medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Laura,
There are biblical references to masonry which, I'm sure, are behind the idea of painted masonry in general, but as you say, from Roman times, brick was really considered a structural material rather than a finished treatment, and as you are undoubtedly aware,
about the only actual brickwork visible on major buildings was either on unfinished facades, e.g. the duomo in Florence through the later Middle Ages, or in peripheral locations, such as the side walls of S. Miniato al Monte, whose facade was, as usual, encased
in marble sheathing. One might imagine that, if brickwork were to be painted fictively onto a plaster wall, it might have been intended as a sign of humility, or a rejection of undue expense in building, or some other such negative implication -- or a documentary
statement of the unfinished state of a building, perhaps. I'm assuming you have an example of this in mind?
Jim
medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Lovely site on English churches- but no, I'm afraid painted masonry doesn't count. I followed the correspondence on Chartres with great interest (for me the issue was not whether the restoration was accurate but whether it's right to strip back
the layers in that way... but I wouldn't want to open that can of worms again). Fictive ashlar masonry wasn't uncommon (and the English church site gives other examples, though it sometimes calls it brickwork), but that's because ashlar was a prestige building
material and you'd want your walls to look as if they were made of dressed stone even/especially if they weren't. Brick was a much humbler material, and it's far from obvious why anyone would want to imitate it in paint- which is why I'm interested to know
of examples.
all best, and thanks
Laura
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