16th Century Art

16th CENTURY ART

This section explores 16^th century art including both from the southern and northern regions.

Let’s begin in the South…

 

16^th Century Southern Art

Theme: “Human and Divine”

Human interest in the natural world, the human body, and the capacities of the individual, mixed with a religious Italian peninsula to create 16^th-century art. This was in opposition to the Italian Renaissance.

Historical Context (1495-1527)

• Pope Julius II was a major patron, leading to some of the greatest artistic creations in history
• Rome was sacked in 1527 by troops of HRE Charles V and dramatically halted artistic achievements of the century à Mannerism

Mannerism
1520 -1600

Mannerism began in Florence and Rome and was seen as an artistic expression of unsettled political and religious conditions in Europe.

• Martin Luther’s 95 Theses, 1517
• Raphael’s death, 1520
• Sack of Rome, 1527

Patrons included Cosimo I (Medici) of Florence and Francis I of France. The art was elegant, intriguing. and created for sophisticated courtiers.

Mannerism took on a departure from the balanced, harmonious, stable composition of the Renaissance. Instead, Mannerism was:  

Mannerism took on a departure from the balanced, harmonious, stable composition of the Renaissance. Instead, Mannerism was:  

• Elegant, elongated, and distorted.
• Not ideal, humanistic, or rational
• Convoluted, complex, vague, confusing, unstable.
• Cluttered, jumbled.
• Figures are arranged along a vertical axis.
• Not in a recognizable earthly setting
• No linear perspective used.
• No pyramidal composition but movement in all directions.
• Voids in the middle of paintings.
• Bright and garish colour palettes

 Figures in Mannerism

• Figures are stylized, elongated, thin, distorted.
• Positions are not natural.
• Bodies do not bear weight correctly.
• figura serpentinata or a twist in the figure
• Heads are uniformly small.

Mannerism was a response to the chaos and frustration of the historical events by rejecting perfection in art. Once Mannerism emerged, the word was considered a derogatory term, meaning artists could only paint in a “manner” not in a style. Later, however these works were created for sophisticated courtiers and royalty.

Map of Italy Around 1500

 

Artistic Innovations 

• A desire to emulate Roman glory
• Artists were required to belong to guilds, but began to achieve great fame as individuals
• Patrons: popes, and princes
  • Women became patrons too such as Isabella d’Este.

Painting

During this time, canvass was used instead of wood.

Sfumato where forms are rendered subtly with a misty or smoky effect and chiaroscuro the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, typically for modeling were popular.

Glazes were used to build up rich oil paintings.

In portraits, the ¾ turn was used to express character.  Compositions were balanced (∆), symmetrical, and ideally proportioned.

Sculpture

Sculptures were based on classical prototypes. The medium of choice was marble, and it was left unpainted. Bronze was still used. Little negative space was left. There was heroic nudity.

Architecture

Roman treatise by Vitruvius influenced architects. Perfect proportions and symmetry were important, and the circle was viewed as the perfect shape.

Rome in the 16^th Century

(3) 76. School of Athens.

Raphael. Italian. Buon fresco. 1509-1511. 16^th century. Southern (High Renaissance).

Learning Objective: 16^th century. Southern buon fresco

Themes:

Philosophy
Status
Power

School of Athens, a buon fresco in Stanza della Segnatura, Vatican Palace, Vatican City, Italy, that measures 16 by 25 feet is a work by artist Raphael.

An open, clear light is uniformly spread throughout the balanced composition. The figures are grounded, have shadows, and are evenly distributed. The use of chiaroscuro shows three-dimensionality.

The architecture is an idealized recreation of a classical gymnasium, inspired by Roman bathhouses. There are coffered barrel vaults and Greek meander patterns along edges. Roman sculptures include  Apollo on left, and Athena on right, along with pilasters.

School of Athens combines one-point perspective and two-point perspective.

• One-point perspective: vanishing point is right behind Plato and Aristotle
• Two-point perspective visible in Michelangelo’s block with an angle that means new perspective must be used.

Creating a Buon Fresco Outline 

• Make a cartoon for image that is small scale and perfect it
• Make large cartoon, perforated by small holes where lines are drawn
• Position cartoon on wall
• Use Powder charcoal to image to accentuate the holes, leaving an outline on the wall

Deep Thinking in the Library

School of Athens  was commissioned by Pope Julius II to decorate his philosophy wall, in the library, in the Papal Apartments. Each wall had bookshelves below it that related to the four branches of human knowledge.

• Philosophy
• Theology
• Poetry
• Law/literature
• Humanist thought is joined with Church teachings.

This work embodies the spirit of the Renaissance when there was religious admiration for these great thinkers.  The viewer must understand each figure through color, movement, position, and dress as there are no names on the work to show identity. This has confused some historians!

What is School of Athens About?

