The Romanesque Period

Elements of style
o Masonry and transverse rib vaulting – a rib in the vault
that crosses the nave or aisle at right angles to the axis
Historical background of the building
o The Romanesque style refers to the broad range of o Romanesque westwork – an entrance area at the west
styles that flourished in Europe between the 10th – 11th end of a church with upper chamber and usually with a
centuries. tower or towers. It is normally broader than the width
o The development of the style may be attributed to of the nave and aisles.
following factors: o Arches:
The Fall of Rome and the Rise of the Christian Continual arcading
warrior kings Blind arcading
The Age of Faith and Monasticism Rose window or Wheel window
- Monasticism (building of many churches, Portal
church order) o Columns and capitals
Feudalism (socio – political system land – based) Educational type
Knighthood and the Holy Crusade Leaf motif
Manorialism (serfdom – serf, totally dependent Double columns
laborers, did not have much civil liberties)
o Molding and Ornamentation
Chevron – a zigzag molding used in Romanesque
Art Forms arches
o Romanesque art formulated a visual idiom capable of
Billet – molding formed by a series of small cubes,
spelling out the tenets of the Christian faith.
cylinders or prisms placed at regular
o Reliquary – container
o intervals, so that their axis and that of the entire series
o Stavelot Triptych – contained relics believed to be the is parallel to the general direction of the molding
True Cross, and is the earliest known reliquary
Lozenge – a diamond shape
illustrating scenes from the popular medieval Legend of
Nailhead – an ornamental motif of small pyramids,
the True Cross
said to represent the heads of nails
Reliquary Statue of Sainte – Foy, Conques, France
Cable – a convex molding carved in imitation of a
(late 10th – 11th century)
rope or cord
Chasse with the Crucifixion and Christ in majesty, c.
1180 – 90, Limoges
Architectural Typologies
Reliquary of Mary Magdalene o Monasteries
o Illuminated Manuscripts – are hand – written books o A building or complex comprising of domestic
with painted decoration that generally includes precious quarters and work spaces of monastics, monks or
metals such as gold or silver nuns
o Tapestries – textile art woven with designs often Church
depicting scenes from everyday life and were used to Cloister
illustrate stories, fables and myths. Infirmary
o Bayeux Tapestry – created in 1066, the tapestry Dormitory
chronicles the Norman invasion of England. It is over Library
230 feet long, embroidery on bleached wool cloth
Almonry
Abbot’s Lodging
Sculpture
o Cluny Abbey, France
o Relief images carved on the church entrance intended
to attract attention and to encourage worshippers to o Churches
enter. o Cathedral of Pisa, Italy
To educate or art show to propagate o Chiesa di San Zeno Maggiore, Verona, Italy
o Location: o Sant’ Ambrogio, Milan
Trumeau Quadripartite vaulting (gothic style)
Portals or doorways o Santiago de Compostela
Tympanum Baroque
- The Last Judgment, Tympanum, Church of Charlemagne – Holy Roman Emperor,
Sainte – Foy (want to instill fear) (Mandorla – King/Pope
almond shaped, light encasing Christ in the o Durham Cathedral, England
middle) Birth place of the Gothic Style
Quadripartite vaulting first appeared
Architecture o Secular Buildings
o Romanesque Pilgrimage Churches o Tower of London
Churches were designed and built to accommodate Serves as a court, prison
the influx of pilgrims Lots of prisoner: Anne Boleyn (Queen of
Used the basilica plan with 3 radiating chapels England & Publicly executed)
- Church of Sainte – Foy, France
- Double bema – is a wider version of the Domestic Architecture
transept o Castles
- Transverse rib – reinforce barrel vaulting Parts
- Compound pier – multiple arches together
 - Barbican – a forward defensible structure
jutting out or set in front of the main castle
defense or walls
- Keep – the inner stronghold of the castle. It
was usually either square or round
- Bailey – an open area inside the castle complex
that contained the domestic and other
necessary buildings of castle life.
- Portcullis – a grating of iron or wooden bars
or slats, suspended in the gateway of a
fortified place and lowered to block passage
- Moat – a deep defensive trench usually filled
with water that surrounded the castle.
- Keep – the inner stronghold of the castle. It
was usually either square or round
Romanesque Interiors
— Factors such as religion and feudalism largely influenced the
spatial arrangements and planning of medieval homes
— The inclusion of chapels in wealthy homes were
commonplace, and the Great Hall as an important space was
introduced. As feudalism emphasized communal living within
the Great Hall as the center of activities
— Feudal conditions also influenced furniture as they were
designed to be more transportable.
