Christian Iconography, Essay Example

The below paper will examine the emergence of naturalism in Christian iconography in the late Medieval period. While in the early Medieval period, abstraction and spiritual symbolism ruled art, in the late period, naturalism was introduced, and Biblical scenes were depicted in a realistic manner. The author of the current essay would like to review and compare two art pieces from the different periods: Hagia Sophia’s 9^th Century Mosaic featuring the Virgin Mary, Constantine, and Justinian with Giotto’s The Adoration of the Magi.

Structure

The structure of the two images is different in a way that while the icon of the Hagia Sophia arranges characters symmetrically and facing the observer, Giotto depicts a Biblical scene in a manner that the audience can feel like they are simply observers of the events that take place on the picture. While there is a main character of Giotto’s image: Mary, all people are looking at Baby Jesus. As a comparison, the characters of Hagia Sophia’s 9^th Century Mosaic all look out of the picture, facing the observer.

Depiction of characters

The characters of the Hagia Sophia mosaic are idealized, all with a standard halo. Mary is seated on a pedestal with Baby Jesus, and appears to be larger than the two other characters. The background is not important in the image: the characters and their actions have a symbolic meaning. In Giotto’s picture, the real events described by the Bible are depicted: characters show real human emotions. The body language of Mary shows tiredness and exhaustion, the facial expression of the kings is gentle and caring. All characters, including the animals look at Jesus. Naturalism has created a new artistic approach: depicting Biblical characters as humans with real emotions. The detail of the background, clothing, and the faces is much more advanced on this image than on the early Medieval mosaic. The faces of angels are unique, as well, while in the mosaic, clothing and structure represents abstraction and symbolism.

Symbolism

The image of the Hagia Sophia’s 9^th Century Mosaic is a symbol itself. It tells the audience that the cathedral and the city (Constantinople) was offered to Virgin Mary and accepted by her. The event is not depicted by the scriptures: it is fictional and idealized. By depicting Justinian and Constantine with a halo, the artist is suggesting that they are accepted by the church as faithful Christians.

In the Giotto icon, people seem to be real, and the only symbol found in the composition is the angels above the characters. However, angels are not in the central area of the picture, and they only make the otherwise everyday scene appear related to religious faith.

Message

The message delivered by the Hagia Sophia’s 9^th Century Mosaic is that the new church created by Constantine is approved and supported by Virgin Mary, therefore, it is true, representing the real essence of Christianity. It tells the believers that the new religion is based on the teachings of the Bible, therefore, it seeks approval through symbolism.

Giotto, however, using naturalism as a method of depiction, would like to emphasize the human side of the Christian religion. He depicts the characters as people that Christians can relate to. Observers can feel the excitement of the kings, feel with the exhausted Mary, as the characters are not idealized: they appear just like one of them. This is how naturalism managed to connect people with the stories of the Bible: by depicting events in a way that they understand.  As the Smart History Website (n.d.) states: “Christian art, which was initially influenced by the illusionary quality of classical art, started to move away from naturalistic representation and instead pushed toward abstraction “.

Works Cited

Smarthistory. “A New Pictorial Language: The Image in Early Medieval Art” n.d. Web. http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/The-Evolution-of-the-Medieval-Style.html

“The Adoration of the Magi” possibly ca. 1320. Giotto di Bondone (Italian, Florentine, 1266/76– 1337) http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/11.126.1

“Hagia Sophia: 9th century mosaic” Photograph. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Web. 09 Sep. 2014.
<http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/95925/Virgin-Mary-Justinian-I-holding-a-model-of-Hagia-Sophia>