 

The left side of the work contains philosophers who addressed  liberal arts, the intangible, the ideal and theoretical. Plato has been painted to look like artist Leonardo!

Plato holds one of his books and points upward to show that the higher reality is eternal and unchanging. He argued that appearances are not the final truth. He wears red (fire) and purple (air) and neither of these have weight. Socrates, Plato’s teacher, is in dark green.

Pythagoras sits on the bottom left, in pink, and is holding a book.

Heraclitus leans on a block, appearing deep in thoughts about his interests in cosmology. The figure is based on Michelangelo. Raphael added him in later by using some fresh plaster.

On the right side are the great thinkers of math and science, the tangible, practical and empirical. This is symbolized by Aristotle, Plato’s student.  Aristotle holds his book Ethics, which focuses on the observable. He is grounded and his clothing reflects this with the brown of the earth and the blue of the water.  Diogenes, the founder of Cynic philosophy lays on the stairs.

Ptolemy who tried to mathematically explain the movement of planets holds the globe.

1. Zeno of Citium
2. Epicurus
3. Unknown
4. Boethius or Anaximander of Empedocles?
5. Averroes
6. Pythagoras
7. Alcibiades or Alexander the Great?
8. Antisthenes or Xenophon or Timon?
9. Raphael?
10. Aeschines or Xenophon?
11. Parmenides based on Leonardo da Vinci
12. Socrates
13. Heraclitus based on Michelangelo
14. Plato based on Leonardo da Vinci
15. Aristotle
16. Diogenes
17. Plotinus based on Donatello
18. Euclid or Archimedes
19. Strabo or Zoroaster?
20. Ptolemy
21. Protogenes

The Greater Story

At this point in history, the artist is seen as more than just a craftsman. Popes are now directly commissioning art. The Church had traditionally turned away from classical antiquity. Now, under Pope Julius II, it is embraced. Religions and secularism are joined.

 About Raphael

Italian Renaissance painter Raphael (1483- 1520) was born in Urbino, Italy. His father was a painter for Duke of Urbino, so he was taught skills early. He died when Raphael was just 11 and the boy was forced to take over his father’s workshop. Soon, Raphael was known as the best painter in his town.

In 1500, Raphael was invited to apprentice in Perugia, Central Italy, with master painter Pietro Vannunci. After four years, Raphael left to move to Florence, where he was inspired by the great artists of the time. Raphael would be best known for his work in painting Madonnas and frescos.

(3) 75. Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel ceiling and altar wall frescoes. Michelangelo. Italian. Buon fresco. Building: 1483 CE. Ceiling frescoes: 1508-1512 CE. Altar frescoes: 1536-1541 CE. 16^th century. Southern (High Renaissance).

Learning Object: Learning Objective: 16^th century. Southern ceiling fresco

Themes:

Status
Biblical
Place of worship
Power
Propaganda
Human and divine
Water

 

The Sistine Chapel, in Vatican City, Italy, is a simple basilica, with barrel vault, in classical revival style. It measures 133 feet by 46 feet. What makes it extraordinary is that every surface of space is decorated. There are 300 figures on the ceiling, each one is unique and no two are in the same pose.

Michelangelo was first and foremost a sculptor, but  he  had started learning to paint.

Creating the Ceiling Art

The artist used a series of complex scaffolding to stand on and paint the ceiling. Before he started to paint, the curved ceiling was a flat blue color, with some decorative stars.

Michelangelo painted the figures first in grisailles, or grays, to get modeling and shadow correct. Then, color was painted over top.

Some of the other techniques the artist used include:

• Trompe l’oeil architecture: French for “tricking the eye” with anything that is illusionistic.
• Quaddro Riportato: “carried picture” that allows a fresco to be seen straight on, in a space parallel to the floor.

Why was the Sistine Chapel Built?

The Sistine Chapel was built to show the power and  legitimacy of the Church and Pope, through extravagance and scope. It is also a statement of artistic genius.

The Pope holds mass here for important guests. This is also the place where new Popes are picked.

Why is it decorated with Old Testament Scenes?

One often wonders why the Catholic Church would choose to have Old Testament scenes created and not New Testament scenes.  In fact, there are no images of Christ on the ceiling at all!

Catholic Church’s claims are validated by emphasizing the prophecies foretold the events in the Old Testament.

Sibyls and Prophets are ancient pagan soothsayers, who could see the future and foretell the coming of Christ.

A Closer Look at Michelangelo’s Work

Michelangelo chose a complicated arrangement of figures for the ceiling.  The work shows the first few chapters of Genesis, with accompanying Old Testament figures and antique sibyls.

Michelangelo’s term for his youthful male nudes, or ignudi are completed in the artist’s own style that  expresses classicism and humanism. Yet,  they do not advance the narrative.

