IN THE BEGINNING...

The Middle Ages, A.D. 400-1400, formerly referred to as the Dark Ages, are noteworthy for two reasons: the decline and subsequent revival of intellectual and artistic history.

It is generally agreed that a new pattern of human experience began approximately A.D. 1000, proving this period wasn't so dark after all.

Pantocrator
Mosaic, c. 1080-1100, Church of the Dormition, Daphne, Greece

This mosaic portrays the bust of a stern and menacing Christ. With his furrowed brow and drawn expression, he is no longer the benevolent Shepherd of comfort from Early Christian iconography. Pantocrator, shows Christ as the "Ruler of the Universe." Backed with gold and surrounded by small windows, this mosaic appears illuminated, transcending that boundary between heaven and earth, giving human emotion to a powerful symbol, and revealing a little more of the artist's own expression.

The Sacrifice of Iphigenia
Ivory Casket, 10th Century, Victoria & Albert Museum, London

The subject matter of The Sacrifice of Iphigenia, is the famous Greek drama of Euripedes. Surprisingly, the ivory casket was created as a wedding gift. This small scale relief sculpture demonstrates the transformation of the skilled artisan into artist.

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Saint Luke
Illustration from the Gospel of Otto III, c. 1000, Staatsbibliothek, Munich

Saint Luke was an early proponent of humankind's most exploited and misunderstood art forms: the art of COMMUNICATION. In the grand scheme of things this divinely inspired manuscript page, created during the reign of Holy Roman Emperor Otto III, is the product of early visual propaganda programs. Kings and emperors of this and future periods used religious subject matter to legitimize their rule while securing their place in heaven. Many of these manuscripts are filled with descriptive images that illustrate important biblical stories. Texts of this era were written in Latin -- which only church officials could read -- leaving the rest of Christiandom dependent on officials for salvation.

The Last Judgement
Relief, c.1130-35, west tympanum, Autun Cathedral, Burgundy, France

This apocalyptic vision is most likely how the Dark Ages received their name. Relief sculptures, like The Last Judgement, served to educate and instruct the illiterate, who comprised the majority of the population. They were intended to strike awe and fear into the hearts of viewers. The tympanum displays the seperation of the blessed from the damned. Through sculpture, architecture, and other forms of artistry the fundamental religious doctrine found form, meaning and impact.

Cathedral of Notre Dame
Reims, begun A.D.1225, Reims, France

Reims was the coronation church for the French monarchy and flourished as a center for the arts. The architecture exemplifies the logical development toward, taller, higher, and lighter elevations characteristic of the High Gothic period. The development of the Rose window is as important as any other development during this period. The stained glass window would create a celestial aura when sunlight streamed through it, like a portal between the heavens and the earth.

Iohel (Joel)
Stained-glass window, c.1220, Bourges Cathedral, France

The Iohel window is one of a series representing Old Testament prophets in the Bourges Cathedral. This window consists of hundreds of small pieces of tinted glass bound together by strips of lead. The artist painted with glass, piecing together a design from fragments, in what some may call a precursor to abstraction, creating a monumental figure - and like the Rose window - a spiritual and sometimes intimidating atmosphere.

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Salisbury Cathedral
c.1220-70, Salisbury, England

The rapid spread of Gothic art and architecture was never more apparent than in the tall spires, vaulted ceilings, flying buttresses, ornament, and statuary, of the Salisbury Cathedral. This beautiful English structure not only accepts the French developed system, but retains a strong individual sense of the Anglo-Norman history.

NICOLA PISANO, Marble Pulpit
Marble pulpit, c. 1260, Baptistry, Pisa

Pisano's marble pulpit shows the obvious and strong influence of classical art and architecture; demonstrating the simultaneous survival and revival of antiquity in art. The Classical elements revived in the building of the Christian community were now viewed without the stigmatism of paganism, but as timeless beauteous works of art. The composition reveals Pisano's familiarity with the ancient Roman sarcophagi and a new interest in the naturalistic shape, form, and weight of the human figure. Considered the last great medieval classicist, Pisano marks the end and the beginning of a new era in art.

SOURCES

Janson, H.W., History of Art, 4th edition, Harry N. Abrams, Inc., 1991.

McNeil, William H., History of Western Civilization: A Handbook, 6th edition, Univeristy of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1986.

Snyder, James, Medieval Art: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture, 4th-14th Century, Harry N. Abrams, Inc. 1989.

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