Northern Renaissance (15th c.)
ROGIER VAN DER WEYDEN, Deposition, from Notre-Dame hors-les-murs, Louvain, Belgium, ca. 1435. Oil on wood, approx. 7' 3" x 8' 7". Museo del Prado, Madrid.
Commissioned by the Crossbow Makers Guild of Leuven. Christ is lowered from the cross into the arms of Joseph of Arimathea. Christ's body mimics the shape of the crossbow which is also echoed in the body shape of the collapsed Virgin Mary [in the arms of St. John the Evangelist] and the T-shaped composition of the work as well as its medium: wood. van der Weyden apprenticed with Robert Campin. Their style is more expressionistic than other 15th c. works with emphasis on aesthetics of pain and the use of oil paint to create intense sorrow in the mourners as well as the richness of texture in the brocade of Joseph's gown, the blue wool of the Virgin and the pallidness of the dead Christ.
PIETER BREUGHEL THE ELDER, Netherlandish Proverbs, 1559, CE, Staatliche Museen, Berlin, oil on panel.
A genre painting in which contemporary figures act out popular Northern European proverbs of the day. Illustrated examples of proverbs were popular at the time with artists taking materials directly from works by Erasmus and Rabelais. Breughel's works involve numerous distinct individuals engaged in various activities (genre works) with figures jumbled and overlapping and multiple narratives occuring simultaneously in a cramped composition. This work uses bird-eye perspective and the various figures are allegorical representing various levels of folly in human nature ("topsy-turvy" ways of behaviour) including religious hypcrisy, gossiping, and anger..
ALBRECHT DURER, Philipp Melanchthon, 1526, CE, engraving. Created in 1526,
Albrecht Durer's engraved portrait of "Philipp Melanchthon" ushers in a new level quality when it came to engravings and illustrations using such technique. After taking a trip to Italy, the source and center of the Renaissance, Durer returned to his home in Nuremburg and started creating a multitude of different works, including "Hare" and this piece, a portrait of Melanchthon, a prominent theologian and Protestant reformist. In the portrait, the artist gives the subject veristic qualities and a pure emphasis on the profile of Melanchthon himself, while hardly paying attention to the background at all, providing only slight composition.
MATTHIAS GRUNEWALD, Isenheim Altarpiece, 1515, CE, Musee d Unterlinden, Colmar, oil on panel.
Altarpiece commissioned for the Monastary of St. Anthony is Isenheim. The image of the crucifixtion in the central closed panel shows the expressionistic tendancies of Northern European art in the image of the distorted, elongated and emaciated Christ covered n sores and skin afflictions which represent the agony of the those who suffered from these diseases and the willingness of Christ to sacrifice for all mankind. This work with its high emotion, vibrant colour and distorted forms will influence Expressionist artsists of the 20th century including Otto Dix and Max Beckmann.
HANS MEMLING, Altarpiece of the Virgin with Saints and Angels (or Saint John Altarpiece), Hospitaal Sint Jan, Bruges, Belgium, 1479. Oil on wood, approx. 5' 7 3/4" x 5' 7 3/4" (center panel), 5' 7 3/4" x 2' 7 1/8" (each wing).
Altarpiece created for St. John's Hospital contains unified narratives focusing on the hospital's patrons saints: John the Baptist and John the Evangelist. The left panel shows the martyrdom of John the Baptist and the right panel shows St. John and visions of the Apocalypse [Book of Revelations]. The central panel is a Sacra Conversazione [a gathering of saints around the Virgin and child] and well as portraits of the patrons. Memling incorporates Oriental [Middle Eastern] influences in the tessellation patterns on the carpet beneath the Virgin and Child
ALBRECHT ALTDORFER, The Battle of Issus, 1529, CE, Alte Pinakothek, Munich, oil on panel.
