Romanesque and Gothic Art: A Comprehensive Guide to Architectural Styles
Gothic Art
The concept of Gothic art emerged from the criticism of Vasari, who considered it a barbaric design. In the 13th century, it was extended as a historical concept, and in the 19th century, it embodied the ideal of the German Romantics. The term “Gothic revival” refers to later attempts to construct buildings in the style of previous centuries.
Gothic art began between the 12th and 13th centuries, with an intense love of nature as a reflection of God’s creation. It first appeared in France and was influenced by various principles. Historically, it developed alongside urban consolidation and pilgrimages. It also emerged from religious orders that were no longer isolated, replaced by preachers who drew the faithful to church, especially the Franciscans and Dominicans.
The conception of the Gothic church was located in large urban centers, where poverty was a focus. Its origins go back to the creation of the figure of the “religious mendicant.”
Gothic art encompassed political powers like the Pope and the Emperor, as well as social events like the plague of 1348. A significant social change that occurred during the Gothic period was the rise of the bourgeoisie, who were no longer subject to feudal lords. They held economic power and wished to contribute to works that would enhance their social prestige. Finally, a significant cultural change was the creation of universities.
Architecture
To meet new emerging needs, Gothic architecture was forced to expand with great majesty.
Technically, the pointed arch and vault are the most typical features of the Gothic style.
A new lounge facility was established, much like the Latin cross, and the use of thrust systems and counters allowed for the elimination of walls to concentrate weight in the vaults. This led to the replacement of Roman walls with large windows.
The structure was articulated due to the pointed arch, which allowed for four support points to distribute weight to the vaults. This arc evolved over the development of Gothic architecture, including the equiátero, lancet, and ogee arches.
The vault was used as cuatripartida and sexpartida, and by the 15th century, the tiercerons dome was used, creating a real spider’s web effect.
The system of vaults and arches resting on pillars, which were attached to half columns in increasing numbers, gave Gothic cathedrals a sense of double buoyancy and dynamism. The cruise continued to occur on the ground, although it was slightly less prominent than in the Romanesque style.
The header increased the number of chapels in the ambulatory, as in the aisles. The large windows allowed light to penetrate, creating an aerial view.
As for Gothic plastic, it did not develop significantly. Only the windows reflected biblical themes and appearances of saints and evangelists. However, painting manifested in Italy and Flanders in the 13th century, with artists like Duccio and Giotto.
From the 14th and 15th centuries, the International Gothic emerged, characterized by a taste for the courtier, stylized forms, and religious themes. This subdivision of the Gothic style was prevalent in this period.
German Gothic architecture began to appear in the second third of the 13th century.
Notable is the Cologne Cathedral (13th century), which adopted the French model in height and slenderness, emphasizing verticality. It consists of five naves, a plant room, and a central nave that is higher than the side naves. The rosettes are topped with lancet arches, and the facade is in the shape of an H.
Finally, it displayed a lot of aces that extend vertically in the vault, and the entire exterior wall is decorated with beaded.
England trended towards height and early use of vaults.
French influence was present despite England’s isolation.
English Gothic architecture also attended religious structures, adopting a plant with three and five elongated naves, two cruisers that break the monotony of the deep, which sometimes place a tower on one of them and the head is not ambulatory.
Highlights of Salisbury Cathedral (13th century), the first example of English Gothic, dominated by horizontal lines, displayed a large tower that crowns the cruise area. The facade is in the shape of an H, has three doors. Inside, the cover is very simple, with a cuatripartida dome that covers the cruciform. In general, the decorative elements are scarce.
Italy experienced a similar situation when Italy entered the Roman period. It had little acceptance, only in the technical and decorative aspects were interesting, but never the upward spirit.
Most architectural intensity focused on the religious orders, Franciscans, Dominicans, who adopted a very simple type of temple with one or two aisles, a head of stone and covered with a simple vault. They preferred wood for the naves, so the media were very simple.
Siena Cathedral (13th century), the height is not as significant, using another type of material, the classic marble. In access to the temple are round arches, the rose is very large, and lack of windows in accordance with the classical structure.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT
The term Romanesque style developed mainly in Europe.
There are two main areas from which radiate the earliest forms of the Romanesque, Northern Italy and French Burgundy (monastery of Cluny). These variations are explained by the political fragmentation of the feudal world and the agrarian-based economy, rural art, in which the church and the monastery are the most important buildings.
