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Chapter 23The Age of Reformation

16th Century Art in Northern Europe and Spain

Gardner’s Art Through the Ages,

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Europe in the 16th Century

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The Age of Reformation• Burgundian Netherlands fell apart around 1477 and this led to a

realignment in Europe for the early 16th century• Monarchs increased their authority over their subjects/ cultivated

cultural and political unity among populace/ laid foundation for modern state or nation

• Attempts to reform Church led to Reformation and establishment of Protestantism/ Catholic Church responds with Counter-Reformation = 100 years of civil war between the twoThe Protestant Reformation

•Deteriorating relationship between the faithful and the Church hierarchy/ popes concern themselves more with power and material wealth than with salvation of Church members

•As result private devotions increase (Book of Hours, rosaries, prints, paintings)

•German theologian, Martin Luther, sparked the Reformation with 95 Theses in 1517 (enumerated his objections to Church practices, especially sale of indulgences)/ He believed the Bible and nothing else could serve as foundation for Christianity; he denounced pope/priests; he accepted only two sacraments- baptism and Communion

•Achieving Salvation- absolute faith in Christ, with guidance of Scripture, could justify sinners and ensure salvation/ Bible- sole scriptural authority/ Luther produced first translation of Bible in a vernacular language to give lay public access

4Figure 23-1 LUCAS CRANACH THE ELDER, Allegory of Law and Grace, ca. 1530. Woodcut, 10 5/8” x 1’ 3/4”. British Museum, London.

Catholicism Versus Protestantism

Allegory – the practice of imbuing narratives, images or figures with symbolic meaning to convey moral principles or philosophical ideas

•Protestants viewed low-key images such as woodcut prints useful for educating the masses/ inexpensive/ circulate numerous copies

•Allegory of Law and Grace by Cranach the Elder: Differences between Catholicism and Protestantism (two images separated by tree)

•Left: Judgment Day has arrived (Catholic = good works and clean living

•Right: Christ emerges from tomb and promises salvation to all who believe in him (Protestant = God’s grace as source of redemption)

•Cranach referred to as “painter of the Reformation”/ influenced by Luther

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Divergent Reformation Ideas and Practices•Christians differ in their interpretations of sacred texts – results in various Protestant sects

•Catholic France – King Francis I declared Protestantism illegal in 1534, drove them underground

Christian Humanism•Humanism filtered up from Italy and spread throughout northern Europe

•Northern humanists focused on reconciling humanism with Christianity/ Christian humanists = Desiderius Erasmus and Thomas More

Role of Visual Imagery during the Reformation•Catholics embraced church decoration as an aid to communication with God

•Protestants believed such imagery could lead to idolatry and distracted viewers from focusing on the real reason for their presence in church = ICONOCLASM/ print media only acceptable form (teaching tool)

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Figure 23-2 MATTHIAS GRÜNEWALD, Isenheim Altarpiece (closed), Crucifixion (center panel), from the chapel of the Hospital of Saint Anthony, Isenheim, Germany, ca. 1510–1515. Oil on panel, center panel 9' 9 1/2” x 10’ 9”, each wing 8’ 2 1/2” x 3’ 1/2”, predella 2’ 5 1/2” x 11’ 2”. Musée d’Unterlinden, Colmar.

Holy Roman Empire – Grunewald – Isenheim Altarpiece•Created for monastic hospital/ wooden shrine carved by sculptor Hagenauer in 1490/ has two pairs of movable wings that open in the center, one stands behind the other painted by Grunewald

•Center: Crucifixion

•Left: St. Sebastian

•Right: St. Anthony

•Predella: Lamentation

•Saints associated with diseases such as the plague and miraculous cures are prominent

•Grunewald’s images serve as warnings – encourage increased devotion/ also offered some hope to the afflicted

•Effective use of color

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Figure 23-3 MATTHIAS GRÜNEWALD, Isenheim Altarpiece (open), center shrine carved by NIKOLAUS HAGENAUER in 1490, from the chapel of the Hospital of Saint Anthony, Isenheim, Germany,ca. 1510–1515. Shrine, painted and gilt limewood, 9’ 9 1/2” x 8’ 2 1/2” x 3’ 1/2” (center), 2’ 5 1/2” x 11’ 2” (predella). Each wing, oil on panel, 8’ 2 1/2” x 3’ 1/2”. Musée d’Unterlinden, Colmar.