Spatial relationships
— The Great Hall was the heart of the keep, and was planned
and designed for flexibility to accommodate the various
activities held within.
— Status and social organization during the feudal period was
reflected by the presence of the dais, an elevated platform
from which the feudal lord presided over activities in the
Great Hall
— There was no corridor system in place and spaces were
designed as an suite, organized as a sequence of spaces, i.e.,
chamber, withdrawing room, bedchamber, dressing room,
closet. The privy became important ancillary spaces
— Both secular and religious ritual were played out in the public
area and the lord displayed wealth and power through
prominent decorative and architectural features.
o Porch
o Screen
o Hall
o Parior
o Wine cellar
o Passage to kitchen
o Butlery
o Court
o Chapel
Materials and decorative techniques
— Wood, ceramics, stone and plaster were the materials the
provided the base for the decorative techniques employed.
o Carving was used on paneling and structural parts
o Floors: flagstone, brick, tile, wood and plaster
o Checkerboard arrangements were used
o Rush was also scattered over floors, esp. in halls
o Oak planks for upper floors
o Walls: primarily of wood and plaster
Textiles and the integral use of paint, murals and
carved relief
Furniture types
— Chests
o Designed for the safe transport of goods had curved
lids to drain away rain water, and were seldom
decorated except, perhaps for a leather cover. Those
that doubled as home furnishings had more
comfortable flat lids and some also had feet, or even
legs.
The ark – had a gabled detachable lid
Boarded type or six – plank chest
The high hutch
Promotive Dug – out type – hollowed out from a
log
Dome type
— Seating Furniture
o Chair of the estate – reserved for the lord and master
o Fold stool / cathedra – x-shapes stool for women; with
implied authority
Gothic Period
— “Then arose new architects who after the manner of their
barbarous nations erected buildings in that style which we
call Gothic (dei Gotthi).” – Giorgio Vasari
Historical Background
— Significant changes took place in Western Europe
Background throughout the 12th - 14th centuries beginning
with the marked shift in the religious and intellectual life
from pilgrimages and monasteries to a more secular focus
with the rapid expansion of cities and construction of
cathedrals. This meant that the feudal system which had a
major hold in the countryside would start to fall in decline,
moving towards a more central and secular rule in European
countries.
— The new-found prosperity centered mostly in urban centers
gave rise to universities and scholasticism, and the formation
of guilds
— Basilica Church of Saint Denis, Paris
o Evolved from the Romanesque style, the Gothic style,
originally known as Opus Francigenum (French work),
adapted Romanesque elements to into exaggerated
arches, increased vaulting, and enlarged windows, while
abandoning one key feature of Romanesque
architecture: thick walls.
o Originated in Ile-de-France, the personal domain of the
royal family. The credit goes to Abbot Suger of the
French royal monastery at Saint-Denis.
o Suger became interested in the mathematical harmony
that should exist between the parts of the building and
the miraculous and mystical effect of light, and
rearranged the elements of medieval architecture to
express the relationship between God and light.
o Suger redesigned the facade, and the cheviot of the
Royal Abbey Church of St. Denis, integrating a philosophy
of light with lightness through a system that included
the use of ribbed vaulting
Chevet - the east end of the church comprising the
choir, ambulatory and apse
Elements of Style
— Vaulting
o Supersedes the earlier barrel vaults typical of
Romanesque. The advantage of which, is that it requires
less buttressing, freeing up more space for windows.
o Quadripartite Rib Vaulting – Cathedral of Notre Dame,
Paris
o Lierne Rib Vault - From the French word, meaning “to
bind”, it uses short ribs interlink the longer ribs
 o Fan Vault - An elaborate type of vaulting in which — Triforium - A gallery or range of arches above the
slender curving ribs radiate upward from the top of a longitudinal arches bounding nave or choir in a church
column like the ribs of a fan to form inverted half-cones — Clerestory - The upper part of a wall containing windows to
— Compound pier let in natural light to a building, especially in the nave,
o clustered columns consisting of a center mass or newel, transept and choir of a church or cathedral
to which engaged or semi-detached shafts are — Bema - An open space between the termination of the
attached. Also referred to as pilier cantonné arcade of a basilica and its eastern wall; the beginning of the
— Flying Buttress transept.
