Gothic 1 Gothic Art Theme The Quest for

Gothic 1

Gothic Art - Theme • “The Quest for Height and Light. ” • focus on the new light (lux nova) desired by Abbot Suger for St. Denis • the competitive rush to the skies that will be manifest in the cathedrals built during the Gothic period.

“Observe the Bean Sprout!” • Giotto will once again show an interest in the natural world. • The “sprout” though small and young, seems determined to break through crusty soil to reach for the sun (fame). • three nurturing roots present in the Trecento (the 14 th cent. as a period in Italian art and literature): – new economic strength, – the philosophy of humanism – a new emphasis on personal experience.

Gothic Art • a Medieval art movement that developed in France out of Romanesque art in the mid-12 th century • easily recognizable shifts in architecture from Romanesque to Gothic • Primary media in the Gothic period included sculpture, panel painting, stained glass, fresco and illuminated manuscript.

Title: Interior, Abbey Church of Saint. Denis, Choir Date: 1140– 44; 1231– 81 Source/ Museum: Paris, France • is an important Catholic basilica located in Saint Denis, a northern suburb of Paris. • notable for its Gothic architecture: Pointed Arches, rib vaulting, windows • burial site of French monarchs, which makes it comparable to Westminster Abbey in England. • first major structure built in the Gothic style. • The façade of Saint-Denis has a rose window and a crenellated parapet on top similar to the fortifications of a castle. • The lovely stained-glass windows, in mauve, purple, blue, and rose, were restored in the 19 th century. • Napoleon and Marie Antoinette • Abbot Suger- Light and Color as a means of illuminating the soul

Title: West Façade, Chartres Cathedral (The Cathedral of Notre-Dame) Medium: n/a Size: n/a Date: West façade begun c. 1134; cathedral rebuilt after a fire in 1194; building continued to 1260; north spire 1507– 13 • it is almost perfectly preserved in its original design and details. • portal sculpture remains fully intact and its glowing stained-glass windows are all originals • a major pilgrimage destination • mismatched west spires

• The plan of the Gothic cathedral is a Latin cross with three aisles, a short transept and an ambulatory. The rounded east end has five semi-circular radiating chapels. • high nave is supported by double flying buttresses • first building on which buttresses were used as a structural element that determined the overall external appearance of the building

Title: Nave, Chartres Cathedral, c. 1194 – 1220 The spacious nave is the widest in France and stands 121 feet (36 m) high Clustered columns rise dramatically from plain bases to the high pointed arches of the ceiling, an ambulatory wraps around the choir and sanctuary

Title: Royal Portal, West Façade, Chartres Cathedral • both transepts have large rose windows, flanking towers and three sculptured portals each • the three-portal layout is unique to Chartres. • In total, Chartres Cathedral has nine portals, including three salvaged from the earlier cathedral on the west portal.

Artist: n/a Title: Royal Portal, West Façade, Chartres Cathedral. Detail: Prophets and Ancestors of Christ (Kings and Queens of Judea) (Right side, Central Portal) Medium: n/a Size: n/a Date: c. 1145– 55 Source/ Museum: Chartres, France elegant and elongated statues of kings, queens and figures from the Old Testament that are full of expression, gazing down on the visitor with elegant condescension.