Bird's eye view of a battle sequence, one of a series of famous battles commissioned by Duke William IV of Bavaria. The imagery is deliberately anachronistic with soldiers in contemporary 16th century dress. These artworks were created to make allusions to the great battles of western civilization and the military victories by Northern and Central European against the Ottoman Turks (the defeat of Suliman the Magnificant at the Siege of Vienna in 1529). Altendorfer was influenced by Matthais Grunewald. His work, like that of Bosch and Brueghel, is populated with larger numbers of small highly deatiled figures which appear to be dwarfed by the dramatic atmosphere and landscape.
CATERINA VAN HEMESSEN, Self-Portrait, 1548, CE, Kunstmuseum offentliche Kunstsamlung, Basel, oil on panel.
Caterina was the daughter of Mannerist painter Jan Sanders. This specific painting shows geometric figures for her hat and easel. Great use of texturization in her hair and clothing provide realistic views. Self Portraits were not common except those done by Albert Durer. Caterina is depicted with brushes and a palette. The writing at the top says "I Caterina Van Hermessen have painted myself, I'm 20. Her face is painted on the easel. Her head is facing the viewer yet her eyes never meet the viewer. Because she is a women direct eye contact could not be made.
MELCHIOR BROEDERLAM, outer wings of the Retable de Champmol. Annunciation and Visitation (left) and Presentation and Flight into Egypt (right), from Chapel of the Chartreuse de Champmol, Dijon, France, installed 1399. Panels, each 5' 5 3/4" x 4' 1 1/4". Musée de la Ville, Dijon.
Commissioned by Philip the Bold for Chapel in Dijon. Broederlam's work is considered the first wide-scale use of oil paint on wood influencing van Eyck and van der Weyden as well as other works of the Netherlandish school. Broederlam's work is a combination of early 15th c. Flemish naturalism and International Gothic incorporting gold and gilding into the work as well as contemporary architecture of the Italian Trecento.
ROGIER VAN DER WEYDEN, Last Judgment Altarpiece (open), Hôtel-Dieu, Beaune, France, ca. 1444-1448. Panel, 7' 4 5/8" x 17' 11". Musée de l'Hôtel-Dieu, Beaune.
Commissioned for Hospices de Beaune (a charitable institution in modern day France). Similar in design to Ghent Altar with patron portraits, Annunciation and grisaille saints on outer oak panels and inner oak panels in vibrant oils depicting the weighting of the souls by St. Michael the Archangel and a Deesis [Virgin, Christ in Majesty and John the Baptist]. Figures are stylized with elongated torsos, hooded eyes and long oval faces. Traditionally inner panels would only have been opened on specific feast days.
ALBRECHT DURER, Four Apostles, 1526, CE, Alte Pinakothek, Munich, oil on panel.
Durer depicts the four apostles larger than life-size. The protestant church was not a patron of any art; he commissioned this art. John is depicted in the red while Peter holds the key to heaven. Peter remains associated with old and bald. Peter is neglecting the key while looking into the bible. This goes back to Martin Luther's idea of abandoning the church and reading the bible. Paul (right) is holding the sword he was killed with and a book because he is the author of The Letters. Saint Paul greatly influenced Luther's teachings.
JEAN FOUQUET, Agnes Sorel (from a diptych now divided), ca. 1450. Tempera on wood, 36 1/2" x 33 1/2". Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen, Berlin-Dahlem.
Fouquet started his career as an illuminator, and then brought his detail and precision into his panel painting. The Original frames of this piece were covered in blue velvet and wound with silver and golden threads decorating the piece with the donor's initials made with pearls contrasting with the blue of the Virgin's throne. The skin tones of both the Virgin and the child have been bleached to a cold lifeless pale white, resembling no humanly warmth. The Red angels represent seraphim, the warrior angels, and the blue angels are the messengers, the Cherubim. The two kinds of Angels compliment each other in the piece, and bringing the Virgin and Child to the foreground. Modeling for the Madonna was Charles VII's mistress, Agnes Sorel.
PETRUS CHRISTUS, A Goldsmith in His Shop, Possibly Saint Eligius, 1449. Oil on wood, approx. 3' 3" x 2' 10". Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (the Robert Lehman Collection, 1975).
