gothic and renaissance ca3

Abbot Suger

Abbot of Saint-Denis. Set the stage for the heavy decoration of costly stained-glass windows and sculptures in the cathedrals of the Gothic age. Mark the beginning of Gothic architecture.

Aerial perspective

the haziness that surrounds objects that are farther away from the viewer, causing the distance to be perceived as greater

Baptistry

the part of a church used for baptism

Chiaroscuro

The treatment of light and shade in a work of art, especially to give an illusion of three-dimensionality.

Compound pier

A pier with a group, or cluster, of attached shafts, or responds, especially characteristic of Gothic architecture.

copyright

the exclusive legal right, given to an originator or an assignee to print, publish, perform, film, or record literary, artistic, or musical material, and to authorize others to do the same.

counter reformation

the reaction of the Roman Catholic Church to the Reformation reaffirming the veneration of saints and the authority of the Pope (to which Protestants objected)

craquelure

a network of fine cracks in the paint or varnish of a painting

cult of the virgin

exalted the Virgin Mary as the woman who redeemed humankind

di sotto in su

Italian, "from below upwards." A technique of representing perspective in ceiling paintings.

donor portrait

a portrait in a larger painting or other work showing the person who commissioned and paid for the image, or a member of his, or (much more rarely) her, family.

figura serpinata

S-shaped, graceful sway to full-figure sculptures or paintings, typical manner of depicting Mary in the courtly gothic style

flying buttress

a buttress that stands apart from the main structure and connected to it by an arch

foreshortening

a visual effect in which an object is shortened and turned deeper into the picture plane to give the effect of receding in space

fresco cycle

group of frescos that go together to make a story

guild

A medieval organization of crafts workers or trades people.

horizon line

your eye level line; the place where land and sky appear to meet.

humanism

A Renaissance intellectual movement in which thinkers studied classical texts and focused on human potential and achievements

iconoclasm

Opposing or even destroying images, especially those set up for religious veneration in the belief that such images represent idol worship.

ignudi

nude corner figures on the Sistine Chapel ceiling

jamb statues

A statue, usually attached to a column, set against the jamb of a Gothic church portal

lamentation

expression of regret or sorrow

lancet

In Gothic architecture, a tall narrow window ending in a pointed arch.

linear perspective

parallel lines appear to converge with distance

lux nova

"new light" emphasized the glory of god through light; Gothic architecture

mannerism

Artistic movement against the Renaissance ideals of symmetry, balance, and simplicity; went against the perfection the High Renaissance created in art. Used elongated proportions, twisted poese and compression of space.

odalisque

a female slave in the harems of the East. It was a favorite subject of the 19th century artists in a reclining position

oil paint

paint made of pigment suspended in oil

orthogonal

lines that appear to recede toward a vanishing point in a painting with linear perspective

pieta

A painted or sculpted representation of the Virgin Mary mourning over the body of the dead Christ.

pietra serena

A gray Tuscan sandstone used in florentine architecture

printmaking

process in which an artist repeatedly transfers an original image from one prepared surface to another

protestant reformation

16th century series of religious actions which led to establishment of the Protestant churches. Led by Martin Luther

quatrefoil

An ornamental design of four lobes or leaves as used in architectural tracery, resembling a flower or four-leaf clover.

rib groin vault

an arched form created by the intersection of two or three barrel vaults used to support the weight of walls or a ceiling or roof.

rose window

a circular window with stained glass and stone tracery used on the facades and the ends of the transepts in Gothic cathedrals

St. Francis of Assisi

Italian saint who founded the Franciscan order of friars; treated all creatures, including animals, as spiritual brothers and sisters; born to wealthy merchant family and willingly gave up a life of comfort