Gothic Discussion

I reviewed Lindsay's blog for the Gothic era.  She talked about how she got a chance to visit Notre Dame when she studied abroad in Paris.  The way she described the Dome, made me feel like I was actually standing there looking at it myself.  The pictures she chose to use of the stained glass in the cathedral are beautiful and show the design of Gothic windows.  The next blog that I looked at was Melanie's.  Melanie has also had a chance to visit the Salisbury Cathedral of Gothic design in England.  She mentioned how most Gothic cathedrals are found in France, but they are all over Europe.  She used many pictures of the cathedral she visited in England. This cathedral is breathtaking and really shows good examples of ribbed vaults and pointed arches.

You can view their blogs here:

Lindsay: http://www.history1lcb.blogspot.com/
Melanie: http://www.history1mlh.blogspot.com/

Gothic

The Gothic era took place between the times of 1140-1500.  Paris was the center of the Gothic world and churches were the center of city life.  During this time, religion was very important.  Religious expression was the heart of design.  Popes had a great amount of power within churches and that showed wealth status. Gothic style took inspiration from the Romanesque time period.  The three main elements of the Gothic era were pointed arches, ribbed vaults and flying buttresses. 

                                                    
Pointed Arch                                    Ribbed Vaults            Flying Buttresses

Cathedral were one of the main architectural elements of the Gothic era.  They contained very tall walls and many stained glass windows.  One of the classic stained glass styles was the Rose Window. Tracery's were also a very common style of window.  These aspects created an airiness, weightlessness and earthly feel.  St. Denis in France and Wells Cathedral in England are both great example of cathedrals.  One of the more common cathedrals that you may know is Notre Dame, both in Paris and Chartres, France. 

 

 <--- Notre Dame in Chartres
             Notre Dame in Paris --->






Gothic Cathedrals' basic floor plan and structural components were similar to the Romanesque, the chapels radiated out from the apse and had large stained glass windows, vertical lines suggested skyscrapers, high vaults created new demands with construction, and like a mentioned before, rib vaulting, pointed arches rather than rounded arches, and flying buttresses were a common look.

Take a moment to watch a video comparing and contrasting Gothic Architecture

to Romanesque Architecture!

Here are some modern applications of Gothic style

Islamic Discussion

For the unit on Islamic design, I reviewed Kristina P's blog and Megan S's blog.  Kristina really used great pictures to show how mosques were the main focus of Islamic design.  She mentioned how mosques are the center facility for prayer and worship, going there multiple times a day.  The detail of design is very intricate and makes their interiors look rich and high quality.  Kristina's modern applications and mosque interiors show this very clearly.  Megan talked about how one of her friends is Muslim and goes to this restaurant in Chicago. I too have heard of this from my Muslim friend, but have never seen pictures of it.  It really does exemplify the style of Islamic design. I also really enjoyed watching her video she posted.  It showed how there are multiple places around the world that have mosques and how styles how mosques are different. 


You can view their blogs here:

Kristina: http://www.history1kmp.blogspot.com/#!http://history1kmp.blogspot.com/2014/02/islamic.html
Megan: http://www.history1mes.blogspot.com/

Islamic Design

Islamic religion is the foundation of Islamic design.  Mosques are the central place for prayer and worship.  The first mosque was a prototype for other mosques to come.  This mosque was inspired from Mohammad who was the head figure of Islamic religion.  An example of an Islamic mosque is The Great Mosque of Kairouan.  This mosque was used as a prayer hall and was the most famous ancient mosque in Tunisia, North Africa.  The mosque of Sultan Ahmed, also known as the blue mosque, is another mosque in Constantinople.





The picture above is The Great Mosque of Kairouan.  This mosque demonstrated the use of the horseshoe arch and classic capitals.  The Sultan Ahmed (shown to the right) had one main dome, six minarets and eight smaller domes.  It has 200 stained glass windows, walls that look like carpet and over 20,000 handmade tiles.  The Taj Mahal, The Great Mosque of Cordoba and Alhambra are all examples of Islamic architecture and design.



