Similarities?

There are so many similarities in themes, functions, symbolism and many other aspects of Northern Renaissance art. In previous blog posts I've gone over themes of suffering and torture, symbolism through idioms and devotion, controversy in Northern Renaissance art. This time I'm going to see if you guys can't pick out not only different themes or functions of the pieces, but if you can relate them to each other. 

I've chosen five different pieces, all from the Northern Renaissance, that can be linked in some way. Can you figure out how? Some pieces are ones we have seen before, so feel free to go back and read about some of them if you need some hints. 

Gerard David

Flaying of Sisammes, right panel of Justice of Cambyses, 1498. 

Oil on panel, 182 x 159 cm

Groeninge Museum, Bruges

Gregor Erhart

Vanitas, 1500

Wood. 46 cm

Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria

Hans Baldung

Death of the Maiden, 1520-1580

Oil on canvas

Maarten van Heemskerck

Triumphal Procession of Bacchus

1537-1538

Oil on panel. 56 cm x 107 cm.

Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria

Hans Baldung Grien

Witch & Dragon

1514

Suffering and Preparation for Death

The Isenheim Altarpiece addresses death and immortality through the depictions of Christ, both dying on the cross on the exterior as well as his resurrection on the interior. The function of this piece, as an aid in preparation for death, and its placement in hospitals can be compared with the hospitals of todays time that are more fixated on healing and life. The recurring portrayal of disease and descriptive suffering of the figures evoke feelings of both fear and repulsion.

Matthias Grunewald

Isenheim Altarpiece

1512-1516

Oil on panel

Unterlinder Museum, France

The Isenheim Altarpiece, painted by Matthias Grunewald, functioned as a visual reminder for patients at a hospital. Its purpose was to evoke a sort of downward comparison between the patients and Christ and remind the sick of the agony he endured. Even though it may seem like they patients themselves are going to die of St. Anthony's disease (acquired by consuming infected bread and resulting in gangrene limbs and other deformations) it could always be worse. This is depicted through the gangrene flesh covered Christ below in the prudella, covered in pus and ready to be entombed. When the altarpiece is opened, Christ's limbs appear as if they are being detached – much like those suffering from St. Anthony's disease. This graphic portrayal of suffering throughout the altarpiece is described in a book review by A.D. Wright where he suggests that the Isenheim Altarpiece continues to receive scholarly analysis through its ability to perplex and disturb.

Matthias Grunewald

Isenheim Altarpiece

1512-1516

Oil on panel

Unterlinder Museum, France

On the interior of the altarpiece more of the same depictions of torment appear. St. Anthony is seen being tempted by the demons. He is also surrounded by sickly figures, suffering from similar diseases as the hospital patients viewing the altarpiece. The viewer can see the effects of St. Anthony’s Fire in the figure to the bottom left of St. Anthony. The blackened limbs and boils on his flesh are prominent. However, symptom not often related to this disease is also shown – the victims webbed feet. Different from today's culture, people that were intended to view the Isenheim Altarpiece were not at the hospital to heal; they were there in preparation for death. They were supposed to find empathy in these images of the suffering by understanding that the figured depicted had endured much worse physical pain than they were experiencing. An article titled The Meaning and Function of the Isenheim Altarpiece: The Hospital Context Revisited in The Art Bulletin, written by Andree Hayum, reinforces this idea of medicine as a way to ease the suffering of illness rather than cure the disease. He brings up bloodletting and amputation as a means of relieving their symptoms without the hope of actually preserving their life.

Matthias Grunewald

Isenheim Altarpiece

1512-1516

Oil on panel

Unterlinder Museum, France

The exterior of the altarpiece encourages the patients to endure the pain that is clearly lesser than that of Christ's to ultimately witness the resurrection of Christ. The depiction is portrayed as a much more hopeful scene in comparison to the interior. This resurrection was meant to give the hospital patients hope that their pain would pass just as Christ's had.

Idioms Revealed

Pieter Bruegel 
Netherlandish Proverbs
1559
Oil on oak panel, 117 x 163 cm
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Gemaldegalerie, Berlin 

Here's Pieter Bruegel's oil painting Netherlandish Proverbs again if you missed it a couple blog posts ago. The idea of posting it without much background information regarding the artist or the painting was to see if anyone could pick out the symbolism depicted. Pieter Bruegel is known for having meanings to his paintings beyond what one might suspect initially and Netherlandish Proverbs is a great example of this, with over 100 idioms portrayed through the figures. 

