Fourteenth-Century Art in Europe

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Art History
Sixth Edition
Chapter 18
Fourteenth-Century Art in
Europe

Learning Objectives (1 of 2)
18.a Identify the visual hallmarks of fourteenth-century European art for
formal, technical, and expressive qualities.
18.b Interpret the meaning of works of fourteenth-century European art
based on its themes, subjects, and symbols.
18.c Relate fourteenth-century European art and artists to their cultural,
economic, and political contexts.

Learning Objectives (2 of 2)
18.d Apply the vocabulary and concepts relevant to fourteenth-century
European art, artists, and art history.
18.e Interpret a work of fourteenth-century European art using the art
historical methods of observation, comparison, and inductive reasoning.
18.f Select visual and textual evidence in various media to support an
argument or an interpretation of a work of fourteenth-century European
art.

Ambrogio Lorenzetti FRESCOS OF THE SALA DEI NOVE (OR SALA DELLA PACE)
Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, Italy. 1338–1339.
Length of long wall approx. 46' (14 m). © Studio Fotografico Quattrone, Florence.
[Fig. 18-01]

Fourteenth-Century Europe
• Giotto di Bondone's murals were rooted in his observation of people
around him, giving humanity to figures in sacred narrative.
• Societal changes arrived in the form of artisan guilds, and Luke was
the patron saint of painters.
• Much of Europe was in crisis from famine, war, and the plague.

EUROPE IN THE FOURTEENTH CENTURY
Following its outbreak in the Mediterranean in 1347, the Black Death swept across the
European mainland over the next four years. [Map 18-01]

Art and Its Contexts: A New Spirit in
Fourteenth-Century Literature (1 of 2)
• Petrarch and his contemporaries had an appreciation for Greek and
Roman authors and the ability to observe people around them.
– He updated Classical themes in The Triumphs.
• Giovanni Boccaccio told moralizing short stories in The Decameron.

Art and Its Contexts: A New Spirit in
Fourteenth-Century Literature (2 of 2)
• Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales about fictional traveling pilgrims.
• Christine de Pizan wrote The Book of the City Ladies to defend
women's abilities and argue for their rights and status.

Italy
• Wealth promoted the patronage of art and the emergence of artists as
individuals.
• Artists worked with similar methods and conditions as in the Middle
Ages, but felt free to experiment in a self-confident way.

Florentine Architecture and Metalwork
(1 of 2)
• In Florence, the ancient Roman city formed the basis for civic layout.
• Palazzo della Signoria
– This fortified bell tower stands 300 feet tall.
– Town houses around the piazza often had benches to provide
public seating.
– Loggia such as the Loggia dei Lanzi provided shelter for open-air
events.

PIAZZA DELLA SIGNORIA WITH PALAZZO DELLA SIGNORIA (TOWN HALL) AND
LOGGIA DEI LANZI (LOGGIA OF THE LANCERS)
Florence. Palazzo della Signoria, 1299–1310; Loggia dei Lanzi, 1376–1382.
© Achim Bednorz, Cologne. [Fig. 18-02]

Florentine Architecture and Metalwork
(2 of 2)
• The Baptistery Doors
– Andrea Pisano was awarded the commission for gilded bronze
doors for the Baptistery of San Giovanni.
– They display 20 scenes from the Life of St. John the Baptist.
– The scene of John baptizing a multitude presents gilded figures as
an independent mass of molded forms.

Andrea Pisano LIFE OF ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST
South doors, baptistery of San Giovanni, Florence. 1330–1336. Gilded bronze, each
panel 19-1/4 × 17" (48 × 43 cm). Frame, Ghiberti workshop, mid 15th century.
© Studio Fotografico Quattrone, Florence. [Fig. 18-03]

Andrea Pisano THE BAPTISM OF THE MULTITUDE
Detail of the south doors, baptistery of San Giovanni, Florence. 1330–1336.
Gilded bronze, 19-1/4 × 17" (48 × 43 cm).
Photo: David G. Wilkins. [Fig. 18-04]

Florentine Painting (1 of 6)
• Cimabue
– Cenni di Pepi, or Cimabue, probably painted the Virgin and Child
Enthroned.
 This is a monumental painting at over 12 feet high.
 Highlights on the draperies of divine figures are lined with gold,
a Byzantine tradition.
 Subtle asymmetries make the painting lifelike and give figures
presence.

