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Salvador Dali Art & Biography ? The Renaissance Surrealist. January 25, 2011. Salvador Dali Art & Biography ? The Renaissance Surrealist. Dali was born on May 11, 1904 in the small town of Figueres; close to the French border in …

In Benjamin Buchloh’s essay “Conceptual Art 1962-1969: From the Aesthetics of Administration to the Critique of Institutions” in October 55 (Winter 1990) he placed Darboven in the following context: “[R]andom sampling and aleatory …

Handmade Jewelry, Sterling Silver Jewelry, Pennsylvania Artist, Folk Art, Art, Animal Art, Wildlife Art, Cat Art, Bird Art, Landscape Art, Mixed Media Art, Abstract Art, Fiber Art, Plein Air Painting, Photography, Birdwatching, …

Thomas Mailaender skirts the line between low-brow and high-brow with his weird, Jackass-style approach to conceptual art. Contemporary art could certainly use someone like Mailaender to lighten things up without dumbing things down. …

Abstract Art. Posted: January 25th, 2011 | Author: admin | Filed under: Internet Marketing | No Comments ». 10074731 · Abstract New 15 · abstract_art_masterpiece_b. Leave a Reply. Connect …

Investing in Art

Good times or bad, art is a GREAT investment if you avoid PR over-inflated artists.
Neither jobs nor investments are sure things. However, over time art has proven to be one of the best investments around.

One of the hottest areas of investing in the contemporary art today is Conceptual, Environmental, Land art and Street Art.
The prices may soar 2000% within a year or two.

Top artists to invest (2011-2020):

1. Banksy  ( http://www.banksy.com )
2. Jacek Tylicki ( http://www.tylicki.com )
3. Andy Goldsworthy ( http://www.goldsworthy.cc.gla.ac.uk/ )
4. Richard Long ( http://www.richardlong.org )
5. Jeff Koons ( http://www.jeffkoons.com )

Banksy:

Jacek Tylicki:

Have a look at Natural Art project initiated by Jacek Tylicki has attracted increasing international attention in recent years, and has experienced exceptional growth.

To guarantee the provenance and authenticity of the work it’s recommended that you buy directly from the artist. When buying directly ask for a Certificate of Authenticity. A photo of the artwork is often included with the certificate.

Buying a work of art is an experience that is all too often felt in a purely emotional way. Even people who are usually well informed and

aware make their choices relying on instinct when they acquire a work of art. Such choices always run the risk of paying a high price. How,

in fact, can the information provided by the seller be considered reliable and impartial?

Nobody would ever buy a second-hand car without even opening the bonnet, just relying on its owner’s verbal assurances. Yet too many

people go into the purchase of a work of art, which is often much more expensive than a car, practically with their eyes closed.

Works of art, true ones, undoubtedly speak to people’s hearts. And allowing ourselves to respond emotionally to them is sacrosanct. The

aesthetic pleasure that a work transmits to us is one thing, while the fact that we are not admiring the work at an exhibition, that we are

buying it, is quite another. Therefore, in order not to run into any nasty surprises later on, it is indispensable for us to open our eyes wide

beforehand. It is necessary to gather in-depth background information on the artist and on the performance of his market over time. It is

necessary to be certain of the authenticity of the work and to appraise the qualities boasted by its vendor carefully, perhaps by contacting

an art consultant: a skilled professional, someone extraneous to the negotiations.

The cost of a consultation may truly be rather modest, in percentage terms, compared with the hundred percent of a capital sum that you

believe you have invested, but that you have actually lost forever. Unfortunately, in fact, it is very common for works to be purchased that

over time prove totally unsalable. Every day we confirm this by examining the many paintings that collectors submit to us for valuation.

Works that we dismiss as “of purely decorative value”. In other words, of no value at all.

If all these factors seem daunting, don’t hesitate to ask for professional advice. Search for the artist at Google or Bing. Wikipedia is also a

must-read before purchase. The contemporary art market is far more open than it once was. Reputable gallery owners, dealers and auction

houses possess the necessary expertise and are generally happy to assist new investors. One final point to consider when investing in any

art are add-on expenses including transaction costs, transportations, commissions and insurance charges. These costs can be high, so be

sure to factor them into the purchase price where applicable.