o An exterior structure composed of thin halfarches, or — Ciborium - A baldachin or altar canopy
flyers. This supported the wall at the point where the o Ciborium, Arnolfo di Cambio, Florence Cathedral, 1285
thrust of an interior arch was greatest
— Pointed arches Phases of French Gothic Phases of English Gothic
o Skeletal Appearance Architecture Architecture
— Boss – an ornamental form, usually with considerable Early French Style Early English/Lancet Style (from
projection, at the intersection of groin ribs or in the center — Characterized by the 12th-13th C)
of a panel or coffer. pointed arch and — Lancet windows and plate
— Triforium - a gallery or range of arches above the geometric tracery tracery
longitudinal arches bounding nave or choir in a church
— Crocket - a projecting ornament common to Gothic Rayonnant Style (late 13th C Decorated Style (late 13th-late
architecture—the blunt terminal of conventionalized foliage, – late 14th C) 14th C)
as frequently occurring along the edges of a spire — Characterized by — Rich tracery, elaborate
— Spire – a tall tower roof, tapering upward to a point circular windows with ornamental vaulting and
— Pinnacle – a sharply pointed ornament capping the piers or radiating lines of refinement of stonecutting
flying buttresses; also used on cathedral facades tracery techniques
Flamboyant Style (late 14th Perpendicular/Rectilinear Style
— Stained Glass - a colored glass made by mixing metallic oxides
C – mid 16th C) (late 14th-eartly 16th C)
into molten, translucent glass or fixing oxides onto surface
of clear glass, cut into shapes — Characterized by — Perpendicular tracery, fine
o Notre Dame de Paris flamelike tracery, intricate stonework and
o Cathedral de Chartres intricacy of detailing elaborate fan vault
and frequent
— Rose window - A circular window composed of patterned
complication if
tracery arranged in petallike formation. interior space
— Gargoyles - carved figures of animals placed on roofs of
Gothic cathedrals and churches. Some were meant to be
Periods in Gothic Architecture
used as water spouts, some held heraldic meaning, and Notre Dame de Paris
others are designed to scare evil spirits away. Early French Gothic
Basilica Church of Saint Denis
— Intricate Tracery - Stone framework in the head of Gothic Sainte – Chapelle
windows, formed by a continuation of the mullions, bent, as Rayonnant
Notre Dame de Reims
it were, into ornamental designs. Church of Saint Maclou
o Plate tracery – type of tracery that gives the Flamboyant
Trinity Abbey, Vendome
appearance of punched – out patterns on a flat plate
Salisbury Cathedral
masonry. Early English / Lancet Style
Lincoln Cathedral
o Bar Tracery - type of tracery that uses thin stone
Lincoln Cathedral
mullions. The glass rather than the stone dominates Decorated Style
Ely Cathedral
when bar tracery is used. It gives a more delicate, web-
like effect Gloucester Cathedral
Perpendicular Style
o Foil Tracery Westminster Abbey
Trefoil Gothic in Germany Cologne Cathedral, Germany
Quatrefoil Moldings and Ornamentation
Gothic in Italy
Clinquefoil Ca d’ Or, Venice

Age of Cathedrals Arts Forms

— Cathedrals, coming from the Greek word, “kathedra”
meaning seat, were considered as the seats of power for the
bishops that administrate over them. They were also cited in
urban centers, and contributed to the prevailing
scholasticism through cathedral schools and universities
o Cathedral de Notre Dame de Chartres, France
Parts of the Cathedral Plan
— Essentially maintained the cross plan, with wider transepts
consistent with the new chevet planning and design
introduced by Suger in the Church of Saint Denis. It also
emphasized a vertical tripartite division from the Ground
Floor Arcade, the Triforium and the Clerestory
o Floor plan, Cathedral of Chartres
— Ground Floor Arcade - Ground level of a Gothic church that
features arcading separating the nave from the aisles
— Illuminated Manuscripts
o Monasteries as centers of education and manuscript
production fell out of popularity with the rise of urban
workshops. Cities such as Paris became a renowned
center for book production and was famed for the art
of illumination.
o God as Architect, 1220 – 1230
o Blanche of Castile, Louis IX, 1226 – 1234
— Sculpture
o Gothic sculpture remained to depict religious subject
matter but unlike previous periods such as the Byzantine
and Romanesque, there seems to be a shift towards
naturalism, which gave Gothic art a sense of elegance
and more strong humanized character.
o Virgin of Paris, Notre Dame Cathedral
o Annunciation and Visitation, Reims Cathedral
— Painting
o Late Gothic paintings for the most part continued the
Italo-Byzantine style, with its shallow perspective plane,
stylized depictions and the use of stacked elements to
represent recession and a distinction between
foreground and background.
