Throughout today’s class, we stressed the importance of artists progressing over time, changing previous art into better versions of themselves. Specifically, we compared two popular artists during early fourteenth Italy, Duccio and Giotto. The two Italian artists produced magnificent pieces of art, but in very different ways. For example, Duccio’s background in his image of Christ arriving in Jerusalem has a very gold background, representing pureness and godly. On the other hand, Giotto’s is blue and mysterious, creating very different visuals to the viewer. The two paintings of Christ returning to Jerusalem are different as well in their perspectives. In Duccio’s painting there is a clear perspective. The viewer can clearly see that Christ and his followers are at the forefront of the painting, and the town is in the distance, taking up the background. However, in Giotto’s painting there is no perspective, rather, everything is at the same level. Therefore, the viewer is with the painting in Giotto’s, and small details are more important in Duccio’s painting of this scene.

At the end of class, we started our section on fifteenth century art in northern Europe. During this era, artists began to reach prominence. Many were known by name, they rose to important positions in society, and were aware of their significant artistic achievements. We learned how the social structure in northern Europe was very different than in Italy at the time. There was a feudal system in place which clearly outlined the powers and decision makers of territories. This influenced the type of artwork that was displayed across this region.

In class today we began by finishing our discussion on 13th and 14th century Italy. Specifically, we examined the “advancement” of art through Cimabue and Giotto’s similar paintings of the Madonna and Child. Some constants between the pantings include a gold background symbolizing heaven, a central Madonna clothed in a stark blue holding her child, and angels surrounding the throne she sits on. However, Cimabue used an abstractness when designing his figures and the spatial relations were off. Giotto, only about thirty years later, focused on creating a logical space inside the image and painted cloth that draped beautifully. His touches gave the painting an entirely different perspective, where a viewer can look into the scene. This truly emphasized for me the impact that depth can have on an image.

Transitioning to 15th century Northern Europe, manuscripts were popular among the upper class patrons who could afford them. The large books acted as calendars and depicted small, hand-painted scenes. One such buyer was John, Duke of Berry who was an art collector in France. He was especially interesting as he used his manuscript as an inventory of his assets, showing tapestries, castles, serfs, and even himself in rich clothing. As evidenced with his manuscript, artists at the time were focused on painting a convincing reality.

During our class on 2/12 we wrapped up the lecture on 13th and 14th century art in Italy, and transitioned into the art of 15th century Northern Europe. In our discussion of Italian art, we considered the differences between Cimabue’s Enthroned Madonna and Child (c. 1280-90) and Giotto’s Madonna Enthroned (c. 1310). I found the way that these two works function both in comparison to and in conversation with each other very interesting. Giotto’s work appears to be a clear progression from the initial composition of the Madonna created by Cimabue. I found the architectural structure of the throne to be particularly noteworthy in both pieces. Once Professor Plesch pointed out the slightly confusing curve of the Madonna’s throne in Cimabue’s piece, I was unable to unsee the peculiar perspective which the piece took on. It did become a bit uncomfortable to look at once I saw how the arch of the throne was not quite realistic. I found Giotto’s piece to be much more visually satisfying, with crisper lines both vertically and horizontally making up the throne. As much as we discussed the church-like structure of Cimabue’s throne, I almost see more of a church figure in Giotto’s throne, especially with the inclusion of a pointed Gothic arch above the Madonna’s head, acting as a cover to the throne.

In transitioning to the art of Northern Europe, we can see how under the feudal system it was essential for wealthy patrons to use art to increase their own respectability and craft an image of themselves as successful. We see this in the case of the Duke of Berry and the large manuscript of the zodiac calendar and depictions of different months.

In this class, we finished up 13th Century and 14th Century Italy, and started discussing 15th Century Northern Europe. We primarily focused on looking at both Cimabue and Giotto’s versions of the Madonna Enthroned, and compared the two. When comparing them, we looked at how Giotto made what he believed to be improvements, which demonstrated the changing of the times. Giotto’s depiction had much more of a sense of depth and perspective compared to Cimabue. Additionally, the painting has many more realistic details and intricacies. We then briefly looked at Duccio’s Madonna Enthroned, which stylistically resembled Giotto’s, but showed much more detail. We also compared the use of space and perspective between other works of Duccio and Giotto.