Read more at:
http://www.tylicki.com
Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jacek_Tylicki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Land_art
http://www.banksy.com
http://www.tylicki.com
http://www.goldsworthy.cc.gla.ac.uk/
http://www.richardlong.org
http://www.jeffkoons.com

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Rome offers art lovers visiting Rome in 2011 a remarkable list of art exhibitions ranging from Van Gogh to Italian contemporary artists, from Palazzo Farnese Renaissance art to futurist artist Pablo Echaurren via Teotihuacan City of Gods at the Palazzo delle Esposizioni and the Golden treasures from Dacia on loan from the Romanian History Museums at the Imperial Fora museum.

MAXXI Museum of the 21st Century | Italian Contemporary Art | Nervi at the MAXXI

The MAXXI museum is a stunning piece of architecture and an amazing venue for exhibitions of contemporary art but it is also a place to experiment innovative visual and linguistic forms of art. Until March 20th 2011 Maxxi hosts an exhibition of works by the 4 finalists of the Italian Contemporary Art Award. These four young Italian artists bring to life with their art recent Italian events from the so called “anni di piombo” in the 1970′ to the current immigration concerns offering the opportunity to discover some of the new creative talents of the under 40′s generation.

Until March 20th 2011 the Maxxi Museum dedicates a deepened show to Italian architect and engineer Pier Luigi Nervi focusing on Nervi’s works for the 1960 Rome Olympics. Out of curiosity do not miss the nearby Corso Francia Bridge designed by Nervi in the late 50′ best viewed from the nearby Ponte Milvio Bridge.

Alongside these works the museum is inaugurating a new archive project to document and promote the materials preserved in the collections of MAXXI Architecture that will be made available on-line in the Study Room of the Central Archives.
If you need any additional reason to visit the Maxxi Museum in Rome just consider that the World Architecture Festival in Barcelona just declared Zaha Hadid Architects’ MAXXI “Building of the Year 2010″ defined by the jury of the WAF as an “Unwound Guggenheim”.
Eat, drink and relax in/around the Maxxi Museum in Rome
Foodies visiting the Maxxi after a tour of the museum should head straight to the nearby Ponte Milvio district ( Facebook Slide Show ) just across the river Tiber to enjoy a tasty thin crust pizza at Il Grappolo d’oro, a cheese platter paired with a glass of wine at Peccati di Gola or just a great simple sandwich at Gondi’s.

MAXXI Tickets and Info
Official Website: www.fondazionemaxxi.it/

Call Center 06 32810

How to reach MAXXI
Metro A stop Flaminio followed by tram n. 2 stop Apollodoro
Bus n. 53, 217, 280, 910

Maxxi Opening hours
Tue-Wed-Fri-Sun 11.00-19.00
Thur-Sat 11.00-22.00
The ticket office is open until 1 hour before museum closing
Closed
Mondays | 1 May | 25 December

Maxxi Ticket prices
Adults €11

Concessions €7 for groups of 20 to 30 people and associate groups; 2×1: 2 young people between 15 and 26 years of age may enter by purchasing just 1 €11 ticket (not valid for groups);

€4 per student (over 14 years old) for class groups (first and second level secondary schools, universities) acquiring educational activity packages (excluding bank holidays);
Free under 14 years old, disabled visitors requiring accompaniment, companions of disabled visitors, employees of the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities, Lazio Region tour guides and couriers, 1 teacher per class group, ICOM members, AMACI members, adults over 65 (Tuesdays only)

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Buying paintings for your home is the first step in adding your personal touch to an interior decoration. Decorating your personal living space is a vital need; we all want to live in a space that makes us feel good and relaxed. Our homes are small havens and sanctuaries; therefore displaying art in your home is a way to personalize and mark the space you live in. Modern art paintings are a great way to make your space breathe artistic creation and style.

Modern art paintings have been the most popular art pieces the last few years, either displayed in art galleries for random visitors and enthusiasts, or as part of the decoration in our living or working space. There are thousands of avid collectors of Modern art paintings all over the world, who are willing to spend some serious amounts of money in order to buy the objects of their desire. Whether you see them as an investment or as art pieces for personal pleasure, original modern paintings are an absolute must have.

Displaying modern art pieces and paintings on the walls of your living or working space, can be a significant move in order to completely change the tone in the room or enhance some of its features : a landscape painting can automatically create a more serene and peaceful atmosphere, a painting that depicts water and sea can add to your desire for travelling or help your mind escape; artworks featuring animals or trees can be the perfect complement of furniture in a rural house or help you create a more informal and lodging ambience, always in a very sophisticated way.

No matter what their subject might be, modern art pieces and paintings can have a quite soothing effect; they can also be perfect decorative pieces. Even if you have never been a savvy art person and lover you cannot help it but value their uniqueness.