Genre painting [scenes of everyday life] become more popular during the Northern Reniassance. This painting, commissioned by the Goldsmith's Guild, serves as an advertisement for their services and a comparison in relative morality. An extremely wealthy newly bethrothed couple stands behind the goldsmith. The scales in the foreground may indicate the guild's integrity and the shelf in the background holds various "wares" created for secular and Church clients. A mirror on the right reflects the city square [Bruges]. The contrast between the wealthy and the artisan may be a reference to industry vs sloth [one the the seven deadly sins]
ALBRECHT DURER, The Hare, 1502, CE, watercolor and gouache on paper.
In German artist Albrecht Durer's "Hare" or "Durer's Rabbit", the subject of the whole artwork is an actual rabbit in snow. The medium used was watercolor and gouache on paper, with a highlighting of white gouache, as well. It was completed during 1502, in the city of Albertina, Vienna. The fur texture on the animal was made very realistically using a dry, separated brush. Durer created this artwork making a trip to Italy, like Gossaert and other Northern artists that were interested in the Renaissance. Furthermore, Durer not only painted, but also created prints and engravings.
ROGIER VAN DER WEYDEN, Portrait of a Lady, ca. 1460. Oil on panel, 1' 1 3/8" x 10 1/16". National Gallery, Washington (Andrew W. Mellon Collection).
Northern Renaissance artists often created commissioned individual portraits of people in the Burgundian court. This portrait of an unknown woman is unique for its contrast between textures and composition. Her dress and veil are geometric and diagonal which contrasts with the rounded forms of her face. The eyes are lowered in devotion and emphasis is also placed on the hands clasped on the bottom of the frame. The portrait is deliberately disproportionate to emphasize certain areas that may have been considered beautiful at the time (the tiny waits, cheekbones, raised forehead)
HUGO VAN DER GOES, Portinari Altarpiece (open), from Sant'Egidio, Florence, Italy, ca. 1476. Tempera and oil on wood, 8' 3 1/2" x 10' (center panel), 8' 3 1/2" x 4' 7 1/2" (each wing). Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence.
Oil on wood triptych depicting the Adoration of the Shepherds in the central panel flanked by patron portraits of banker Tommaso Portinari, his wife and family kneeling in worship with patron saints Thomas, Anthony, Margaret and Mary Magdelene standing behind them. The figures are designed in multiple ways with some in traditional Greco-Roman robes and others dressed in contemporary wealthy 15th c. dress. The Christ child appears lying off-center [not in a manger] and focus of the other figures towards him determines the artistic composition. The work was completed in Bruges, Belgium and delivered to Ospedale di Santa Maria Nuova in Florence, a welfare hospital founded by the Portinari Family.
JAN VAN EYCK, Ghent Altarpiece (open), Saint Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, Belgium, completed 1432. Oil on wood, approx. 11' 6" x 15'.
Opened panels include The Deesis of The Crowned Virgin, Christ in Majesty[?] and John the Baptist. The far panels are elongated portraits of Adam and Eve [after the Fall]. Above them are grisaille images of Cain and Abel. Layered oil paint and transparent glazes enhanced the sheen of texiles and the jewels in the Deesis figures. The angelic choirs flanking the Deesis may indicate the opening of the heavens. The central crowned figure may be a "King of Kings" a mixture of God the Father and Christ the Son
KONRAD WITZ, Miraculous Draught of Fish, from the Altarpiece of Saint Peter, from Chapel of Notre-Dame des Maccabées in the Cathedral of Saint Peter, Geneva, Switzerland, 1444. Oil on wood, approx. 4' 3" x 5' 1". Musée d'art et d'histoire, Geneva.
Part of an altarpiece created called Peter's Altar Table [now dismantled]. The subject of Christ and the miracle of the fishes has been changed from Judea to an area around Lake Geneva, Switzerland. The topography [the Alps, Mont Blanc and Le Mole] is accurate and based on Witz's observations of the area. It is considered the earliest faithful depiction of a landscape in the history of European painting. Witz also uses oil paint to depict distorted forms reflected in the water [the fisherman and the boat]
JAN VAN EYCK, Ghent Altarpiece (closed), Saint Bavo Cathedral, Ghent, Belgium, completed 1432. Oil on wood, approx. 11' 6" x 7' 6".
