1. Medieval Art transforming into Renaissance Art
Medieval Art was used to teach people about religion. So we find it within manuscripts, in stained glass windows, on statues outside of churches and on walls inside churches. It is not especially lifelike, instead it crams religious education into spaces accessible to the public. It was also not signed since artistic talent was considered a gift from god rather than something that deserved acclaim for the artist.
Medieval Art

2. Illuminated Manuscripts
Monks not only copied the mauscript, but also created art within manuscripts
One manuscript might be the life’s work of a monk
On the left is the Kiss of Judas in the Rouen Book of Hours
Letters from the Book of Kells

3. Stained Glass, from Cologne, Germany Christ Giving the Keys to Peter
Stained glass was another way to educate the illiterate about the stories of the Bible
Christ Giving the Keys to Peter, ca. 1315, German; Cologne, Pot-metal glass and vitreous paint; Christ: 28 x 13 5/8 in. (71 x 34.5 cm), Peter: 27 3/4 x 13 1/8 in. (70.5 x 33.2 cm) It is easy to tell what is happening, but hard to make figures realistic when the pieces of glass have to be held in place with metal pieces. Now in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art.

4. Stained Glass Sainte Chapelle, Paris, France
As building techniques advanced, entire walls could be made of stained glass. Sainte Chapelle (which is just blocks from Notre Dame) is known as the “jewel box” because it glows with the light from its stained glass walls. The windows tell multiple Bible stories, you can walk around the church “reading” them up and down. shan4.wordpress.com

5. Statues North Transept Chartres Cathedral
Statues on the outside walls of churches
Slim, elongated figures attached to the Church wall – medieval sculptors did not know how to create free-standing statues and needed the wall to support their statues. The 12 apostles are a common subject for Cathedral Walls.

6. Statues West Door, Notre Dame
Even though all figures had to be attached to the walls, the designs got very ornate (some might say overwhelming) in order to tell as many stories as possible Picture from L. Reimann, 2013

7. Mosaics Justinian and his court, Ravenna
Mosaics were more of an eastern European tradition – very popular in the Byzantine Empire, but made it to places in Italy like Ravenna and Venice. Hard to make figures lifelike with little pieces of stone and glass – but it was easy to make pictures colorful!
Mosaics Justinian and his court, Ravenna

8. Icons
Icons were also an eastern tradition, they are still used in the Orthodox Church
Icons are pictures of saints that people would pray in front of.
They are stiff and symbolic
There is a lack of realism (nose, hands, eyes), the baby looks like a small adult
Modern art historians can only guess at who created many icons.

9. Pre-Renaissance The Slow March toward Realism

10. Religious Paintings of the late Middle Ages
“Flat”
Religious Paintings of the late Middle Ages
2 dimensional
Gold Background
Not realistic
Not signed by the artist for many centuries
Religious paintings
Medieval paintings tended to be one dimentional, not very realistic, gold, anonymous, and have floating disproportionate angels next to the main figures.
Rick Steeves, the travel enthusiast, describes Medieval Art as the time when “art was a flat as the world”
This is by the Biagello Master (his name is unknown, but many works of art in this region are similar, so art historians had identified him as the “Biagello Master”, Madonna and Child Enthroned, 2nd quarter of the 13th century in the Ufizzi Gallery

11. An attempt at perspective: Duccio de Buoninsegne
Madonna and Child Enthroned, 1285
An attempt at perspective
Duccio de Buoninsegne, Madonna and Child Enthroned with Six Angels, Ufizzi Gallery
No real background, the angels are just stacked on top of one another
Perspective of the throne is off, its ¾ on one side, head on on the other
Mary is like a cardboard cutout hovering just above the throne
In general these medieval madonnas have religious subjects, gold backgrounds, two dimensionality and meticulous detail

12. Improved Perspective: Cimabue
Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels approx 1280
Improvement in perspective
Cimabue – Madonna and Child Enthroned with Angels, the Patriarch Abraham and Prophets Jeremiah, David, and Isiah
Throne creates an illusion of depth
Foot actually hangs out over the edge of the throne
But the angels are still stacked

13. Identification of the Artist: Madonna and Child, Bernardo Daddi, cir
Identification of the Artist, Bernardo Daddi, Madonna and Child c. 1335
Vatican collections
Coming closer to the Renaissance, the artist is actually identified

14. An attempt at 3-D: late 1300s Baby steps toward 3-D
Crucifix with Stories from the Passion, Ufizzi Gallery
Pisan artist of the late 12th century
The artist attempted 3-D by painting Christ’s head on a separate piece of wood and tipping it forward

15. Starting to show emotion: Simone Martini Annunciation with Saints Ansanus & Maxima, 1333
Showing a little emotion (Mary does not look happy with the news that she is going to have a baby)
Simone Martini, Annunciation with Saints Ansanus and Maxima
Not exactly 3D, more about teaching a Bible story. Lots of symbols – Lilies symbolize Mary’s purity, the Holy Spirit appears as a Dove
The words read (in Latin) “Hail favored one, the Lord is with you.”

16. Early Renaissance Art Finally! Realism!
Giotto – The First Renaissance Painter

17. Birth of Christ Scrovengi Chapel – 1303-5
Giotto painted human figures that looked real and lifelike, with bodies and faces that seemed fully rounded
Created an illusion of depth (though his perspective is not always perfect)
People in the painting seemed to interact with each other
Faces showed realistic emotion
Blue pigment has not stood up to the test of time. (Lapis Lazuli was applied with a binding medium over dry plaster since it was so valuable.)

18. The informal name for this picture is “mother and baby”

19. Adoration of the Magi Scrovengi Chapel
More scenes in the life of Jesus
Adoration of the Magi

20. Expulsion of the Money Changers from the Temple
Scrovengi Chapel
Expulsion of the Money Changers from the Temple (perspective is off, child is odd, but Jesus’s anger is genuine).

21. Entry into Jerusalem Scrovengi Chapel
Entry into Jerusalem – great faces (and donkey), people in the trees aren’t quite right

22. Kiss of Judas Scrovengi Chapel
Kiss of Judas, notice the stare between Jesus and Judas

23. Scrovengi (a.k.a. Arena) Chapel Padua, Italy
All these painting hang together in Padua, near Venice
Life of Joachim, the Virgin, Christ

24. Masaccio – Pulling it all Together

25. Masaccio – Story of St. Peter (1426-28)
Pulled together perspective and realism McKay calls him the father of modern painting.
Masaccio (b to 1428) (Frescoes in the Cappella Brancacci in Florence (right view), , Fresco, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence
(The Raising of Tabitha on right, Healing of a Cripple on left)
Studied Giotto, friends with Brunelleschi and Donatello – since Masaccio died young, this was finished by other artists

26. Tribute Money
Christ telling Peter to pay the tax in the center, Peter getting the coin from a fish on the left, Peter paying the tax on the right. Painted right at a time when Florence had enacted a new means based test.

27. Perspective point is right about the head of Jesus

28. Masaccio – Adam and Eve Brancacci Chapel
The emotion on Adam and Eve’s faces is deep – they are both anguished and ashamed
Masaccio – Adam and Eve
Brancacci Chapel

29. The entire chapel