Cimabue VIRGIN AND CHILD ENTHRONED
Most likely painted for the high altar of the church of Santa Trinità, Florence. c. 1280.
Tempera and gold on wood panel, 12'7" × 7'4" (3.53 × 2.2 m).
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence. © Studio Fotografico Quattrone, Florence. [Fig. 18-05]

• Giotto di Bondone
– Giotto di Bondone was a student of Cimabue who became an
excellent imitator of nature.
 Virgin and Child Enthroned reflects Cimabue's influence in
posture, but Giotto portrays Mary as stocky and formal.
– Figures pop out against a flat, gold background.

Giotto di Bondone VIRGIN AND CHILD ENTHRONED
Most likely painted for the high altar of the church of the Ognissanti (All Saints), Florence.
1305–1310. Tempera and gold on wood panel, 10'8" × 6'8-1/4" (3.53 × 2.05 m).

Technique: Buon Fresco
• Buon Fresco is a technique in which water-based paint is applied on
wet plaster and bonds to the wall surface.
• A giornata is a section of the work that could be painted in a day and
varied in size based on complexity of the area being painted.
• Underdrawings known as sinopia were drawn in reddish-brown
pigment.

– Giotto's Scrovegni Chapel frescos
 Educated worshipers would understand the juxtaposition of
such scenes as the resurrection of Lazarus and Jesus's own
Resurrection.
– These are traditional medieval associations.
– Giotto's audience might envision these events in relation to
their own experiences.

 The chapel itself is a barrel-vaulted room with broad walls to
showcase the paintings.
 The entrance wall portrays the Last Judgment.
 Scenes of the Life of Christ and the Virgin spread over the rest
of the walls.

Giotto di Bondone SCROVEGNI (ARENA) CHAPEL, VIEW TOWARD EAST WALL
Padua. 1305–1306. Frescos. © Studio Fotografico Quattrone, Florence. [Fig. 18-07]

 A narrative set of frescos on the north wall portray Jesus
performing his first miracle, the Raising of Lazarus, the
lamentation, and the Resurrection.
– Figures' twisting creates human drama.
– Mourning over the dead Jesus gives way to the movement
of Jesus away from the painting in the Resurrection.

Giotto di Bondone MARRIAGE AT CANA, RAISING OF LAZARUS, LAMENTATION, AND
RESURRECTION/NOLI ME TANGERE
North wall of Scrovegni (Arena) Chapel, Padua. 1305–1306.
Fresco, each scene approx. 6-1/2 × 6' (2 × 1.85 m).

 The Kiss of Judas portrays the tension-filled scene.
– Jesus alone stands with calm resolve.
– In a subplot, Peter lunges to sever the ear of a member of
the retinue.

Giotto di Bondone KISS OF JUDAS
South wall of Scrovegni (Arena) Chapel, Padua. 1305–1306.
Fresco, 6'6-3/4" × 6' 7/8" (2 × 1.85 m).

Sienese Painting (1 of 5)
• Duccio di Buoninsegna
– Duccio di Buoninsegna synthesized Late Byzantine style with
linear French Gothic forms.
– The Maestà altarpiece for the Siena Cathedral was so large that it
had to be painted on both sides, as it could be seen from all
directions.
 It was dismantled in 1771 and lacks cohesion of its elements
today.

