Jim Bugslag wrote:
>The Psalms themselves only reticently lend themselves to illustrative
material. Most art associated witht the Psalms consists in illuminations in
Psalters....
Expanding on Jim's observation, to the extent i've ever thought about it (not
much, alors), it seems to me that one reason for the rarity of Psalmodical
illustrations (outside of Psalter illumination itself of course) is the simple
fact that, though chock full of striking and vivid imagery, there is not much
*narrative* there, and narrative is the life's blood of illustration.
However, to Jim's Ravenna example i'd add --maybe correctly?-- depictions of
the "Fountain of Life" in early mosiaics and later (e.g., Carolingian) mss.
(and who knows what lost mosiaics, murals, plasterwork, vitreaux?); and also
probably a rather large number of what we might dismiss as "decorative
motifs," scattered thoughout E.C. church decoration, and perhaps even the
generalized (to us) conception of what a "church" actually *was* and what it
should look like as such.
What is the origin of the phrase "Heavenly Jerusalem," after all?
i once had an experience in the cathedral of Chartres in which i thought
myself to be walking in a beautiful garden in the cool of an evening's
twilight, the stained glass windows being trellisses with the glowing images
woven into their living fabric, the whole lit by a marvelous, raking light.
("better living through chemistry," some might say.)
If i had had any knowledge at all of the text, i'm sure i would have
found verbal expression for the experience in Psalmic imagery.
Of course, the Psalms are constantly present the "bread and butter" of high
medieval imagery, --i.e., scenes taken from the Incarnation and Passion--
since these are based upon the Gospels, which in turn are laced with
typological references based on the "Old Testament", including the Psalms.
Interesting question, in part because it is so elementary.
Best to all from here,
Christopher
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