Polytypch panel painting on wood (12 panels) possibly started by Hubert van Eyck and completed by his brother Jan. Commisioned by wealthy businessman Joost Vijdt for the Church of St. Bavo. The closed planels include patron portraits of Vijdt and his wife Lysbette Borluut next to grisaille portraits of Ss John the Baptist and John the Evangelist which make represent marble cult statues. The central panel is the Annunciation. The altarpiece was damaged during the 16th c. Protestant iconoclasm movements and the inner panels are lost after WWI or 1934
MARTIN SCHONGAUER, Saint Anthony Tormented by Demons, ca. 1480-1490. Engraving, approx. 1' 1" x 11". Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (Rogers Fund, 1920).
The Temptation of St. Anthony is a popular subject in N. European art and will resurface during the Symbolist movement of the late 19th c. Schongauer's engraving demonstrates his minute attention to detail which will influence later artists like Durer and Michelangelo. The demons are grotesque but their attributes [wings, scales, fur] are based on natural observations. Chiaroscuro heightens the dimensions of the work as well. Later engravings were in color and distributed throughout Europe.
CLAUS SLUTER, Well of Moses, Chartreuse de Champmol, Dijon, France, 1395-1406. Limestone with traces of paint, figures approx. 6' high.
The Well of Moses was made in 1395-1403 by Clause Sluter for the Carthusian monastery of Chartreuse de Champmol. This sculpture took the rest of Sluter's life even through his serious illness in 1399. The Well of Moses was built at the beginning of the northern renaissance when the power of Duke of Burgundy and the Catholic Church combined. The Well of Moses was a crucifixion scene and served as a fountain of life. The sculpture was placed at the top of the fountain and formed the shape of a hexagon. When it was first constructed it functioned as a place of pilgrimage as well as a burial site for Philip Bold and his family. The Well was constructed from limestone; it was fashioned with the purpose of adding color and it was. The Well of Moses was decorated polychrome and pigment that emphasized the parts that needed a more vibrant transition. Among all the statues the wounds of Jesus were the most accentuated and the most evident. On each side of the hexagon there are prophets which include: Moses, Jeremiah, Daniel, David, Zechariah, and Isaiah. Each figure carries their prophecies in their left hand and each portray different facial expressions and on each small column there are standing crying angels.
VIET STOSS, The Death and Assumption of the Virgin, Krakow, Poland, Church of Saint Mary, Krakow, Poland, 1489
The altarpiece the death and assumption of the virgin was created by Veit Stoss in 1489. It is a In this artwork Stoss really focused on the details; you can see it in the swelling veins in the hands and legs. The figures are in the round and the outer panels of the altarpiece are in deep relief. There are scenes of Christ and Mary on the wings of shrine. They are heavily wrapped in clothes that are extremely folded. Stoss greatly focused on the detail in the drapery. Stoss unlike, other sculptors, included emotion in his figures. He is known for the beauty in all of his artworks. Stoss combined sculpting and architecture to make this particular artwork. Some of the details he used are similar to late gothic architecture. The artworks medium is guilded wood.
JEAN FOUQUET, Étienne Chevalier and Saint Stephen, left wing of Melun Diptych, ca. 1450. Oil on wood, 3' ½" x 2' 9 1/2". Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen, Berlin. Virgin and Child, right wing of Melun Diptych, ca. 1451. Oil on wood, 3' 1 1/4" x 2' 9 1/2". Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp, Belgium.