Cimabue - generally thought of as the last great
painter working in the Byzantine tradition
Giotto di Bondone- student of Cimabue whose style
is described to be protoRenaissance, making him
known as the Grandfather of Renaissance Art
o Madonna Enthroned, Cimabue,
o Madonna Enthroned, Giotto
o Lamentation, The Mourning of Christ, Giotto, 1305
Interior Characteristics
— Gothic homes shared strong similarities with early Medieval
space planning, with the Great Hall remaining as an
important communal space, though its significance and use
reduced as a receiving hall.
— The architectural style influenced the design and style of
homes with the same motifs and ornamentation used for
architectural detailing and decoration and furniture design
— While the Gothic style was known as Opus Francigenum, in
England, coincided with the reigns of Henry VII and Henry
VIII of the house of Tudor, giving the style of the period its
name, the Tudor Style.
o Winchester Castle’s Great Hall
— Regardless, the style showed consistency with the prevailing
style as well as the use of materials. England’s Tudor style, in
addition was also referred to as The Age of Oak, because of
the dominant use of oak for domestic interiors and furniture
— Just with the Romanesque era, an en suite arrangement was
in place with spaces planned sequentially and progressively
from the most public to the most private, and the degree of
social relations determined access into the private spaces of
the house.
o Bodiam Castle Plan, East Sussex, England, 1385
o The Great Hall, Penshurst Castle
o Anne Boleyn’s bedchamber, Hever Castle
Decorative Techniques
— Decorative motifs were consistent with the ones used in
architectural, consisting of pointed arches and foil tracery
patterns. These were applied on both interior elements and
furniture through techniques such as pierced and closed
tracery. Other motifs include:
o Linenfold- It represents folded lines of cloth carved in
panels
o Parchemin- similar to linenfold, the motif gives the
appearance of an open book
o Solid/ Closed tracery- carving of tracery patterns that
are not cut all the way through the material
o Polychrome/ Painting- painting the surface of furniture
to enhance features and create pictorial
representations
o Pierced carving/ Open tracery - carving that penetrates
and is cut through the surface to be ornamented
Furniture Types
— Seating Furniture
o Stools - heavy, wooden and features trestle sides or slab
ends for support; used by women
o Throne chairs- similar to those used during the
Romanesque, used by the men of authority
o Bench / Trunk
o Settle
— Chests / Coffers
— Aumbry / Livery Cupboards
— Credence
— Buffet / Cupboard
— Trestle Tables
— Press/ Linen Cabinet
— Bedsteads
MODULE 2: THE RENAISSANCE
Art and Architecture
iTALIAN renaissance
Rinascimiento
Historical Background
— The Renaissance was a period in history spanning the 14th to
16th century.
— The Renaissance was so called “rebirth” because of the revival
of certain classical ideas and concepts of Western Europe
that had been lost and rediscovered.
— It began in Florence, Italy and marked the beginning of a
cultural revolution that spread throughout Europe.
— Why in Florence
1) Florence’s location: As a port city, Florence was the
centre of commerce and a cultural hub
2) Economic prosperity: As more people grew wealthy, they
grew increasingly more concerned in enjoying life’s
pleasures
3) Politics: Florence operated as a republic and provided its
citizens individual freedom, unlike other Italian city-
states, and considered themselves as the “New Athens or
the New Rome”
— With the invention of printing presses, books became
revolutionary medium to disseminate new ideas.
o De re aedificatoria - the most important of the
architectural treatises by Leon Battista Albertiin 1452-
1485
— A large contributing factor had been the patronage of the
Medici family, specifically Cosimo de Medici, providing the
catalyst that allowed the ideas and the arts of the period to
flourish
The Competition for the Florence Baptistry Doors
— Was the result of an increased patronage in the arts,
specifically by the Arte del Calimala
— It was a competition to design a set of doors for the east
side of the Florence Baptistry to be decorated with gilded
bronze reliefs
— The two most important artists who participated were Filippo
Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Ghiberti.