Until relatively recent times, wooden furniture, such as tables and chairs were not as known in traditional Islamic societies. Throughout the warm and dry lands of North Africa, the Middle East, India and Central Asia, most people found it practical, as well as comfortable, to sit or kneel on the ground or on the floor. They used soft carpets to protect themselves from dirt and leaned against cushions and firmly stuffed bolsters.

Current Applications

 



 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Romanesque Discussion

For the unit on Romanesque style, I looked at Hannah and Megan's blogs.  I noticed right away that Hannah used one of the same pictures as I did and that fact alone, made me want to read more.  Hannah talked a lot about the major development of churches, as I did as well.  She mentioned how vaulted arches and stone sculptures were two of the main elements of this time.  She incorporated a bunch of different churches that were great examples of these elements. Her current applications were also good examples that can help others see how we use this style now.  Megan also talked about the style of the ceilings, but I was really interested in her current application pictures.  I like how she found another person who blogged about Romanesque style.  The examples of the house really emphasize the Romanesque look.

You can view their blogs here:

Hannah: http://www.history1hje.blogspot.com/
Megan S: http://www.history1mes.blogspot.com/

Romanesque

There is no exact beginning date of when the Romanesque period began, but Charles the Great was crowned Roman Emperor in 800.  He accomplished a lot during his reign.  He established schools and monasteries, encouraged learning and the arts, and encouraged building using the technology of Roman structures. The Romanesque period was most known for how many churches were established during this time.  There were a minimum 1, 587 churches built between 1000 and 1100.

 




Some typical features of churches:
- Semicircular arches and vaults
- Plans from the Early Christian Basilica
- Side chapel added in the transept
- Multiple Aisles
- Better illumination provided
- Choir added
- Roofs were now made from masonry not wood
- Rich tapestries

- Bibles and Chalices were set with stones
- Walls were typically green, blue, purple or gold

Romanesque interiors were very ornamental: stone carvings were popular and focused on Christ.  Church design was very different compared to residential design.  Most houses were made of wood, mud, and twigs with dirt floors. Due to the way these houses were built, very few people survived because it was wet and drafty causing constant sickness. There are not many pictures of residential homes from the past, but the modern architecture has taken great influence from that era. 



1890 Romanesque Yonkers, NY

 

Victorian Romanesque Mansion in Highland Park, IL
 

Masonry walls similar to the old residential homes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pompeii Discussion

I reviewed Rachael and Sammy's blogs.  I picked Rachael's blog for this unit because she talked about completely different things than I did.  Rachael informed me that there are four styles of wall paintings, which I had not known previous to reading her blog.  She also mentioned how Pompeii had a very common style for their Forum that many cities now have today.  The picture she used really shows how similar current day forums look compared to back then.  Sammy took a different approach and talked about the arrangement of houses and how they were more suited for privacy and space.  The furniture examples she used seem to be very similar to modern times.  This shows how much influence we took for Italy.

You can view their blogs here:

Rachael: http://www.history1rap.blogspot.com/
Sammy: http://www.history1sjn.blogspot.com/

Pompeii

Pompeii was a city in Italy near the town of Naples.  Pompeii was one of the many areas that was destroyed by the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in 79 A.D. Most of the town was covered in about 13- 20 feet of ash.  On the eve of that fateful eruption, scholars estimate that there were about 20,000 people living in Pompeii and the surrounding region.  I cant imagine losing everything I had, especially during that time period.  It would definitely take years to rebuild with limited resources.  This picture of the volcano erupting is breathtaking and scary all at the same time.

Pompeii was rediscovered in the year 1599 when an underground channel was found.  While doing research on Pompeii, I noticed how I saw a lot of ruins were uncovered along with inscriptions and murals painted on these cave walls.  It amazes me how we can find out so much about the past by uncovering hidden artifacts from back then.  It makes me think of objects that would be left behind now that would inform future researches about our life now.

 
Above shows the "Garden of the Fugitives" that shows plaster casts of victims still in situ; many of these casts are in the Archaeological Museum of Naples.

