Hypteronomachia Polyphili (Trophy of Roman arms) This is the most celebrated book of the Renaissance, 1490s
(amazing) map of Venice, 1546 y Jacopo de Barbari
We've moved on to the late Middle Ages & the beginning of the Renaissance, right before Gutenberg's moveable type invention in 1450. There's plenty to discuss. You may go back and pick any theme from the last class: Decretals, cartography, the printshop, Ratdolt, The Nuremberg Chronicles, life in the scriptorium, how the mark changes itself, design in the middle ages, even cheese production! Research your topic; no echo chambers.
Go ahead.
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In the late Middle Ages, Gothic architecture is present. Compared to the previous Romanesque style, Gothic architecture demonstrates a deeper understanding of how to utilize different structures that can help elevate the buildings. The use of flying buttresses, the pointed arch, and vaulted ceilings helped to distribute the weight of the building, allowing architects to add more height to their projects. These features also added to the religious design, and the height of cathedrals and churches made it seem like they were reaching to touch the heavens. Inside, the buildings had higher ceilings and thinner columns adding more space and more creative room for decorations across the ceiling and the windows. The ability to add more windows also provided more natural light adding to the sense of interacting with Heaven on Earth.
- Kailyn Hayes
In the Middle Ages, manuscripts were illuminated through parts of Europe, Africa and Asia. Although many areas of the globe were illuminating, there were differences between the way religions would traditionally design their holy books. Christian artists often made their stories with pictures while Islamic artists embellished the words themselves. The scriptorium in the Middle Ages was like a version of a modern day assembly line. The monks were gathered into one room although most worked individually. The monk in charge was called the armarius. The armarius was in charge of materials like ink, quills, and parchment. He would distribute the materials and would also check the manuscripts and edit them. The scriptorium was most often near a library, which was known as the armarium. The word armarium also means cupboard, which has relation to the word armory because the books were seen as spiritual warfare in the Middle Ages. There was a common proverb in monasteries, “a monastery without a library is like a fortress without an arsenal”.
- Emily Collins
The Middle Ages witnessed minor, yet notable advancements in the discipline of cartography. Largely drawing from historical accounts and maps constructed by former powers such as the Roman empire, maps of the Middle ages attempted to rectify what was already known about the world's geography with what was being discovered. There was a dire need to keep the world’s maps refined and up to date, while not threatening dogmatic teachings of the church. As most of Medieval European life was dictated by the church’s teachings, so too were the affairs of cartographers. As such, the Middle Ages are responsible for some of the most illustrative maps, complete with personifications of the natural elements as well as monstrous depictions of creatures from mysterious and far-off lands. What I find most compelling about the entire undertaking is how much was able to be done based on written and anecdotal accounts of what these new places were like. As such, map making of the Middle Ages was not only a reflection of desires to explore and conquer new lands, but also a tangible expression of how little was really known about the natural world.
- Ricky Durga
The late Middle Ages into the early Renaissance saw the emergence of illustrated books—printed, not handwritten. The Nuremberg Chronicle is one of the first incunabulum to seamlessly integrate illustrations into the text and was written by a notable intellectual, Hartmann Schedel. The book is one of human history, told as it was in the Bible, that also includes information on mythological creatures—all of which were illustrated—and histories regarding important secular and Christian cities. The Chronicle was first published in Latin in 1493 and published in German later that same year. Similar to most history books, this was divided among ‘ages’ determined by Schedel. Chronologically, they were as follows, from Creation to the Deluge, up to the birth of Abraham, up to King David, up to Babylonian captivity, up to the birth of Jesus Christ, up to present time (the largest section), and finally an outlook on the end of the world and the Last Judgement.
- Mary Gorski
During the Middle Ages, Decretals were present as a form of a decree. Many known Bishops, Popes, and Church officials were among those that wrote the Decretals (mainly known as decrees). The Decretals were written and used to state church laws for people to follow. It also became a fundamental text of canon law. The Decretals were mainly written in dark brown ink in a rounded gothic book hand with headings in red with two columns of thirty-six lines. The teachings of the Decretals were mainly taught in medieval universities in Bologna and Paris. The Decretals are very well decorated with attractively painted initials which are dark red or royal blue. These two colors help to signify that the texts were written differently at different times. Overall, the significance of the Decretals during the Middle Ages led to the invention of social writing as a communication medium to reach specific targets of people during the Middle Ages.
-Joshua Escobedo
The concentration on faith, ancient history, and humanism in art and design is a particularly striking example of how the Middle Ages and the Renaissance contrast with one another. During the Middle Ages, the church held such sway over the community that its influence on art was strongly religious. Art began to emphasize ancient Greece more throughout the Renaissance. Because academics were broadly examining the restoration of ancient times, Greek influence emerged. The architecture was affected in the same way because, in the Middle Ages, the style of the buildings was influenced by religion. The style of the Renaissance was more influenced by ancient Greece. The painting depicts real people doing everyday things, like studying. Classical antiquity was greatly displayed through another painting, which depicts a normal person holding a balance. In the Middle Ages, this would have been frowned upon because they discouraged the making of realistic paintings. Art with biblical themes was popular in the Middle Ages because the artists were also focused on theology. Jesus and Mary were usually the main focus in most paintings. The people in the Middle Ages really appreciated godly looks and tried to incorporate the Catholic religion into most, if not all, of their paintings.
