BYZANTINE MOSAICS AND ARCHITECTURE

Hagia Sophia, interior and dome, Istanbul, Turkey Photo by David Pham, Shapeshift.net; CC-Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlikeSource:Flickr.com Date: 04/09/06Permalink: http://www.flickr.com/photos/30008272@N00/125590964

Byzantine art is complex, decorative and mystical. Its shimmering effects seem to defy logic and gravity to createan ethereal setting.

Hagia Sophia, interior view, Istanbul, TurkeyBy permission of Dr. Joe Byrn, from his website http://campus.belmont.edu/honors/byzart2001/byzart2001.htm

A Byzantine church includes classical features—columns, arches and domes, but reinterprets these features to express the mystery and wonder of Christian belief.

Athens (Acropolis): Parthenon Interior view toward North, NaosPhoto Credit: Erich The Image Gallery; ARTSTOR_103_41822003527965

Look at a Greek example to see the change.

A column is the post in a post-and-lintel structure.

The purpose of the column is to support the weight of the lintelsplaced upon it.

Athens (Acropolis): Parthenon Interior view-close up The Image Gallery; ARTSTOR_103_41822003527965

The capital at the top of a Greek column spreads to support this weight. It looks strong enough to do the job it is supposed to do.

Photo by Michael Tinkler; CC-Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlikeSource:Flickr.com Date: 04/25/09Permalink: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29301497@N00/3473602954

In contrast, this Byzantine basket capital looks like starched lace. This effect is created by drill work. Drill work is characteristic of Middle Eastern art.

This fragile form seems to support its massive burden by faith alone.

Relief of the deified ancestors of the Emperor Claudius, Museo Nazionale, Ravenna, ItalyArt Images for College Teaching; ARTSTOR_ AHSC_ORPHANS_1071314537

Greek stonework typically creates images with modeled, gradualtransitions from light to dark.

This shows greater realism, and is characteristic of the Greekhumanistic culture.

Byzantine Basket Capital, chancel, north side, San Vitale, Ravenna, ItalyImage and original data provided by SCALA, Florence/ART RESOURCE, N.Y.ARTSTOR_10310196503

In the Byzantine basket capital, the drilled patterns punctuate the white marble, making sharp contrasts of light and dark.

The effect is similar to staccato in music in contrast to the legato of the classical style.

Hagia Sophia, interior, central space and dome, Istanbul, Turkey Photo by n0r; CC-Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDeritiveWorksSource:Flickr.com Date: 07/09/08Permalink: http://www.flickr.com/photos/49314097@N00/2652534063

Byzantine church architecture has been called bewildering.

Look at the interior of Hagia Sopia in Istanbul, Turkey.

Hagia Sophia, interior, central space and dome, Istanbul, Turkey Art History Survey Collection; ARTSTOR_AIC_1000003

Procopius, a Byzantine historian of the 5th century, described the dome as “…seeming not to rest on the masonry below it, but to be suspended by a gold chain from heaven.”

10th-century mosaic of St. John Chrysostomos, Patriarch of Constantinople, Hagia SophiaBy permission of Dr. Joe Byrn, from his website http://campus.belmont.edu/honors/byzart2001/byzart2001.htm

This mystical atmosphere is enhanced by glittering mosaics.

The Byzantines perfected the art of mosaics. By alternating layers of colored glass with a layer of gold foil, they created tiny mirrors that reflect light.

St. Paul, Chora Church in IstanbulPhoto by gi+cri; CC-Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlikeSource:Flickr.com Date: 09/03/08Permalink: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11841413@N08/2824401399

The tesserae were unevenly set to break up the glow, resulting in a shimmering effect.

Christ the Redeemer, Ravenna: S. Vitale: Apse Vault MosaicThe Image Gallery; ARTSTOR_103_41822001581154

The word, awe, is defined as “… an emotion variously combining dread, veneration and wonder that is inspired by the sacred or sublime.”

In creating symbols for the heavenly realm, Byzantine artists produced art that is awesome, in the original meaning of the word.