THE
AGE OF THE REFORMATION
SIXTEENTH-CENTURY
ART IN NORTHERN EUROPE AND SPAIN
TEXT
PAGES 662–687
THE PROTESTANT REFORMATION
1.
Who was Martin Luther and what was his goal when he posted his ninety-five
theses in Wittenburg?
He was a German theologian who challenged
papal authority due to widespread dissatisfaction with the Church, especially
objecting to the sale of indulgences.
2.
What medium was used for Cranach’s Allegory of Law and Grace (FIG. 23-1)?
Woodcut.
Why was the medium approved by Protestants
when large altarpieces were not?
Low-key images were viewed as useful
devotional aids. Prints provided a prime vehicle for educating the masses
because artists could print them easily, permitting wide circulation and the
sale of numerous copies. They were the least expensive of art forms, making
them more accessible to a wider audience than traditionally commissioned art.
What
image did Cranach use to describe Catholic Doctrine?
Moses holding the Tablets of the Law.
To
describe Protestant doctrine?
God’s grace, in the form of blood streaming
from a crucified Christ.
3.
Who painted the Isenheim Altarpiece
(FIG. 23-2 and 23-3)?
Matthias
Grünewald.
List three characteristics of the artist's
style.
a. Deals
specifically and grotesquely with the themes of dire illness and miraculous
healing.
b. Used
color to intensify the effect of horror and hope by means of soft harmonies and
subtle tones against shocking dissonance of color.
c. Iconography
carefully selected to have meaning to viewers: Christ’s body becomes amputated
as parts of the altar are slid awa
What
subject is depicted on the center panel? A crucified
Christ.
On
the exterior wings? Crucifixion, Saint
Sebastian on the left, Saint Anthony
on the right, and Lamentation
in the predella.
On
the interior wings? Annunciation, Angelic
Concert, Madonna and Child, and Resurrection.
What
was its purpose? The images served as warnings, encouraging
increased devotion from monks and hospital patients. They also functioned
therapeutically by offering some hope to the afflicted.
For
what type of institution was the altarpiece created? The
church adjacent to a monastery hospital.
What
was the reason for including Saints Sebastian and Anthony on the wings? They
were associated with diseases such as the plague and with miraculous cures;
Anthony was the order’s patron saint and his legend encompassed his role as
both vengeful dispenser of justice (by inflicting disease) and benevolent
healer.
4.
Name the sixteenth century Northern artist who became an international art
celebrity: Albrecht Dürer.
5.
In what way does Durer’s representaton of the Last Suupper (FIG. 23-4) reflect Luther’s position on the sacrament
of Transubstantiation? The bread and wine appear prominently in the
print’s corner, and the empty plate in the foreground refers to the
commemorative, rather than literal, nature of Christ’s sacrifice in the Mass.
Transfiguration would traditionally have been represented by a slaughtered lamb
on the plate. Luther insisted that Communion was commemorative, not a
reenactment.
6.
How does Durer’s support for Lutheran doctrine reflected in The Four Apostles (FIG. 23-5)? First,
he produced the work without commission. Saint Peter (as representative of the
pope in Rome
7.
List two elements of Durer's Adam and Eve
(FIG. 23-6) that reflect his study of Italian models:
a. The
figures stand in poses reminiscent of classical statues.
b. He
made geometric sketches beforehand to perfect the ideal proportions, but balanced this idealization
with naturalism in both the figures and the vegetation.
The
poses of Adam and Eve are similar to the figures of contrapposto kouroi
and korai.
List
one element that demonstrates his Northern commitment to Naturalism:
The
gnarled bark of the trees and the feathery leaves.
8.
Name two tendencies that Durer fuses in
Knight Death and the Devil (FIG. 23-8)
a. Idealization.
b. Naturalism.
9.
One of Durer’s most outstanding talents was his expressive use of
line,
whether in painting or in graphics.
10.
As he began a campaign against the Turks, the Duke of Bavaria hired the
artist
Albrecht Altdorfer
to paint the historic conflict
between
Alexander
the Great and Darius
(leading the Persians). In
what day did the artist emphasize the connection between
the ancient battle and contemporary times?
The figures are attired in contemporary
armor and are engaged in contemporary military alignments.
What stylistic effects did he utilize to
emphasize the violence of the battle?
The landscape contains craggy mountains,
swirling clouds, and a blazing sun.
11.
List three Italian elements that Holbein integrated into his painting:
a. Monumental
composition.
b. Bodily
structure.
c. Sculpturesque
form.
List
the elements that reflect his Northern training:
a. Close
realism.
b. His detail is
exact and exquisitely drawn.
12.
What does anamorphic mean?
A distorted image recognizable when viewed
with a special device, such as a cylindrical mirror, or by viewing the image at
an acute angle.
FRANCE
1.
Who painted a famous portrait of Francis I (FIG. 23-11)?