A View of the Ceiling

Michelangelo painted these scenes in backwards chronological order. He wanted to perfect his style before he got to the scenes with God.

There are nine main scenes in the narrative that begin at the alter.

Art Map at Sistine Chapel

The Creation 

• God divides light and dark.
• God creates the sun and planets.

• God divides water from earth.

Adam and Eve

• God creates Adam.
• God creates Eve scenes.
• Adam and Eve’s Temptation and Expulsion

Noah

• Noah’s Sacrifice
• The Flood
• Drunkenness of Noah

SUB-IMAGE #1 (Delphic Sibyl)

Michelangelo took a break from painting and when he returned after 1510, he painted Delphic Sibyl. Her massive form is a basic triangle, in that she widens towards the hips. Circular forms create the scroll, knees, and cloak. While the space she sits in is rigid, her body is round.

Enhancing the Female Form

Female forms were based off the muscularity of men. Her arms are extremely powerful. Even so, she has a grace and gentleness. In the style of the day, ennobling the female forms made the figures appear stronger and greater.

It was considered inappropriate to sketch a female nude at the time. Male nudes were often substituted. In this case Michelangelo used cadavers to achieve the correct musculature.

The Delphic Sibyl

The word Sibyl was first mentioned by the ancient Greek writer Heraclitus in 500 BC. It was not just Old Testament figures who foretold the coming of Christ. One of the most famous Delphic Sibyls predicted the falling of Troy.

The position of Sibyl was filled by many different women over the years. There were no social or economic criteria for the role, but she had to be wise, in her 40s or 50s, and understand the role of the gods.  On the seventh day of every month, she sat at the Delphic temple on a big rock, with ivy growing on it. Here, she would make prophecies.

Her blue head scarf  acted as a crown or diadem to show her legitimacy.

Creation of Adam

This narrative has been paired down to essentials. God is in sky and Adam is bound to earth.  The figures possess a sculptural quality of both strength and grace. In fact, the depiction of Adam is influenced by the classical sculpture Belvedere Torso. Adam is heroically nude and an ideal beauty. This connects him to the divine.

God and angels sit on a shape like the brain. This indicates that being human is the capacity to think. Under God’s left arm is Eve waiting to be born.

SUB-IMAGE 2 (The Flood)

Michelangelo created this work before 1510. This was prior to his monumental style like that Adam or Delphic Sibyl.

This work shows the story of Noah’s Ark. God decided people were so wicked that he needed to cleanse the earth with a flood and start over. Noah and his family are good, so God tasks them with bringing two of every animal to restart the world.

On the back panel, Noah works on building the ark, only it does not look like a boat.  It looks like the Sistine Chapel! This shows that salvation is the church.

The rest of the work illustrates:

• Far right: Cluster of people seek sanctuary from the rain under a makeshift shelter.
• Far left: People climb up a mountain to escape rising water.
• Center: a boat is about to capsize.

SUB-IMAGE 3 (Last Judgment Fresco)

 

Pope Paul III commissioned Michelangelo to do create this fresco. Pope brought the master of ceremonies in to watch Michelangelo, even though the artist insisted he did not want anyone to watch him. The master of ceremonies complained that there were too many nudes.

Michelangelo painted this between 1534-1541. By then, the style had changed from High Renaissance to Mannerism . This focused on distortion, with a jumbled composition, and was a reaction against High Renaissance order and harmony.

The work shows the Last Judgment, where Christ returns to Earth in his second coming and judges mankind. On the left,  those who have sinned are separated from the blessed, who will go to heaven, on the right.  On the lower right is Minos, with a serpent wrapped around his chest.

The Story of the Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel was erected, in 1483, under Sixtus IV, hence the name. The Catholic Church was trying to maintain authority, during Protestant rumblings, corruption, and extravagance.

Michelangelo began to work on the frescoes for Pope Julius II in 1508. He asked the artist to paint a ceiling with geometric designs and place the 12 disciples in the spandrels. Michelangelo proposed this instead.

The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel had become quite filthy, with years of dust and candle soot. It was not until the ceilings were cleaned, in the last 20 years, that the work of Michelangelo was revealed. Full, vibrant colors, for a new generation to marvel at!

Prior to this, historians often spoke about Michelangelo as a poor colorist or that he seemed to have used drab and bland colors.

Almost immediately during cleaning, it became apparent that the ceiling was simply that dirty that it had obscured Michelangelo’s brilliant use of vibrant color.

About Michelangelo

Michelangelo (1475-1564) was born in Caprese, Republic of Florence, in Italy.  He was an Italian Renaissance sculptor, painter, architect, and poet and considered the greatest living artist in his lifetime.

He trained with painter Ghirlandaio, once his father realized his son had zero interest in school and would therefore never take over the family’s financial business. The boy would first learn the techniques of fresco and draftsmanship.

