Introducing "Sacred Images": a place for students and teachers

From the Catacombs to Giotto: how did we get here and what does it all mean?

Jan 10, 2024

A study group

Having received my long-sought official Italian ID card, an odyssey of two years (no kidding) and consequently my new Italian bank account, to which I can connect my Stripe account, monetisation of the Substack is at last within sight. As I wrangle over the next few days with online banks, PayPal, Stripe and the technical ins and outs of setting up paid subscriptions, I thought we could go over the purpose and my hopes for this separate section of my Substack, World of Hilarity. As I said the other day, the plan for moving forward will be to create a separate section of the site for paid subscribers, and this is it.

After this introductory post everything posted here will be sent to paid subscribers only.

At the top of the site’s main page, you will see a tab in the middle called, “Sacred Images” and this post is filed there. I hope it will provide a centre for networking and further development and reading for those interested in going deeper.

It will be a place we can talk, in the comments and in a related private chatroom, to ask and answer each other’s questions, provide a kind of back-up team for home schoolers, teachers and students, and anyone looking to expand their knowledge of these art forms. Once I’ve learned how, I hope to offer podcasts interviewing noteworthy figures, and eventually videos where we can go see some of the works in situ…at least the ones in Italy.

At the same time, my weekly post on whatever subjects that happen across our path, will continue, and continue to be free, for all subscribers both paid and unpaid. These will go out to the full list - now 1700 people! - as usual, but posts in the Sacred Images section will go only to paid subscribers by email.

“Sacred Images” - a learning community

We’re going to call it, “Sacred Images,” and its purpose is to dive into a grand exploration of 1200 years of Christian art, in all its aspects in every country that has developed a quantifiable style. And more than that, we will talk about how Christian art relates directly to the mystical reality of our faith; in other words, how does the art teach and guide and sanctify us? What does it really mean?

Course (draft) overview

First section; survey package, Christian Sacred Art 101

The first package - or I guess we could call it an e-book - will be a basic outline, a broad and very general survey of Christian sacred art, its terminology, forms in painting, mosaic, sculpture and architecture (music is not my department, sorry). These will be aimed in their writing style at teachers rather than homeschooled child learners. In addition to the text, I’ll be including more learner-oriented materials like projects, quizzes, maps and images.

When you buy the package/e-book, you’ll have a reference source to keep that gives an overview of the history of Christian art, starting in the times of the Roman persecutions up to about 1500 AD. To these I’ll be adding more material as we go along that will be bundled into supplemental packages that you will be able to buy here.

Part I: The Origins of Christian Sacred Art

The forms, materials and methods: mosaic, fresco, panel paintings, manuscript paintings, sculpture
Sacred architecture 101: house churches to basilicas to Gothic cathedrals
The Catacombs: Christian art under persecution
The Early Christian Era: From Iconoclasm to Icon Veneration

Part II: The Middle Ages: The Golden Age of Christian Sacred Art

Byzantine Art: The Iconostasis and the development of Mosaics
Romanesque Art: Cathedral, frescos and sculpture
Gothic Art: A true western, European sacred art, matured and reaching its peak.

The second part will be divided into three sections, Byzantine, Romanesque and Gothic, with each package focusing on one of these three broad post-emancipation (313 AD) categories. In supplemental materials we can drill down as far as we want into the specifics of each of these general areas.

There’s a lot to cover:

2nd-4th centuries

The earliest Christian art was produced in the catacombs of Rome, where Christians hid from persecution. This art is characterized by its use of symbolism and its simple, stylized forms.
Some of the most famous examples of early Christian art include the frescoes of the Catacomb of Priscilla and the Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus.

4th-6th centuries

The legalization of Christianity in the 4th century led to a surge in the production of Christian art. This art is characterized by its use of more realistic, naturalistic forms and its greater emphasis on didactive narrative.
Some of the most famous examples of early Christian art from this period include the mosaics of the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore and the San Apollinare Nuovo.

9th c. mosaic of the Virgin and Child, Hagia Sophia, Constantinople.

6th-8th centuries

The Byzantine Empire became the centre and standard of Christian art in the 6th and 7th centuries. Byzantine art is characterized by its use of gold leaf, emphasis on symbolism, and its hierarchical composition.
Some of the most famous examples of Byzantine art from this period include the mosaics of Hagia Sophia and the iconostasis of St. Catherine's Monastery.

Codex Amiatinus is the earliest surviving manuscript of the complete Bible in the Latin Vulgate. Ceolfrid (642-716), abbot of Wearmouth and Jarrow commissioned three large Bibles from the abbey's Wearmouth-Jarrow scriptorium, two of which were placed in each of the twin churches in Wearmouth and Jarrow and the third of which was intended as a gift for the pope. The Bibles were copied from the sixth-century Codex Grandior, now lost. Preserved in the Medicea Laurenziana Library in Florence, it is one of the world's most important manuscripts.

8th-11th centuries

The political divisions and movements that were the precursors of the Great Schism began to divide the art of the period as well. The rise to power of Charlemagne brought the Carolingian Renaissance in the West. This led to a revival of interest in realism and naturalism in Christian art, and melding of classical western (Latin) and Byzantine forms.
Some of the most famous examples of Carolingian and Ottonian art include the ivory carvings of Theophanu and the Codex Amiatinus.

12th-15th centuries

The Gothic period was another major period of innovation in Christian art. Gothic architecture is characterized by pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and flying buttresses, which allowed for the construction of taller, more spacious and better-lit churches.
Gothic painting emerged in the 12th century in Northern France as an evolution of Romanesque painting, and it flourished throughout Europe until the 15th century. It is characterized by its emphasis on naturalism, emotion, and spiritual transcendence.

And we will talk about the multitude of national forms of Christian art, from Ireland, Scotland and Britain, to Egypt and Ethiopia. Every one of the art forms discussed above have national and regional variations.

Stay tuned…

Until I’ve sorted out the details of monetising, I’m still grateful to receive donations that have made this work possible so far. You can make a one-time contribution, or sign up to be a monthly patron, at my studio blog. Many thanks to all those who have contributed and continue to do so.

Hilary White: Sacred Art

The Sacred Images Project

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