Modern art paintings are considered to be the most essential pieces of decoration since they can differentiate and enhance the atmosphere in your space, helping you personalize it according to your particular artistic orientation, style and taste.

Oil, for example, compared to all other painting media, has the ability to add warmth and liveliness in any room: every modern art painting, no matter what the subject is, features a rather unique way of depicting reality, which is always eloquent and lucid, communicating their message in a rather life like and unique way.

It comes as no surprise that most people have been intrigued, at least once in their life by an art painting; this media is known to intrigue the viewer and lead him in their atmosphere and particular world, due to its liveliness and aesthetics. Especially when referring to authentic and modern pieces of art, the result can be even more beguiling.

Modern art painters and artists have been creating pieces already characterized classic and timeless; just think of artists like Warhol, who created modern art paintings so many years ago, but still today they are modern and stylish, although considered some sort of classic pieces. Modern art doesn’t need to be extravagant.

History

Ivory plaque, probably from a book cover, Reims late 9th century, with two scenes from the life of Saint Remy and the Baptism of Clovis

Having established an Empire as large as the Byzantine Empire of the day, and rivalling in size the old Western Roman Empire, the Carolingian court must have been conscious that they lacked an artistic style to match these or even the post-antique (or “sub-antique” as Ernst Kitzinger called it) art still being produced in small quantities in Rome and a few other centres in Italy, which Charlemagne knew from his campaigns, and where he was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in Rome in 800.

As symbolic representative of Rome he sought the renovatio (revival) of Roman culture and learning in the West, and needed an art capable of telling stories and representing figures with an effectiveness which ornamental Germanic Migration period art could not. He wished to establish himself as the heir to the great rulers of the past, to emulate and symbolically link the artistic achievements of Early Christian and Byzantine culture with his own.

But it was more than a conscious desire to revive ancient Roman culture. During Charlemagne’s reign the Byzantine Iconoclasm controversy was dividing the Byzantine Empire. Charlemagne supported the Western church’s consistent refusal to follow iconoclasm; the Libri Carolini sets out the position of his court circle, no doubt under his direction. With no inhibitions from a cultural memory of Mediterranean pagan idolatry, Charlemagne introduced the first Christian monumental religious sculpture, a momentous precedent for Western art.

Reasonable numbers of Carolingian illuminated manuscripts and small-scale sculptures, mostly in ivory, have survived, but far fewer examples of metalwork, mosaics and frescos and other types of work. Many manuscripts in particular are copies or reinterpretations of Late Antique or Byzantine models, nearly all now lost, and the nature of the influence of specific models on individual Carolingian works remains a perennial topic in art history. As well as these influences, the extravagant energy of Insular art added a definite flavour to Carolingian work, which sometimes used interlacedecoration, and followed more cautiously the insular freedom in allowing decoration to spread around and into the text on the page of a manuscript.

With the end of Carolingian rule around 900, high quality artistic production greatly declined for about three generations in the Empire. By the later 10th century with the Cluny reform movement, and a revived spirit for the idea of Empire, art production began again. New Pre-Romanesque styles appeared in Germany with the Ottonian art of the next stable dynasty, in England with late Anglo-Saxon art, after the threat from the Vikings was removed, and in Spain.

Illuminated manuscripts

Drogo Sacramentary, ca. 850: a historiated initial ‘C’ contains the Ascension of Christ. The text is in gold ink.

The most numerous surviving works of the Carolingian renaissance are illuminated manuscripts. A number of luxury manuscripts, mostly Gospel books, have survived, decorated with a relatively small number of full-page miniatures, often including evangelist portraits, and lavish canon tables, following the precedent of the Insular art of Britain and Ireland. Narrative images and especially cycles are rarer, but many exist, mostly of the Old Testament, especially Genesis – New Testament scenes are more often found on the ivory reliefs on the covers. The over-sized and heavily decorated initials of Insular art were adopted, and the historiated initial further developed, with small narrative scenes seen for the first time towards the end of the period – notably in the Drogo Sacramentary. Luxury manuscripts were given rich covers with jewels set in gold and carved ivory panels, and, as in Insular art, were prestige objects kept in the church or treasury, and a different class of object from the working manuscripts kept in the library, where some initials might be decorated, and pen drawings added in a few places. A few of the grandest imperial manuscripts were written on purple parchment. The Bern Physiologus is a relatively rare example of a secular manuscript heavily illustrated with fully painted miniatures, lying in between these two classes, and perhaps produced for the private library of an important individual. The Utrecht Psalter, stands alone as a very heavily illustrated library version of the Psalms done in pen and wash, and almost certainly copied from a much earlier manuscript.