As I was researching how to explain all of these idioms to everyone, I came across an Etsy store that sells jewelry. They have pendant necklaces available with different closeups of the painting that show a specific proverb.  If you're interested check them out here! They're only $10!



Finally, what this post is actually about...the idioms revealed! However, I don't think a blog post can do the painting justice as well as Wikipedia already has. They have each idiom (112!) as well as a closeup of the painting that depicts that proverb already available. So here is a link to the page, enjoy!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netherlandish_Proverbs

Shoutout

If you haven't been following my tweets about Northern Renaissance art at @kimberlybreuer, recently I've given some shoutouts to some other bloggers that also love this incredible section of art history.

Here are some links to some great and informative sites I've found!

http://www.italian-renaissance-art.com/Northern-Renaissance-Art.html

http://www.culturecritic.co.uk/blog/a-northern-renaissance-tim-stanley-on-st-petersburgs-contemporary-art-scene

jsbrady

http://jsbrady.wordpress.com/2012/09/26/italian-and-northern-renaissance-blog/

Proverbs

So far, my blog has been focused more on an informative level rather than interactive. For this post I want to invite the reader to interpret a painting by Pieter Bruegel on their own before I elaborate on the iconography and subjects depicted. I chose a painting that has over 100 idioms that can be recognized, see if you can't find them for yourself. 

Pieter Bruegel
Netherlandish Proverbs 
1559 
Oil on oak panel, 117 x 163 cm
Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Gemaldegalerie, Berlin 


If you're having trouble, here are a few to help get you started:

Notice in the bottom left corner, there is a man pushing his head up against the brick wall. That is to signify that he is trying to achieve the impossible. 

In the far left center there is a world turned upside down suggesting that everything is the opposite of what it should be.

The man on the bottom right is crying over spilled milk. 

The man on the right in the hen house is feeling the hens to signify counting his eggs before they are hatched. 

Preparation for Death

The Isenheim Altarpiece, painted by Matthias Grunewald, functioned as a visual reminder for patients at a hospital. Its purpose was to remind the sick of what Christ endured. Even though it may seem like they patients themselves are going to die of St. Anthony's disease (acquired by consuming infected bread and resulting in gangrene limbs and other deformations) it could always be worse. This is depicted through the gangrene flesh covered Christ below in the prudella, covered in pus and ready to be entombed. When the altarpiece is opened, Christ's arms and legs appear as if they are coming off - much like those suffering from St. Anthony's disease. 

Matthias Grunewald
Isenheim Altarpiece
1510-1515 
oil on wood


On the interior of the altarpiece, St. Anthony is depicted being tempted by the demons. He is also surrounded by sickly figures, suffering from similar diseases as the hospital patients viewing the altarpiece. Different from today's culture, people that were supposed to view the Isenheim Altarpiece were not at the hospital to heal; they were there in preparation for death. They were supposed to find empathy in these images of the suffering who are enduring much worse physical pain than they are experiencing. 

The exterior of the altarpiece encourages the patients to endure the pain that is clearly lesser than that of Christ's to ultimately witness the resurrection of Christ. The depiction is portrayed as a much more hopeful scene in comparison to the interior. This resurrection was meant to give the hospital patients hope that their pain would pass just as Christ's had. 

Emotionalism & Realism

Rogier van der Wyden, painter of the Deposition, was well known for adding a new sense of emotionalism to devotional works. He meant for the viewer to have an emotional experience.

Rogier van der Wyden
Deposition, 1435
Center panel of a triptych from Notre Dame, Louvain, Belgium
oil on wood, 7'2 5/8" x 8' 7 1/8"

In the case of the Deposition, everyone is depicted with emotional expressions through sorrow and tears. This is especially portrayed in Mary's face, which is clearly more pale than the other figures surrounding her. The position of Mary's body is also interesting in that it mimics the 'S' curve of Christ as he is taken down from the cross. This scene is also meant to force the viewer into contemplating their own death and considering their next life after life on earth. A symbol evoking these thoughts would be the skulls on the bottom of the painting. The crossbows in the corners symbolize who commisioned the painting, in this case being the archers guild.

Rogier van der Wyden was also known for his realism, seen in the shadows of the figures as well as the folds in the cloth. He suceeds in creating this impression through the use of bold and saturated colors from many layers of oil paint. Another interesting aesthetic characteristic of this painting is the way the figures are pressed up against the picture plane while still preserving depth through layers of figures.