Midterm Comparison

Question 1

What are the similarities and difference between the Bayeux Embroidery and Liber Vitae?

Answer 1

1. Both have captions to identify patrons – emphasis on their significance
2. Different media and scale [manuscript (audience = monks) and embroidery (audience = a public propaganda in secular context)] – different in viewership [private vs. public]
3. Similar colors, lots of white space and expressive figures
4. Derived from same visual cues as Liber Vitae – made by women artist in England [history of
   narrative pieces]
5. Designers of embroidery were victors of the battle – resulted in collaboration with distinct artistic and narrative traditions
6. The Bayeux Embroidery represents the synthesis of the victorious workers [male narrative] and female craftsmanship [illustrated the point of contact between cultures in visual exchange in which resulted in production of something new, how the meeting of two cultures can produced a visual experimentation – neither French or England work, embodiment of stylization and regionalism, Normans = known for utilizing indigenous traditions to suit their own agenda]

Question 2

What’s the difference between Saint-Denis and Sainte-Foy?

Answer 2

 Sainte-Foy – clearly defined space, punctuated by small windows with heavy buttresses outside of the building
 Saint-Denis – interior space become more open, no division of radiating chapels and altars with large windows to maximize the amount of light within the space
 Romanesque architecture utilized stained glass in which became the standard for gothic architecture – however, in lesser amount than gothic architecture
Stained glass – expensive and labour intensive medium when it is compared to stone masonry [emphasized how expensive Abbott Suger’s reconstruction of Saint-Denis was]

Question 3

“Romanesque” east end, Fortenay, 1139-1147 vs. “Gothic” east end, Saint-Denis, 1140-1144

Answer 3

 Light as aesthetic way of ornamenting the church – Clairvaux, forbidden the use of stained glass in Cistercian churches
 Suger was heavily influenced by Clairvaux – the role of ornament is to produce light that elevates the space beyond the material [differ from Fortenay – light was the only acceptable ornament]
 Saint-Denis demonstrated Suger’s application of the theologies of Pseudo Dionysus on an architectural and monumental scale
 Maximizing the span of windows and utilizing stained glass windows to construct an anagogical experience
 Attempts to aid visitors’ to overcome the materiality of the church and achieve an anagogical experience [“theologically” acceptable by Cistercian churches]
 Extensive use of point arches with complex rib vaults – elements that allowed interior to appear as it was
 Similar to Autun and Cluny, evidence that architects of Romanesque and Gothic were inspired by Islamic architecture (Great Mosque of Cordoba) – illustration East and West cultural exchange
 Gothic Rib Vaults – a masonry vault with a relatively thin web and set within a framework of ribs
 Gothic Architecture – pointed arches + ribs = more height and more space for windows
 Acted as support with the ability to build higher with thinner supporting walls = integration of glass and spaces
 Distribution of columns = distribution and reduction of weight – allowed for less vault and maximize the amount of light within a church