but there was a strong tradition of building in brick Brick Gothic - called "Backsteingotik" in Germany and Scandinavia BUILDING MATERIALS In Italy, stone was used for fortifications, but brick was preferred for other buildings Because of the extensive and varied deposits of marble, many buildings were faced in marble The availability of timber also influenced the style of architecture RELIGION The early Medieval periods had seen a rapid growth in monasticism, with several different orders being prevalent and spreading their influence widely. Benedictines Cistercians Dominicans Franciscans ROMANESQUE TRADITION The basic structure of the cathedral church, the parish church, the monastery, the castle, the palace, the great hall and the gatehouse were all established Ribbed vaults, buttresses, clustered columns, ambulatories, wheel windows, spires and richly carved door tympanums were already features of ecclesiastical architecture SEPARATION OF GOTHIC FROM ROMANESQUE Gothic broke the tradition of massive masonry and solid walls penetrated by small openings, replacing it with a style where light appears to triumph over substance Pointed Arch Flying buttresses, pinnacles and traceried windows typify Gothic ecclesiastical architecture CHARACTERISTICS OF GOTHIC CHURCHES Emphasis on verticality and lightness Pointed arches Clustered columns Pointed ribbed vaults Flying buttresses Towers Pinnacles Spires PLAN OF GOTHIC CHURCHES Most Gothic churches are of the Latin cross (or "cruciform") plan with a long nave, transept and, beyond it, the choir, chancel or presbytery The nave is generally flanked on either side by aisles Gothic churches of the Germanic tradition, like St. Stephen of Vienna, often have nave and aisles of similar height and are called “Hallenkirche” ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER OF GOTHIC CHURCHES POINTED ARCH The pointed arch is used in every location where a vaulted shape is called for, both structural and decorative Gothic openings such as doorways, windows, arcades and galleries have pointed arches The pointed arch developed within window spaces into complex Gothic tracery forming the structural support of the large windows that are characteristic of the style VERTICAL EMPHASIS A characteristic of Gothic church architecture is its height, both absolute and in proportion to its width A section of the main body of a Gothic church usually shows the nave as considerably taller than it is wide In England the proportion is sometimes greater than 2:1, while the greatest proportional difference achieved is at Cologne Cathedral with a ratio of 3.6:1 LIGHT One of the most distinctive characteristics of Gothic architecture is the expansive area of the windows The increase in size between windows of the Romanesque and Gothic periods is related to the use of the ribbed vault, and in particular, the pointed ribbed vault which channeled the weight to a supporting shaft with less outward thrust than a semicircular vault Walls did not need to be so weighty MAJESTY The façade of a large church or cathedral, often referred to as the ‘West Front’, is generally designed to create a powerful impression on the approaching worshipper, demonstrating both the might of God, and the might of the institution that it represents BASIC SHAPES OF GOTHIC ARCHES LANCET ARCH Lancet openings are often grouped, usually as a cluster of three or five. Lancet openings may be very narrow and steeply pointed EQUILATERAL ARCH Many Gothic openings are based upon the equilateral form. In other words, when the arch is drafted, the radius is exactly the width of the opening and the center of each arch coincides with the point from which the opposite arch springs This makes the arch higher in relation to its width than a semi-circular arch which is exactly half as high as it is wide. Equilateral Arch FLAMBOYANT ARCH The upper part of each main arc turns upwards into a smaller arc and meets at a sharp, flame-like point These arches create a rich and lively effect when used for window tracery and surface decoration The form is structurally weak and has very rarely been used for large openings It is not employed at all for vaulting. Flamboyant Arch DEPRESSED ARCH The Depressed or four-centered arch is much wider than its height and gives the visual effect of having been flattened under pressure Its structure is achieved by drafting two arcs which rise steeply from each