The Arts of Medieval Europe: 800-1050 (In Person Plus Gallery Talks)

In 800, Charlemagne became Emperor of the Romans. He, and the subsequent dynasty of  emperors, sought to revive Christian Antiquity, instigating what has been termed a renaissance. The Saxon Ottonian Emperors assumed the imperial title in 962; they too revered Antiquity and sought, for political ends, to emulate the aesthetics of the Byzantine Empire. Many Carolingian and Ottonian commissions were linked to imperial court patronage, frequently through the intermediary of monasteries. In England the visual arts flourished with monasteries playing a vital role in craftsmanship. By the 960s Iconoclasm’s influence had waned in Western Europe; monumental, three-dimensional sculpture became acceptable once more.  

The year 1000 was greeted with anxiety, and its passing with relief. The new millennium’s confident mood witnessed the emergence of a centralized Western church, the most powerful organization of the high Middle Ages, dominated by the monastic orders. Unprecedented investment was placed in church buildings, many inspired by aspects of surviving Roman monuments. The mighty Romanesque style will be explored, with case studies to highlight regional stylistic variations.