Search results
Byzantine art, the visual arts and architecture produced during the Middle Ages in the Byzantine Empire. Almost entirely concerned with religious expression, Byzantine art is known for the mosaics covering the interior of domed churches. They often feature flat and frontal figures floating on a golden background.
- Influences
- Artists
- Frescos & Paintings
- Icons
- Mosaics
- Sculpture
- Minor Arts
As Byzantium was the eastern branch of the Roman Empire in its earliest phase, it is not surprising that a strong Roman, or more precisely, Classical influence predominates Byzantine output. The Roman tradition of collecting, appreciating, and privately displaying antique art also continued amongst the wealthier classes of Byzantium. Byzantine art ...
In the Byzantine Empire, there was little or no distinction between artist and craftsperson, both created beautiful objects for a specific purpose, whether it be a box to keep a precious belonging or an icon to stir feelings of piety and reverence. Some job titles we know are zographos and historiographos(painter), maistor (master) andktistes (crea...
Byzantine Christian art had the triple purpose of beautifying a building, instructing the illiterate on matters vital for the welfare of their soul, and encouraging the faithful that they were on the correct path to salvation. For this reason, the interiors of Byzantine churches were covered with paintings and mosaics. The large Christian basilica ...
Icons - representations of holy figures - were created for veneration by Byzantine Christians from the 3rd century CE. They are most often seen in mosaics, wall paintings, and as small artworks made from wood, metal, gemstones, enamel, or ivory. The most common form was small painted wooden panels which could be carried or hung on walls. Such panel...
The majority of surviving wall and ceiling mosaics depict religious subjects and are to be found in many Byzantine churches. One of their characteristics is the use of gold tiles to create a shimmering background to the figures of Christ, the Virgin Mary and saints. As with icons and paintings, the portraiture follows certain conventions such as a ...
Realistic portrait sculpture was a characteristic of later Roman art, and the trend continues in early Byzantium. The Hippodrome of Constantinople was known to have bronzeand marble sculptures of emperors and popular charioteers, for example. Ivory was used for figure sculpture, too, although only a single free-standing example survives, the Virgin...
Byzantine artists were accomplished metalsmiths, while enamelling was another area of high technical expertise. A superb example of the use of both skills combined is the c. 1070 CE chalice in the Treasury of Saint Mark's, Venice. Made with a semi-precious stone body and gold stem, the cup is decorated with enamel plaques. Cloisonné enamels (object...
- Mark Cartwright
Byzantine art comprises the body of artistic products of the Eastern Roman Empire, as well as the nations and states that inherited culturally from the empire. Though the empire itself emerged from the decline of western Rome and lasted until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the start date of the Byzantine period is rather clearer in art history than in political history, if still imprecise.
People also ask
What is Byzantine art?
How did the Byzantine Empire influence art?
How did Byzantine art differ from Roman art?
How did the Byzantine period change the Arts?
Dec 6, 2023 · In this sense, art of the Byzantine Empire continued some of the traditions of Roman art. Generally speaking, Byzantine art differs from the art of the Romans in that it is interested in depicting that which we cannot see—the intangible world of Heaven and the spiritual. Thus, the Greco-Roman interest in depth and naturalism is replaced by an ...
The Byzantine Empire lasted until 1453 when Constantinople was conquered by the Turkish Ottoman Empire. Byzantine art and architecture is usually divided into three historical periods: the Early Byzantine from c. 330-730, the Middle Byzantine from c. 843-1204, and Late Byzantine from c. 1261-1453.
In the portable arts, devotional works of art, including icons for private devotion, continued to be made, albeit in more economical materials, with the lesser metals replacing gold, silver, and fine cloisonné enamel once popular in Middle Byzantine art.
Early Byzantine (c. 330–750) The. Emperor Constantine. adopted Christianity and in 330 moved his capital from Rome to Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul), at the eastern frontier of the Roman Empire. Christianity flourished and gradually supplanted the Greco-Roman gods that had once defined Roman religion and culture.
