Renaissance Gothic
Renaissance Gothic

Author: Ethan Matt Kavaler

Publisher:

Published: 2012-01-01

Total Pages: 332

ISBN-13: 9780300167924

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This compelling book offers a new paradigm for the periodization of the arts, one that counters a prevailing Italianate bias among historians of northern Europe of this era. The years after 1500 brought the construction of several iconic Late Gothic monuments, including the transept facades of Beauvais cathedral in northern France, much of King's College in Cambridge, England, and the parish church at Annaberg in Saxony. Most designers and patrons preferred this elite Gothic style, which was considered fashionable and highly refined, to alternative Italianate styles. Ethan Matt Kavaler connects Gothic architecture to related developments in painting and other media, and considers the consequences of the breakdown of the Gothic system in the early 16th century. Late Gothic architecture is recognized for its sensuous and abundant ornament. Its visually rich surfaces signify wealth and magnificence, and its flamboyant geometric designs portray a system of perfect and essential forms that convey spiritual authority, while often serving as signs of personal or corporate identity. Renaissance Gothic presents a groundbreaking and detailed study of the Gothic architecture of the late 15th and 16th centuries across Europe.

Skyscraper Gothic
Skyscraper Gothic

Author: Kevin D. Murphy estate

Publisher: University of Virginia Press

Published: 2017-07-06

Total Pages: 289

ISBN-13: 0813939739

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Of all building types, the skyscraper strikes observers as the most modern, in terms not only of height but also of boldness, scale, ingenuity, and daring. As a phenomenon born in late nineteenth-century America, it quickly became emblematic of New York, Chicago, and other major cities. Previous studies of these structures have tended to foreground examples of more evincing modernist approaches, while those with styles reminiscent of the great Gothic cathedrals of Europe were initially disparaged as being antimodernist or were simply unacknowledged. Skyscraper Gothic brings together a group of renowned scholars to address the medievalist skyscraper—from flying buttresses to dizzying spires; from the Chicago Tribune Tower to the Woolworth Building in Manhattan. Drawing on archival evidence and period texts to uncover the ways in which patrons and architects came to understand the Gothic as a historic style, the authors explore what the appearance of Gothic forms on radically new buildings meant urbanistically, architecturally, and socially, not only for those who were involved in the actual conceptualization and execution of the projects but also for the critics and the general public who saw the buildings take shape. Contributors: Lisa Reilly on the Gothic skyscraper ● Kevin Murphy on the Trinity and U.S. Realty Buildings ● Gail Fenske on the Woolworth Building ● Joanna Merwood-Salisbury on the Chicago School ● Katherine M. Solomonson on the Tribune Tower ● Carrie Albee on Atlanta City Hall ● Anke Koeth on the Cathedral of Learning ● Christine G. O'Malley on the American Radiator Building

The Gargoyle Book
The Gargoyle Book

Author: Lester Burbank Bridaham

Publisher: Courier Corporation

Published: 2013-01-09

Total Pages: 226

ISBN-13: 0486136531

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Amid the soaring grandeur of arches and spires lurks a more down-to-earth architectural flourish: the grinning head of a gargoyle. Singly and clustered, these intriguing creatures form as distinctive an element of Gothic architecture as the flying buttress. Nowhere are they more prominent than along the walls of French cathedrals, and this magnificently illustrated volume prowls the ramparts of those medieval buildings to discover hundreds of authentic gargoyle carvings. According to tradition, the gargoyles were posted as sentries, to ward off malevolent spirits and to remind parishioners of the evil beyond the church doors. Author Lester Burbank Bridaham takes a more optimistic view. Noting the stone guardians' whimsical nature, he discusses the artisanal ingenuity involved in their creation. He also points out how they represented a rare sense of freedom in the Middle Ages, in terms of public satire and unbridled artistic enthusiasm. As this book reveals, the timeless appeal of the gargoyle—whether symbolic, spiritual, decorative, or fanciful—continues to captivate the imagination.

Gothic Architecture
Gothic Architecture

Author: Raphael Brandon

Publisher: Courier Corporation

Published: 2012-08-21

Total Pages: 178

ISBN-13: 0486135926

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This comprehensive study of Gothic architecture traces the distinctively beautiful elements of Gothic style through the medieval churches of Europe. Gathered from a rare two-volume Victorian classic, over 700 meticulously rendered details and illustrations display every intricate aspect of Western culture's most magnificent ecclesiastical structures, including London's Westminster Abbey Church. The only edition of these antique architectural plates in print, this splendid book is a one-of-a-kind source of authentic Gothic design. In page after fascinating page, this rich retrospective features the finest examples of medieval masonwork, woodwork, and metalwork dating back to the thirteenth century. Explore the soaring Gothic characteristics of vaulted ceilings, arched windows, flying buttresses, pointed spires, ornamental filials, and decorative panels, plus doorways, moldings, roofing, porches, door hinges, and other elaborate architectural elements. Filled with fascinating insights into the creation of Gothic-style churches and cathedrals, this sweeping survey also provides lively observations of the medieval period.