South and Southeast Asia before 1200
Chapter 15 focuses on the art and architecture of various
cultures in South and Southeast Asia, beginning with the Indus Civilization
(ca. 2600-1500 BCE), one of the world’s earliest. Though little Indus art has
survived, it does show stylistic similarities with Mesopotamian art, the result
of trade between cities of both cultures. Art of the Maurya Dynasty (323-185
BCE) reflects the prevalence of Buddhism, a religion established in the 6th
century BCE, and during this period the Maurya ruler Ashoka built the original
Great Stupa at Sanchi. During the Shunga, Andhra, and Kushan Dynasties (ca. 185
BCE-320 CE), Buddhist iconography is further established, and the first
representation of the Buddha in human form is produced. Buddhist and Hindu art
and architecture characterize the Gupta and Post-Gupta Periods of ca. 320-647.
In the Medieval Period (7th to 12th centuries), regional
styles of Hindu religious architecture develop in South Asia, while in Southeast
Asia, distinctive monuments such as the temples at Angkor in Cambodia are
constructed.
Late Medieval Italy
Surveys art and architecture in Italy in the 13th
and 14th centuries, a period that witnessed great changes in modes
of representation in sculpture and painting. Artists in the 13th
century such as Cimabue work in the Italo-Byzantine style, characterized by a
flattening of representational space and less naturalistic, more schematic
renderings of figures. In the 14th century, Giotto is recognized for
painting scenes and figures based on observations of the natural world. His
naturalism is seen as a return to the classical manner, which had been nearly
abandoned in the Middle Ages. Giotto is recognized as the first Renaissance
artist, his work signaling the rebirth of Greco-Roman naturalism, the emphasis on
empirical knowledge, and the development of humanism that are the hallmarks of
the Italian art and culture in the 15th and 16th
centuries.
Gothic Europe
“Gothic” was originally a disparaging term applied to
medieval art and architecture by Italians in the 16th century, who
considered it crude. In actuality, the art produced in the high middle ages,
between 1140 and 1500, is highly original, expressive and technically
innovative. The finest achievement of the era is the Gothic cathedral,
epitomized by the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Chartres, France. Here we find the
characteristic features that set Gothic cathedrals apart from earlier
buildings: pointed arches, masonry rib vaults, flying buttresses, and brilliant
colored-glass windows. The Gothic cathedrals in England are less vertical than
their French counterparts, but English builders pursued unique decorative
features such as fan vaults and pendants. In the Holy Roman Empire, German
sculptors continued to employ the heightened emotionalism that had been
established in Ottonian art. Throughout Europe, artists in the Gothic era also
produced remarkable examples of metalwork, relief sculptures, and manuscript
illumination that illustrate Christian themes and increasingly include
representations of secular figures.
Romanesque Europe
The Romanesque era, ca. 1050 to 1200, takes its name from an
artistic style. Historians described much of the architecture produced in this
period as “Romanesque,” or Roman-like, for its use of rounded arches and vaults
similar to those found in Roman structures. This chapter surveys the art and
artwork of the period and considers the traditions that developed in four
different regions of Europe in this period. France and Spain saw the
construction of numerous pilgrimage churches with monumental stone relief
sculpture. In the Holy Roman Empire, which spanned the territory of present-day
Germany and northern Italy, architects built innovative churches and employed
groin vaults in naves, while artists made exquisite metalwork such as
reliquaries. Romanesque architecture in Italy is distinct in style and
structure, characterized by colored marble paneling, timber roofs, and
freestanding campaniles and baptisteries. In Normandy and England, architects
employed rib groin vaults over a three-story nave; and artists embroidered the Bayeux Tapestry, an example of
historical narrative art that chronicles the conquest of England in 1066 by
Duke William of Normandy.
Early Medieval Europe
This chapter surveys the art of Europe in the period
between 410, the Fall of Rome, and 1024, the conclusion of the Ottonion period.
The art of the medieval period is the result of a mix of three primary cultural
influences: the classical traditions of Rome’s northern provinces, the
practices of non-Roman people in central and northern Europe, and Christianity.
From the 5th to the middle of the 8th century—the period
of the “warrior lords”—surviving artworks are primarily portable objects such
as weapons and items of personal adornment that reflect the decorative
traditions of non-Roman groups such as the Huns, Merovingians, Franks, Goths,
and Vikings. Between the 7th and 11th centuries most of
Europe became Christianized, but the decorative abstract patterns and
intertwining animal forms established in pre-Christian times continue to appear
in art throughout the Early Middle Ages. This is particularly the case with
Hiberno-Saxon artists in Ireland and Britain, who produced elaborately
decorated Christian illuminated manuscripts in the 7th and 8th
centuries. In the Carolingian period (768-877) in central Europe, artists
developed unique styles of manuscript illumination and established the
twin-tower westwork of church architecture. 10th century Ottonion
artists revived the art of monumental sculpture and produced small-scale works
exhibiting clear Byzantine influence, while architects introduced the
alternate-support system and galleries to the naves of basilicas.
Islamic World
The religion of Islam arose early in the seventh
century. From the Arabian peninsula where Islam was established, Muslim rule
spread swiftly to Syria, Palestine, Iraq, and Lower Egypt. By 710, all of North
Africa was under Islamic control. In the following centuries Islamic rule was
established in southern Spain, and in the East, Muslim armies gradually eroded
Byzantine strongholds. The collapse of the Byzantine Empire occurred when the
Ottoman Turks invaded Constantinople in 1453. Islam, one of the world’s great
religions, is centered around the 6th century Prophet Muhammed,
whose revelations are written in the Koran, the sacred book of Islam.
Throughout its history, Arab thinkers have made significant contributions to
world literature, philosophy, science, and mathematics. The art of the Islamic
world is particularly rich, with refined traditions in mosque architecture,
luxury arts such as carving and metalwork, illustrated books. Chapter 10 surveys the art and architecture
of the Islamic world from its early period in the 7th century,
through the 16th century, the height of the Ottoman dynasty
Byzantium
In 324, Constantine founded Constantinople (modern Istanbul,
Turkey) on the site of ancient Byzantium. With the subsequent division of the
Roman Empire into eastern and western centers, the city became the capital of
the Eastern Christian, or Byzantine Empire. Byzantine art is divided into three
periods: Early Byzantine (324-726), Middle Byzantine (843-1204), and Late
Byzantine (1261-1453). The art and architecture of Byzantium glorified its
emperors and gave visual form to the Orthodox Christian doctrine, which became
the official religion of the realm under the Emperor Justinian. Though
countless Early Byzantine artworks were destroyed in the era of iconoclasm
(726-843), Middle Byzantine art marks a golden age after iconoclasm’s repeal.
In the paintings and sculpture, Byzantine artists carry on classical
traditions, but their depictions lack the naturalism and illusionism one sees
in the art of Ancient Rome. Orthodox church architecture incorporates forms
established in Rome, though Byzantine architects favored Greek-cross plans. A
hallmark of Byzantine architecture is the construction of the dome set on
pendentives, the most spectacular example of which is to be seen in the Hagia
Sophia (532-537) in Constantinople. The Byzantine Empire falls when the Ottoman
Turks seize Constantinople in 1453, and many of its churches, including the
Hagia Sophia, are converted to mosques.
