Ericka Gantick

Katie Goss
Andrew Ling
Sierra Smith


Group 7 Schedule for 10/3/14
Meiss Light as Form and Symbol

Any uncertainty with the reading?
Discuss Erickas blog/Katies comment
Review my notes/main ideas of reading
Ask questions for group to answer





















Meiss Light as Form and Symbol Discussion Notes

Perspective & Light
o In accounts of the development of naturalism, there was a modern emphasis on
perspective that had been influenced by the writings of the 15
th
century artists
themselves
o Discussions among artists were motivated not only by a sense of the importance
of perspective for painting, but also by a desire to raise the status of the craft, and
a corresponding insistence on the theoretical and mathematical modes of thought
necessary to it
o If we compare the early 14
th
century work to the first half of the 15
th
century
work, the greatest advance is in the painting of light
o The objects of painting thus acquire a new dimension and they approximate more
closely the objects of the world
o Light contributes a new subtlety to the personalities that appear in the painting
Light extends and deepens consciousness
Ex: features of Giovanni Arnolfini or the apostles in the Tribute
Money
o In nature as in art, light stirs feelings and sustains moods
o The compositions of Jan van Eyck and the Master of Flmalle frequently include
different aspects of light
Ex: the presence of candles, fire, and sun all reflect light
Incarnation & Birth of Christ Similes & Metaphors
o Christian mysteries were from the very beginning explained by metaphors of
light
o The sources of light might develop and extend the religious meaning of their
works
o Theologians and poets often explained the mystery of the incarnation by
comparing the miraculous conception and birth of Christ with the passage of
sunlight through a glass window
o The Fathers felt it necessary to describe the miracle in greater detail, partly in
order to combat heretical ideas, and partly in order to satisfy the curiosity of the
faithful about these central Christian events
o They spoke of Christ as a light or sometimes fire
o The Virgin was regarded as a window through which the spirit of God passed to
earth
o Earlier symbols of natural forces (rain, dew, florescence) were partly replaced in
the Middle Ages by an image dependent upon art
o This simile was interpreted to emphasize the virginity of Mary rather than the
ghostly power of Christ
o Impressed by the great stained glass windows of the cathedrals, theologians
began to say: as light is colored by radiation through stained glass, the Holy Spirit
acquires human form by entering the sacred chamber or temple of the Virgin
o In the late Middle Ages the simile of the ray and the glass appears frequently in
theological treatises, Latin and vernacular poems, in mystery plays, and in hymns

Annunciation by Broederlam
o In the Annunciation, the rays, which as usual extend from heaven or God to the
ear of the Virgin, pass through a glass window
The rays are in essence symbols of the Holy Spirit
Windows or other openings are often provided to permit their passage
into the chamber of the Virgin
o The divine rays which actually effect the incarnation have a natural aspect that
symbolizes and explains the miracle
o In the late Mediaeval paintings the number of ray in the Annunciation varies
greatly from 3-12 or more
3 symbolizes the Trinity (very common)
7 symbolizes the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost (wisdom, understanding,
counsel, strength, knowledge, piety, and fear)
o In an Annunciation by the Virgo Master the rays are supplanted by a beam of light
o In the middle of the 15
th
century, paintings lacked rays
o Their symbolic meaning is entirely consistent with other aspects of the works and
with an attitude of mind shared by the painter and his audience alike
Virgin in the Church By Jan van Eyck
o The flow of light through the empty church, the stillness, the rapt mood of the
Virgin, and her abnormal size create a sense of mystery, of a meaning beyond that
immediately comprehended
o Question: Is the wonderful radiance of the windows and the intensity of the light
on the floor just behind the Virgin intended to symbolize the miraculous
conception and birth of Christ?
Answer: Inscriptions on the frame prove that the painting in Berlin is of a
Christmas picture that contains allusions to the incarnation and birth of
Christ and the virginity of His mother
Because of this, we are justified in assuming that he had in mind the simile
in the 5
th
stanza and that he symbolized the virginity of Mary by the
radiation of sunlight through the glass, more resplendent here than in any
other of his paintings
o Like Jans paintings, the text on the panel of the Virgin in the Ghent altarpiece is
full of images of light
o This is the only work in which the Virgin is actually related to the light of the sun
o Theologians had even compared Mary, who bore the Light in her womb, to a
church filled with daylight
o In Jans painting, the daylight fills the church as the Divine Light filled the womb
of Mary
o For a spectator of Jans time, the style of the church and sculpture recalled a great
Christian period, more devout and less troubled than the present
o Jan composes in the style of the 13
th
century Gothic
o His painting is the earliest document we posses, of the actual appearance of the
interior of a Gothic Cathedral
o Not until 200 years after the construction of the churches themselves was a
painter able to capture the qualities of space and light of their interiors







Discussion Questions:

1. What painting mentioned in the reading stuck out to you most? Why?

2. Why do you think painters used light and a glass window to resemble Christ and
the Virgin Mary? Did these metaphors only exist in religious paintings or in
others as well?

3. Would the use of light in paintings have become as popular if there was no
influence of Christianity?

4. It says that the technique of space and depth was developed before light. By that
do they mean creating shading or shadows, or just the illusion through the sizes
of objects? Lets say that shadows werent used until the use of lightis it a major
technique that the artists used to help portray the light effects?

5. While the flames in the fireplace of some familiar setting represent Christ, what
could the shadows casted on the walls of the room represent?

6. It was mentioned in the reading that churches also used light such as in their
stain glass windows and in oculus in dome buildings. These uses of light
obviously also have a religious connotation. Are these uses where these fifteenth
century artists got their inspiration, or were there other examples?

7. Has your perspective on light being used in the 15
th
century paintings changed
since this reading?