Week 13, Locating Renaissance Art, Chapter 5, The painter Angelos and post-Byzantine art

Introduction

Carol Richardson sets out this chapter which concentrates on the painter Angelos and post-Byzantine art. She states that this art is often ignored when considering the Renaissance and that Vasari was completely dismissive and hostile towards what he called 'Greek manner'. However, Angelos working in Crete, a colony of Venice, was exposed to Italian influences and his working practices were very akin to Italian Renaissance artists. Like the Sienese his work shows continuity with local traditions as well as innovation.

The painter Angelos and post-Byzantine art

Angeliki Lymberopouloo explains that in this chapter she will explore the work of Angelos and the period of post-Byzantine art and its creation in Crete. The Byzantine Empire ended in 1453, 330 years after the founding of Constantinople, when it fell to the Ottoman Turks. Some parts of the old Byzantine Empire however, had been under Western rule since the Fourth Crusade in 1204 such as Crete. Here the Greek speaking Orthodox Christian communities continued to flourish, and Angelos was the leading artist of this period subsequently influencing artists such as El Greco.

1. Towards Angelos' Crete

This short section covers the history of Crete from 1204 when it became a Venetian possession and outlines the way in which it was governed, and how the native population and the 10,000 Venetian colonists eventually merged to establish their identity as Cretans. Over the period the divisions between the Catholics and the Orthodox narrowed as each became more familiar with and tolerant of the other. Following the fall of Constantinople in 1453 the art of Crete eventually lost its natural link to Constantinople and turned towards Venice as the primary artistic centre.

2. Who is Angelos?

This sections title describes it's content discussing the life of the painter and the evidence of his life, particularly his will. Working on Crete even as a Greek Byzantine painter, he was exposed to the art of the west, and even held a position on the island that would indicate links with the Venetian rulers.

3. Angelos' works

Techniques

Angelos' icons were generally painted on Cypress wood in egg tempera. Part of the technique was to put down a foundation layer of dark paint, representing the world before the arrival of Christ - the Light. He appears to have had quite a large workshop and the section describes his collection of patterns used for the icons, and records their value and desirability.

Tradition and innovation in iconography

This lengthy section discusses a number of works (icons) and their various styles, the manner in which they display a full awareness of Byzantine and Greek Orthodox tradition, alongside innovations that would tend to point to an awareness of Western art. The works reinforce the notion that Angelos had a great understanding of the Orthodox tradition and the scriptures.

Style

This section reviews a number of aspects of Angelos' work and his style alongside that of the Byzantine tradition. It concludes that he must have been a fully trained Byzantine artist. However, living in Crete and with exposure to the work of 14th Century Venetian artists there is a comparison made between Angelos' St. George on Horseback Killing the Dragon (mid-fifteenth century) (CB2 P5.198 p.195) and that of Paolo Veneziano Saint George Killing the Dragon (1340's) (CB2 P5.22 p.199). It is noted however, that some of the similarities could also be due to the influence of Byzantine art on the 14th century Venetian artist.

4 Angelos' students: Andreas Pavias, Andreas Ritzos and Nikolaos Zafuris

This section firstly looks at the way at which artists on Crete came to have a confraternity, and to work with apprentices and students under contracts, in the same manner as those in Italy and in Venice particularly. It then goes on to look at the work of the three students of Angelos comparing a number of their paintings and details from them with works of Angelos which show his training and influence. It shows how the work of Angelos and his influence was a major contributor to the development of post-Byzantine art and icons.

Conclusion

Briefly reviewing Angelos, his work which led to the development of post-Byzantine art and the reemergence of post-Byzantine Cretan painters. The point is made that this led to changes in the status and working practices of these artists and also to the revival and creation of icons which display new features, some of which can be seen as having been influenced by Italian and Western artists. Angelos also is recognised as the first Byzantine artist to promote his name and hence raise the status of the artist from craftsman. The difficulty of being 'known' because of the hard to pronounce and spell Greek names was to be highlighted and overcome by the later Cretan born artist El Greco, the name change enabling him to become 'known' in the West.