Giotto Di Bondone: Art Style Analysis

Giotto Di Bondone: Art Style Analysis Giotto di Bondone (c. 1277-1337) was a Florentine painter who is widely celebrated as one of the most revolutionary and influential artists in the Trecento Italy. The 16th century art historian Giorgio Vasari praises Giottos gifted artistic talent, intellectual acumen, and pictorial precision: He became such an excellent imitator of Nature that he completely banished that crude Greek style and revived the modern and excellent art of painting. Giotto transformed the flat Byzantine approach by pursuing the naturalistic style that had been neglected by his artistic predecessors. Through close observation of nature, Giotto gave life to forms on a two-dimensional surface. Arguably, his most renowned work is the fresco cycle in Arena Chapel, Padua. Completed around 1305, the fresco paintings in the interior of Arena Chapel were commissioned by Enrico Scrovegni, who dedicated the chapel to the Virgin of Charity in order to repent his and his father Reginaldos sins of usury. In the thirty-ei ght scenes of the cycle, Giotto employed a dramatic narrative program. The episodes not only serve as a visual language showing the lives of the Virgin and Christ, but also reveal a sense of drama and display human interiority that demand the viewers intellectual and psycholocial engagment. How was Giotto able to convey drama and achieve communicative potential? This paper attempts to answer the question by analyzing his artistic style. Before embarking on our discussion of how Giottos artistic elements are dictated in Arena Chapel, we should first look at the organization of the fresco cycle. The thirty-eight episodes are arranged in three registers; the lives of Mary and her parents, Joachim and Anna, begin on the top level, the life and the mission of Christ are depicted on the middle level, and the Passion, Crucifixion, and Resurrection of Christ are on the lower level. The base level below has grisaille paintings alternating with the Virtues and Vices, which are painted in shades of gray in order to mimic marble and sculpture. The Last Judgment, perhaps the climax of the narrative cycle, fills up the majority of the west entrance wall. The barrel-vaulted nave of the chapel is executed in blue-the color that is echoed in all of the backgrounds of the panels, thus enhancing coherence. Each fresco section is surrounded has ornamental borders that not only function as dividing frames but also serve to heighten the realisitc quality of the painted scenes. Emotionalism in Giottos narrative is strengthened by his technique of averting some of his figures from the viewers eyes. He does this consciously by positioning his figures on their backs to the viewers or showing figures only in their profiles. His treatment of figures shows his interest in revealing stories and portraying emotions by concealing some forms. Lamentation in the lower register of the left wall from the chapels entrance shows the essence of his technique. The two mourners who are seen from their backs are not incidental in their positions but play an important role in communicating human drama. The mourning figure in the left corner is holding the head of Christ while the other is holding his right hand. Although we as viewers are not able to witness their facial expressions, we are able to feel the presence of their grief in absence. Through inexplicit images, Giotto is allowing the viewers to internally create an image and feel their silent mournings. Perhaps the rea son that the seated mourners are so simple and voluminous is that Giotto expects the viewers to add details through our own imagining. A similar technique can be seen in Giottos Kiss of Judas, where a relatively small sized figure in a hooded cloak is turning his back to the viewers. Right in front of the figure is Peter stretching his right hand to cut Malchus ear. Giotto included the anonymous figure to let the viewers contemplate and imagine the face of a tormentor who participates in the atrocity. In this way, onlookers can experience deeper emotional responses and relate to the biblical narrative in a much more empathetic way. Baxandall calls such experience a visualizing meditation and states that by omitting details, an artist complements the beholders interior vision. Giotto renders psychological drama through striking gestures and facial expressions on his figures. These elements are the most evident in Lamentation. The ten angels above the body of Christ are frantically flying and thrusting their bodies toward the viewers. They are moving with such great speed and energy that their robes seem to melt into the sky as they dart through the air. Their ghastly expressions of grief allow viewers to empathize. It is also crucial to note that none of them looks the same; each is individualistic in his or her poses and expressions. The angel on the lower right side is wrenching her hair with her two hands while another has her arms outstretched. The one in the middle is dashing toward the viewers with his mouth half open while another covers his face with his drapery. The motions, contortions, and foreshortening of their bodies are so powerfully depicted that their agony and despair are almost palpable. The movement of Saint John the Evangelist is also dramatically represented. He is standing up and bending his body to look down at Christ while throwing his arms back as if in utter shock and disbelief. The pain is apparent in his contorted face. His posture is evocative of the cross, which symbolizes the suffering of Christ. The gesture of Saint John the Evangelist not only heightens the psychological drama but also tells us that he has the room to do it. Thus, it creates an illusionistic space, depth and perspective that make the narrative panel much more true to life. Through a combination of different gestures and expressions, Giotto offers a range of sadness that provokes a powerful emotional response. Giottos narrative is much more dramatized by its sensory impact. Giotto is successful in not only communicating emotions visuallly but also is effective in appealing to the tactile and olfactory senses. In Giottos Meeting at the Golden Gate, viewers can feel the affinity through the touch of Joachim and Anna at the bridge in front of the Golden Gate. Anna is wrapping her hand around the neck of Joachim and her other hand is embracing his cheek while Joachim is drawing Anna toward him. Giotto positioned them so close to each other that their bodies and faces seem to merge in to one flesh. It is the touch that intensifies the old couples blissful emotion. By stimulating the tactile perception of the viewers, Giotto is able to communicate with the psychology of the viewers minds. As Gombrich writes, it is touch that enable[s] us to reconstitute the three-dimensional form in our minds. Giotto has also captured the drama of human interaction in Raising of Lazarus. Here, Giotto included tw o figures on the right who stand directly beside Lazarus. Both have covered their mouths and noses with their cloaks and one of them is even turning away from the scene as if the odor emanating from the decayed body of Lazarus was too sickening to tolerate. Their reactions to the smell add a depth of reality and signal the interaction among the characters portrayed. Through the presence of the two covered figures, Giotto has captured the feeling of unpleasantness. In fact, by appealing to the olfactory senses, Giotto allowed the viewers to become active participants rather than passive observers. Giottos series of fresco paintings in Arena Chapel are the culmination of his artistic skills. Various techniques are combined to communicate with the viewers. Through the concealment, gestures, expressions and tactility of his figures, Giotto provokes a strong emotional response from the viewers who are led to meditate upon his paintings. He has consciously employed his intelligence, ability and precision to suffuse his narrative scenes with human drama, interaction and emotions. Indeed, they are not merely well crafted mural paintings to be passively enjoyed but are combinations of powerful narratives to be actively interpreted. Ultimately, Giottos interest in human experience and naturalism has made the narrative cycle in Arena Chapel so profound and communicative.