Other liturgical works were sometimes produced in luxury manuscripts, such as sacramentaries, but no Carolingian Bible is decorated as heavily as the Late Antique examples that survive in fragments. Teaching books such as theological, historical, literary and scientific works from ancient authors were copied and generally only illustrated in ink, if at all.

Centres of illumination

Carolingian manuscripts are presumed to have been produced largely or entirely by clerics, in a few workshops around the Carolingian Empire, each with its own style that developed based on the artists and influences of that particular location and time. Manuscripts often have inscriptions, not necessarily contemporary, as to who commissioned them, and which church or monastery they were given to, but few dates or names and locations of those producing them. The surviving manuscripts have been assigned, and often re-assigned, to workshops by scholars, and the controversies attending this process have largely died down. The earliest workshop was the Court School of Charlemagne; then a Rheimsian style, which became the most influential of the Carolingian period; a Touronian style; a Drogo style; and finally a Court School of Charles the Bald. These are the major centres, but others exist, characterized by the works of art produced there.

Saint Mark from the Ebo Gospels. Figurine line drawing with colour.

The Court School of Charlemagne (also known as the Ada School) produced the earliest manuscripts, including the Godescalc Evangelistary (781783); the Lorsch Gospels (778820); the Ada Gospels (picture:St.Matthew); the Soissons Gospels; and the Coronation Gospels (picture:St.Matthew). The Court School manuscripts were ornate and ostentatious, and reminiscent of 6th century ivories and mosaics from Ravenna, Italy. They were the earliest Carolingian manuscripts and initiated a revival of Roman classicism, yet still maintained Migration Period art (Merovingian and Insular) traditions in their basically linear presentation, with no concern for volume and spatial relationships.

In the early 9th century Archbishop Ebo of Rheims, at Hautvillers (near Rheims), assembled artists and transformed Carolingian art to something entirely new. The Gospel book of Ebbo (816835) was painted with swift, fresh and vibrant brush strokes, evoking an inspiration and energy unknown in classical Mediterranean forms (see image this page and picture:St.Matthew). Other books associated with the Rheims school include the Utrecht Psalter (picture:gallery), which was perhaps the most important of all Carolingian manuscripts, and the Bern Physiologus, the earliest Latin edition of the Christian allegorical text on animals. The expressive animations of the Rheims school, in particular the Utrecht Psalter with its naturalistic expressive figurine line drawings, would have influence on northern medieval art for centuries to follow, into the Romanesque period.

Another style developed at the monastery of St Martin of Tours, in which large Bibles were illustrated based on Late Antique bible illustrations. Three large Touronian Bibles were created, the last, and best, example was made about 845/846 for Charles the Bald, called the Vivian Bible. The Tours School was cut short by the invasion of the Normans in 853, but its style had already left a permanent mark on other centers in the Carolingian Empire.

From the Utrecht Psalter, 9th C. Naturalistic and energetic figurine line drawings were entirely new, and were to become the most influential innovation of Carolinian art in later periods.

The diocese of Metz was another center of Carolingian art. Between 850 and 855 a sacramentary was made for Bishop Drogo called the Drogo Sacramentary. The illuminated “historiated” decorated initials (see image this page) were to have influence into the Romanesque period and were a harmonious union of classical lettering with figural scenes.

In the second half of the 9th century the traditions of the first half continued. A number of richly decorated Bibles were made for Charles the Bald, fusing Late Antiquity forms with the styles developed at Rheims and Tours. It was during this time a Franco-Saxon style appeared in the north of France, integrating Hiberno-Saxon interlace, and would outlast all other Carolingian styles into the next century.

Charles the Bald, like his grandfather, also established a Court School. Its location is uncertain but several manuscripts are attributed to it, with the Codex Aureus (870) (picture:Charles the Bald Enthroned) being the last and most spectacular. It contained Touronian and Rheimsian elements, but fused with the style that characterized Charlemagne’s Court School more formal manuscripts.

With the death of Charles the Bald patronage for manuscripts declined, signaling the beginning of the end, but some work did continue for a while. The Abbey of St. Gall created the Folchard Psalter (872) and the Golden Psalter (883). This Gallish style was unique, but lacked the level of technical mastery seen in other regions.

Sculpture and metalwork

Detail of book cover (11th century, not Carolingian).