— Example:
o Brunelleschi, The Sacrifice of Isaac
o Winning entry by Ghiberti
— Ghiberti, the Gates of Paradise – a good example of the one
– point perspective system
— The Gates of Paradise
— Why did Ghiberti win?
o Ghiberti showed a more elegant, tighter composition
o It spoke more of human experience and emotions
o Ghiberti’s work exemplified the very concept of
humanism
The Florence Baptistery
— Charles Eames
 o The Baptistery of St. John (Battisteria di San Giovanni), o the most prominent early 15th century painter in
which was built in 1059-1128 is dedicated to the city’s Flanders
patron saint. o Example: The Ghent Altarpiece, 1432
o Designed in the Romanesque style. It features an — Grisaille
octagonal plan, a common plan shape for baptisteries. o Monochromatic painting, usually in black or gray, made
o Its doors are famously designed by Lorenzo Ghiberti to stimulate sculpture
after winning the competition. o The Arnolfini Marriage, 1434
o Installed as the East side doors of the baptistery, it
contains on each door wing, five large rectangular
reliefs of scenes from the Old Testament with borders Early Renaissance Architecture
carved with relief sculptures. — Ashlar masonry in rusticated finish in horizontal courses.
o Panels offer a good example of the reemergence of — Horizontal cornices and balustrades.
realism and scientific perspective in art.
— Doors and windows finished with molded architrave of the
Example: The Gates of Paradise classic type or pediment in triangular or segmental type.
— Vaulted ceilings without ribs; dome raised in a drum in fresco.
Phases of Renaissance Style — Classic orders appear decoratively in facades, structural in
Early Renaissance High Renaissance arcades.
Development of Realistic Elaboration of the Classical — Divided in three horizontal bands of classic molding under the
Perspective Style windows.
Revival of Classical The “Circular Ideal”
Architecture Architecture Presentation
Important Figures: Important Figures: — Filippo Brunelleschi
Donatello Leonardo da Vinci o A seminal figure in Renaissance architecture. Designed
Ghiberti Michelangelo the Duomo or Dome of Florence Cathedral (Santa Maria
Brunelleschi Raphael del Fiore)
Boticelli Titian o Ospedale Degli Innocenti – considered as the first true
Bramante Renaissance building. Featured arcades composed of
round arches
— Michelozzo
Early Renaissance o Palazzo Medici - Ricardi
— Linear Perspective Became the prototype for Italian renaissance civic
o Adoration of the Magi, Da Vinci, c. 1481 construction.
— Foreshortening – radical shortening of limbs to achieve The building is divided into storeys of decreasing
correct perspective heights by long unbroken bands called string
o Andrea Mantegna, The Dead Christ, c. 1480 – 1503 cornices
— Chiaroscuro – the use of light and shading to achieve volume — Leon Battista Alberti
and mass o Palazzo Rucellai
o Massacio, Branacci Chapel application of the classical orders of columns to the
Tribute Mary façade on the three levels, 1446-51.
Expulsion of Adam and Eve
Medieval Style
Renaissance Style High Renaissance
— The age of great accomplishments in Western Art which
Early Renaissance Artists occurred in the late 15th c and the first half of the 16th c
— Masaccio (1401- c.1428) — The period was dominated by a handful but important
o assimilated Giotto’s innovations and developed them into artistic personalities, including Leonardo Da Vinci,
an increasingly monumental style Michelangelo, Raphael, Giorgione and Titian
o The Annunciation — Set against the backdrop of the Reformation and Counter-
— Fra Angelico (Guido di Pietro da Mugello) Reformation movements
o a Dominican monk, all of his art was religious. — The circular ideal in architecture was emphasized
o The Annunciation — General Characteristics:
— Fra Filippo Lippi o Drum above pendentives
o represented the sentimental trend in Florentine o Classical Columns
painting consisting mainly of chronicles of — Donato Bramante
contemporary life. o Tempietto
o Madonna and Child Meaning ‘small temple’, it marked the spot of St.
— Sandro Botticelli Peter’s crucifixion.
o a student of Lippi, he exemplified the Renaissance 15 ft. in diameter, featuring a base, a drum, a dome
interest in pagan subject matter. and a whole entablature.
o Example: Primavera; The Birth of Venus — Michelangelo Buonarotti
— Donatello o Capitoline Hill
o the most important sculptor of early 15th century Composed of the Palace of the Senate, The
Florence Conservatory and the Capitoline Museum where the
o Example: St. Mark; David statue of Marcus Aurelius stood.
