Abbot Suger & Bernard of Clairvaux Flashcards
who has been called “the father of art history”?
Giorgio Vasari
who had influence in the defaming of medieval art history?
Giorgio Vasari
what period of art history did Vasari priorities?
the renascence
what did the renascence see the rebirth of?
greek and roman ideals, the classics
what does the name medieval imply?
that is is unimportant compared to the classical period and the renascence
to think about medieval art accurately what must we move away from?
Eurocentric ideals centered on art e.g. painting. need to think about medieval art and material culture intertwined with architecture
who was Abbot Suger?
a statesman and priest
who popularised gothic architecture?
Abbot Suger
what did Suger believe in regards to light and worship?
Suger believed light could be used to transcend worship
how did Suger prefer churches to be designed?
Suger liked when they were very ornate and decorative with the use of stained glass to transcend worshippers
what kind of art history was Erwin Panofsky associated with?
icongraphy / panofsky’s 3 step iconological method
who translated Suger’s writings?
Erwin Panofsky
who was Bernard of Clairvaux?
a religious leader
what did Bernard think of Suger’s views on decorative churches?
Bernard found it vulgar and preferred plain churches
what was the period before the gothic architecture period?
Romanesque architecture
what is a sign of gothic architecture?
pointed arches
what was a key aspect of romanesque architecture that was replaced by gothic?
barrell vaults
what is a barrell vault?
a barrel vault is a singular curved tunnel
why was barrel vaults an issue?
there is a lot of side ways pressure from the masonry arch and when the side walls collapse there is nothing holding the keystones up
what replaced the barrel vaults?
gothic vaults
what are gothic vaults?
gothic vaults are pointed arches consisting of four points sloping down. this makes a downward pressure
what was better about the gothic vaults apposed to barrel vaults?
the walls didn’t need to be as thick so the walls could be thinner, hollowed and introduced archways / columns in the walls
what did the introduction of gothic vaults lead to? and why?
stained glass because you could now have arches in the walls due to less pressure on the walls
what did Suger believe the advantage of stained glass was?
stained glass was like a storybook that was animated by the light of day.
