This is a piece of Byzantine art called Our Lady of Perpetual Help. This piece depicts Mary (Mother of Jesus) sheltering a frightened young Jesus, who must have been running so fast, that his sandal is coming off. We then see the Archangels Michael and Gabriel on either side. I recognize this piece as Byzantine art because of the way Jesus' head is. In this time period, artists had not yet learned how to draw babies, or young children, so instead of looking like an actual baby, Jesus looked like a little man.
Jesus' falling sandal is used to indicate his alarm at his coming death. I think it is interesting that Mary's mouth is small and that we should understand that this symbolizes her contemplation and quietness at Christ's birth. Biblical accounts read, "and she pondered all these things in her heart."
ReplyDeleteAnother way you can tell this is Byzantine art is how the clothes are arranged on the characters. Notice how stylized Mary's cloak is. You can see how the artist tried to give the impression of draping the clothes around her, but wanted to conform to that flat sort of style the Byzantines seemed to prefer. I also think it's interesting how both Mary and Jesus seem to wear crowns with their halos as well. It adds another level of meaning if you think about it. It's almost like it's saying "Future ruler of Earth right here", at least to me.
ReplyDeleteI like how Mary's halo looks like a stained glass window from a church, but, I am wondering what the letters/words say, also, why are the angels wearing purple when Mary and Jesus are in dark clothes.
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