— Jan van Eyck An abstraction of the human figure.
High Renaissance Artists o Similar to the early French style, it showed a
— Leonardo Da Vinci (1452 – 1529) combination of Medieval and Classical architecture, but
o Referred to the Renaissance man will show a faithful adoption the Classical style starting
o Sfumato, a modeling technique which consisted of the Jacobean period (James I).
blurring sharp outline with subtle, tonal gradations, o The adoption of the Classical style will usher England into
imparting a mysterious enigmatic quality, hinting at the a long Renaissance period
subject’s spiritual dimension
o Example: Elements of English Renaissance Architecture
La Giaconda / Mona Lisa — Queen’s House, Iñigo Jones
The Last Supper, Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan o The English style, also known as Palladianism, was
— Michelangelo Buonarotti (1475 – 1564) introduced by the royal architect and surveyor, Iñigo
o Trained in Florence and is best known as a painter and Jones
sculptor, but worked in architecture and wrote poetry Tripartite division
as well Raised portico
o Example: Balustraded Parapet
La Pieta
David
Moses Renaissance Interior and
Sistine Chapel
— Raphael (Rafaello Sanzio, 1483 – 1520)
o Best known as a painter but worked in architecture as Furniture
well. Painted beautiful, gentle, calm
o Example: Italian Renaissance
Madonna and Child Spatial Relationship
School of Athens — Renaissance art, like the Gothic style of the Middle Ages, was
primarily led by developments in architecture, and the use of
- Da Vinci as Plato
columns – a staple of Greek and Roman building – was now
- Michelangelo, Heraclitus incorporated into furniture design. Caryatids – columnar
- Bramante as Euclid supports depicting female figures – were especially
— Giorgione prevalent.
o Most famous of the Venetian renaissance painters. Was — Houses and interior spaces were more specialized- palazzi
the undisputed master of technique and psychology and villas
o Example: — There was a growing need for greater privacy, which in turn
The Tempest influenced the sequencing of rooms.
Sleeping Venus — Floor plan was often rectangular in an axial arrangement
— Titian — Enfilade arrangement
o The leader of the 16th – century Venetian school of the — The concept of the apartment was introduced.
Italian Renaissance — Ground Floor Plan
o Example: a) Vestibule
Venus of Urbino b) Cortile
The Rape of Europa Example:
- Palazzo Medici – Ricardi
Renaissance | Beyond Italy
- Palazzo Strozzi
— Differences in cultural, political, religious and social context
c) Stairways (Escala)
across Europe will yield variations in the Renaissance style
Example:
- Palazzo Gondi, Florence
French Renaissance - Palazzo Davanzati
— Chateau de Chambord
— Piano Nobile
o Primarily associated and credited to the reign of Francis
a) Loggia
I when he imported Italian craftsmen to France, and
Example:
later on the to reign of Henry II of France •
o The style became an amalgamation of both Gothic and - Palazzo Doria Trusi
Renaissance elements during its early developmental - Villa Farnese by Giacorno Vignola
stage b) Sala (Living / Receiving Hall)
Example:
Elements of French Renaissance Architecture - Sala dell Albergo, Gallerie dell’ Accademia
— Palais de Fontainebleau - Carparola, Palazzo Farnese
o Mansard roofing - Sala dei Pavoni, Palazzo Davanzati
o Dormer windows - Sala dei Pappagalli, Palazzo Davanzati
o Qoins c) Antechamber
o Raised portico d) Bedchamber
Example:
- Villa Capra, La Rotonda
English Renaissance
Studiolo
— Burghley Hall
o Coincided with the reigns of Henry VIII, Elizabeth I - Example:
(a) Francesco I de Medici’s Studiolo
(b) Duke of Urbino’s Studiolo
 Necessari (latrines)
Guardaroba
scrittorio
Materials and Decorative Techniques
— Walls
o Combined painting, plaster, stucco, wood paneling, wall
hangings
o Employed the tripartite division
o Trompe l’ oeil painting
— Materials and Decorative Techniques
o Intarsia- inlay technique
o Marquetry- comprised of wood and other materials
such as shell and ivory fitted together as a continuous
surface on a core of less expensive material; veneer
technique
o Fresco Secco
Example:
- Camera degli Sposi, ceiling tondo, Ducal Palace,
Mantua
- Villa Barbaro by Andrea Palladio
— Floors
o Terra cotta and majolica were used
o Brick
o Stone Parquet
o Terazzo - chips of marble were set in cement
— Ceilings
o Flat, vaulted and coved ceilings were prevalent
o Coffered ceilings relied on Roman designs
— Stairways
o One for private needs
o One for major formal approach to the apartments
o Example:
Escaler Regia, Villa Farnese
Furniture
— Rooms were sparsely furnished, but pieces were
characteristically imposing, dignified and often massive.