The left panel of Fouquet's Melun Diptych depicts its patron, civil servant Étienne Chevalier, with his patron saint Stephen, both looking solemnly toward the Virgin and Child in the right panel. Their dark robes contrast with both Chevalier's illuminated hands in benediction and the background. Stephen wears deacon's robes, has a tonsure, and places his hand on Chevalier's shoulder. Stephen, a martyr saint, holds a flint, because he was stoned, and blood trickles down his head. One can see the use of one-point perspective, with the point culminating in the right panel. This technique shows the influence from innovative Italian artists Brunelleschi and Alberti. The floor tiling and Corinthian embedded columns are reminiscent of Italian and Ancient Roman style. Northern Renaissance influence is evident in the painting's panel design, waist-up figures, and attention to crisp detail.
HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER, The French Ambassadors, 1533, CE, National Gallery, London, oil and tempera on panel.
The man on the right is Georges de Selve (clerical clothing), left, Jeande Dinteville(secular attire). There are three levels of perspective, celestial, terrestrial and death. Open books signify Symbols of religious knowledge and a link to the Virgin. The skull at the bottom is an anamorphic perspective and means mortality in the western world and a symbol of a merciless final judgment. No one can escape death and the two scholars have realized life is short and transient. Above the skull is a crucifix, and its there to encourage contemplation of ones impending death and the resurrection. Holbein was the court painter to Henry VIII
Jan Gossaert (MABUSE), Neptune and Amphitrite, 1516, CE, Staatliche Museen, Berlin, oil on panel.
The painting is "Neptune and Amphitrite", which was painted by Jan Gossaert in 1516 in the Netherlands. He, like other Renaissance artists, received inspiration from taking trips to Italy, and later made artworks like this. In this piece, the couple stands on a plinth surrounded by water in a domed, columned structure; it also appears to be a shrine for the god and his wife. They stand in symmetry with each other but also have a contrapposto stance, making them seem more realistic. This work was commissioned by Philip of Burgundy.
ALBRECHT DURER, Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, 1498, CE, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, woodcut.
The third and most famous woodcut from Durers series of illustrations and from the passage from the Book of Revelation. The four overlapping horse and riders (left to right) are Death, Famine, war, and plague. In the front is a death-sweeping citizen into the jaws of Hades. Death is riding a pale horse driven by demographic rage. Behind him follows a monster with open jaws. The third driver appears less calm because he simply desires to execute a wicked world. Light and dark tones with parallel and crosshatched lines are used. This work made Durer wealthy and famous.
PIETER BRUEGHEL THE ELDER, Hunters in the Snow, 1565, CE, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, oil on panel.
The work is one of six works that depict from (Dec-Jan). Painting shows a winter scene where three hunters return from an unsuccessful expedition. They all appear weary as well as the dog that looks miserable. One hunter creates a fox to illustrate the paucity of the hunt. Muted whites and grays are used for this painting. Bruegel is attempting to portray an ideal life in the Netherlands. The composition is composed of diagonal and horizontal lines. The flying dark bird represents spiritual aspiration of the hunter's desires. Birds also provide a compositional link between the hunters and the peaks.
JAN VAN EYCK, Giovanni Arnolfini and His Bride, 1434. Oil on wood, approx. 2' 8" x 1' 11 1/2". National Gallery, London.
This double portrait of the Italian cloth merchant Giovanni Arnolfini and his bride contains numerous innovations in painting. Van Eyck applied oil paint in layers to create the textural effects of velvet, wool and fur on the couple's clothing. By using a wet-in-wet paint application technique, he was able to create reflective (shining) effects of the chandelier and create 3D effects including the convex mirror in the background surrounded by tiny panels from the 12 stations of the cross. The background splits between secular (left) and domestic (right). Objects within the composition are symbolic of fidelity (dog), joined hands (act of fides), childbirth (bed, St. Margaret) and candles (omnipresence of God).
QUENTIN MASSYS, Money-Changer and His Wife, 1514, CE, Louvre, France, oil on panel.
