TASK
Class discussion: How does an artist create a visual experience that takes the viewer from mundane cares to otherworldly spiritualism? Byzantine and Islamic aesthetics aim for just this kind of transcendent experience. The purpose of this exercise is to search for methods used by Byzantine and Islamic designers to evoke a sense of the divine, concentrating on examples from the 6th through the 10th centuries.
For this activity, search the Internet to find a sampling of Byzantine or Islamic architecture or interior decoration. Choose one, such as an interior or a specific mosaic, to research and introduce to the class. Analyze the work, considering how the designer attempted to connect the viewer to the sacred. Think primarily in terms of style qualities referring to specific details in your example.
Class post
⦁ If your example is a figurative work, what are the abstracted style qualities? What is it about the image that veers from our optical perception of the world? How do figures invite us into their heavenly realm?
⦁ If your example is architectural, what is it about the structure that creates a mysterious ambiance? Does the exterior have the same dramatic appearance as the interior?
⦁ What materials are used, and how do they add to the effect?
In your responses, respond to a classmate with a one-paragraph post introducing a similar, but much later, even modern, example that uses the same aesthetic goal and the same style qualities. For example, by the 11th century, Russia was borrowing the Byzantine style for religious icons. 14th-century Italian painting incorporated Byzantine style characteristics. Byzantine-styled icons are still produced for Greek Orthodox and Russian Orthodox churches. Spectacular and complex ornament adorns later Islamic structures throughout the world. Include an image or link to an image.
Classmate 1 (Andrew Wayne):
“The mosaic I selected to write about are the Central Domed Space and Apse in the Katholikon at the monastery of Hosios Loukas. The monastery was built outside of the village of Stiris in central Greece. Even though it was outpost, Greece was still a part of the Byzantine Empire. This is a good example of Middle Byzantine architecture with a compact central plan and dome supported on squinches over an octagonal core. The outside of the structure has a polychromed decorative effect and the vaulting roofs of the interior are disguised by rising forms of apses, walls and roofs (Stokstad pg. 253). The mosaics in the church were separated into three different levels. The most heavenly subjects appeared on the tops of the domes, such as Christ, the Virgin Mary or angels. In the middle were scenes from Christ’s life on earth and the last level pictured saints. The saints were placed in the lowest level to be closer to the viewer and easier individual prayer (Stokstad pg. 255). The church itself was designed to evoke the feeling of being in heaven itself with its glittering mosaics. The church was said to give the impression that it was moving, with the mosaics on all sides. This was designed to convey the personal connection to the heavenly objects on the walls (Freeman & Freeman).”
Stokstad, M., & Cothren, M. W. (2018). Art history. Pearson.
Freeman, D. E., & Freeman, D. E. (n.d.). Mosaics and Microcosm: The monasteries of Hosios Loukas, Nea Moni, and Daphni. Smarthistory. Retrieved February 23, 2023, from https://smarthistory.org/mosaics-and-microcosm/
Classmate 2 (Andrew Michael):
“The work I have chosen this week is the Justinian Mosaic in the Church of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy. The mosaic was created and consecrated around 547 AD. In the mosaic, we see the Roman Emperor Justinian standing in the center with a halo, crown, and royal purple robes. To Justinian’s left are soldiers and to his right are members of the imperial administration. He is flanked by clergy members. The symbology of the arrangements “establishes the central position of the Emperor between the power of the church and the power of the imperial administration and military. Like the Roman Emperors of the past, Justinian has religious, administrative, and military authority” (Farber, n.d.). There is also a lot of symbology built into the mosaic as the clergy members are holding various important religious items, such as Justinian holding a large gold paten that is designed to hold Eucharistic bread and the clergy members holding a jeweled cross, a golden book cover, and an incense censer.”
References
Farber, A. (n.d.). Justinian Mosaic, San Vitale. Retrieved from Khan Academy: https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/medieval-europe-islamic-world/a/justinian-mosaic-san-vitaleLinks to an external site.
