Analysis of the European Culture Found in the Gothic Era - Essay Example

ART HISTORY The purpose of this paper is to analyze the European culture that was found in the Gothic Era (c. 1150 – c. 1400). Taking one piece of visual art, this paper discusses its significance with respect to the Gothic Era. Also, the paper focuses on the aspects and details of a form of a piece of literature and relates it with the Gothic art piece that has been considered throughout the essay. Furthermore, the paper elaborates on the similarities and differences of the Gothic Era with the Islamic culture by considering the characteristics of a piece pertaining to the medieval Islamic culture and comparing it to the one that has been taken from the Gothic Era. The Gothic Era is one of the two most important international eras that contributed through paintings, architecture, music and literature to the art in Europe. The Gothic period basically evolved from the Romanesque art and remained for a long period of time. It symbolizes the transition that took place in Europe from the middle Ages to the Renaissance Period. Architecture was one of the most important of all the visual arts that was found in the Gothic Era. The basic structure of the Gothic architecture evolved because the previously made buildings had a lot of heavy stonework and would usually collapse, as Martindale relates.( 1974) According to him, the masonry ceiling vaults before were arched and had such heavy work that it was often very hard for the walls to withstand the downward pressure of the ceiling vaults. In order to end this problem, the masons found in the Gothic Era created many inventions. The first, as Martindale relates, was that the ceiling now consisted of thin panels of stone. This greatly reduced the weight that had to be withstood before. (1974) Further, the thin ceilings were supported by the newly created ribbed vaults. The vault’s weight as Martindale relates was just focused on some points (where the ribs were present) rather than being thrust upon the entire ceiling. (1974) also the round arches that had existed before were replaced by pointed arches. Thus the weight of the ceiling was distributed further. Before this invention, the pressure from the ceiling was so much that the walls of the building had to have thick walls that could cope with the pressure. With this invention this was not needed. The walls could be as thin (as the pressure was lower). Because of the presence of the thin walls it was also easy to set up large windows. Hence the buildings could be airy. Another important technique that helped reduce the ceiling thrust that was created due to heavy stonework was the fact that the walls though a buttress (called the flying buttress) were linked to a pier, as Martindale explains. (1974) The presence of the buttress meant that the pressure that was caused due to the ceiling could be focused through the nave of the upper walls, into the flying buttress and the pier. The pier took up all the pressure that was exerted and so it was difficult for the buildings to collapse as buildings before had done ultimately. The presence of the flying buttress, as Martindale explains, was a plus point for the Gothic masons. (1974 This is because the flying buttress meant that the thrust of the ceiling was absorbed. Consequently, larger and taller buildings could be created by the Gothic masons with respect to the Romanesque architecture that had prevailed before the Gothic era. Also the masons (who were not worried about the thrust anymore) could focus on more complex ground plans and develop architectural buildings that had not been thought of being created before the Gothic era. Gothic architecture was also different from those found before it in the medieval times because it tied closely to sculpture. Most of the buildings of the era, especially cathedrals, had many sculptures. The earlier Gothic sculptures that were found in the buildings consisted of the statues of Gods and those belonging to the Holy Family. These sculptures like the Romanesque ones were stiff in nature in the beginning; however, with time there was a light touch to the facial expressions. (Martindale, 1974) The sculptures were different from the ones made before because of the natural poses of the statues. The sculptures along with displaying the dignity and the honor of the predecessors of the masons, had elaborate faces that showed real expressions. (1974 This aspect of the sculptures found in the cathedrals and buildings depicted the fact that the masons from the Gothic era concentrated more on reality. For the first time in European history realism replaced the artificial pettiness in case of the sculptures found in the buildings. (Martindale,1974) As the main piece of art that is discussed in the essay is the Façade of the Cathedral in Siena Italy, it is important to discuss the Gothic architecture