Essay --

The Vietnam War was fought from December 1956 to April 1975 in the Indohchina region that encompasses Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos. At its most basic level, it can be described as a war between the communist regime in North Vietnam, headed by Ho Chi Minh, with its sympathizers in the South and the Southern non-communist Vietnamese regime. Its roots can be traced back to the end of the Second World War, when Ho Chi Minh and the Vietminh (nationalist communist party) seized power in formally French-controlled Vietnam after the Japanese occupants withdrew. France, unwilling to relinquish their power, sent troops into Indochina in order to regain their control. Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh continued to consolidate his power through his Soviet and Chinese communist allies—employing tactics such as imprisonment, exile, and sometimes even murder to be rid of any political opposition or threats to his Communist regime. The struggle continued until the Vietnimh—with Chinese support in weapons and advising—took siege of the village Dien Bein Phu, where French troops were located. In May 1954, the Vietnamese successfully took the village, and soon after that the French left Indochina all together acknowledging their defeat. In the late 50s, South Vietnam was under control of Ngo Dinh Diem, who implemented a severe and brutal anti-Communist regime, leading to small collectives of communist revolutionaries, who eventually in 1959 were supported and aided materially by the North. Thus the Vietnam War as we know it today began. The Communist North, aided by Chinese and Soviet allies, fought battles with the anti-communist South, aided primarily by the U.S. Yet, how did the U.S. become involved so heavily in a war that seemed to have nothing to do with... ...relenting. It is argued that a fundamental difference between the experiences of Vietnam vets as opposed to veterans of other wars is that veterans of a war such as World War II, though still had a difficult time with what they did and witnessed, had a feeling that what they did in the war was significant and important beyond what they individually may have seen or done—there was a greater purpose to all of it (i.e. WWII stopping the Nazi invasion and terror). However, considering the turn the war in Vietnam took—how the U.S. public eventually protested strongly against it and its goals—that feeling was not always present for the surviving soldiers. This fact among the various other factors like the horrors and gruesomeness of the war contributes to the widespread psychological problems that plagued the veterans of the war long after they returned home to the U.S.

Being Single and Being Married Essay

When I was twenty years old, my mother told me that it was times for me to get married. I replied to my mother whenever I succeed in life and able and anxious to protect our family, I am going to think about having a home of their own. Not only I but also people who is living in today’s society, tends to being single or married later. However, living in every situation has every its own advantages and disadvantages. There are some differences that I know between being single and being married, such as: times, finances and relationships. Firstly, the difference between being single and being married is times. Every morning waking up, doing house work calling to friends or going to shopping is the life of single. That is life without the constraints, so freedom and independence are slogan of single persons. They have a lot of time to go anywhere or do anything that they like. Opposite to being single, married life is a race against time. Exception time spent of work, most of the remaining time is for family. The time for the family as teaching, taking care of child, cooking or housework is one of the conditions required in marriage. Time is seen as a wire to close people in the family together. It creates happiness that everyone wants to be. So, being married is a hot thread that persons who take interest in, spends a lot of time to think and get experiences about it. Another difference between being single and being married is finances. Being single controls money by oneself, and cost of single life is cheaper than married life. Kinds of insurances, types of taxes and everything that relate to life, is anxiety of being married. When a couple wants to get married each other, they always care about cost of their life. On the other hand, single persons are paid salary every month, and they spend their life by their money. Single persons do not need to worry much about finances. However, this case is not always right, sometimes it is reversed. Finally, the difference between being single and being married is relationships. Being single makes many relationships and has many friends. Life of being single is not bind of any relationship. However, that is a serious problem if single person do not have a good relationship. In contrast to being single, being married has family ties. That is a responsibility part of persons in family, but being married has a great moral strength. When people faces to some problems or feeling bad, the first thing which people always think to, is family. Being  married means having a family, and it is a best moral support. Being single never has these things. The love from friends is able to replace to love from family for a single person, but that thing is a big difference. I n conclusion, the differences between being single and being married are times, finances and relationships. Being single and being married have its advantages and disadvantages. Times are important thing to marriage life, but it is normal for being single. In addition, being single differ to being married, finances are big problems with being married while finances is easy for being single. Relationships are one of matter of persons who are interested in life of marriage. All of these things effect to persons who decide being married or being single. In my mind, later marriage is a best way for current economy life.

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