Nedávný nález románského portálu západního průčelí cisterciáckého kostela v Plasích patří k nejvýznamnější domácí medievistické a také památkářské události posledních let. Výzdoba exteriérové strany jeho tympanonu nese reliéf, v interiéru se nachází unikátní nástěnná malba s motivem labyrintu. Na obou stranách spatřujeme dvakrát opakovaný motivy kříže. Na reliéfu jsou kříže zobrazeny jako procesní, na malbě je kříž akcentován ve středu cesty labyrintem umístěném v centru kříže, který je vymezen pozadím plochy. Obě strany interpretačně spojuje zásadní idea pohybu (procesní kříže, cesta labyrintem), a ta je spjata též se samotnou funkcí portálu; vstupovalo se jím z vnějšího profánního světa do posvátna církve-chrámu (ecclesia). Motiv labyrintu se v umění objevuje od antiky po současnost. V každé z epoch se uplatňoval ve zcela odlišných kontextech, jež korespondovaly s radikálně odlišnými funkcemi konkrétních labyrintů. První labyrint v křesťanském chrámu pochází ze 4. století. Od 9. století jej běžně nalézáme v různých významech v rukopisech. V evropské sakrální architektuře se vyskytovaly přibližně pouze v rozmezí 12. a 15. století. V následných staletích se přesunuly spíše do exteriérů s odlišnými světskými významy (zvl. zahradní bludiště). Labyrint v Plasích je třeba interpretovat na základě soudobých labyrintů dochovaných zejména ve Francii a Itálii a také v zrcadle středověkých etymologických výkladů slova labyrinthus. Na jedné straně reprezentoval nelehkou cestu kříže (imitatio Christi), na druhé formuloval komplikovaný a přitom triumfální vstup do lůna církve. Oba výklady nebyly protikladné, doplňovaly se, a navíc mohly absorbovat další významové roviny. Proto také mohl labyrint v Plasích v jednom ze svých etymologických výkladů (labor et intus) asociovat řádové heslo Ora et labora a v dalších významových odkazech též aktuálně prožívané křížové výpravy do Svaté země, které v té době hýbaly celou Evropou a nebyly živým námětem jen na vladařských dvorech (zakladatelem kláštera byl český panovník), ale právě i v nitru cisterciáckého řádu. and The discovery of the Romanesque portal of the western facade of the Cistercian church in Plasy is one of the most important events of recent years for Czech medievalists and conservationists. The exterior side of its tympanum carries a relief, while on the interior side there is a unique wall painting of a labyrinth. On both sides appear repeated crosses. On the relief they are depicted as processional, while in the painting the theme of the cross is emphasised with one cross in the centre of the way through a labyrinth that is itself set in the centre of another cross delineated in the background. In terms of interpretation, the two sides are linked by the idea of movement (the processional crosses, the path through the labyrinth) and this is also connected with the very function of the portal, through which one moves from the external profane world into the sacral church (ecclesia). The theme of the labyrinth has appeared in art from antiquity up to the present day. In every epoch it has been applied in different contexts that corresponding with the different functions. The first labyrinth in a Christian church dates from the 4th century. From the 9th century the labyrinths appear also in manuscripts. In European sacral architecture, the theme appears only in — roughly — the 12th to 15th centuries. The labyrinth in Plasy needs to be considered with an eye to other labyrinths of the period that have survived, particularly in France and Italy, and to medieval etymological interpretations of the word labyrinthus. Labyrinthus represented the hard way of the cross (imitatio Christi), but also a difficult yet triumphant journey into the womb of the Church. These interpretations were not contradictory but rather complementary and could absorb different levels of meaning. Thus, the labyrinth in Plasy could also be associated in one etymological meaning (labor et intus) with the order’s maxim Ora et labor, and also be an allusion to the crusades, which were causing a great stir throughout Europe at the time and inspired artistic production not just in the courts of rulers, but inside the Cistercian order itself.