Jean
Clouet.
2.
Name two Italian Mannerists who were instrumental in bringing the Mannerist
style to France:
a. Rosso Fiorentino. b. Benvenuto
Cellini.
3.
List three Manneristic characteristics that are seen in the decoration of the
Gallery of Francis I at Fontainbleau (FIG. 23-12):
a. Abrupt
changes in scale.
b. The
texture of the figurative elements.
c. Elongated
grace and formalized elegance.
4.
List three Italian Renaissance features
of the Chateau of Chambord (FIG. 23-13):
a. The
plan includes a square block with four corridors, in the shape of a cross.
b. At
each of the four corners, a round tower punctuates the plan.
c. The
exterior is a carefully contrived horizontal accent on three levels, windows aligned precisely one
above another, a motif based on the Italian palazzo.
List
two French Gothic features:
a. Above
the third story the structure’s line breaks chaotically into a jumble of light
dormers, chimneys, and lanterns.
b. The
silhouette is soaring and ragged like Gothic buildings.
5.
The architect who designed the Square Court of the Louvre (FIG. 23-14) was
Pierre
Lescot and the sculptor who ornamented the facade was
Jean
Goujon.
6.
Identify those features of the facade of the Louvre courtyard (FIG. 23-14) that
are derived from the Italian Renaissance and those that are essentially French.
Italian:
a. Each
of the stories forms a complete order.
b. The
cornices project enough to create a strong horizontal accent.
c. The
arcading on the ground floor resembles the ancient Roman use of
arches.
French:
a. The
decreased height of the stories.
b. The
scale of the windows (proportionately much larger than in Renaissance
buildings).
c. The
steep roof
7.
List three characteristics of Goujon’s Nymphs
from the Fountain of the Innocents (FIG. 23-15), noting which seem to be
related to Italian Mannerism:
a. Figura
serpentina poses.
b. They
are in a confined, unspecified space.
c. They
appear to make one continuous motion, an illusion produced by reversing the
gestures, as they might be seen in a mirror.
THE NETHERLANDS
1.
What features of Jan Gossaert Neptune and
Amphitrite (FIG. 23-16) are classical?
Which are not?
The poses are derived from Dürer’s Fall of Man.
2.
In what ways does Quinten Massy’s Money-Changer
and His Wife (FIG. 23-17) reflect both the economic and religious life of
Antwerp in the early sixteenth century? List features that relate to each.
Economic
Life:
A professional man is shown transacting
business, with the setting and objects suggesting a fidelity to observable
fact.
Religious
life:
References to the spiritual world in the
prayer book, the carafe with water, and the candlestick. There are two small
vignettes referring to the balance this couple must establish between their
worldly existence and their spiritual commitment: two men gossiping, and the
reflection of a man reading a prayer book in front of a church steeple.
3. List three religious
features found in Aertsen’s Meat Still
Life (FIG. 23-18):
In the background, Joseph leads a donkey
carrying Mary and the Holy Child. The crossed fishes, pretzels, and wine all
refer to “spiritual food.” They are contrasted to symbols of gluttony and lust
in the oysters and mussel shells, which are shown just under an outdoor scene
of people carousing.
4.
The Self-Portrait in FIG 23-19 by Caterina van Hemessen is purportedly the
first known self-portrait by a European woman.
5.
Lavina Teerlinc worked as a royal portraitist in England.
6.
Joachim Patiner was best known for his paintings of Landscapes.
7.
List three characteristics of Bruegel's landscape paintings:
a. Human
activities remain the dominant theme.
b. He did
not include classical elements in his paintings.
c. The
landscape is recorded in an optically accurate manner.
SPAIN
1.
What features of Bramante's Tempietto (FIG. 22-8) did Machuca use in the palace
he designed for Charles V in Granada (FIG. 23-24)?
The ornament consists only of the details of
the orders themselves, rendered simply, clearly, and authoritatively. The lower story is similar to the Tempietto
although the curve is reversed.
2.
The Escorial was constructed for King Phillip
II of Spain.
Describe the style of the building.
It has a gridlike plan, classical Doric
severity, simplicity of form and majesty without ostentation. Only the three entrances break the long sweep
of the severely plain walls. Massive square towers punctuate the four corners.
The stress is on the central axis and the granite used for the building conveys
a feeling of starkness and gravity. The effect is of overwhelming strength and
weight.
3.
Describe two elements of El Greco's style that seem to be related to Italian
Mannerism.
a. Intense
emotionalism.
b. Great reliance on color.
Describe
two elements that point toward the Baroque.
a. His
strong sense of movement.
b. His
use of light.
Describe
two purely personal stylistic traits that are found in El Greco's work.
a. Elongated
undulating figures matched with abstractions and distortions to show the
immaterial nature of the Heavenly realm.
b. The figures
are bathed in a cool light of uncertain origin and float in an undefined space.
No comments:
Post a Comment