Tag Archives: virgin and child
The Ravishing Madonnas of Emilia-Romagna
There’s a big slice of the pie chart in my brain dedicated to hilarious renditions of the Virgin and Child. While I saw plenty of these in my recent trip to the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, I ended up being astonished by the knockout gorgeous Madonnas instead. There’s a charming (free!) museum in Bologna called […]
Abbaye Saint-Philibert in Tournus: tranverse barrel vault FOR THE WIN!
We visited stark Abbaye Saint-Philibert in Tournus on a chilly winter day. (If you’re also visiting in winter, bundle up!) The interior was….ingenious. Apparently transverse barrel vaulting was invented here and it’s an engineering feet which turns the vaults that normally run the length of the church’s nave sideways, like a half barrel, and transfers the […]
The Isenheim Altarpiece: a tormented, mystical and ecstatic crucifixion in a nauseatingly cute town
It’s Good Friday and I’m thinking about the pilgrimage we made to see the Isenheim Altarpiece, the bizarre crucifixion by Matthias Grunewald in Colmar, France. This is a perfect example of an artwork I couldn’t comprehend until I saw it in person. The altarpiece was created in 1512-1515 for a hospital that treated patients suffering from skin diseases, […]
Why I travel for sacred art and whether I’m religious…….or not
I adore religious art, and I travel to see it in person any chance I get. Most of my happiest days in Europe have been spent with HOB in and around cathedrals (and the occasional mosque and synagogue.) Of all music, I am most enthralled by masses and oratorios, and I’d much rather see art in a church […]
Picnic at the Cathedral 