-Ally Campisi
In the Middle Ages drastically changed the way that people get their message across. One topic from last class that grabbed my attention was the printshop. Johannes Gutenberg is credited with inventing the printing press around 1436. Before the printing press, every book written was manuscript, written by hand. It was very time consuming and only a certain amount of people can illustrate these books. With the printing press, more hands are used, in different parts of the print shop, in charge of different things. But the words got across very rapidly, and can print out more than you can writing it out by hand of course. Wood cut print has been used in Europe since the late 15th century, but with the movable type printing press it did not need to be carved separately, and it was highly organized. It was an agent of social change. To me this is so fascinating, considering how far printing has changed through the years.
-Gianna Guigris
During the late Middle Ages, one of the most well-known incunabula was created, the Nuremberg Chronicle. The Nuremberg Chronicle integrates illusions and text while offering a history of the world from its creation to the early 1490s as it relates to the Bible. It is lavishly filled with illustrations of biblical and historical events as well as mythological figures. The contents of the Chronicle are divided into seven ages. The First age begins with the creation to the Deluge, followed by the Second age that covers up to the birth of Abraham. The Third is up to King David, and the Fourth age ends with the Babylonian captivity. The Fifth age covers up to the birth of Jesus, followed by the Six age ending with the present day. Lastly, the Seventh age includes the end of the world and when the Last Judgement will come. The first Chronicle was published in Latin, followed by a German translation. All the images in the Nuremberg Chronicle were printed using hand-crafted woodcut engravings. These woodcut images helped revolutionize book production in Europe.
Milla Nader
One element from the previous lecture I found particularly interesting was the advent of vellum. Vellum was originally a translucent or opaque material produced from the calfskin of an unborn calf. Its refinery process is quite similar to that of parchment, however Vellum was exclusively produced with calfskin, whereas rudimentary parchment could be made of a variety of skins. The popularity of parchment and vellum increased as a reaction to a papyrus shortage. The increase in written text had nearly extincted the reeds necessary to produce papyrus that grew along the Nile. Vellum was a more sustainable option. The increased use of vellum as a writing medium also changed the way text was written, its more fluid surface allowed for writers to produce more flourishing texts, allowing for more individuality and styles to arise versus more simple stick writing.
-Sarah Stehling
An overarching theme of last class was the idea of design in typographic production staying constant throughout the 'fluctuations of history'. Man always found a way to design their thoughts but technological modifications in societal and religious structures brought new forms of education and refinement that allowed these designed thoughts to take the form of language and letters then overtime these letters found new embodiments in various typefaces. The hand tipped typefaces of early modern monastic scripters following a specific design led to the development much further down the timeline for the intricate process not of hand-lettering with a quill and brush like the monks but rather a hand-lettering by individual print blocks in Gutenberg's press. Morphing social and religious structures allowed for these technological shifts that brought designed typefaces into mass production giving an increasing access to typographic design to the masses.
ShelbyQuay Ernst
Cheese has a tumultuous history. As the power of the Roman Empire gradually declined, the trade industry began to collapse, and the cheese manufacturing industry also fell into a trough, and its development was relatively slow. Cheese making has gradually disappeared in many areas, and only remote mountains and monasteries still preserve this ancient craft. While producing cheese, the monks also constantly improved the cheese production process. During this period, the monks became the reformers and developers of cheese, resulting in the emergence of many types of cheese, and the technical process of cheese maturation and storage was also perfected. Therefore, in the history of cheese production, this period is called the "monastery cheese" period, and it is precisely because of their development that many cheese varieties at that time have been handed down to this day. Cheese suffered a catastrophe during the Renaissance, when it was considered an unhealthy food. As a result, the production and development of cheese have been severely restricted for a long period of time. It was not until the late Middle Ages that cheese production began to slowly recover. Slowly, the cheese industry gradually became perfect and developed.
Kai Gao
The early Renaissance saw the arrival of the printing press which had great impact and ultimately led to the printing revolution. Before the printing press, every piece of writing was a manuscript, which took long to produce. Printing was a faster process that involved a number of workers, each completing their own task. Each document had to be prepared, then ran through the press, and finally examined. This division of labor still takes place today in some aspects of society. In a large company, for example, there are employees hired for different roles in different departments. Employees in their respective roles work on tasks that they specialize in which increases the efficiency of the company. Because the printing press eased the process of writing, there was a significant increase in the amount of books produced, as well as the creation of public libraries. An increasing number of people began to read and literacy rates increased.
-Robert Bolton
In this discussion, I hope to take a closer look at one of the topics mentioned at the beginning of last class. By referencing both the illuminated manuscripts each student brought to class, as well as taking note of previously mentioned topics regarding the changing mark, it is interesting to me how each person brings their own personal style into the way they express their mark. The experiences that people have, coupled with the aesthetic standards of the time have a lot to do with this mark and the manipulation of it over time. Specifically referencing the discussion of Gothic during the time of the Middle Ages, the mark can be seen in both manuscript (the ways in which people choose to write), architecture, and more. Being able to reference the multifaceted nature of “the mark” by applying it to cartography, writing, and other forms of art and aesthetic production is necessary to understand the progression of artistic development and design as a whole.
Divya Srinivasan
As discussed in class, Johann Gutenberg was responsible for the invention of the Printing Press, an ingenious method that built on techniques such as Movable Type but consolidated them into one device that could be operated by hand. This machine was operated by a group of specialized workers, whose skill set and efficiency lead to the success of this invention. I found the mechanics behind the printing press, as well as the labor involved and specified jobs, incredibly fascinating. The effects of this printing press were astronomical. It hugely increased the speed at which printed materials could be produced, which meant that printed texts became widely available and were no longer just restricted to the wealthy. Lower class lifestyles improved drastically with this new technology as people gained access to a new wealth of knowledge and could educate themselves through reading. This evolution would also lead to the very first book to be mass produced in 1455, ‘The Gutenberg Bible’.
Gigi Moynihan
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