Medieval Synth: Wylie. P.5. Team 8

Medieval Synthesis Question

Team 8: Katherine Morales, Martin Lis, Chloe Compton, Helena Cassilly, Avery Millard

Beyond architecture, the Medieval ideal that religion, specifically Christianity, was above all other things in life, is visible in other art forms such as sculpture, painting, and glasswork in churches. The focus on relationships with God were so intense, art was hardly made without religious purposes. In the Gothic period, a sub-era of the Medieval Era, the pigment used to make ultramarine was so valued that it was used to paint parts of the Virgin Mary rather than paint blue skies; an example of how Christianity was more important than worldly features.

In the Early Medieval Era, the feudal system provided for numerous amounts of peasants, which would help sustain their agriculture. The medieval society, consisting of peasants, traders, clergy members, and nobility began to change when the tradesmen class began to grow. This change occurred towards middle and end of the medieval era (precursor to the Renaissance) which is a clue that this must have changed art from the harsh, gospel-centered art it was, to something more expressive and realistic. One such work is The Effects of Good Government by Ambrogio Lorenzetti. The painting is different from typical Medieval paintings in that it’s primary focus is not religion or someone of nobility, but that it is merely a scene from daily life in a bustling town. There are peasants, merchants, and clergymen visible in the painting, a visual representation of the changing social dynamics in the middle-late medieval era.