German – Isenheim Altarpiece – Catholic Doctrine•Right panel: Temptation of St. Anthony – 5 temptations, depicted as ghoulish creatures, attack the saint

•Left: Meeting of St. Anthony and St. Paul

•Center: St. Anthony Abbot, Augustine, Jerome

8Figure 23-4 ALBRECHT DÜRER, Last Supper, 1523. Woodcut, 8 3/8” x 11 13/16”. British Museum, London.

Albrecht Durer – International Art Celebrity•Lutheran viewpoint/ traveled extensively, familiar with many leading humanists and artists of his time/ Master of woodcut, engraving and watercolor/ wealthy, businessman (employed agent to help sell his prints, wife was manager)/ first northern artist to leave record of his life and career through self-portraits, correspondence, and a diary

•Traditional subject alludes to Lutheran doctrine about Communion – seen as commemorative, not a reenactment

•Emphasizes sorrow and community (announced betrayal, only 11 disciples remain)/ empty plate refers to commemorative, rather than literal, nature of Christ’s sacrifice in the Mass

•Style of woodcut simple and straightforward/ conventional composition/ crosshatching aids in 3-D effect/ evenness of value

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Figure 23-5 ALBRECHT DÜRER, Four Apostles, 1526. Oil on panel, each panel 7’ 1” x 2’ 6”. Alte Pinakothek, Munich.

Durer’s Personal Attitude Surfaces – Support for LutheranismProduced without Commission!

•Left panel- John and Peter/ Right panel- Mark and Paul

•Positioning of figures: St. Peter (rep. pope in Rome) to secondary role by placing him behind John the Evangelist (prominent for Luther)

•Peter and John both read from Bible, single authoritative source of religious truth according to Luther

•Included quotations from each of 4 Apostles’ books

•Individuality of each face, along with details of attire and attributes, communicate integrity and spirituality

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Figure 23-6 ALBRECHT DÜRER, The Fall of Man (Adam and Eve), 1504. Engraving, approx. 9 7/8” x 7 5/8”. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (centennial gift of Landon T. Clay).

Durer – Fascinated by Classical Ideas from the Italians

•Traveled to Italy to study Italian art/ incorporated many Italian Renaissance developments into his art

•The Fall of Man: shows study of human proportions (ratios)/ poses are from classical statuary (shows contrapposto)/ perfect male and female figures- idealized with naturalism- showing commitment to observation

•Background- observational skills used (foliage and animals)

•Animals are symbolic- choleric cat, melancholic elk, sanguine rabbit, phlegmatic ox (4 humors or bodily fluids/body functions)

•Tension between cat and mouse in foreground symbolize relation between Adam and Eve at crucial moment

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Figure 23-7 ALBRECHT DÜRER, The Great Piece of Turf, 1503. Watercolor, approx. 1’ 4” x 1’ 1/2”. Graphische Sammlung Albertina, Vienna.

Durer – Beauty in Nature

•Influenced by Leonardo’s scientific studies

•Observation yielded truth

•Sight is the noblest sense of man

•Nature holds the beautiful for the artist who has the insight to extract it

•Botanists can distinguish each springing plant and grass variety

•“Depart not from nature according to your fancy,” Durer said, “imagining to find aught better by yourself; . . . For verily ‘art’ is embedded in nature; he who can extract it, has it.”