They improve communications and commerce and the trades are reported and new artistic concepts.
Pilgrimages
After the second half of the 10th century, Europe began to recover, and some monasteries acquired great relevance. Many relics they became centers of mass influx, advantages and wealth. Rome, Jerusalem, and Santiago.
Throughout the ways buildings are common features emerge. The Romans also called “art of the road or pilgrimages.” Through it flows the European culture and urban renaissance, the goal of the trip was unique: salvation.
Society
The Romanesque is the artistic manifestation of feudal society, the head of which was the nobility and the church. The land is the source of all wealth and power, and the nobles and monks are patrons and clients almost exclusively of artists.
Monastery is built in the midst of agricultural holdings. But lay the cathedral became the symbol of the city. Many of the monks become builders.
Castle: Building the noble estate. The buildings are solid, divided into apartments with towers, palisade, a moat … etc.
These works are constructed for political reasons of prestige, to highlight the power.
Romanesque architecture
The beginnings of this style are tightly related to the founding of the Abbey of Cluny.
This influence extends throughout Europe through pilgrimages, transmitted by the monks, the architects of the time. Thus the clerical Romanesque art.
Architectural organization of the temple
The main monument is the church, which is loaded with symbolism. The buildings were erected in the likeness of the human body.
The altar is in the head, arms cruise, the ships in the torso and legs, and foot towers.
There is a ground-celestial symbolism. In the longitudinal nave, the arches push the faithful toward the altar. This is interrupted by the transept and the dome represents the transitional space, the union of the terrestrial and the celestial. And through the light purifies us and brings us closer to the apse.
The foundation is the rock of Christ, and under the pillars lies the world of evil.
Buildings dominate the Latin cross plant, with longitudinal and transverse vessels (cruise) but can also be plants of a Greek cross.
The headers end in semicircular apses or are attached to the cruise ships (as in the cathedral of Santiago). The apse may be surrounded by an ambulatory.
This is outside a set of volumes.
In the space where the nave meets the cross is often a cupola on scallops and tubes, called the dome, you can find high height with a flashlight.
It features two towers at the foot of the church.
It is called narthex or vestibule projects from the facade, called the atrium.
The monastery is surrounded by a cloister supported by arches and columns.
Covered with a barrel vault arch. Reinforced by arches that are placed under the cross-shaped pillars.
In the aisles are common vaults (two-barrel)
The apses are covered with quarter-sphere dome.
All these heavy roofs are supported by walls, columns, and pilasters. The columns have a shaft and a capital disproportionate geometric plant with people, animals … etc, it is usually in the form of a truncated pyramid.
The walls consist of large, well-wrought ashlar. The windows are small and covered with arches.
Archivolts Forman, the eardrum is covered with reliefs, if too large a mullion is reinforced.
At the eaves are decorative foliage, rock-breaking … etc jackfruit.
The churches of pilgrimage
France and Italy radiate powerful influences that extend the style to Europe. Its spread follows the pilgrimage routes of Santiago de Compostela and Santa Fe de Conques. Are large with a platform to facilitate the accommodation of large crowds and show a church triumphant and powerful.
Santa Fe de Conques S XI
SPAIN
Catalan Pyrenees area:
Influence of Italy and Southern France. The current oldest (Lombard arches and thick walls)
Castilian-Leonese Zone:
Comes from the French Burgundy (Cluny) is more evolved.
The churches of pilgrimage in Spain, Cathedral of Jaca, Joker, Isidoro de Leon, Santiago de Compostela.
1075-1140 COMPOSTELA SANTIAGO CATHEDRAL (Roman period)
The Basilica of Compostela is the masterpiece of Spanish Romanesque.
The Bishop of Santiago, Diego Pelaez wanted to demolish churches and build one that exceeds the French.
The codex Calixtinus that the old Bernardo began with fifty works that raise the ambulatory beds.
The teacher ends the cruise Stephen and the young Bernardo works.
Has narthex between the towers, a Latin cross, three ships with ambulatory and radiating chapels in the transept and apses of three ships. The central nave is covered with a barrel vault and the lateral edge, the second floor is covered with quarter-sphere dome.
Is designed for the faithful to tour the temple and surrounding the tomb of the saint.
The gallery is large and covers the entire building.
It is a very functional organization that combines the movement of large masses with acts of worship.
They are innovations such as large windows and Romanesque solutions (buttresses) and Islamic (arcs with a tendency to poly-lobed horseshoe)