In the second part of class, we began discussing 15th Century Northern Europe. In particular, we looked at John, Duke of Berry, in France. In a manuscript created about him, we viewed the wishful perspective of the upper class from the upper class. This manuscript portrayed the wealthy as very good, which tied back to a piece we looked at earlier, Allegory of a Good and Bad Government. We also viewed how the different pages showed extreme detail and employed rising perspective to allow the viewer to see more.

In today’s class, we continued looking at Cimabue, Enthroned Madonna, and Child made in 1280-90. We compared this painting with Giotto’s work made 20-30 years later named Madonna Enthroned. Giotto replicated what Cimabue did, evolving his techniques and style to fit the next generation. For example, in Cimabue’s piece, there was no perspective. The arches were drawn at the wrong angles, which made parts of the painting look vertical rather than horizontally extending back. Giotto had a sense of perspective in his painting, he also used more highlights to make the painting look fuller and have the virgin and her baby stand out. These artworks are next to each other in the Uffizi Gallery of Florence to emphasis what a generation can do to a painting.

We then looked more into Giotto and some of his other popular pieces. He worked in Padua, some think, designing the model of the Scrovegni Chapel and creating the masterpiece of murals on the inside.

Traveling to Siena, Florence’s biggest rival, we looked at the Duccio di Buoninsegna and his Madonna Enthroned, made in 1308-11. This artwork was massive but now has been broken into smaller pieces, which are widely distributed worldwide.

Wrapping up the class, we moved into the 15th century Art in Northern Europe and talked about the Limbourg brothers. John, the Duke of Berry, was a famous art collector and created a manuscript book with 12 scenes, each a zodiac sign to distinguish between the different months.

To start today’s class, we continued looking at altarpieces created by Cimabue and Giotto. What stuck out to me most about the comparison of the two was the clear and direct influence that Cimabue had on Giotto. The key artistic elements of the altarpieces may have their differences, like color pallets for example, but all in all the altarpieces have alot of similarities. This motivation from another is always interesting to see especially considering they are only one generation, or about 30 years apart. Another striking piece in the relationships of these two altarpieces is that they are now displayed in the same gallery for viewing. Being able to view the two side by side must be an excellent experience where one can notices even more of the motivation that Giotto got from Cimabue.

We then discussed northern Europe, where the people sought a more realistic representation of life. This part of the lecture focused on royal families and their collecting of the artwork. While I find learning about these families exciting, I am also excited to learn about other types of people who may have collected art or been involved in the art scene.

Today in class we discussed Giotto’s improvements on rendering a believable space. He moves away from abstract ideas that represent something real and instead paints something as it truly appears. For example the folds of the virgin Marys garment are represented with shadow and highlight by Giotto rather then shimmering gild lines by Cimebue. We also compared the world of Giotto to Duccio of Siena. Giottos paintings bring you up close and into the scene he is portraying while Duccio’s paintings are more of a detailed overview of an event with more detail but form farther away. Duccio’s compositions is something from a higher point than the people in the painting while Giotto’s perspective is level with that of the people in the painting. 

Another theme overwind in class today is how the state of a kingdom could be seen by the paints of the kingdom… paintings portraying prosperity in the form of busy markets, well kept country sides and people in harmony showed a “good” kingdom. 

In the north, symbolism in painting became more sneaky, and shown through common objects as paintings became more realistic representations of nature. 

These more realistic representation of life can bee seen in Callander books possessed  by John, duke of berry, brother to the king of France king Charles the 5th and Philip the bold, duke of burgundy. He collected these books as a status symbol, but they also showed off his kingdom and possessions as he was a great collector of art and other things such as castles. His brother, Philip married himself into getting all the land go Belgium because the lack of a male heir. 

Today we spent the first half of class discussing various representations of the Virgin Mary as a “Madonna Enthroned” and the regional/ideological differences in the production of biblical scenes in Italy, and the second half discussing the arts in Northern Europe.

It was cool to learn that Italian artists valued linear progress from generation to generation, and actively worked to improve upon the perceived shortcomings in their predecessors’ works (Cimabue and Giotto’s “Madonna Enthroned”). It was also interesting to see how regional rivalries impacted the creation of altarpieces. I don’t think this was mentioned, but Duccio’s “Madonna Enthroned” was far more grandiose and detailed than Giotto’s. I wonder if Duccio was aware of Giotto’s altarpiece and intentionally tried to one-up him given that Giotto was based in Florence, and he was in Siena. There could be a bit of campanilismo shining through, but that would be a question for Professor Plesch.