This genre painting (secene of everyday life) contains strong religious feelings and economic activity common in traditional Flemish works. Massys shows rich and reflective colors that are balanced by the light. The wife has a bible in front of here but instead watches money being counted. As a woman she has failed to follow a Christian life. The people behind the door are talking about a greedy deal. The candle represents God is present. The balance represents the scales on judgment day. The couple is idealized. In the mirror a man holding a bible in hand. He represents the bringing of faith
PIETER AERTSEN, Meat Still-Life (Butcher's Stall with the Flight into Egypt), 1551, CE, Uppsala University Art Collection, Uppsala, oil on panel.
This is a combination of a religious painting of a scene from the Life of Christ (Flight from Egypt - center left) and a secular genre work. The center of the painting is a still life. The juxtaposition of the two art subjects may have a moral context (The Seven Deathly Sins) and may reflect the Reformation principles of a direct relationship between man and God without the intercesion of clergy. There is a suggestion that the beer and pretzel is a more earthy reference to the bread and wine of Communion.
EL GRECO (Domenikos Theotokopoulous), View of Toledo, 1586, CE, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, oil on canvas.
This is one of the few landscape paintings during the Mannerism period. It is a stylized scene of Toledo, where El Greco lived for 40 years. The uninterrupted magnificence of nature is emphasized by the deliberate altercation to the location of the cathedral, which is position to the left of the Alcázar palace in the painting. Sighted from a distant point of view, the city does not dominate the painting, but rather complement the environment. The darkening clouds above the city bring out the architecture of the city.
ALBRECHT DURER, Knight, Death and the Devil, 1513, CE, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, engraving.
This is one of three master prints by Durer. Portrays an armored Christian knight riding through a narrow gorge and next a pig-snouted devil. Death holds an hourglass to remind the knight his short life. The rider looks straight ahead without observing the creatures. He's contemptuous to threats; symbolic of courage. The rider is protected by his armor of faith. The skull at the bottom shows death is near. Outline of horse is a series of interlocking curves. The rider's chin is woven to his helmet. Death and the devil are all rendered in a bleakly Nordic Manner and gothic style.
LIMBOURG BROTHERS (POL, HENNEQUIN, HERMAN), October, from Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, 1413-1416. Tempera (need to check with owning institution), and ink on vellum, approx. 8 1/2" x 5 1/2". Musée Condé, Chantilly.
This is the October miniature of the first book of hours created for John, the Duke of Berry, who commissioned several works to show off his extravagant lifestyle. The book of hours included prayers to be said at canonical hours. It is painted in the International Gothic style, and it is a French Gothic manuscript illumination. This miniature depicts peasants sowing and tilling in the Louvre's shadow. The Louvre was Charles V's royal palace in Paris. The looming presence of the Louvre behind the peasants emphasizes the vast difference in status of royalty and the peasants. The work shows daily life of peasants seen from an aristocratic view. The incredible detail suggests increasing naturalism of the period. The top of the miniature shows four arched fields depicting different aspects of the zodiac. The Limbourgs used paints made from chemicals, minerals, and plants, and iron gall ink on vellum.
LIMBOURG BROTHERS (POL, HENNEQUIN, HERMAN), January, from Les Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry, 1413-1416. Tempera (need to check with owning institution), and ink on vellum, approx. 8 ½" x 5 ½". Musée Condé, Chantilly.
This is the first book of hours created for the Duke of Berry, the son of King John the Good of France. His friends are shown bringing gifts because January is the month of gift-giving. He is shown on the right in a blue robe decorated with gold fleurs de lys, symbolizing his approval of the French monarchy. The Limbourgs used paints made from chemicals, minerals, and plants, and iron gall ink on vellum. The painting shows extremely fine detail, showing increasing naturalism, and it was painted in the International Gothic style. It is an example of French Gothic manuscript illumination. It is a miniature decorating the manuscript. It reflects the Duke's high social status, since it depicts luxury. He commissioned several works due to his extravagant lifestyle. Consequently, the work has the contradicting purposes of serving as an object of Christian piety and serving as a method of showing status.
EL GRECO (Domenikos Theotokopoulous), The Burial of Count Orgaz, 1586, CE, Santo Tome, Toledo, Spain, oil on canvas.