Current Applications of the Pompeii life style

 

Pompeii Movie



There is a movie about Pompeii coming out on February 21, 2014.  Here is a sneak peak at the trailer and other information about the movie and cast.

http://pompeiimovie.tumblr.com/

 



Byzantine Empire Discussion

I looked at Emily P's blog as well as Samantha's blog.  Emily taught me that out of 150 churches in Athens, 24 have survived virtually intact and that 85 have been destroyed.  It's amazing to hear that so many churches have survived even though 24 sound like such a small number.  With the amount of resources they had back then, I would have thought less than that would have lasted.  I really enjoyed her pictures of the modern Byzantine interiors.  They were very colorful and detailed.  Samantha talked about how she likes the Byzantine style because she enjoys geometric shapes and tiled walls.  I like that she tied in her own person style with the Byzantine look.  She really showed this by giving modern applications that have lots of geometric, tiled walls.

You can view their blogs here:

Emily P: http://www.history1evp.blogspot.com/
Samantha: http://www.history1skf.blogspot.com/

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the longest period in European history and is now referred to as Istanbul.  The Empire was influenced by the Orient and the Greeks.  They took the look of the dome from the east and the square base of the classical temple from the west to create Pendentive construction. The Pendentive method is described as the method of supporting a circular dome on a square base.  One example of the Pendentive method is the Hagia Sophia, which means 'church of the holy wisdom'.  This church collapsed 2-3 times during construction.

 The Hagia Sophia view of the exterior.  This shows the dome on the top as well as how the four corner towers outline the square base that is part of the Pendentive method.



Below shows how the Pententive shape takes form to create the Hagia Sophia.



 

Byzantine architecture and interior design consisted of arches, domes, mosaics that had gold or lapis backgrounds, central planning, alternating stone colors or stone and brick, vaults, interiors divided into bays, and using marble to tile floors because it was most durable.

 

Here are some current applications of Byzantine style to help understand their style.

 

 

k 

Early Christian Discussion

Melanie's blog grabbed my attention because she somewhat tells a story with her blog rather than just listing facts about this time period.  She mentioned how the Christians used concepts that the Romans used but modified them to focus on the one God.  The picture that Melanie used to show the difference in Basilica's really helped me understand the Christians concept better.  Just by adding the transcepts on both sides of the Basilica, it becomes a whole new shape.  She also talked about the mosaic motifs, which I had not in my blog, so it was nice to read about something different.  Megan D's blog also talked about the style of the churches and how they used the style of the Dome which was inspired from the Roman mausoleums.  I like her examples of the churches by showing a drawing of the monument as well as showing the design of the outside.

You can view their blogs here:

Melanie: http://www.history1mlh.blogspot.com/
Megan D: http://www.history1mmd.blogspot.com/

Early Christian Civilization

The Christian Civilization was the beginning of the Middle Ages occurring from 330- 800 C.E. Christianity began with the death of Christ in ancient Judea, an eastern outpost of the Roman empire. Christianity promoted access to God through Jesus Christ in a personal relationship which provided great hope, most of the time, those in the lower classes.  Constantine declared Christianity an official religion in 313 C.E.  Constantine believed he had received a sign from God before the battle of Milvian Bridge.  This sign was a vision of a shield containing a Christian cross.   

 



Christian Architecture main goal was to glorify God.  They had separate baptisteries, centrally planned buildings, clerestory windows, and the entrance of the church was opposite of the apse.  An example of Early Christian Civilization architecture is the Old St. Peter's Cathedral of Rome.  The total length of this cathedral is 700ft.



Most Christian furniture was made for storage and was very elaborate as well as richly decorated with jewels and carvings.  Here are a few modern applications of Christian furniture with some old flare.

Classical Rome Discussion

I chose Natalie's blog and Yo's blog for my discussion about Rome.  Natalie's blog interested me because she incorporated pictures of her own experience when she studied abroad in Italy.  Having close up pictures of both the Colosseum and the Pantheon show a more accurate display of how big they really look.  I would love to travel to Italy one day to see for myself how incredible the architecture really is.  I also like the fact that Natalie used modern applications that aren't exact replicas of the past, but use inspiration from that time.  I enjoyed Yo's blog for this topic because he went into more depth about how Roman architecture relates to Greece architecture.  He talked about how some current designers believe that columns are a "designer's nightmare", but I feel that incorporating columns into a design creates interest and length. 

You can view their blogs here:

Natalie: http://www.history1nml.blogspot.com/
Yo: http://www.history1ys.blogspot.com/