Renaissance Art

Noli me tangere is an absolutely amazing oil painting done by the German Northern Renaissance artist Hans Holbein the Younger between 1532 and 1533.  This piece is particularly fascinating because it is one of the few Protestant depictions of Christ in the visual arts during this time.  This is due majorly to the dawn of the Protestant Reformation in Northern Europe during the 16^th century.  The Protestant Reformation was a religious movement meant to reform the Catholic Church and is generally considered to have begun with Martin Luther’s publicizing of his 95 Theses in 1517—which was a public criticism of several doctrines of the Church and the sale of indulgences in particular (Protestant Reformation.).  During this time the visual arts experienced a significant shift in style and subject matter.  Iconoclasm was rampant in the northern countries and a general stigma toward religious subject matter in the visual arts developed.  Portraiture became mode and a more naturalistic style of art began to flourish (Naturalism (arts).).  

This new style and public mentality is quite evident in Holbein’s aforementioned piece.  Holbein refrains from using the iconic elements in his depiction of Christ that were common of the Italian Renaissance and a reflection of Catholic doctrine.  For example, his Christ lacks a halo, or a ring of light about the head, which commonly signified the holy nature of an individual in Italian Renaissance art (The Reformation and art.).  Additionally, Noli me tangere is painted in a far more naturalistic manner than humanist (the style popular in Italy).  Much attention is given to detail and the prominent figures of the painting (Christ, on the left, and Mary Magdalene, on the right) are very individualistic (Noli me tangere.).  They’re faces are incredibly expressive and life like.  Holbein’s piece is also quite small—a dramatic difference between Northern and Italian Renaissance art during the time of the Reformation.  Italian Renaissance art tended to be quite massive, covering entire walls and ceilings, whereas visual arts during the Reformation began to decrease in size. 

I am particularly fond of Holbein’s Noli me tangere because of its extraordinary attention to detail and its life-like figures.  If you look closely at the bottom of the oil painting you can see individual blades of grass that Holbein painted into the hill and even Christ’s and Mary Magdalene’s toenails!  Considering the relatively small size of the painting (76.1×95.2 cm), this must have been quite tricky to accomplish.  The figures of Christ and Mary Magdalene are also incredibly life like.  They’re robs actually look soft and their skin looks alive.  One is able to experience the intensity of the moment between these two figures (Mary has just discovered Jesus alive after being crucified) because of this amazing attention to detail on Holbein’s part in painting their expressions.  Mary truly looks shocked, and one can actually see her eyes bulge slightly at the sight of Jesus.     

References Cited:
Naturalism (arts). 2009. 16 Sept. 2009
Noli me tangere. 2009. 16 Sept. 2009
Protestant Reformation. 2009. 16 Sept. 2009
The Reformation and art. 2009. 16 Sept. 2009
Picture: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8c/Noli_me_tangere_(1524)%3B_Hans_Holbein_the_Younger.JPG

It begins….

So here it is: my first post on my first ever Blog! 

(http://images.darkhorse.com/covers/300/10/10847.jpg)

Jo Chen is one of my absolute favorite graphic novel artists — she has an amazing talent of capturing life and expressing it in pen and ink.  She has been involved in the comic industry since the age of 14 and has worked most notably for D.C. Comics and Dark Horse Comics producing cover art for The Runaways and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.  I’m particularly fond of Jo Chen because she has a talent of making pen and ink appear as paint, which is a difficult task.  Additionally, her art is always so full of action and movement, even though it’s confined to the second dimension of the page.  She’s a very imaginative women and always produces unique and fun work.  I’m constantly amazed by her ability to perfectly capture the essence of my favorite written characters and express them as images. 

I adore Jo Chen’s cover Art!  She’s brilliant!!!!