Self-representation in the three-dimensional arts: a study of Italia and Germania, CA 800 - CA 1200
Date
02/08/2020Author
Gordusenko, Mariia Ivanovna
Metadata
Abstract
This thesis is a study of self-representation in sculpture in the Middle Ages. The research
offers a new interpretation of the uses of self-representation by practitioners working in
various three-dimensional media active in medieval Italia and Germania before the twelfth
century. An analysis of a series of case studies provides evidence for investigating issues
hitherto often overlooked, including literacy, devotion, skill, craftsmanship, commemoration
and identity.
Emphasis is placed on visual analysis of the case studies. Sculptors’ self-representations,
integrated within these religious objects produced for use in Christian practice, are
identifiable either through inscriptions or documentary evidence. This thesis applies
interdisciplinary methodologies to explore practical, devotional and cultural functions of the
case studies. It combines iconological and iconographic approaches to indicate cultural
connections and exchange between European regions, where my examples are found. The
roles of artists and patrons and their mobility, and the continuity of self-representational
tradition from antiquity to the Middle Ages are considered to provide necessary background
context to this enquiry.
The topics of sculptors’ iconography, literacy and social standing have not received
systematic attention in previous scholarship. However, this analysis of sculptors’ self-representations demonstrates that certain iconographic codes existed already in the early
medieval period. Iconographic analysis of one of the examples indicates affiliation of the
sculptor with lay brothers. Insufficiently studied to date, this social group receives thorough
attention in this thesis. In other examples, signed self-representations accurately specify
sculptors’ professional titles and social positions. This thesis also demonstrates that the me
fecit-signatures are indicative of sculptors’ authorship and literacy. Having established this,
this enquiry challenges the misleading impression of medieval artists’ anonymity popular in
early scholarship. It also proposes that sculptors’ self-representations should not be perceived
in a standardised way.
The case studies reflect social diversity of early medieval sculptors’ community on both
sides of the Alps. They encompass individuality of their authors, ensure devotional
expression and serve as a means of communication between sculptors, their contemporaries
and further generations. The thesis opens new perspectives for understanding of early
medieval sculptors and their work.
Related items
Showing items related by title, author, creator and subject.
-
Recreating Medieval and Renaissance European combat systems: a critical review of The Art of Sword Fighting in Earnest, Mastering the Art of Arms vol 1: The Medieval Dagger, and The Duellist’s Companion
Windsor, Guy Stanley Tresham (The University of Edinburgh, 2018-07-07)The three publications offered for evaluation, The Art of Sword Fighting in Earnest, Mastering the Art of Arms vol 1: The Medieval Dagger, and The Duellist’s Companion, establish by example the relatively young discipline ... -
Tricolour, shield, and Cross of Savoy: 'Sabaudian medievalism,' the Risorgimento, and neo-medieval architecture in Italy, c.1814-1864.
Zerbi, Tommaso (The University of Edinburgh, 2021-07-31)On 23 March 1848, the King of Piedmont-Sardinia released a celebrated proclamation to the people of Lombardy and Venetia, which was a manifestation of patriotic hopes that concluded by addressing the flag that Piedmontese ... -
Navigating Northumbria: mobility, allegory, and writing travel in Early Medieval Northumbria
Lawson, Helen Margaret (The University of Edinburgh, 2017-11-27)The social fact of movement is a significant underlying feature of early medieval Northumbria, as it is for other regions and other periods. The eighth-century Anglo- Latin hagiographical tradition that centres on Bede ...