After one year, he moved into the palace of Lorenzo the Magnificent, head of the Medici clan. Here the artist studied classical sculpture with Bertoldo di Giovanni.

In 1446, he arrived in Rome, at the age of 21. As they say, the rest was history!

The artist will forever be associated with the Italian Renaissance.

16^th Century Venetian Art

Venice remained an independent power with a powerful trading fleet. The style of Venetian art included drama, dynamic, and color. In fact, Venetian painters were among the earliest to use oil painting in Italy.

The work is known for sensuous forms, and the celebrated beauty of natural world (Arcadian).

Canvases were used because of the humidity.

(3) 80. Venus of Urbino.

Titian. Italian (Venetian). 1538 CE. 16^th century. Southern (Venetian).

Learning Objective: 16^th century. Venetian painting

Themes:

Ideal woman
Sexuality
Female nude
Male-female relationships
Domestic
Private
Status
Animals in art
Portrait
Iconography
Commemoration

Museum: Uffizi in Florence

This is an oil on canvas painting by Titian entitled Venus of Urbino, measuring 4 feet by 5 feet 5 inches. Canvas was first widely used in Venice,  because it was cheaper than wood. And unlike wood, canvas could stand up to humidity better.

Oil painting was imported from Northern Europe. It quickly replaced tempera, a quick-drying paint bound by egg yolk that produced a flat, chalky, opaque surface.

This new medium was perfect for painting soft nudes and flesh tones. Also, when oil dries, it is somewhat translucent which allows reflection of light and results in a shiny surface. Titian even added ground up glass to his pigments to better reflect light.

The use of chiaroscuro or the effect of contrasting light and shadow, created from light that falls unevenly, is applied here.  Subtle changes of skin tone are apparent from her neck down across her chest and in between her breasts. Then it runs down across her torso and abdomen, along her thigh and towards her knee.

To achieve deep tones, Venetian painters would slowly apply glazes to build up layer upon layer of oil paint on canvas. Since oil dries slowly, the colors could be blended wet-in-wet (alla prima). On her body there are up to 15 layers of paint.

Proportion Play

Titian manipulated the portions of the woman’s body to make it especially elegant, soft, and rounded. The viewers eyes are drawn to her face, torso, and hips. Looking closer, her feet are too small for her body.

Complex Spatial Environment

The figure is placed forward, on a soft diagonal, from the upper left to lower right of her body.  The middle shows servants from a back view, along with a chest.

The canvas itself is divided into two, with the dark green curtains. This gives contrast to the woman’s face and torso, so the viewer cannot clearly see the details.

A Gift from the Duke

Titian painted this at the request of Duke Guidobaldo della Rovere of Urbino to his young wife Giulia Varano. It is not clear to the viewer who the subject is. It could be Venus, a courtesan, or the wife. Since this was a private commission, Titian may have painted Giulia. It may have hung over the marital bed.

What Does Venus of Urbino Represent?

This painting in an allegory of marriage in three parts. It represents:

Eroticism: the woman is naked and represents Venus the goddess of love.

Fidelity: the dog represents fidelity

Motherhood: is represented by the two servants in the background, as the younger one is supervised.

Venus in Name Only

Naked paintings often had the word “Venus” in the title to make painting a naked woman more acceptable. That does not mean it in not a picture of a real woman.

The Story Unfolds

We know that the woman is sexually available, but faithful to her husband. Living in luxury is possible because of her husband’s status.  She is confident and possesses a coyness, as she looks right at the viewer.

Symbolism

• Bedsheets: red, sign of love and romance
• Roses: are a sign of Venus and marriage and love
• Pearls: are a sign of Venus (from the shell she comes from)
• Dogs: can symbolize fidelity and faithfulness, but also carnality/sexuality
• Cassone: trunk intended for storage of clothing for wife’s dowry
• Luxurious home and servants: wealthy family
• Myrtle bush: common plant for weddings

Titian and the Reclining Female Nude

Titian is credited with establishing the genre of the reclining female nude. He learned from his teacher Giorgione.

Most female nudes are recumbent, posed so that the viewer can see them, and asleep. This made for a  pleasant and undisturbed viewing experience for men, as the women in these paintings did not know the men were gazing upon them. This provides a sense of anonymity for the men and an enticing sense of voyeurism.

However, Titian changed the final detail. Venus of Urbino is awake. She is aware of the gaze, but she welcomes it.

More About Titian

Titian (1488-1576) was considered one of the greatest artists of the Italian Renaissance.  Born Tiziano Vecellio, in what is now Pieve di Cadore, Italy, he was an apprentice to Venetian artist Sebastian Zuccato.

His first major commission was Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari, in Venice, in 1516. His work Assumption of the Virgin, painted for the church’s high alter, stablished his career.