Duccio di Buoninsegna CONJECTURAL RECONSTRUCTION OF THE FRONT OF THE
MAESTÀ ALTARPIECE
Made for Siena Cathedral. 1308–1311.
Tempera and gold on wood, main front panel 7 × 13' (2.13 × 4.12 m).
© Lew Minter. [Fig. 18-10a]

Duccio di Buoninsegna CONJECTURAL RECONSTRUCTION OF THE BACK OF THE
MAESTÀ ALTARPIECE
Made for Siena Cathedral. 1308–1311.
Tempera and gold on wood, main front panel 7 × 13' (2.13 × 4.12 m).
© Lew Minter. [Fig. 18-10b]

• Duccio di Buoninsegna
– In the scene Raising of Lazarus, lyrical figures have urgent,
expressive gestures.
 Duccio's experiment with the portrayal of space can be seen in
the rocks.
– The Betrayal of Jesus is more expansive in complexity and
includes two subsequent moments in the story.

Duccio di Buoninsegna RAISING OF LAZARUS
From the predella of the back of the Maestà altarpiece (lower right corner of FIG. 18-
10b), made for Siena Cathedral. 1308–1311.
Tempera and gold on wood, 17-1/8 × 18-1/4" (43.5 × 46.4 cm).
Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas. © 2016. Photo Scala, Florence. [Fig. 18-11]

Duccio di Buoninsegna BETRAYAL OF JESUS
From the back of the Maestà altarpiece (lower center of FIG. 18-10b), made for Siena
Cathedral. 1308–1311.
Tempera and gold on wood, 22-1/2 × 40" (57.2 × 101.6 cm).
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, Siena. © 2016. Photo Opera Metropolitana Siena/Scala,
Florence. [Fig. 18-12]

Technique: Cennino Cennini on Panel
Painting
• In Il Libro dell' Arte, Cennini outlines a highly formulaic painting
process.
– He explains that wood for painting on panels should be fine-
grained and seasoned by slow-drying.
– He also specified at least nine layers of gesso should be applied.
• Italian painters of this time primarily used tempera paint.

• Simone Martini
– Martini's most famous work was commissioned for the cathedral of
his native Siena, the Annunciation.
 Seemingly frightened at her celestial visitor, Mary recoils into
her throne.

Simone Martini and Lippo Memmi ANNUNCIATION
Made for Siena Cathedral. 1333. Tempera and gold on wood, 10' × 8'9" (3 × 2.67 m).

Art and Its Contexts: The Black Death
• The Black Death had a significant impact on the development of Italian
art mid-fourteenth century.
– Art historian Millard Meiss believed artists retreated from rounded
forms to old-fashioned styles.
• Recent art historians pointed out that stylistic change is not necessarily
connected with social situations.

Andrea di Cione (nicknamed "Orcagna") ENTHRONED CHRIST WITH SAINTS, FROM
THE STROZZI ALTARPIECE
Strozzi Chapel, Santa Maria Novella, Florence. 1354–1357.
Tempera and gold on wood, 9' × 9'8" (2.74 × 2.95 m).

• Ambrogio Lorenzetti
– The Palazzo Pubblico was the most important civic structure in
Siena.
– Lorenzetti was commissioned to paint frescos for the council room
of the Palazzo on the theme of contrast between good and bad
government.

AERIAL VIEW OF THE CAMPO IN SIENA WITH THE PALAZZO PUBBLICO (CITY HALL
INCLUDING ITS TOWER) FACING ITS STRAIGHT SIDE
Siena. Palazzo Pubblico 1297–c. 1315; tower 1320s–1340s.
© Archivi Alinari, Firenze. [Fig. 18-15]

• Ambrogio Lorenzetti
– The Effects of Good Government in the City and in the Country
was an idealized but recognizable portrait of the city.
 The Porta Romana divides the city from the surrounding
countryside.
 Figures are rendered in large scale compared to the buildings
to highlight their activity.

Ambrogio Lorenzetti THE EFFECTS OF GOOD GOVERNMENT IN THE CITY AND IN
THE COUNTRY
Sala dei Nove (also known as Sala della Pace), Palazzo Pubblico, Siena, Italy.
1338–1339. Fresco, total length about 46' (14 m).

France
• The power of the nobility was challenged by townsmen, who took
advantage of new economic opportunities.
• French sculptors found lucrative outlets for their work.
• Manuscript painters created illustrations for books of personal
devotions.