The second part of class was interesting. We started discussing 15th-century art in Burgundy but didn’t get very far. I don’t really know a lot about Gothic art. I assume it started in Germany, but the Well of Moses surely exemplifies the crazy details and intricate designs that I associate with Gothic-ness. I guess I’m still wondering though, what makes something Gothic? The book said that there was sort of an International Gothic style, but I’m not sure I really understand what qualifies a work as Gothic. Anyway, we also looked at the Duke of Berry’s prayer book (is this an illuminated text?) which had a lot of pretty landscape drawings that I found pretty. I think it exemplifies the Northern artistic ideal of “hidden symbolism,” as a lot of subliminal assertions about the Duke’s wealth shine through the simple landscapes. Overall very cool!

Today in class we continued our discussion of 13th and 14th-century Italian art, beginning with Cimabue’s Enthroned Madonna and Child. This work reflects the growing focus on Mary as the mother of God – the Theotokos. This image shows her as the queen of heaven and of the Church as an institution. Below Mary are the four prophets of the Old Testament that predicted the coming of Jesus. They are literally the foundations of the Church in this image. The style Cimabue paints is abstract in the sense that he does not aim to depict reality, but representations.

We then compared this work with Giotto’s Madonna Enthroned, which drew direct inspiration from Cimabue’s earlier painting. Giotto renders space in a much more natural way. The figures are not floating as in Cimabue’s, but clearly anchored in space. Overall Giotto’s work is much more naturalistic than Cimabue’s showing artists’ desire to be constantly improving art. We also talked about Giotto’s other famous work the Scrovegni Chapel. The interior of this building contains numerous scenes from Jesus’ life and other biblical scenes. As in his Madonna Enthroned, Giotto uses vibrant colors and very realistic figures. He can convey immense emotion in his depiction of the Lamentation, and he really aims to place the viewer in these scenes.

We looked at a third depiction of the Madonna Enthroned by Duccio, which is a part of the Maesta altarpiece. While stylistically similar to Cimabue in many of the figures’ faces and poses, it is significantly more dynamic. This work is extremely detailed and has a complex composition with figures on different plains. This panel is only one part of a larger, elaborate altarpiece of the Chapel of Siena.

I am thrilled to be back in our art history classroom with Professor Plesch for another semester, this time taking Introduction to Western Art. Our first class, last Wednesday, Professor Plesch opened with our learning objectives for the semester. All of which, I am not familiar with, so I am eager and excited to go into depth with many of the topics we will be discussing this semester. Our class on Wednesday captured a portion of art in the thirteenth and fourteenth-century Italy, examining the rebirth of Ancient Roman and Greek Art and Philosophy and the meeting of Italian religious and civic populations. Our first two works of art included two large structures, Arnolfo di Cambio’s “Palazzo dei Priori” and Nicola Pisano’s “Pisa Baptistery.” The Palazzo dei Priori is located in Perugia, the capital city of the Umbria region in central Italy. Not only is this Palazzo dei Priori monumental in stature, size, and architectural detail, but the structure’s background is necessary to recount. Knocking down several buildings in this area to build, this structure asserts its dominance and power practically before it was built. The fortified structure’s architectural details include, rustication, castle-like details, local stones (also known as “strong stones”), crenellations, battlements, and trefoiled windows. All of these details are telling of the structure’s power and influence reigning over the people of Central Italy.

As we continue class, we focused on the Pisa Baptistery, which Professor Plesch noted as particularly interesting because it is separate from a cathedral, as the church encouraged the intersection of the civic and religious. I find this very telling of the Italian community, because we are already seeing the society’s separation of political views, but also the importance of denoting oneself to their community.

Toward the end of class, we began our studies on Saint Francis. Saint Francis, born a “golden boy,” shows interest in all members of the Roman community, ultimately by becoming one with the beggars and poorer people in the Roman society. Saint Francis creates separate religious orders, leading the Franciscans (his followers) to interact with all members and social classes of the Roman community. I am intrigued to learn more about the different Italian societies, their greatest differences, why they were so separated, and finally if Saint Francis received any backlash from non-followers in Italy? I’m really looking forward to next class!