Introduction to Gothic Architecture and Gargoyles 6th Grade Late Medieval & Gothic Art Gothic Era 1150/1400

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 Cathedral flying buttresses c. 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 V Cathedral E R T I C A L I T Y Chartres Cathedral detail Proportion – heads to bodies? Chartres Cathedral detail 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 PLAGUE – 1350s

1/3 OF THE POPULATION OF EUROPE DEAD

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

Start of CLASSICAL GREEK 480 BC PERIOD

Just after the start of the ROMAN 0 EMPIRE; Caesar Augustus reigns

c. 1150 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 & Grotesques Originally 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. Gargoyles & Grotesques After the introduction of the lead drain in the16th century, gargoyles primarily serve a decorative purpose.

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

• 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!