Manuscript Illumination
• A Book of Hours contained special prayers to be recited at eight
canonical "devotional" hours.
• The Book of Hours of Jeanne d'Évreaux
– Illuminated by Jean Pucelle, this book was precious to the queen.
– In the Annunciation, Mary receives Gabriel in a Gothic building
that projects toward the viewer.

A CLOSER LOOK: The Kiss of Judas and the Annunciation by Jean Pucelle
Two-page opening from the Hours of Jeanne d’Évreux. Paris. c. 1324–1328.
Grisaille and color on vellum, each page 3-5/8 × 2-7/16" (9.2 × 6.2 cm).
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. The Cloisters Collection (54.1.2), fols. 15v-16r. ©
2016. Image copyright The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art Resource/ Scala, Florence.
[Fig. 18-17]

Metalwork and Ivory (1 of 2)
• Sculpted works became smaller in the fourteenth century and called
for greater scrutiny from the viewer.
• A Virgin and Child from Saint-Denis
– An inscription dates Virgin and Child to 1339.
– Mary holds the child while standing in a Gothic S-curve pose.
– 14 miniature scenes line the base.

VIRGIN AND CHILD
c. 1324–1339. Silver gilt and enamel, height 27-1/8" (69 cm).
Musée du Louvre, Paris. © Jacqueline Guillot/akg-images. [Fig. 18-18]

Metalwork and Ivory (2 of 2)
• An Ivory Chest with Scenes of Romance
– A Parisian luxury object, this ivory chest contained secular scenes
of romantic love and would have been given from a man to a
woman.
 Unlike royal marriages, romantic love involved passionate
devotion and served as the theme for many works.
– Jousting is the theme of the Walters casket.

SMALL IVORY CHEST WITH SCENES FROM COURTLY ROMANCES
Made in Paris. c. 1330–1350. Elephant ivory with modern iron mounts,
height 4-1/2 × 9-11/16 × 4-7/8" (11.5 × 24.6 × 12.4 cm).
The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. [Fig. 18-19]

TRISTAN AND ISEULT AT THE FOUNTAIN; CAPTURE OF THE UNICORN
Left short side of the chest in FIG. 18-19.
Photo © The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. [Fig. 18-21]

England
• English life in the fourteenth century was documented with social
commentary by Geoffrey Chaucer in his Canterbury Tales.
• Edward I and many nobles and bishops were generous patrons of the
arts.

Embroidery: Opus Anglicanum
• The English were renowned for pictorial needlework throughout
Europe.
• The Chichester-Constable Chasuble
– This heavy liturgical vestment was embroidered with gold and
would have required help for the wearers to move.
– The Annunciation, Adoration of the Magi, and Coronation of the
Virgin are scenes upon it.

LIFE OF THE VIRGIN, BACK OF THE CHICHESTER-CONSTABLE CHASUBLE
From a set of vestments embroidered in opus anglicanum from southern England.
c. 1330–1350. Red velvet with silk and metallic thread and seed pearls, length 4'3"
(129.5 cm), width 30" (76 cm). Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. Fletcher Fund,
1927 (27 162.1). © 2016. Image copyright The Metropolitan Museum of Art/Art
Resource/Scala, Florence. [Fig. 18-22]

Architecture (1 of 3)
• The "Decorated style" of Gothic architecture developed out of Henry
III's desire to surpass his brother-in-law as patron of the arts.
• The Decorated Style at Exeter
– Thomas of Witney supervised construction of the nave and upper
parts of the choir.
– Corbels support 13 clusters of ribs.

INTERIOR, EXETER CATHEDRAL
Devon, England. Thomas of Witney, choir, 14th century and bishop's throne, 1313–1317;
Robert Lesyngham, east window, 1389–1390.
© akg/Bildarchiv Monheim. [Fig. 18-23]

• The Decorated Style at Exeter
– Detailed records survive for the building of the Cathedral, outlining
how masons and carpenters were paid and housed as well as
where materials came from.
– The 57-foot-high bishop's throne was painted and gilded, invoking
a symbol of power and authority of the Church rather than
venerating the individual bishop.