Next, he created a work, inspired by mythology, The Worship of Venus, between 1518-1519, one of several commissioned by Alfonso I d’Este, duke of Ferrara.  Wealthy patrons continued to hire him, including King Philip II of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

(3) 78. Entombment of Christ

Jacopo da Pontormo. Italian. 1525-1528 CE. Capponi Chapel of Santa Felicita. Mannerism.

Learning Objective: 16^th century. Mannerist painting

Themes:

Biblical
Religion
Death
Status

In the Santa Felicita Church, in Florence, Italy, there is a chapel, that was once owned by the Capponi family. They hired artist Jacopo da Pontormo, known as Pontormo. He created the large alter painting Entombment of Christ, measuring 10 feet by 6 feet and 4 inches. It is a work created using oil on wood.

Worship and Wealth

The Entombment of Christ guided worship in the private chapel, designed by Brunelleschi. The work was visible to the public entering the church, yet it was blocked off to them. This shows the wealth and power of the Capponi family it was named for.

A Confusing Narrative

The Mannerist quality is intentionally confusing, unlike the clarity and precision of the Renaissance. In this case the viewer is unsure of the narrative. If this is the deposition, where is the cross and the ladder? If this is the pieta, why is there a crowd around? If this is the entombment, where is the tomb?

The Virgin Mary falls way from the viewer towards the back after she releases her dead son’s hand.

Christ is pale. The viewer can see stigmata. He appears to be of generous weight and yet his body is supported without effort. The two figures holding Christ have been interpreted as angels who, unaffected by the weight of Christ’s body, are lifting him towards God.

About the Artist

Jacopo da Pontormo (1494-1557) was born as Jacopo Carrucci, in the Republic of Florence. (Italy) He was known for breaking away from the High Renaissance classicism into his more personal style of Mannerism.  As the son of painter Bartolommeo Carrucci, Pontormo apprenticed to Leonardo da Vince and later Mariotto Albertinelli and Piero di Cosimo.

 

16^th Century Northern Art

 

Theme: “The Best of Both Worlds”

This period is a blending of Italian practices (size, idealization) and a refinement of northern practices, such as realism.

Historical Context (1500-1600) 

• Protestant Reformation: Martin Luther hangs 95 Theses in 1517
  • Many countries become Protestant, rather than Catholic
  • Power of the papacy was diminishing
  • European monarchs would rather be Protestant so as to not have to abide by the Pope.
  • Led to multiple civil wars
• Changing politics
  • Burgundian Netherlands is annexed by the Holy Roman Empire
  • Spain – through a series of carefully conceived marriages and successful military campaigns became the dominant European power

Artistic Innovations

The Northern artists were at a crossroads. The wealthy church was an eager patron to artists, yet many believed in Martin Luther.  Many artists try to avoid this dilemma by painting non-religious subject matter such as portraits and nature scenes.

The Iconoclastic movement was paintings and sculptures of holy figures attacked. This was part of the anti-Catholic sentiment and reaction towards the excesses and corruption of the Church.

Prints made from woodcuts and engravings increasingly popular.

Paintings featured high horizon lines, painstaking realism, and details. There was a reluctance to use linear perspective but rather atmospheric perspective.

Sculpture was not common as it was interpreted as idolatrous.

As for Architecture the Italian High Renaissance style became popular using columns, pediments, and pilasters with Gothic verticality.

(3) 77. Isenheim Altarpiece (closed).

Matthias Grünewald. German. 1512-1516. Central 16^th century. Northern Renaissance.

Learning Objective: 16^th century. Northern altarpiece

Themes:

Biblical
Religion
Site-specific
Didactic
Stylized bodies
Human and divine
Visions

Museum: Hospital of St. Anthony, Isenheim, Germany

Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias Grünewald is an oil on wood artwork, with a central panel measuring  10 feet wide. Altarpieces are made from wood, so the panels can move.

A polyptych is a multi-paneled work , with two wings, one central panel, and a predella, or base that is painted. This is essentially a box of statues covered by folding wings multi-media, with three layers. Notice the stylized bodies, and dramatic colours.

Hospital of St. Anthony

The hospital was built by the Brothers of St. Anthony in a monastery at Isenheim.  St. Anthony was the patron saint of those suffering from skin diseases. This hospital specialized in ergotism also known as St. Anthony’s Fire.

What is Ergotism?

Ergotism is caused by eating fungus that grows in rye flour. Symptoms include skin infections, gangrene, convulsions, and hallucinations. This is not surprizing as the hallucinogenic drug LSD comes from the same strain of fungus.

The disease can also attack the central nervous system. If left untreated, it can lead to death.

How this Altarpiece was Used

Isenheim Altarpiece was used during mass, in the monastic hospital of St. Anthony’s, for patients. It was positioned at the end of the room , so it was visible from bed. Not only does this work mirror the physical and emotional pain of the patients, but it also emphasizes miracles and an end to suffering.