— Primary wood used was walnut; other woods include pine,
cypress, chestnut, elm and poplar.
— Mortise and tenon joint was continued to be used, and dovetail
was introduced
— Decorative Techniques
o Certosina- an inlay technique using ivory or bone
o Incised carving- low relief carving where the resulting
design was flush with the surrounding wood
o Chip carving- accomplished by a succession of small,
unconnected gouges using conventional motifs and
geometric patterns
o Pastiglia- relief ornament that produced with layers of
gesso until the desired depth is achieved.
o Color embellishments were achieved by gilding both the
relief and ground, or the white gesso was retained
against a colored background
o Turning of pieces such as finials, bedposts and furniture
legs were frequent
— Seats
o X – Chairs
Savonarola - constructed with a series of interlaced
wooden strips or straight interlaced staves.
Dante Chair- usually of tooled leather; curule in
front extend as arm supports while the curule at
the back extended as uprights of the back
Sedia – a rectilinear chair with tall back
Sgabello – an armless back stool with octagonal
trestle supports
Panchetto – similar to the sgabello buthad three
splayed legs instead of two trestle supports
Cassapanca – a multiple seat unit, served as a
chest as well as seat
— Storage Pieces
o Cassone – a storage chest with a hinged lid
o Credenza – cupboard
— Tables
o Dining tables – were rectangular, long and narrow, and
had trestle supports
— Beds (letto)
o Often raised on a dais. Had paneled headboards and
platforms
Ornamentation
— Include arabesques, acanthus leaves, cartouches,
grotesques, gadroons, classical figures, guilloches, rinceaux,
patera, masks and classical moldings
French Renaissance
Spatial Relationships
— Residential structures were primarily of three types: manor
houses, town houses, and chateaux.
o Manor house- lack fortification of castles but may
incorporate a wall or moat for protection
o Town house- designated according to socioeconomic
level of the inhabitants
o Hotels- for wealthy merchants and professional men
o Maison- for middle- and lower-class occupants
o Castles or chateaux- country palaces of the aristocracy
— Overall plan included a courtyard around which buildings
were constructed on more than one side
— Incorporated Gothic elements during the early phases of
French Renaissance
— Chateau Chambord
o Emphasis on symmetry, rectangular plan
o Twin spiral staircases (Chateau Chambord)
o Arcaded courts, with the entrance in line with the
principal apartments
— Example:
o Double Helical Staircase by Leonardo da Vinci, Chateau de
Chambord
o Bedchambers, Chateau de Chambord
o Palais de Fontainbleau by Francis I
o Gallery of Francois I
o Palais de Fontainebleau
Interior Architecture and Decoration
— Style was introduced by Italians, Giambattista di Jacopo &
Francesco Primaticcio
— Featured inlaid panels, figurative subjects for fresco, stucco
for relief
— Proportion and arrangement of orders did not adhere to
classical practice
— Design for capitals included plant and animal forms, human
forms, cornucopia and volutes. Shafts were decorated with
arabesques, interlacing patterns , circles and lozenges
Furniture
— Materials and construction: joinery such as dovetail, mortise
and tenon and tongue and groove were used, and later on,
the miter joint
— Oak was primarily used until walnut became more popular
— Decorative processes include marquetry, inlay carving and
polychrome enhancement
— Francis I: transitional period from Gothic to early
Renaissance
— Henry II: mid-16th century; furniture pieces were lighter in
scale, used perimeter or H-stretcher.