• The Perpendicular Style at Exeter
– Robert Lesyngham rebuilt the great east window with rectilinear
patterns and angular shapes.
– This style of architecture heralds Renaissance style through its
balance, regularity, and plainness.

The Holy Roman Empire
• Germany, divided into multiple states, was united under the ideal
fiction of the Holy Roman Empire.
• Germans elected the Holy Roman emperors, who would continue to be
lavish patrons of the arts.

Mysticism and Suffering (1 of 2)
• Devotional images of Mary mourning her son were called Vesperbild.
• Vesperbild
– The example shows the intense, emotional face of the Virgin as
she haunches over her emaciated son.
– Such an image mimicked the way Mary held Christ as an infant.

VESPERBILD (PIETÀ)
From the Middle Rhine region, Germany. c. 1330.
Wood and polychromy, height 34-1/2" (88.4 cm).
Landesmuseum, Bonn. © akg-images/Erich Lessing. [Fig. 18-24]

Mysticism and Suffering (2 of 2)
• The Hedwig Codex
– St. Hedwig devoted her life to caring for the poor and carried a
small ivory statue of the Virgin and Child which she carried at all
times.
 Her image serves as the frontispiece of a manuscript
commissioned in 1353.
 She clutches the statue, rosary, and prayer book, and her
boots are draped over her arm.

ST. HEDWIG OF SILESIA WITH DUKE LUDWIG I OF LIEGNITZ-BRIEG
AND DUCHESS AGNES
Dedication page of the Hedwig Codex. 1353.
Ink and paint on parchment, 13-7/16 × 9-3/4" (34 × 25 cm).
The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. MS. Ludwig XI 7, fol. 12v [Fig. 18-25]

The Supremacy of Prague (1 of 3)
• During the rule of Charles IV of Bohemia, Prague replaced
Constantinople as the "New Rome."
• Pope Clement VI made Prague an archbishopric in 1344, inciting
construction on the cathedral of St. Vitus in the Gothic style.

• The Parler Family
– Heinrich designed and began building the church of the Holy
Cross in 1317 and his son Peter designed the choir after 1351.
– The contrast between their styles shows the increasing complexity
of rib patterns covering the vaults.
– Peter turned the St. Vitrus Cathedral into a "glass house."

Heinrich and Peter Parler PLAN OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY CROSS,
SCHWÄBISCH GMÜND
Germany. Begun in 1317 by Heinrich Parler; choir by Peter Parler begun in 1351; vaulting
completed 16th century. © Achim Bednorz, Cologne [Fig. 18-26a]

Heinrich and Peter Parler INTERIOR OF THE CHURCH OF THE HOLY CROSS,
SCHWÄBISCH GMÜND
Germany. Begun in 1317 by Heinrich Parler; choir by Peter Parler begun in 1351; vaulting
completed 16th century. [Fig. 18-26b]

• Master Theodoric
– The court painter at Karlstejn Castle painted saints on over 130
panels.
– The gaze of St. Luke, patron saint of painters, suggests that this
may be a self-portrait.
– His personal style combined oversized heads and hands, soft-
modeled drapery, and haunted faces.

Master Theodoric ST. LUKE
Holy Cross Chapel, Karlstejn Castle, near Prague. 1360–1364.
Paint and gold on panel, 45-1/4" × 37" (115 × 94 cm).
Photo: Radovan Boček. [Fig. 18-27]

Think About It (1 of 2)
• Compare and contrast Giotto's and Duccio's renderings of the biblical
story of Christ's Raising of Lazarus (Figs. 18–8, 18–11).
• Discuss Ambrogio Lorenzetti's engagement with secular subject matter
in his frescos for Siena's Palazzo Pubblico (Fig. 18–16). How did
these paintings relate to their sociopolitical context?

Think About It (2 of 2)
• Discuss the circumstances surrounding the construction and
decoration of the Scrovegni (Arena) Chapel, paying special attention to
its relationship to the life and aspirations of its patron.
• Choose one small work of art in this chapter that was crafted from
precious materials with exceptional technical skill. Explain how it was
made and how it was used. How does the work of art relate to its
cultural and social contexts?

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