medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
From: Pat McIntosh-Spinnler <[log in to unmask]>
> http://blog.pecia.fr/public/Louviers_4.jpg
> The more you look, the more there is to enjoy in the image.
even if it is a "fake"
as i said, if it is that, it's a damned good --and interesting-- one.
> I love the way the necessary curve of the figure has been used to enhance
Christ's movement-- the walking dynamic of the lower body, the protective
gesture of the left hand, the bend of the head.
a good --and somewhat "late" (assuming a late 12th c., "early gothic," date
for the "model") example of what Henri Focillon called (in _L'art des
sculptures romanes_, 1931) "la loi du cadre," partly definable as "une surface
ornée par un peintre ou un sculpteur se déforme suivant les exigences de ses
propre limites."
i say "partly" because sometimes the composition of a figure or scene might be
based on, say, an "ornamental" element --typically some sort of "palmette,"
examples of which could be found eleswhere in the work (illumination or
portal)-- this latter "discovery" being elaborated by Focillon's student,
Jurgis Baltrušaitis (_La stylistique monumentale dans la sculpture
monumentale_, 1931;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurgis_Baltru%C5%A1aitis_(son)).
Focillon's fundamental idea has frequently been misunderstood --partly due to
his own (and Baltrušaitis') use of it-- as being rigidly "determinative"
rather than purely "analytical" or (simply) "descriptive," but it is clearly,
at the least, the latter.
as can be seen most clearly in the work of the famous statue columns of the
"Head Master" of Chartres, where the "frame" of the column seems to determine
most severely the form of the figure which is attached to it:
http://tinyurl.com/59vxm5
http://images.library.pitt.edu/cgi-bin/i/image/image-idx?q1=FCSP13600*;rgn1=chartres_fn;q2=FCSP136000*;op2=not;rgn2=chartres_fn;q3=FCSP136000*;op3=not;rgn3=chartres_fn;sid=725db9562041e8d21583f7d9a59f63e5;size=20;c=chartres;lasttype=boolean;view=entry;lastview=thumbnail;subview=detail;cc=chartres;entryid=x-fcsp13600115;viewid=FCSP13600115.TIF;start=1;resnum=3
a more subtle (and more typical) application is to be seen on the tympanum of
Conques
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Conques_JPG03.jpg
note that the Saved --on the left side of the lintel-- are all organized under
a neat and orderly arcade, while the Damed, on the right, are lost in in
chaos:
http://www.art-roman.net/conques/conques60x.jpg
a closer look, however, reveals that the composition of the Damned is, too,
laid out according to the "cadre" of an (invisible) arcade similar to that of
the Saved: note the suspicious curve of the tormenting devil on the left, the
seperate composition of the next three figures, the centrally placed Devil,
the curve of the head of the Hanging Judas, etc.
here's a somewhat misunderstood (to my mind) application of the principle:
http://www.mba-lyon.fr/mba/sections/fr/collections-musee/sculptures/oeuvres-sculptures/moyen-age/jongleur
in _La stylistique monumentale_ Baltrusiatis (quite convincingly) superimposes
on the composition of the *whole* of the Moissac tympanum a palmette form
which is found repeated as an "ornament" elsewhere on the portal --i've got
that on a webpage on my site, somewhere, but can't find it.
examples of the "loi" on "romaneque" capitals are Legion.
>Also the way he is treading on the yellow demon which seems to be trying to
leave while the gates are open, like a cat!
yes, he is definitely "sneaking out," isn't he.
a good example of the "anecdotal" quality of 12th c. art (of which
"Gislebertus of Autun" was such a master).
> (But is there any significance in the triple cross Christ is carrying?)
probably.
surely.
who nose?
>Hell, on the other hand, turns out to be a castle rather than the usual
gaping mouth, which is interesting.
in most depictions of the scene i know of, a Big Deal is made of the (broken
down) Doors of Hell.
big doors = big portal = big castle
>And how very appropriate that the saved souls are now clothed, while the
souls still in torment remain naked.
yes, it seems that the damned --being unrecognizable souls-- are, at this
date, usually nude (later we can make out the Station of the figures: Kings,
Princes, Bishops, Monks and suchlike deserving Personages).
>Could the saved be Adam and Eve?
again, in most depictions (and in the texts on which they are based??), Adam
is certainly the first Guy being pulled out of Hell.
certainly the Woman --so clearly identifiable as such-- would be Eve, Mother
of All Mankind's Sorrows (and looking here like she regrets it, with her
appropriate hand gesture, the other hand hanging on to the Hapless Adam for
Dear Life).
> And the background-- brilliant red of hell-flames on one side, celestial
blue on the other.
> The border jars a bit. The curly leaves
stylized "acanthus," alternating leaves (on the inner row) and palmettes (on
the outer one)
borders like that are typical around all scenes --if one is hallucinating them
correctly, it is possible to see the scene itself (within its round or square
or diamond shaped cadre) as on a higher plane than the surrounding background,
the acanthus ornamental frieze serving as a transition to the latter
--difficult to do for most, without appropriate Pharmaceuticals, however).
Think: Enamelwork (a closely allied artform).
>are identical all the way around.
well, yeah, it's "just" "ornament" dontchasee?
>Easy to achieve with a stamp to prepare the glass before painting it, less
easy if you're doing each one by hand.
Jim's the Resident Expert on Glass, certainly, but it's quite possible that a
stencil (or two), rather than a "stamp," was used here, seems to me.
stencils were extensively used in mss (writing), a century or two later.
and "templates" were in common usage amongst masons, at this time.
> Whatever date it is, I love it.
no accounting for taste, i suppose.
me too.
i'd hang it in my kitchen any time.
i think the List should buy it, and hang it in my Museum.
c
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