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Figure 23-8 ALBRECHT DÜRER, Knight, Death, and the Devil, 1513. Engraving, 9 5/8” x 7 3/8”. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Durer – Master Engravings

Idealization and Naturalism

•Incredible example of texture and tonal values using a burin (engraving tool)

•Knight = Christian knight/ Soldier of God accompanied by faithful dog/ He is armed with his faith and repels the threats of Death (decaying cadaver with snakes)/ Devil (horned creature) follows him

•Knight’s strength, movement, proportions = Renaissance equestrian statue (Donatello’s Gattamelata)

•Use of line (rivals tonal range of painting) is exceptional

•Brought lawsuit against Italian copyists in 1506, took first step toward modern concept of copyright and intellectual property

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Figure 23-9 ALBRECHT ALTDORFER, The Battle of Issus, 1529. Oil on panel, 4’ 4 1/4” x 3’ 11 1/4”. Alte Pinakothek, Munich.

Commenting on History and Politics – The Battle of Issus

•By Altdorfer/ depicts defeat of Darius in 333 BCE by Alexander the Great at town called Issus

•Commissioned by duke of Bavaria in 1528/ he concluded a military campaign against the Turks and the parallels between the historical and contemporary conflicts were significant to him

•Altdorfer reinforced the connection by attiring the figures in contemporary armor and depicting them engaged in contemporary military alignments

•Altdorfer’s love of landscape seen- bird’s-eye view, clashing armies in foreground/ cool craggy mountains, swirling clouds, blazing sun in background

•Altdorfer used maps to help with depiction of the landscape

•Setting sun on right over Greeks represents Alexander as the “sun god”/ left corner is moon, symbol of Near East, over retreating Persians

14Figure 23-10 HANS HOLBEIN THE YOUNGER, The French Ambassadors, 1533. Oil and tempera on panel, approx. 6’ 8” x 6’ 9 1/2”. National Gallery, London.

Hans Holbein the Younger - Portraitist

French Ambassadors

•Holbein combined northern tradition of close realism with Italian ideas about monumental compositions, bodily structure and sculpturesque form

•Holbein’s color surface like enamel/ detail is exact and exquisitely drawn/ contrasts of light and dark never heavy

•Moved to England and became court painter to Henry VIII/ while in England, painted the French ambassadors to England

•The ambassadors were humanists and the objects on the table represent their worldliness and interest in learning and the arts

•ANAMORPHIC IMAGE – distorted image at bottom is recognizable when viewed with a cylindrical mirror or from an acute angle/ the image is a skull, might refer to death, reminder of mortality, encourage viewers to ponder death and resurrection

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Figure 23-11 JEAN CLOUET, Francis I, ca. 1525–1530. Tempera and oil on panel, approx. 3’ 2” x 2’ 5”. Louvre, Paris.

France – Francis I

•Francis I wanted to elevate his country’s cultural profile/ invited esteemed Italian artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and Andrea del Sarto to his court/ he attempted to glorify the state and himself not the Christian Church

•Jean Clouet depicts him as worldly prince in silks and brocades/ appears suave and confident/ hand rests on pommel of dagger

•Has elegantly formalized quality (small head, broad body)/ Clouet’s suppression of modeling resulting in flattening of features (neck area)

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Figure 23-12 ROSSO FIORENTINO and FRANCESCO PRIMATICCIO, ensemble of architecture, sculpture, and painting, Gallery of King Francis I, Fontainebleau, France, ca. 1530–1540.

Italian Mannerist Artists Appealed to Francis I•Francis I put Fiorentino and Primaticcio in charge of decorating new royal palace at Fontainebleau (Gallery of King Francis I)/ they combined painting, fresco, imitation mosaic and stucco sculpture in low and high relief (favorite combo. in Baroque and Rococo periods)

•Abrupt changes in scale and in texture of figurative elements are typically Mannerist along with compressed space, elongated grace and stylized poses

17Figure 23-13 Château de Chambord, Chambord, France, begun 1519.

