Introduction to Gothic Architecture and Gargoyles

6th Grade

Late Medieval & Gothic Art

Gothic Era1150/1400

about 250 years

Gothic

Gothic Architecture

• Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture.

• Originating in 12th Century France and lasting into the 16th century, Gothic architecture was known during the period as "the French Style”.

• The term Gothic first appeared during the Renaissance.

• Its characteristic features include the pointed arch, the ribbed vault and the flying buttress.

•Gothic architecture includes many of the great cathedrals, castles, palaces, town halls, universities, abbeys and parish churches of Europe.

•A series of Gothic revivals began in mid-18th century England, spread through 19th-century Europe and continued into the 20th century.

Ideal Gothic Church

Notre Dame Cathedral

begun in 1163

Notre Dame Cathedralflying buttressesc. 1175

Chartres Cathedral buttresses

Flying Buttress diagram

Other Gothic innovations

• pointed arch (instead of round arch)

• ribbed vault (instead of dome)

• stained glass windows

WHO CAME UP WITH THESE IDEAS?

Abbey Church of Saint Denis

ribbed vaulting

Chartres Cathedral

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Chartres Cathedral detail

Proportion –heads to bodies?

Chartres Cathedraldetail

1150 - a Gothic date to remember

Gothic style architecture starts

and is rapidly falls out of fashion

around 1150.

A much clearer start & style than Romanesque

1/3 OF THE POPULATION OF EUROPE DEAD

An urban phenomenon, but also particularly devastating to monks & nuns

PLAGUE – 1350s

SUMMARY – Late Medieval & Gothic

• ARCHITECTURE – arches get the point; buttresses fly & glass is stained – emphasis on VERTICAL

• ART – dematerialized human figures moving towards realistic pictorial space

• IDEAS – life is bad, humans worse, God is great

• EVENTS – plague, weakening of Church authority

Date

1150

GOTHIC ARCHITECTURE

Up to dates?

480 BC

0

c. 1150

Start of CLASSICAL GREEK

PERIOD

Just after the start of the ROMAN

EMPIRE; Caesar Augustus reigns

Gothic architecture defined & disseminated

Gargoyles

Objectives

I can:

1.Understand the significance of gargoyles and their relationship to architecture, symbolism and art history.

2.Create a clay gargoyle with realistic and/or imaginary animal features.

3.Construct a clay sculpture using a variety of hand building techniques

4.Demonstrate skill and craftsmanship in working with clay and glazing.

5.Exhibit problem solving skills- plan and execute plan for animal with minimal assistance.

State Standards

• 1.3.b. Use selected design concepts to organize the elements of art and principles of design to convey ideas, thoughts, and feelings

• 2.3.a. Identify subject matter, styles, and techniques representative of various cultures and periods of art history

• 2.3.b. Incorporate attributes of representative subject matter, styles, and techniques from various cultures and periods of art history in personal artworks

• 3.1. b. Select and use a variety of tools, materials, processes, and techniques safely to solve specific visual problems

• 4.2.c. Establish and apply a set of criteria for assessing personal artwork

"Legend has it that gargoyles ward off evil spirits - are any

protecting your castle and loved ones?"

Protectors from Evil in an Imperfect Man-Made World

Gargoyles & GrotesquesOriginally a gargoyle was a water spout and directing water away from a building so that the water would not erode the mortar. Over time the word gargoyle became the term used to describe any and all the fantastic creatures on a cathedral or other building.

This guy — on a church in the South of France —is a true gargoyle. One can see how the water would leave the building and travel along the gargoyle and out the mouth.

Gargoyles & GrotesquesAfter the introduction of the lead drain in the16th century, gargoyles primarily serve a decorative purpose.

Gargoyles

• Folklore held that gargoyles are good luck and frightened away evil spirits — while serving its practical function of carrying rain water away.

• "One can think of wyverns (a two legged winged dragon of medieval legend) as sort of 'holy pit bulls,' whose job is to dispel the evil forces, lightning, plague, war, and other calamities that may threaten the cathedral and the city.

They are often a fantastic display of inhuman birds, impossible animals, and half-human mammals that are crouching, grimacing, and ready to spring into space and pounce upon the world!