Swinging the altarpiece open would split Christ’s body along his right shoulder. Amputations were common for ergotism sufferers.

The bright colors used on the altar piece could draw attention, even from patients in a hallucinatory state.

The Details of the Altarpiece

 

The altarpiece was left closed until Sundays.

One the left wing of the closed work, is St. Sebastian, martyred by being shot with arrows. The pockmarks on his skin associated him with skin diseases.

On the center panel is the Crucifixion. Mary is swooning, dressed in the same as the nuns at the monastery hospital.  She is caught by the young and beardless John the Evangelist.

Mary Magdalene appears on her knees, with hands clasped. She is pleading and looking up at Christ.

Christ is deliberately painted to look as if he suffers from ergotism. Note the body marked by pox, and  dead and decomposing flesh. Christ’s hands are writhing in agony. His arms are almost torn from their sockets, and his body has been painfully lashed.

The lamb illustrated is Christ’s embodiment as a sacrificial lamb, carrying its own cross and bleeding into a chalice.

John the Baptist is not commonly depicted at the crucifixion of Christ. Yet here he gestures towards the suffering body and holds a scroll which reads, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Translation: put our ego second because God comes first.

On the right wing is St. Anthony Abbot, the patron saint of those suffering from skin diseases. (Pork fat was used to help heal skin, so he is often seen with a pig.)

On the  predella, or base of the altar is the Lamentation scene, with the tortured body of Christ and those trying to help.

The Second Scene

Once Sunday rolled around the altarpiece was opened for a view on the panels inside. This is the second of three views the altarpiece can create.

On the left wing is the Annunciation.

On the center panel is the Virgin and Child. Mary is surrounded by symbolism supporting who she is. There is a garden with a gate. Inside are roses. She sits holding a rosary.

Musical angels sit underneath a Gothic canopy.

The right wing shows the resurrection. Christ is wreathed in orange, red and yellow body haloes. He  rises like a fireball. Bodies of sleeping soldiers have been hurtled from the power. He goes from rags to glorious robes. His wounds do not harm him now.

The predella remains the same— the Lamentation scene. 

The Third Scene

The third position, or fully opened altar piece was only opened on special occasions. It depicts symbols of the ergotism disease. Oozing boils, withered arms, and distended stomachs are all represented.

 

On the left side St. Anthony is visited by St. Paul, the first hermit on the desert. The two are about to be fed by a raven in a tree. The meeting cured St. Anthony of the misperception that he was the first desert hermit. It was a lesson in humility.

The center represents three saints. St. Anthony is flanked by St. Jerome and St. Augustine.

On the right, St. Anthony’s temptations in the desert includes hybrid tormenting demons.

On the predella, Christ stands amongst apostles.

In Context

Sculpted wooden altarpieces were popular in Germany before Protestantism. The Isenheim Altarpiece however is a Catholic altarpiece.  This is one of the last major Northern altarpieces. Protestantism began in 1517.

About the Artist

German born artist Matthias Grünewald, (1480 to 1528) was known for his religious works with intense color. In 1509, he became the court painter to the elector of Mainz, the archbishop Uriel von Gemmingen. Isenheim Altarpiece is considered his masterpiece.

(3) 79. Allegory of Law and Grace

Lucas Cranach the Elder. German. Woodcut and letterpress. 1530 CE. 16^th century. Northern Renaissance.

Learning Objective: 16^th century Northern woodcut

Themes:

Biblical
Religion
Propaganda
Good vs evil
Print
Text and image
Didactic
Commercial

This woodcut artwork entitled, Allegory of Law and Grace , by Lucas Cranach the Elder, uses the crosshatching and hatching to show modeling.

The Letterpress, invented by Johannes Gutenberg in mid-15^th century, was used for the text at the bottom. Moveable letters could be reinked and rearranged.

Prints are reproducible, simple to make,  and easy to distribute. Artists often made a good painted versions first, to work out the details.

What Does Woodcut Mean?

Woodcut is a form of relief printing.

Here are the Steps:

1. 1. An image is carved into the surface of a block of wood (the printing part remains level with the surface, while the non-printing parts are removed or cut away)
   2. Surface of block is covered with ink
   3. Paper is applied to top to transfer image using pressure.

 

Pros

Quick and cheap, a woodblock will last for a long time

Cons

Detail and intricacies are difficult to achieve, although most artists are capable. Woodcuts have not become a medium known for impressive expertise.

Protestant Reform

Allegory of Law and Grace was created for the purpose of propaganda and is the single most important piece of Protestant Reformation. It is a comparison between Protestantism and Catholicism and was used to educate the viewer. Prints enabled cheap dissemination.