This painting depicts a setting outside of nature, typical of Mannerist art. The heaven above shows elongated saints and angels surrounded by a cloud of ice, indicating that higher forces are pulling the people upwards. Below is a historical burial of Count Orgaz, accompanied by St. Stephen and St. Augustine on his left and right, respectively. The rich colors of red and gold produce a royal theme. There is neither a horizon nor perspective, creating a supernatural effusion of space. Commissioned by a priest, this work is a stylized religious piece.
JEAN CLOUET, Francis I, 1530, CE, Louvre, France, oil and tempera on panel.
This painting is called "Francis I" by Jean Clouet. It was made in 1535, and is currently located in the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. It was created using oil paint on a flat piece of oak wood, and is about 96 by 74 centimeters long. Clouet depicts the portrait of King Francis I, who was considered to be the first French Renaissance King. He sponsored the arts heavily and acted as patron for many Renaissance painters, like Leonardo da Vinci. In this painting, a lot of emphasis is put on the clothing and the ornaments that the subject wears. Also, Francis is shown with a slight grin, also known as the Archaic smile.
TILMAN RIEMENSCHNEIDER, The Assumption of the Virgin, center panel of the Creglingen Altarpiece, parish church, Creglingen, Germany, ca. 1495-1499. Carved lindenwood, 6' 1" wide.
Tilman incorporated intricate Gothic forms in the canopy and figures allowing them to seem fluid with the background. No individual feature functions along, but instead it compliments the other figures, making one unifying art piece. The drapery flows around the bodies and figures. Psychic strain is a common facial expression in Tilman's work. It is thought to heighten the spirituality of the figures making them look as weightless as they appear. This artwork is a bas-relief sculpture that seems to have used drilling and under cutting to get the depths of the shadows in the drapery and hair. The piece is almost perfectly balanced, using the symmetry of the figures below the Virgin to equally balance each side.
HIERONYMUS BOSCH, Garden of Earthly Delights. Creation of Eve (left wing), Garden of Earthly Delights (central panel), Hell (right wing), 1505-1510. Oil on wood, center panel 7' 2 5/8" x 6' 4 3/4". Museo del Prado, Madrid.
Triptych (commission and original placement is unknown, possibly Nassau, part of the Holy Roman Empire). The exterior is a vision of the Earth in grisaille. The three interior panels may have been read from left to right. Imagery is meticulous and the origins of the images are likely to have come from religious texts of the period. They may have been allegories warning of the sinfulness of the lavish courts of the Hapsbergs and Burgundian Courts. The imagery will become very influential to later artists including Surrealists Joan Miro and Dali
MASTER OF FLÉMALLE (ROBERT CAMPIN), Mérode Altarpiece (open), The Annunciation (center panel), ca. 1425-1428. Oil on wood, center panel approx. 2' 1" x 2' 1". Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (The Cloisters Collection, 1956).
Triptych depicting the Annunciation with patron portraits flanking the central panel on the left and St. Joseph [the Carpenter] on the right. St. Joseph is making mousetraps [a metaphor for Christ and the Devil]. St. Joseph's appearance in 15th c. art may have to do with the rise of the cult of Joseph in Northern Europe. The Virgin is shown with texts [a Book of Hours] against a modern backdrop which includes a Florentine vase
DIERIC BOUTS, Last Supper (central panel of the Altarpiece of the Holy Sacrament), Saint Peter's, Louvain, Belgium, 1464-1468. Oil on wood, approx. 6' x 5'
Unlike later Last Supper works that concentrate on the drama of the moment Christ announces his betrayal by Judas, Bout's version is a static and balanced composition in which Christ appears as a priest performing the litany of the Eucharist against a 15th c. domestic background that includes wood paneling, mosaiced floors, a kitchen panel for service and a bronze chandelier. The figures witnessing the Last Supper who appear in the backgroun may be portraits of the patrons who commissioned the work [Leuven Confraternity of the Holy Sacrament]. Bouts may have used orthogonal lines within the ceiling and floor patterns along with overlapping to create linear perspective