o Chairs had throne-like backs, straight arms
o Chairs had spiral, turned, baluster legs terminating in
bun or Flemish scroll feet
— Seating:
o Caquetoire - gossip chair; lightly scaled wooden chair
with tall, narrow paneled back attached to a trapezoidal
seat
o Tabouret – stool or small table
o Escabelle – French version of the sgabello
— Tables:
o Fan Trestle Table
— Storage
o Cupboard
o Armoire
— Beds and bedsteads
English Renaissance
English Periods
— Early Renaissance (1500 – 1600)
o Age of Oak
o Tudor
o Elizabethan
o Jacobean
o Cromwellian
— Middle Renaissance (1660 – 1714)
o Age of Walnut
o Restoration / Stuart / Carolean
o William and Mary
o Queen Anne
o Early Georgian
— Late Renaissance (1750 – 1830)
o Middle Georgian
o Late Georgian
o Regency
— Victorian (1837 – 1901)
Historical Background
— The English Renaissance took place while two lines of English
monarchs, Tudor and Stuart, occupied the throne.
o The Tudors- Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary &
Elizabeth I
o Stuart- James I, Charles I
— A period of the Commonwealth during which Oliver Cromwell
also ensued during this period.
— Henry VIII, considered a benefactor of the arts, provided the
stimulus for the adoption of the Renaissance style through
the hiring of two Italian sculptors, Pietro Torrigiano &
Giovanni da Maiano.
— Henry VIII’s anti - ecclesiastical policies also impacted the
arts and architecture of the period, particularly the
dissolution of the monasteries.
— Afterwards, Elizabeth I’s reign saw an over-all prosperity due
to trading with the Low Countries.
o The building of “prodigy houses” commenced during her
reign and continued until 1642
Spatial Relationships
— The E- or H-shaped plans were introduced; and there was a
need for greater specialization for rooms and greater
interest in comprehensive planning.
— The arrangement of spaces was en suite, which was related
to the adjacency of great chamber, withdrawing chamber,
best bedchamber and gallery
— A hierarchical arrangement of spaces was observed and can
be seen even form the exteriors of the house—the
significance of the level or floor is determined by the height
of its windows, which were taller on stories devoted to
ceremony
— Communal life was still important but gave way to the
removal of the family to more private quarters.
o Impressive staircases became a prominent feature in
interior spaces
o The hall began to be used almost exclusively as an entry,
and was usually the most lavishly decorated.
— High chamber, of which the function was highly ceremonial,
as large as the hall
— Withdrawing rooms were set in place as banquets
o First Floor
Upper part of hall
Gallery
Low Great Chamber
Withdrawing Room
Bedchamber
o Second Floor
Great High Chamber
Withdrawing Chamber
Green Velvet Room
Long Gallery
Materials & Decorative Techniques
— Carved wood, plaster and iron encased in plaster were the
materials of significance, especially for the ceiling
— Pargework was used to decorate ceilings and sometimes
walls
o Example:
Long Gallery, Aston Hall, English, 1618
— Floors: Brick was commonly used from 16th- early 17th
centuries. Tile, wood, and flagstone were used by all classes;
stone was used for ground floors while oak and elm were
used for the upper floors
— Walls: treatments were basically of three types: paneling
(wainscot) , plaster and textile hangings. Decorative
treatments include parchemin and Romayne work.
o Example: Great Oak Room, Red Lodge, Bristol
Motifs and Ornamentation
— Parchemin- a low-relief carving formed like a sheet of paper
or piece of linen folded in half and then spread out to give
an appearance of an opened book
— Strapwork- stylized representation in ornament of leather
straps
— Romayne work- decorative detail in which head, often in
profile, were carved in medallions on architectural elements
Furniture Elements
— Furniture was no longer painted.
— Pieces were heavy, massive, rectilinear, but lighter than the
Tudor designs.
— Ornamentation was lavish
— Motifs included cup & cover (top covered with gadrooning,
bottom with acanthus leaves), top support of crude ionic
scroll form, strapwork, grotesques, caryatids
— Stretchers were low and heavy.
— The court cupboard was an innovation.
o Perimeter stretcher
o Gadroon
Furniture Types
— Seating
o Caquetoire- based on the French gossip chair
o Settles
o Turned chair
o Glastonbury chair – an x-framed chair
— Table:
o Draw table the apron beneath the table top was
ornately carved or inlaid with a checker pattern and the
legs of the bulbous cup and cover form, which mirrored
the puffed sleeves of Elizabethan costume.
— Storage
o Nonsuch chest
o Mule chest
o Court cupboards
— Beds
o large and elaborately decorated after the mid-16th
century. Canopies or testers were supported by posts at
the foot and by the headboard
o Example: Great Bed of Ware