Luxury Carolingian manuscripts were intended to have ornate covers in precious metal set with jewels around central carved ivory panels – sometimes these were donated some time after the manuscript itself was produced. Only a few such covers have survived intact, but many of the ivory panels survive detached, where the covers have been broken up for their materials. The subjects were often narrative religious scenes in vertical sections, largely derived from Late Antique paintings and carvings, as were those with more hieratic images derived from consular diptychs and other imperial art, such as the front and back covers of the Lorsch Gospels, which adapt a 6th century Imperial triumph to the triumph of Christ and the Virgin.

Charlemagne revived large-scale bronze casting when he created a foundry at Aachen which cast the doors for his palace chapel, in imitation of Roman designs. The chapel also had a now lost life-size crucifix, with the figure of Christ in gold, the first known work of this type, which was to become so important a feature of medieval church art. Probably a wooden figure was mechanically gilded, as with the Ottonian Golden Madonna of Essen.

One of the finest examples of Carolingian goldsmiths’ work is the Golden Altar (824859) (picture:altar), also known as the Paliotto, in the Basilica of Sant’Ambrogio in Milan. The altars four sides are decorated with images in gold and silver repouss, framed by borders of filigree, precious stones and enamel.

Mosaics and frescos

Mosaic of the Ark of the Covenant, Germigny-des-Prs, c. 806, but restored. The subject seems drawn from illuminated Jewish bibles, and relates to the Libri Carolini, possibly written by Theodulf, where the Ark is cited as divine approval of sacred images.

Mosaics installed in Charlemagne’s palatine chapel showed an enthroned Christ worshipped by the Evangelist’s symbols and the twenty-four elders from the Apocalypse. This mosaic no longer survives, but an over-restored one remains in the apse of the oratory at Germigny-des-Prs (806) which shows the Ark of the Covenant adored by angels, discovered in 1820 under a coat of plaster.

The villa to which the oratory was attached belonged to a key associate of Charlemagne, Bishop Theodulf of Orlans. It was destroyed later in the century, but had frescos of the Seven liberal arts, the Four Seasons, and the Mappa Mundi. We know from written sources of other frescos in churches and palaces, nearly all completely lost. Charlemagne’s Aachen palace contained a wall painting of the Liberal Arts, as well as narrative scenes from his war in Spain. The palace of Louis the Pious at Ingelheim contained historical images from antiquity to the time of Charlemagne, and the palace church contained typological scenes of the Old and New Testaments juxtaposed with one another.

Fragmentary paintings have survived at Auxerre, Coblenz, Lorsch, Cologne, Fulda, Corvey, Trier, Mustair, Malles, Naturno, Cividale, Brescia and Milan.

Spolia

Lorsch Gospels. Ivory book cover. Late Antiquity Imperial scenes adapted to a Christian theme.

Spolia is the Latin term for “spoils” and is used to refer to the taking or appropriation of ancient monumental or other art works for new uses or locations. We know that many marbles and columns were brought from Rome northward during this period.

Perhaps the most famous example of Carolingian spolia is the tale of an equestrian statue. In Rome, Charlemagne had seen the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius in the Lateran Palace. It was the only surviving statue of a pre-Christian Roman Emperor because it was mistakenly thought, at the time, to be that of Constantine and thus held great accordharlemagne thus brought an equestrian statue from Ravenna, then believed to be that of Theodoric the Great, to Aachen, to match the statue of “Constantine” in Rome.

See also

Carolingian architecture

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Carolingian art

Notes

^ Kitzinger, 8

^ Kitzinger, 40-42

^ Kitzinger, 69. Dodwell, 49 discusses the reasons for this.

^ Dodwell, 52

^ Beckwith, 13-17

References

Beckwith, John. Early Medieval Art: Carolingian, Ottonian, Romanesque, Thames & Hudson, 1964 (rev. 1969), ISBN 050020019X

Dodwell, C.R.; The Pictorial arts of the West, 800-1200, 1993, Yale UP, ISBN 0300064934

Joachim E. Gaehde (1989). “Pre-Romanesque Art”. Dictionary of the Middle Ages. ISBN 0-684-18276-9

Hinks, Roger. Carolingian Art, 1974 edn. (1935 1st edn.), University of Michigan Press, ISBN 0472060716

Kitzinger, Ernst, Early Medieval Art at the British Museum, (1940) 2nd edn, 1955, British Museum

“Carolingian art”. In Encyclopdia Britannica Online.

Categories: Medieval art | German art | French art