A Closer Look

The space is divided in half vertically. The Tree of Life is in the center. The left side reflects Catholicism and the philosophy of Catholic law. The right side illustrates Protestantism and the Grace, based on the belief in God’s grace.

Left Side: Catholicism

• Tree is dead on this side
• Adam and Eve eat the fruit of the Tree of Life after being tempted by the serpent.
• God sits above on an orb as the Judge represents the world.
• He raises his left hand in damnation and right hand in blessing.
• Mary and John the Baptist sit beside him.
• Adam and Eve cause the world to be bound by sin.
• A nude man, symbolically laid bare in front of God, is being run into Hell by Devil (L) and Death (R)
•  Children and the elderly are already in Hell through the Catholic dogma that people are bound to fail.
• Moses stands to the side, holding the Ten Commandments.

Right side: Protestantism / Grace  

• Tree is alive on this side.
• Annunciation in the background with Mary standing on the hill.
• John the Baptist directs a naked man to Christ on the cross.
• The wound on his side made by Romans bleeds and spills out, manifests as the Holy Spirit which showers the same nude man, as God’s grace.
• Christ is symbolized as a sacrificial lamb who holds his own cross.

The Right Side Background

• In the back left is a scene where Moses constructs a bronze serpent to cure Israelites, foreshadowing Christ’s healing power.
• God punishes Israelites who complain that the promised land is not what they thought it would be by sending poisonous serpents to bit people.
• In the back middle is the shepherds learning of the birth of Christ.
• Christ emerged from the tomb after three days having defeated Death and the Devil.
• The Protestant God also shows mercy and forgiveness.

The Text at the Bottom:

Left to right:

• Romans 1:18 (concerning judgment)
• Romans 4:15 (concerning the Devil and death)
• Matthew 11:13 (concerning Moses and prophets)
• Romans 1:17 and 3:28 (concerning humanity)
• 1 Peter 1:2 (concerning Baptists)
• 1 Corinthians 15:54 (concerning Death and the lamb)

The Background Story

Cranach is called the “Painter of the Reformation”. The artist produced these woodcuts in conjunction with Martin Luther about 13 years after 95 Theses.

What was Martin Luther promoting?

• An exist for the future of Popes.
• An abolishment of Latin services
• For the Church to stop selling indulgences.
• No more confession, just faith
• An elimination of Catholic art that was used to display authority and extravagance.
• The use of Protestant art to promote educate and promote hope.
• Catholics were focused on laws and dogma, without focusing on a relationship with God.

About the Artist

Lucas Cranach, the Elder (1472-1553) originally named Lucas Müller, was born in Germany. He was a leading painter and one of the most important artists in German art during the 16^th century. He created numerous paintings, woodcuts, altar pieces, court pieces and portraits. Fascinated by the female form, he created innumerable pictures of women, from elongated female nudes, to fashionably dressed ladies, drawing from both the Bible mythology.

The artist never signed his full name to his works. In fact, the early pieces, before 1504 , did not contain his name at all.  From 1504 to 1506, he entwined his initials “LC”. Then, up until 1509, he signed works with his initials separated. Leading up to 1914, he added three initial and a winged serpent, which was he coat of arms. In 1515, he dropped his initial altogether and just used the coat of arms. This later method was also used by his son, artists Lucas the Younger.

(3) 74. Adam and Eve.

Albrecht Dürer. German. 1504 CE. 16^th century. Northern Renaissance.

Learning Objective: 16^th century. Northern engraving

Themes:

Print
Biblical
Religion
Cross-cultural
Iconography
Animals
Text and image
Commercial

Museum: Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, and more prints in other museums

This work by German artist Albrecht Dürer is an engraving of Adam and Eve, measuring 10 by 8 inches. The artist shows off his talent in this difficult medium.

How was this Engraving Made?

An image is carved or incised, into the surface of a metal plate using a burin. This object is a tool, with a flat round top that fits into the palm of the hand. It has a short, sharp tip. The width and depth of the engraved line depends upon the angle the tool is used.

Once the surface is cut it is covered with ink. This pools into the incised area. The ink is then wiped away from the surface. The surface is then applied to paper with pressure.

The work uses hatching and cross-hatching to show value.  Hatching is a bunch of hatches or lines grouped together that are all going in the same direction. Cross-hatching is when groups of hatches cross over other hatches.

The artist’s monogram is included on the bottom corner of the sign in the work.

Influences

The nude figures were influenced by Italian art. The bodies are frontal and stand in contrapposto. Based on Vitruvian’s canon of proportions, where the face determines the proportions for the rest of the body. The  etching was inspired by two sculptures:  Apollo Belvedere and Medici Venus.

Adam and Eve is an early example of the muscular, and contrapposto human form, in the North. The bodies, both male and female are idealized. Notice too the use of Latin and a reference to the Four Humors, an ancient Greek theory.

