Christian Art - A Very Short Introduction.pdf

Unlike other terms that might be used to categorize art, ‘Christian
art’ is unusual in that it does not describe art of a particular style,
period, or region, but art for a particular range of purposes, which
encompasses a wide range of forms and styles. Because of this the
range of material that could be covered in a book on the subject is
potentially vast. I have chosen to focus only on pictorial art –
paintings, prints, manuscripts and printed books – not on
architecture, nor on sculpture, nor ‘applied arts’ such as metalwork
or textiles. The choice as to how to limit such a large range of
material will inevitably be somewhat arbitrary and personal, and
the particular examples discussed here are not even selected
qualitatively: this book does not attempt to delineate a range of the
‘greatest masterpieces’ of Christian art. Instead, some central
themes have been chosen, which allow certain important ideas and
concepts relating to Christian art to be considered. The examples
selected allow those themes, ideas, and concepts to be explored in a
variety of ways: the same ideas could almost certainly be discussed
using an entirely different set of examples.
A particularly fascinating aspect of the study of Christian art is that
it touches upon such a wide range of other subjects: history, politics,
theology, philosophy, to name but a few. Christian art began within
the restricted confines of minority communities, initially
persecuted for their beliefs. Over its two millennia of existence it developed into having an almost universal presence in the public
buildings and private spaces across what was known as
‘Christendom’, the territories in which Christianity held sway.
Christian art would be seen in cathedrals, abbeys, and great
churches, royal palaces, government buildings and public spaces, as
well as in smaller parish churches, private homes, and even in
apparently secular spaces such as shops and markets. Christian
imagery could be seen in great cycles of wall-paintings and mosaics
on church walls, which told the universal stories of Christian
history. It could be seen on smaller paintings on wood panels, or
cloth, designed to be set up in churches, or carried in processions.
Books, for church services, and for private reading and prayer,
carried illustrations of the Christian texts included, and Christian
images appeared on many of the other accoutrements of Christian
worship and devotion, such as the vestments of churchmen, the
precious metalwork vessels used in church services, and the
reliquaries and shrines in which the remains of holy men and
women were venerated. Kings and rulers used Christian imagery to
bolster their own ideologies and political rhetoric, and groups of
ordinary citizens rallied around favoured examples of Christian art,
objects that were regarded as miraculous or in other ways
particularly special to a local community or social group. During the
late Middle Ages, Christian art was part of an expression of an
apparently universal world-view. Then, with changes and
developments to the theology and practice of Christianity itself, and
the formal emergence of different denominations or groupings
under the wider umbrella of Christianity, more specific types and
forms of Christian art became associated with the variant views of
Christianity promoted by different groups, with Christian art even
being rejected entirely in some circles. It will be seen, throughout
this book, that Christian art, besides offering ‘illustrations’ of biblical
stories and theological messages, is often also used to express
particular political views, philosophical ideas, and cultural
identities, and that in some contexts the very existence, or not, of
Christian art – let alone the specific aspects of particular objects and
images – can become an explicitly political or ideological statement.