The period of Romanesque art and architecture was prevalent in Europe during the second half of the eleventh century and the twelfth century. It was one of the first styles to be regarded as international styles since antiquity. The spread was partly due to the increased number of pilgrims following the pilgrimage routes through Europe and the crusades taking place at the time. However, it should be noted that distinctive regional influences can still be noted during the Romanesque period, between, for example, Northern Europe and Italy. The word Romanesque was also coined far later to refer to this period of art and architecture. This was due to the similarity between the arches and design used in this period and the arches and design used in the Roman period. Gothic art and architecture on the other hand was a development from the Romanesque period. However, unlike the Romanesque period a more set time and place can be attributed with Gothic art and architecture. It began particularly in Northern France, in Paris in the 1130’s to 1140’s, probably at Saint Denis, and then spread through to the rest of western Europe and central Europe. However, it never quite managed to overthrow the classical tradition in Italy. Romanesque and gothic art and architecture are very closely related art forms, however they do also present distinct differences and in this essay I will examine these differences within, firstly architecture particularly ecclesiastical, and then art.
Romanesque architecture is characterised by several features, the main one being the rounded roman arch. Charlemagne, upon being crowned the Holy Roman Emperor in 800 C.E, wanted to unite the empire and began doing this by building several churches around the empire in a Roman style, specifically a Constantinian style. After this there was a lull in the construction of architecture in this style, therefore this period is often known as the pre Romanesque period. Romanesque Cathedrals are solid, massive and impressive structures and were often the largest structure in the dwelling. Good examples of these are Durham and Gloucester Cathedrals, they are occasionally known as Norman Churches in England as many of them were built after the invasion of William the Conqueror from Normandy. They are characterised by large rounded arches which define the colossal nave and the emphasis on clarity and articulation. This creates a geometrically logical aesthetic for the church, which is increased as the arches are well proportioned for the size of the nave with large columns. The decoration uses geometrical shapes throughout, such as chevrons and diapers.
Romanesque architects transformed how a wall was viewed, it no longer defined a space in a single continuous manner and instead it was divided by arches, columns and ornamental mouldings, changing the way the space was viewed entirely.. This was aided by the use of good quality stone to construct these buildings, and combined with the increase in the movement of people led to the transportation of stone to a place for the building rather then relying on the local quarry. However, the most fundamental difference between the Romanesque period and earlier period is the recognition that the design of the building was important and that this could add to the splendour of a building, architecture began to be viewed in a similar way to painting. An early example of this is the tower that Gauzlin, the abbot of St-Benoit-sur-Loire, designed. Constructed in 1026 the tower was added onto the west end of the church and in it the piers varied and different within a pattern rather then uniform and plain. Therefore, Romanesque architecture is characterised by; the rounded arches, symmetry and logic, the geometrical decorations and the clarity and articulation of design.
Gothic architecture features very different characteristics. It is centred around the pointed arch; this was borrowed from Islamic architecture which was prevalent in Spain, following the Moorish invasion. This arch reduced the stresses placed on the columns which lead to these columns being reduced and becoming slenderer. Ribbed vaulting is also highly characteristic of Gothic architecture, this style was developed from the lancet style of early gothic into the complex and elaborate vaulting used in the Rayonnant gothic period. While gothic architecture often brings to mind dark spaces the opposite is in fact true, with windows becoming far more central to the design of a gothic cathedral thereby greatly increasing the light within the building. There was also a greater trend for using cut stone instead of rubble walls that were typical in Romanesque buildings. The use of buttresses became more common than it had previously been, this made the outside of a Gothic building far more intricate and decorated and this was enhanced by the use of sculpture on the outside of the building with these sculptures becoming more elegant and individualistic with the development of the gothic forms. By the late gothic period almost every surface was decorated in some way, this led to a profusion of shapes and colours and a very new style of decorating a church, while the building as a whole was coherent the decorations became more unfocused and difficult to discern then had been seen during the geometrical simple decorations of the Romanesque churches. Therefore, the gothic period was characterised by the increase in windows, the use of stone vaulting, the pointed arches and the cacophony of colour and decoration in the late gothic period.
The easiest way to see the clear differences between the Gothic and Romanesque architecture is to look at an example of each. A classic example of Romanesque architecture is exhibited at Durham Cathedral begun three decades after William the Conqueror’s invasion. The Cathedral was built to contain the relics of St Cuthbert. It is a fortified heavy cathedral which is highly dependent on the roman rounded arches that can be seen throughout the cathedral. The columns have been patterned with chevrons, lozenges and fluted, this creates a simple and cohesive yet striking pattern throughout. The cathedral was originally designed to be the same width and length as St Peter’s in Rome. The depth of the walls has also been emphasised through the chevron patterns, this makes the cathedral feel far darker. There is a clear divide between the arches that line the nave, the arches in the triforium and the clerestory, with moulding and no continuation of the columns.