in Italy briefly too. The architecture found in Italy was a little different from the one found in the rest of Europe because it was not easily influenced by the French art due to geographic reasons (Hayes, 2010). Also unlike the stone work that was used in the rest of the Europe, brick was used in Italy and decoration was carried out with marbles. The use of the bricks is seen in the façade of the Cathedral. According to Haynes, the interior of the Cathedral is beautifully decorated although it may seem dizzying at first. (Hayes, 2010) Black and white marbled striped pillars are used. Nave arcades are also present that rest on pillars. The pillars are very tall in the form of arches that withstand the pressure of the ornate ceiling. There also has been no use of triforium. Also there are sculptures that are found in the Cathedral. The most famous one is the bronze statue of ‘John the Baptist’ that was created in the 1300s. (Hayes, 2010) In addition a sculpture of Mary Magdalene is also present. There is also a large marble pavement that is found in the Cathedral that has a lot of paintings that depict Sianese history and biblical scenes. Also many paintings are seen on marble panels, seven of which elaborate on the life of Jesus Christ. Overall, the Cathedral defines the attitude (respect) the people in the Gothic Era had towards Christ and his religion. Also it can be said that they depict the popes’ desire to enforce religion as in the medieval times they were in a constant fight with the rulers. The same aspect is seen in the Gothic literature. An important feature that is present in the literature is the idea of the supernatural. This idea seems to be in direct conflict with the rational ideas that were being used in the era. The Gothic Era was the era of enlightenment as it was the transition from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance, however the literature like Turn of the Screw and Frankenstein depict concept that are irrational. They focus on the supernatural and things that cannot be explained by the human mind. The Gothic literature, hence, also represents the popes’ feeble attempt to bring the people close to religion. Through the literature they could introduce the idea of the supernatural and hence the God. This way it could be easier for them to dominate the people. The Gothic architecture is very different from the architecture that was found in the early medieval Islamic culture. An example of the Islamic culture architecture is the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain. The mosque that originally belongs to the Umayyad dynasty represents the Islamic culture. (Cresswell, 1989) Since sculptures are not allowed in the religion of Islam, there are evidently no sculptural paintings that can be found in the mosque. Although the mosque of Cordoba and the Cathedral of Siena are both places of worship the designs in which they are decorated are very different. Where the Cathedral is decorated with the drawings and the paintings of Jesus Christ and his followers in biblical scenes, the walls of the mosque are decorated extensively with Islamic calligraphy. (Cresswell, 1989) This may make the building different from the Cathedral, however the presence of the large pillars, arcades and piers are things that make it similar to the Cathedral. Also the red and white voussoirs that are not normally found in the Islamic architecture are a part of the mosque. These are very similar to the white and black striping of the pillars that are found in the Cathedral. Further the base of the mosque is a complex rectangular one which is similar to the one of the Cathedral. (Cresswell, 1989) The mosque is also different because the area in which the ruler used to pray is very lavishly decorated unlike the other parts. This is not true for the Cathedral where almost all the panels and rooms are decorated extensively. To conclude, the Siena Cathedral that belonged to the Gothic Era in some aspects and details does resemble the Great Mosque of Cordoba in Spain however the designs in which both are built are very different too. The designs of the Cathedral and the distinctiveness of Gothic literature both portray the attempt of the popes to compel the people to give more importance to the then prevalent religion. Bibliography Creswell, K.A.C. (1989) The Great Mosque of Cordova. A short account of early Muslim architecture, revised edition by James W. Allan. Aldershot: Scolar Press. Dodds, Jerrilynn (1992) The Great Mosque of Cordoba. al-Andalus: the art of Islamic Spain. Edited by Jerrilynn D. Dodds. New York: Abrams,11-26. Hayes, Holly. "Siena Duomo (Siena Cathedral)." Www.sacred-destinations.com. Sacred Destinations, 30 Jan. 2010. Web. 13 Apr. 2010. . Martindale, Andrew. "Gothic Art And Architecture." World History International: World History Essays From Prehistory To The Present. Web. 12 Apr. 2010. . Read More