Francis I – Chateaux: Country House/Hunting Lodge for Royalty•Begun in 1519 but Francis I never saw completion/ Original plan- central square block with 4 corridors, in shape of cross, and central staircase/ At each 4 corners, round tower punctuates the square plan/ moat surrounds all

•Exterior: horizontal accents on 3 levels, floors separated by continuous moldings, windows align precisely

•Above 3rd level: structural lines break into jumble of high dormers, chimneys and lanterns = Gothic skyline

18Figure 23-14 PIERRE LESCOT and JEAN GOUJON, west facade of the Square Court of the Louvre, Paris, France, begun 1546.

Redesigning the Louvre•Louvre was originally a medieval palace and fortress/ Francis I initiated project to update and expand – he died before work was under way- work continued under Henry II

•Lescot (architect) and Goujon (sculptor) familiar with 16th cen. Renaissance architecture of Bramante

•Each story forms complete order

•Cornice projects to provide strong horizontal accent

•Arcading on ground floor = ancient Roman use of arches and produces shadows- provides visual base

•Second story- pilasters rise from bases/ pediments are curved and angular

•Steep roof = northern style

•French Classical Manner = pavilions jutting from walls, double columns framing niches, tall and wide windows, lots of statuary

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Figure 23-15 JEAN GOUJON, Nymphs, from the dismantled Fountain of the Innocents, Paris, France, 1548–1549. Marble reliefs. Each relief 6’ 4 3/4” ´ 2’ 4 3/4”. Louvre, Paris.

Statues of the Louvre Courtyard Façade by GoujonNymph Reliefs from the Fountain of the Innocents

•Like the architecture of the Louvre, the nymphs recall Italian (Mannerist) canon of figural design/ FIGURA SERPENTINATA POSES/ flowing, clinging draperies = ancient “wet” drapery of Greek sculpture/ French masterpieces of lightness, ease and grace

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The Netherlands

•Beginning 16th century consisted of 17 provinces (modern Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg)

•Among most commercially advanced and prosperous of European countries (network of rivers and access to Atlantic = overseas trade, shipbuilding

•After 1510 Antwerp became hub of economic activity – 500 ships a day passed through Antwerp’s harbor

•16th century – under political control of Philip II of Spain, who inherited the region from his father

•1579 Revolt against heavy-handed tactics of Philip II = formation of two federations- Union of Arras (Catholic in southern provinces under Spain) and Union of Utrecht (Protestant in northern provinces became Dutch Republic)

•Art changes under Protestantism – depicts lives of various strata of society from nobility to peasantry, capturing their activities, environment and values

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Figure 23-17 QUINTEN MASSYS, Money-Changer and His Wife, 1514. Oil on panel, 2’ 3 3/4” x 2’ 2 3/8”. Louvre, Paris.

Antwerp’s Wealthy Merchants Collect and Purchase Art•Subject: professional man transacting business, he holds scales checking weight of coins, his wife stops reading prayer book to watch him/ this work reveals Netherlandish values and mores/ detailed rendering of figures, setting, objects = working from observation

•Shows secular life in 16th cen. Netherlands/ also important references to moral and spiritual life- prayer book, carafe with water, candlestick/ through window on right man talks to another man = idleness and gossip/ in mirror, man reads Bible with church steeple behind him

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Figure 23-18 PIETER AERTSEN, Meat Still-Life, 1551. Oil on panel, 4’ 3/8” x 6’ 5 3/4”. Uppsala University Art Collection, Uppsala.

Injecting Reminders About Spiritual Well-Being in Art•Religious images = Background – Joseph leads donkey with Mary and Christ Child/ Crossed fishes on platter and pretzels and wine refer to spiritual food/ people seen eating and carousing nearby under roof = gluttony, sloth

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Figure 23-19 CATERINA VAN HEMESSEN, Self-Portrait, 1548. Panel, 1’ 3/4” x 9 7/8”. Kunstmuseum, Öffentliche Kunstsammlung Basel.