The Sainte-Chapelle in Paris is an example of a Gothic church, it was built in 1241-8 to house the relics of the passion of Christ. It displays the pointed arches typical of this period. The stained glass windows allow an astonishing amount of light to illuminate the church. It is not on the same scale as many of the Romanesque churches. The windows provide an enormous amount of colour and this is only exaggerated by the painting on all the wall space leading to an almost overwhelming effect. The ceiling exhibits the gothic stone vaulting style and the ribs on the vaults continue all the way down to the columns in the nave, contrasting the style of separating the nave from the triforium and clerestory.
These two examples show clear differences between gothic and Romanesque architecture; notably the shape of the arches, the use of light and the decoration of the churches.
Romanesque art can be characterised by the surrealist nature of the depiction of people, they are rarely very naturalistic. Most of the art produced in this period was also religious. There are of course exceptions to this, one of the best examples being the casket currently held in the British museum which was made in 1180, it is wood with champlevé enamels attached to it depicting scenes of courtly love.
Much of the art bears striking resemblance to earlier styles, such as Byzantine and Ottonian art, this is especially noticeable in the similarities between the Bury bible and the Byzantine wall paintings at Asinou in Cyprus. It is thought that perhaps Master Hugo, the artist of the Bury bible, had seen them. The Bury bible is a particularly remarkable piece of art that has survived since the Romanesque period, it was illustrated in roughly 1135 for the Bury St Edmunds abbey, the byzantine influence is also clear in Master Hugo’s use of vivid colours such as lapis lazuli blue. Another art form that was present during the Romanesque period was metal work, these were often some of the most highly valued objects at the time. The Stavelot triptych was made between 1156 and 1158 to house fragments of the true cross, and was commissioned by Wibalt who had travelled to Constantinople which is where the central enamel plaques are believed to have originated from. The design is clearly byzantine in style and again the surrealist figures pictured on either side show the Romanesque style
The gothic style really started most clearly in architecture and painting and sculpture remained closer to the Romanesque. However as the architectural style became more prevalent so there was a significant development in the style of art. Figures became longer and more elegant, they began to display different characteristics in each face and display a greater diversity of characters, however this was within reason; the Golden Haggadah which was made in 1320 in northern Spain displays the story of the Passover and while the figures are far more naturalistic, the image of the pharaoh is remarkably similar to depictions of European Kings at the time. A similar development was occurring in sculpture, the sculptures were becoming more realistic and this is can be seen in the sculptures on Reims Cathedral as compared with those on the tympanum of Vézelay Abbey.
The Wilton Diptych is one of the finest examples of Gothic art, it was painted between 1395 and 1399 for Richard the Second and depicts the King kneeling, on the left panel, to ask for the Virgin and Christ’s, on the right panel, blessing on his rule. Behind the King stands St Edmund, St Edward the Confessor and St John the Baptist. St Edward and St Edmund both wear crowns to signify that they were both previously kings showing that perhaps King Richard II was aiming for piety. It possesses the elegance that gothic art began to show, the detail in each face makes them all clearly identifiable and separate, there is interaction between the subjects instead of a static picture and it is highly decorative.
The wall paintings in San Clemente in Catalonia were completed in 1123. They are a prime example of Romanesque art and very clearly displaythe differences in gothic and Romanesque art. They depict Christ in the centre of a mandorla surrounded by seven other figures in the apse of the church. Christ is out of scale with the other figures to highlight his superior status, his head is highly distorted and elongated and it is noticeable that all the figures have similar features on their faces. While this lack of naturalism is frequently frowned on by early art historians such as Vasari, it was greatly admired by Picasso.
These two examples show the differences between Gothic and Romanesque art. Gothic art has greater naturalism, more diversity in the figures as well as greater elegance and more complex images.
In conclusion I believe that to properly characterise the differences between Romanesque and Gothic art one must first separate art from architecture While both have significant differences, architecture was perhaps the first to change from Romanesque to Gothic. The change in the shape of the arch and the increase in the amount of light filling the space were very significant, this was followed by the greater use of decoration and colour in churches. Then came the change in the style of art, from surrealist, similar figures, to elegant and individualistic figures.