Is the Isenheim altarpiece a polyptych?
This polyptych, which decorated the high altar of the monastery hospital’s chapel until the French Revolution, was commissioned by Guy Guers, who served as the institution’s preceptor from 1490 to 1516.
What was the purpose of an altarpiece?
altarpiece, work of art that decorates the space above and behind the altar in a Christian church. Painting, relief, and sculpture in the round have all been used in altarpieces, either alone or in combination. These artworks usually depict holy personages, saints, and biblical subjects.
What is a series of 3 paintings called?
A painted or carved triptych typically has three hinged panels, and the two outer panels can be folded in towards the central one. A literary or musical triptych generally consists of three closely related or contrasting themes or parts.
What style is the Isenheim Altarpiece?
Northern RenaissanceIsenheim Altarpiece / Period
Interpretation of Isenheim Altarpiece. One of the greatest Renaissance paintings of the 16th-century, this complex polyptych altarpiece was created by the German artist we now know as Matthias Grunewald, about the same time that Raphael was decorating the Vatican in Rome.
What is the base of an altarpiece called?
A predella is the platform or step on which an altar stands (*predel or *pretel, Langobardic for “a low wooden platform that serves as a basis in a piece of furniture”). In painting, the predella is the painting or sculpture along the frame at the bottom of a polyptych or multipanel altarpiece.
Who sculpted Isenheim Altarpiece?
Matthias Grünewald
Nikolaus Hagenauer
Isenheim Altarpiece/Artists
Which of the following are depicted in the painted panels of the Isenheim Altarpiece?
chapel of the Hospital of Saint Anthony, Isenheim, Germany, ca. 1510-1515. Befitting its setting in a monastic hospital, Matthias Grünewald’s Isenheim Altarpiece includes painted panels depicting suffering and disease but also miraculous healing, hope, and salvation.
What is Isenheim altarpiece made of?
The Isenheim Altarpiece has a fairly complex construction. It is an old sculpted altar, made by Niklaus Hagenauer (1445-1538) and consisting of three carved wood statues of saints, to which six wings (painted by Grunewald) have been attached – three on each side.
Who sculpted Isenheim altarpiece?
What is a triptych altarpiece?
A triptych (/ˈtrɪptɪk/ TRIP-tik; from the Greek adjective τρίπτυχον “triptukhon” (“three-fold”), from tri, i.e., “three” and ptysso, i.e., “to fold” or ptyx, i.e., “fold”) is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided into three sections, or three carved panels that are hinged together and can be folded …
What is the difference between reredos and retable?
is that reredos is a screen or decoration behind the altar in a church, usually depicting religious iconography or images while retable is a table or shelf behind an altar, on which are placed images or holy objects. A screen or decoration behind the altar in a church, usually depicting religious iconography or images.
What is a reredos made of?
A reredos can be made of stone, wood, metal, ivory, or a combination of materials. The images may be painted, carved, gilded, composed of mosaics, and/or embedded with niches for statues. Sometimes a tapestry or another fabric such as silk or velvet is used.
What is the meaning of reredos?
A screen or decoration behind the altar in a church, usually depicting religious iconography or images. A bad reredos’ will ruin the best church ever designed; and, although a good ‘ reredos cannot convert a bad church into a good one, it may do much to lessen the offensiveness of its badness.