springing point on a small radius and then turn into two arches with a wide radius and much lower springing point Depressed Arch GOTHIC WINDOW TRACERY GOTHIC WINDOW TRACERY Plate Tracery Geometric Tracery Intersecting Reticulated Tracery Tracery GOTHIC ELEMENTS The earliest complete Gothic structure is the ambulatory of the abbey of Saint-Denis in France. Built between 1140 and 1144, the church became a model for most of the late 12th- century French cathedrals, including those at Chartres and Senlis Earlier Romanesque churches had pointed arches, but builders didn't capitalize on the shape. During the Gothic era, builders discovered that pointed arches would give structures amazing strength and stability. In Gothic buildings, the weight of the roof was supported by the arches rather than the walls. This meant that walls could be thinner. Duomo di Milano, Milan, Italy  Earlier Romanesque churches relied on barrel vaulting. Gothic builders introduced the dramatic technique of ribbed vaulting. While barrel vaulting carried weight on continuous solid walls, ribbed vaulting used columns to support the Ribbed Vaulting at the ambulatory of Saint Denis weight. The ribs also delineated the vaults and gave a sense of unity to the structure. Flying Buttress Gothic Stained Glass Windows Gargoyles Medieval man considered himself an imperfect reflection of the divine light of God, and Gothic architecture was the ideal expression of this view. New techniques of construction permitted buildings to soar to amazing new heights, dwarfing anyone who stepped inside. Moreover, the concept of divine light was suggested by the airy quality of Gothic buildings, which were much lighter than churches in the earlier Romanesque style. Milan Cathedral Gothic ideas never completely vanished. During the nineteenth century, builders in Europe, England and the United States borrowed Medieval traditions to create an eclectic Victorian style: Gothic Revival. Even small private homes were given arched windows, lacy pinnacles, and an occasional leering gargoyle. Gothic Revival House References / Sources: Books: Burden, Ernest E., Illustrated Dictionary of Architecture. New York: McGraw-Hill, c2012. Ching, Francis, A Visual Dictionary of Architecture. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley, c2012. Cruickshank, Dan, Sir Banister Fletcher’s A History of Architecture (Twentieth Edition). Oxford: Architectural Press, c1996 Internet (Pictures and Articles): [Circle Patterns in Gothic Architeture]. Semantic Scholar. https://www.semanticscholar.org/ Clouet, T. (2015). Church of St. Denis [Online Image]. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Saint-Denis_- _Fa%C3%A7ade.jpg [Duomo di Milano, Milan, Italy]. Invaluable. https://www.invaluable.com [East End of Salisbury Cathedral]. Smarthistory. https://smarthistory.org [Equilateral Arch]. ClipArt ETC. https://etc.usf.edu/clipart/27700/27761 [Flamboyant Arch]. ClipArt ETC. https://etc.usf.edu/clipart/27700/27761 [Flamboyant Tracery]. Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.ph [Flying Buttresses]. My Modern Met. https://mymodernmet.com/ [Gargoyles in Architecture]. Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.ph [Gothic Arch]. Classically Christian. https://thepocketscroll.wordpress.com/ [Gothic Revival House]. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/ [Gothic Stained Glass Window]. A World History of Art. http://www.all- art.org/ [Gothic Window Tracery]. Flickr. https://www.flickr.com/ [Geometric Tracery]. The Free Dictionary. https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com [Intersecting Tracery]. Discover St. Wulfram’s http://www.discoverstwulframs.org.uk/ [Lancet Arch]. ClipArt ETC. https://etc.usf.edu/clipart/27700/27761 [Lancet Window]. Merriam-Webster. https://www.merriam- webster.com/dictionary/lancet%20window [Lincoln Cathedral]. Study.com. https://study.com/academy/lesson/english-gothic-architecture.html [Old Map of Europe]. Pinterest. https://www.pinterest.ph/pin/561401909779855489/ [Open Tracery at Southwell Minster]. Smarthistory. https://smarthistory.org [Plate Tracery]. The Free Dictionary. https://encyclopedia2.thefreedictionary.com [Reticulated Tracery]. Discover St. Wulfram’s http://www.discoverstwulframs.org.uk/ [Ribbed Vaulting]. Athena Review. http://www.athenapub.com/ [South Façade of Notre-Dame de Paris]. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org