The Northern use of extraordinary minute detail and dark woods and cliffs are part of the beauty of this work.  Iconography plays a major role here  too.

The  work is signed and proudly identifies the artist (Albert Dvrer Noricvs) as a citizen of Nuremberg (Noricus) in  a very northern style but is written in Latin, and Italian style.

Why was this Created?

Once an engraving was crafted, prints could be easily copied and disseminated to the religiously devout. The idea was promoted about temptation and sin.

What is this Engraving About?

Adam and Eve stand together in a dense, dark forest, right before the Fall of Man. This acts to humanize religion.

The Four Humors:

The Four Humors are a classical medical philosophy that maintained humans have four humors. When these are in balance, our personalities are perfectly at ease. When one of these is greater than the others, our personalities change.

Christians believed that in the Garden of Eden, before the Fall of Man, all the humors were balanced. After the Fall, Christians believed that one humor predominated in everyone, throwing our temperaments into imbalance.

Iconography

Here are some of the symbols in Adam and Eve along with what they mean.

• Snake: symbolizes the devil
• Parrot: these birds were collector’s items in Germany and the noise they make–  “Eve Ave” – sounded similar to Eve and Ave Maria (Hail Mary)
• Goat: reference to a scapegoat, standing precariously on his mountain perch balancing before the fall.

 

• Cat: symbolizes Christ, must catch the devil (mouse)
• Mouse: represents Satan (Remember Merode Altarpiece’s mousetrap)

• Yellow bile (angry): Cat
• Black bile (melancholic): Elk
• Blood (energetic): Rabbit
• Phlegm (lethargic): Ox
• Eve’s hair: long, curly, hair worn down symbolizes sexual energy as she takes the apple
• Adam’s hair:  curly too, he may succumb to the same sexuality as Eve does

About the Artist

In true Renaissance fashion Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528) was a master painter, printer, goldsmith, art theorist and human scholar. Born in Nürnberg, Germany, he first apprenticed with his father who was a goldsmith. Next painting called and he apprenticed in the studio of Michael Wolgemut for three years. Eventually he returned home to set up his own studio.

He was enthralled by Italy and travelled there often. He was nicknamed the “Leonardo of North” for introducing Northerners to Italian conventions.

Besides Adam and Eve, other famous works the artist created in his lifetime include: The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Self Portrait with Fur-Trimmed Robe, Young Hair, The Feast of the Rosary, Praying Hands, Melencolia I, and The Rhinocerus.

(3) 83. Hunters in the Snow.

Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Dutch. 1565 CE. 16^th century. Northern Renaissance.

Museum: Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna, Austria

This work entitled Hunters in the Snow, by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, is a painting using oil on wood and measuring, 3 feet 10 inches by 5 feet 4 inches.

In true Northern European tradition, the landscape has a high horizon. This enables the viewer to see more of it. To balance this, the figures also must appear smaller.  A strong diagonal line, leads the viewer into the painting.

The figures in the foreground are not identifiable. Nor are the figures a short distance behind them, to the left. We do not see faces. The figures in the background are without real form.

Observing the Details

This Genre scene depicts the transformation and importance of the landscape. It is given meaning by daily routines and activities of people who inhabit it. Humans, depending on any given day can find both joy and difficulty in the landscape. It is typical of Netherlandish painting to put in many small narratives and details.

In Hunters in the Snow, the main subject, the hunters, are trudging through the snow looking for food. We can imagine they are cold and stressed, yet still trying to make sure the hunt is successful. The women are making a fire.

Down below, deep in the background, people oblivious to what is going on above are enjoying a day on skating on frozen ponds. All these things are happening in the beauty of the landscape.

Function

This work was one of a series created for Nicles Jonghelink, an Antwerp banker, merchant, and art collector. He had asked Bruegel for six paintings that captured the labors of the months.

• Deep Winter
• Early Spring
• Late Spring (missing)
• Early Summer
• Late Summer
• Fall

Art historians think the artworks may have been commissioned for the purpose of nostalgia. The paintings could depict that humankind is of little importance. The seasons change and people are at the mercy of God and nature. Or the message could be that life is difficult but still enjoyable.

A Historical Backgrounder

Hunters in the Snow was the first artwork in the in history of Western painting that brought  landscape paintings to a larger scale.

Dutch genre scenes showed normalcy and tradition even in times of great change and the spread of Protestantism. This combined with natural forces known as Little Ice Age from 1550-1700.  

Short Artist Biography:

Pieter Bruegal the Elder (1525-1569) was the most important member of the Netherlandish family of artists. He was known for bringing a human quality to his works. Many of his works focus on the lives of common Flemish people, with village settings and an eye for detail.

Born in Breda, he eventually settled in Antwerp. There he studied a masters of painting at Guild of St. Luke. He started his career making prints and engravings. Ultimately, his landscaped were widely commissioned.