Olej na plátně (178 x 220 cm): vítězný Amor (luk, toulec) drží v ruce šíp, sedí na pytli s penězi, kolem hudební nástroje, globus, umělecká díla, zbroj, napravo je pes., Togner 1999#, s. 370, č. 366., and Kopie podle obrazu z roku 1640 ve sbírce arcivévody Leopolda Wilhelma. Obraz je ilustrací Vergiliova slavného verše ze Zpěvů pastýřských: "omnia vincit Amor: et nos cedamus Amori" (Verg. ecl. 10, 69).
This paper examines the visual tradition of the court of Udaipur, in Rajasthan (India) during the reign of Maharana Amar Singh II, who ruled over the region of Mewar from 1698 to 1710 AD. This was a period of transition and experimentation from iconographic as well as stylistic perspectives. In tracing the development of Mewari painting during this period, the article analyses the different influences that shaped the emergence of this court tradition while drawing comparisons with Mughal painting. The development of painting in the court of Amar Singh II is examined through historical, stylistic, and thematic lenses. The article first briefly introduces earlier examples of portraiture; it then focuses on some of the paintings in the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, identifying the evolution of certain key stylistic and thematic characteristics. While comparisons with the Mughal examples highlight the source of the changes in Mewari painting, the paper also emphasises the syncretistic nature of Mewari painting and the experimentation that led to the emergence of a unique approach to court painting under the reign of Maharana Amar Singh II.
Kresba perem (19,2 x 14,4 cm): nalevo Parrhasios a Zeuxis (oba vousy, pláště, jeden z nich má baret), živě gestikulují obráceni k sobě, před nimi obraz chlapce s hrozny, k nimž se slétají ptáci. Za malíři další postavy., Konečný 1988#., Fučíková 1997#, I/142., Fusenig 2010#, s. 142., and Kresba byla inspirována historkou o sporu mezi slavnými řeckými malíři Zeuxidem a Parrhasiem, kterou zaznamenal Plinius v knize Kapitoly o přírodě/ Naturalis historia (35, 65-66). Později se Aachen k anekdotě vrátil obrazem chlapce s iluzivně podanými hrozny: Wien, KM, Chlapec s hrozny (mladý Bakchus nebo Amor).
Let us look at light used in art from the perspective of art history. Light is important in the methods used for displaying reality and the formation of different styles in painting. During the middle ages painters sought not only to display the real behaviour of light in the world but used light to view transcendental elements. Magister Theodoricus for example seemingly placed the light source inside the volume of figures of saints, and thus strengthened their spiritual presence in the area of the chapel in Karlštejn castle. The master of the Wittingau altar used a shadow to amplify the mystery of the scene, like the Dutch masters from the early 15th century in their night scenes. By using sfumato, Leonardo forced the viewer to start actively looking at indistinct contours of his characters and thus intensified their vividness. Caravaggio from before 1600 put emphasis on the contrasts of light and darkness, thus his chiaroscuro figures sharply emenate into light. The light carves objects out of the surrounding darkness and facilitates composing images. During this time, Galileo through his telescope and his art of drawing identified "spots" of the Moon as craters. Simultaneously, Annibale Carracci, and before him Jan van Eyck and after him Velásquez and many others used mirror optics for various pictorial representations of reality. Together, relations between light phenomena, optics and painting are rich in their complexity. and Ladislav Daniel.
The purpose of this study is to provide new insights into our understanding of Indian traditional concepts of painting and into the painter from the point of view of Sanskrit technical treatises. A number of śilpa śāstras explain the concept of painting by highlighting the divine origin of this art, which is defined in the narrative of two myths and in the establishment of traditional authorities such as Lord Viśvakarman and Nagnajit. Closely linked to the divine origin of this art is that of the auspiciousness attached to painting: the texts in this analysis explain the auspicious and inauspicious characteristics of painting, stressing the importance of concepts such as measurement, proportion, beauty and colors. This study will finally examine the painter himself who is considered by the śilpa śāstras as someone capable of grasping and using all these notions together in a skillful way. This article also seeks to highlight some critical discrepancies between the painter as described in the śilpa śāstras and the painter as described in secondary literature, in which he is sometimes identified with a yogī.