Results found: 2

Search results

Search:
in the keywords: ARCHITECTURAL DECORATIONS

Sort By:

Limit search:

MARS, VENUS AND ETERNAL GLORY. A CONTRIBUTION TO RESEARCH ON ALLEGORICAL MEANING IN OCCASIONAL GRAPHICS OF THE LOUIS XIV TIMES (ON THE BASIS OF THE WROCLAW NATIONAL MUSEUM COLLECTIONS)

100%

Zak I.

Barok. Historia - Literatura - Sztuka (Baroque. History - Literature - Art)

2007

vol. 14

issue 1(27)

71-104

The 17th century, full of wars, was called the 'Century of the Soldier' or - poetically - 'Century of Mars'. The reign of Louis XIV in France, a new military power in Europe, was punctuated with military conflicts. Victorious battles were often depicted in arts, but also peace, prosperity and good fortune. In spreading a desirable image of the ruler, who owing to his 'great deeds' was to achieve 'eternal glory', of substantial importance was occasional graphic commemorating important events and their celebrations. We find in it a recurring repertoire of motifs associated with the classical culture: ancient and the one already filtered by the Renaissance thought and art. Hercules symbolised courage, strength and the ideal of good governance. Apollo, identified with the god of the Sun, a divine patron of learning and arts, was often depicted because of the personal emblem of Louis XIV and the king's role as a patron of arts. Athena (Minerva) was presented as a patroness of sciences and arts, but was also associated with just war, led wisely and prudently, as in opposition to the gods of war Mars and Bellona, symbolising violence and cruelty. Mars also represented the readiness to fight and was an allegory of won Peace or Eternity. Hydra stood for a symbol of heresy; with the heads cut off she was to symbolise the triumph of Catholic faith during the rule of Louis XIV. Hymenaios signified the solemnity and permanence of marriages initiated by Cupid. Bacchus, Vertumnus and Pomona, as well as the Cornucopiae recalled the image of happiness with carefree good time and fortune. The caduceus of mediator Mercury and olive branch reminded that all these goods were brought about by peace. This image of common happiness and prosperity referred to the ancient vision of 'golden age'. Invincible France was symbolised by numerous war trophies, often in connection with a personification of Fama blowing on a trumpet - announcing to the world the glory of the French monarch. The motif of immortal fame was often related to the allegory of Eternity. The context of time (or actually of timelessness) was often supplemented by the personifications of the Four Seasons, Four Times of the Day or allegories of the months. The allegories of Four Rivers evoking the context of space, in connection with personifications of the Four Elements and (or) corresponding Four Temperaments suggested that the imagined ideological system consisted of all elements of the universe. The symbolic language used in occasional graphic of the mid-17th century was consistent with theoretical treatises and mythological 'dictionaries' published at that time. Of other character - associated with religious iconography - were personifications of Religion, Faith, Divine Providence, Piety or Justice. More concrete and individual language of emblems, accompanied by verbal commentaries indicating an interpretation of visual communication, formed a specific language of imagery, used in occasional architecture. An abundance and variety of motifs offered an opportunity to create complex iconographic programmes which were to create an appropriate image of the king.

GRAPHIC MOTIFS ON FABRICS IN THE LATE- AND POST-BYZANTINE ICONS - A SIGN, A SYMBOL OR A DECORATION? (Motywy graficzne na tkaninach w ikonach pozno- i pobizantynskich - znak, symbol, dekoracja?)

100%

Kruk M. P.

Ikonotheka

2008

vol. 21

135-152

The question posed in the title refers to the recurring motifs - usually geometric figures as well as fleurs-de-lis and triskelions on the garments of Jesus, Mary and some saints in the late- and post-Byzantine icons of the 15th and 16th century. These motifs can be observed mainly in frescoes and icons, often produced in very distant centres: from Crete to the remotest north of Rus'. They appear chiefly on the vestments worn by Jesus and the martyrs, as well as on the Mandylion or, in the Nativity scenes, on the sheet upon which Mary reclines during her confinement. The essential question concerns the function and meaning - decorative or symbolic - of these motifs. It seems that their application can hardly be a matter of accident, since for instance the triskelion is a motif frequent in prehistoric and ancient art, commonly interpreted as a solar symbol. Its version was the early-Christian 'crux gammata', known from the oldest icons and catacomb paintings. The geometric figures, in turn, such as the circle, square or equilateral triangle, originate from the Antiquity, in which they carry meanings derived from mathematical ratios which govern their shape and give them the character of 'perfect figures'; hence they could serve as attributes of things perfect. It is evident that the garments of Christ and martyrs, the robes of prophets, Mary's confinement sheet, liturgical tablecloths or the sheet with the image of Christ are covered with a combination of ancient perfect figures - squares, triangles and circles - with the Christian perfect figure - the cross and its crux gammata variant referring to the ancient symbolism of rotational movement, together with the fleur-de-lis, commonly interpreted as the symbol of purity. This combination of motifs may, in effect, have served as the image of the universe , but may also have constituted a protective shield consisting of a set of signs referring to archetypes known through the archaeology of prehistoric cultures and later grafted on the Neo-Platonic ground, adapted in the very first centuries of Christianity, and brought back again at the close of the Middle Ages.

Refine search results

1 Barok. Historia - Literatura - Sztuka (Baroque. History - Literature - Art)

1 Ikonotheka

1 Kruk M. P.

1 Zak I.

1 2008

1 2007

Search results

MARS, VENUS AND ETERNAL GLORY. A CONTRIBUTION TO RESEARCH ON ALLEGORICAL MEANING IN OCCASIONAL GRAPHICS OF THE LOUIS XIV TIMES (ON THE BASIS OF THE WROCLAW NATIONAL MUSEUM COLLECTIONS)

GRAPHIC MOTIFS ON FABRICS IN THE LATE- AND POST-BYZANTINE ICONS - A SIGN, A SYMBOL OR A DECORATION? (Motywy graficzne na tkaninach w ikonach pozno- i pobizantynskich - znak, symbol, dekoracja?)