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Medieval Architecture, Medieval Learning: Builders and Masters in the Age of Romanesque and Gothic
The eleventh and twelfth centuries witnessed a thoroughgoing transformation of European culture, as new ways of thinking revitalized every aspect of human endeavor, from architecture and the visual arts to history, philosophy, theology, and even law. In this book Charles M. Radding and William W. Clark offer fresh perspectives on changes in architecture and learning at three moments in time. Unlike previous studies, including Erwin Panofsky's classic essay Gothic Architecture and Scholasticism, Radding and Clark's book not only compares buildings and treatises but argues that the ways of thinking and the ways of solving problems were analogous. The authors trace the professional contexts and creative activities of builders and masters from the creation of the Romanesque to the achievements of the Gothic and, in the process, establish new criteria for defining each. During the eleventh and early twelfth centuries, they argue, both intellectual treatises and Romanesque architecture reveal a growing mastery of a body of relevant expertise and the expanding techniques by which that knowledge could be applied to problems of reasoning and building. In the twelfth century, new intellectual directions, set by such specialists as Peter Abelard and the second master builder working at Saint-Denis, began to shape new systems of thinking based on a coherent view of the world. By the thirteenth century these became the standards by which all practitioners of a discipline were measured. The great ages of scholastic learning and of Gothic architecture are some of the results of this experimentation. At each stage Radding and Clark take the reader into the workshops and centers of study to examine the methods used by builders and masters to create the artistic and intellectual works for which the Middle Ages are justly famous. Handsomely illustrated and clearly written, this book will be of great interest to scholars and students of medieval art, culture, philosophy, history,
- GenresNonfictionArchitecture
166 pages, Hardcover
First published September 23, 1992
38 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 2, 2011
While Gothic churches are always a source of awe and architectural astonishment, the final third part of this book heightens the fascination as it demonstrates the short time line that it all happened. Structured to emphasize the transformation from one building to the next, beginning with Saint-Denis, works very effectively and seems to parallel the train of thought of the builders who were the masterminds behind these impressive churches.
This very well illustrated edition shows a clear progression from early Gothic to the characteristically Gothic of the late 12th century. The innovations and errors of the unnamed builders serve as the main narrative, mostly through buttressing and tracery, though distinctive pier styles and vaulting are mentioned. This could certainly provide for a well balanced introduction to the Gothic for those that are not too familiar with it, or give the better informed reader new insight to the minds of the master builders.
This very well illustrated edition shows a clear progression from early Gothic to the characteristically Gothic of the late 12th century. The innovations and errors of the unnamed builders serve as the main narrative, mostly through buttressing and tracery, though distinctive pier styles and vaulting are mentioned. This could certainly provide for a well balanced introduction to the Gothic for those that are not too familiar with it, or give the better informed reader new insight to the minds of the master builders.
October 27, 2007
An in depth study of Medieval Architecture.
A riveting ride into the Olde Worlde. I've always enjoyed books like these; peeking into the past and imagining how people back then imagined, and realised their surroundings.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
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