Theophilus and the Theory and Practice of Medieval Art

by Heidi C. Gearhart

Overview

In this study of the rare twelfth-century treatise On Diverse Arts, Heidi C. Gearhart explores the unique system of values that guided artists of the High Middle Ages as they created their works.

Written in northern Germany by a monk known only by the pseudonym Theophilus, On Diverse Arts is the only known complete tract on art to survive from the period. It contains three books, each with a richly religious prologue, describing the arts of painting, glass, and metalwork. Gearhart places this one-of-a-kind treatise in context alongside works by other monastic and literary thinkers of the time and presents a new reading of the text itself. Examining the earliest manuscripts, she reveals a carefully ordered, sophisticated work that aligns the making of art with the virtues of a spiritual life. On Diverse Arts, Gearhart shows, articulated a distinctly medieval theory of art that accounted for the entire process of production—from thought and preparation to the acquisition of material, the execution of work, the creation of form, and the practice of seeing.

An important new perspective on one of the most significant texts in art history and the first study of its kind available in English, Theophilus and the Theory and Practice of Medieval Art provides fresh insight into the principles and values of medieval art making. Scholars of art history, medieval studies, and Christianity will find Gearhart’s book especially edifying and valuable.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780271079813
Publisher:	Penn State University Press
Publication date:	05/02/2017
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	236
File size:	16 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Heidi C. Gearhart is Assistant Professor of Art History at Assumption College.

Table of Contents

Contents

List of Illustrations

Acknowledgments

List of Abbreviations

Introduction

1 Pedagogy and Exegesis

2 The Transformation of Matter

3 Monastic Labor and Craft

4 The Display of Skill

Conclusion: The Practice of Seeing

Notes

Bibliography

Index

Editorial Reviews

A significant and meaningful scholarly contribution to our understanding of the complexity of Theophilus’s approach and the Christian meanings imbedded within his prologues and instructions. Without a doubt, readers today will understand in new and fascinating ways the more profound role On Diverse Arts likely played for twelfth-century monastic artists and patrons alike.”

—Kate Dimitrova CAA.Reviews

“Gearhart's contribution, in particular her physical examination of the manuscript witnesses, the convincingly argued textual analysis and historical contextualization, and her model of process-aware ‘Theophilan viewing,’ will challenge and orient, with authority, future approaches to both Theophilus and, more broadly, the medieval work of art.”

—Joseph Salvatore Ackley Sehepunkte

“A sophisticated reading not only of Theophilus’s text but also of an array of twelfth-century art, enhancing our understanding of what art making and viewing meant in the Middle Ages. It engages with broader issues currently under discussion in the field: the notion of the individual artist, the religious dimensions of art, and the importance of memory in art, spirituality, and social relations.”

—Adam S. Cohen, author of The Uta Codex: Art, Philosophy, and Reform in Eleventh-Century Germany

“Heidi Gearhart’s arguments about ‘free will,’ the morality of the correct manipulation of materials, the proper ornamentation of the church, the place of art, and even Theophilus’s use of words (diligenter) as found in De diversis artibus come together to create a picture of the role of the artist/artisan that is uniquely medieval and Christian. In sum, an object created by such an artist is a ‘trace’ of good behavior and witness to man’s participation in God’s creation.”

—Cynthia Hahn, author of Strange Beauty: Issues in the Making and Meaning of Reliquaries, 400–circa 1204

“Every student of medieval art has heard of Theophilus, and many have read On Diverse Arts, but few scholars have grappled with the true challenges of the text. Heidi Gearhart’s book opens this topic in new and exciting ways, bringing the complex political and spiritual landscape of Romanesque Germany into a fresh dialogue with the manuscripts and art objects associated with Theophilus and his circle. The result is a thoughtful, insightful, and deeply engaging discussion of On Diverse Arts, not merely as a manual for making art but rather as a richly rewarding document that sheds unexpected light on the social, artistic, and intellectual culture of twelfth-century Europe.”

—Shirin Fozi, University of Pittsburgh

“The key contribution of [Gearhart’s] study is to show how the treatise is much more learned than was previously thought while also deeply concerned with technical and practical matters.”

—Daniela Krupp Burlington Magazine

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