Figure 23-20 Attibuted to LEVINA TEERLINC. Elizabeth I as a Princess, c. 1559. Oil on oak panel, 3’ 6 3/4” x 2’ 8 1/4”. The Royal Collection, Windsor Castle, Windsor, England.

Increased Wealth = Increased Popularity with Portraits•First known northern European self-portrait by a woman/ confidently presents herself as artist/ trained by her father

•Teerlinc invited to England to paint miniatures for courts of Henry VIII/ formidable rival of her male contemporaries/ Elizabeth I in late 20’s as young composed princess/ Teerlinc’s success = testament to her determination and skill

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Figure 23-22 PIETER BRUEGEL THE ELDER, Hunters in the Snow, 1565. Oil on panel, approx. 3’ 10” x 5’ 4”. Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.

Human Activity is Dominant Theme – Bruegel’s Wintry Landscape•Bruegel traveled to Italy/ he chose not to incorporate classical elements into his paintings/ only landscape with mountains shows Italian/Alpine influence

•Hunters in the Snow – one of five surviving paintings of series of six illustrating seasonal changes in the year = old Netherlandish tradition of depicting seasons and peasants (Book of Hours)

•Landscape rendered in optically accurate manner/ draws viewer diagonally into its depth

•Bruegel master in using line, shape and subtlety in tonal harmony

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Figure 23-23 PIETER BRUEGEL THE ELDER, Netherlandish Proverbs, 1559. Oil on panel, 3’ 10” x 5’ 4 1/8”. Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen, Berlin.

Proverbial Wisdom•Netherlands obsessed with proverbs/ bird’s-eye view/ more than 100 proverbs in this painting/ far left – man in blue gnaws on a pillar (image of hypocrisy)/ man beats head against wall (ambitious idiot)/ on roof, man shoots one arrow after another, hitting nothing (a short-sighted fool)/ blind lead the blind/ study of human nature

26Figure 23-24 PEDRO MACHUCA, courtyard of the palace of Charles V, Alhambra, Granada, Spain, ca. 1526–1568.

Spain – Dominant European Power at End of 16th Cen.•Italian classicism appears in palace of Charles V (who visited Italy) in the Alhambra in Granada/ superimposed Doric and Ionic orders

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Figure 23-25 Juan de Herrera and Juan Bautista de Toledo, aerial view of Escorial, near Madrid, Spain, ca. 1563–1584 (after an anonymous 18th-century painting).

Escorial – Constructed for Philip II

•Complex built 30 miles northwest of Madrid in rugged terrain/ held royal mausoleum, church, monastery and palace/ 625 ft. wide and 520 ft. deep/ Philip II insisted on simplicity of form, nobility without arrogance/ Italian/classical/ central portal has superimposed orders and topped by pediment/ massive towers frame 4 corners/ construction material = granite = overwhelming strength and weight

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Figure 23-26 EL GRECO, The Burial of Count Orgaz, Santo Tomé, Toledo, Spain, 1586. Oil on canvas, approx. 16’ x 12’.

A Spanish Mannerist – El Greco•Born on Crete, emigrated to Italy as young man/ absorbed traditions of Late Byzantine frescoes and mosaic/ connected with Titian’s workshop in Venice/ went to Rome, influenced by Mannerism/ 1577 left for Spain and spent rest of life in Toledo

•Art is blend of Late Byzantine and late Italian Mannerist elements

•Intense emotionalism – appealed to pious fervor of Spanish

•Color bound him to Venetian art and to Mannerism

•Strong sense of movement and use of light – prefigured Baroque style

•Distinguishes terrestrial and celestial spheres –

Terrestrial: firm realism, individualized features (portraitist), like conquistadors or Spanish naval officers (shows his early Venetian style)

Celestial: elongated, undulating figures, fluttering draperies, swirling clouds (shows his later style)