Thesis Chapters by Ilaria Matteoni
«Piangendo parea dicer: "Più non posso".» L'iconografia del telamone dall'arte antica a Giovanni Pisano, 2021
L’elaborato finale si concentra sull’analisi di origine e problematiche relative al sostegno e al... more L’elaborato finale si concentra sull’analisi di origine e problematiche relative al sostegno e allo pseudo-sostegno antropomorfo, sulla diffusione del motivo dell’atlante, della cariatide e del telamone. Il primo capitolo si sofferma sui fenomeni dell’arte antica – principalmente greca e romana, senza dimenticare però alcune manifestazioni delle culture mesopotamiche – e sull’interpretazione delle sopracitate iconografie entro un assetto culturale, architettonico e artistico pagano. Il secondo capitolo analizza la traduzione dei motivi da parte del mondo cristiano, le modalità secondo le quali le caratteristiche della figura di Atlante vengono reinterpretate dalla cultura e letteratura cristiana, dagli scritti dei primi Padri della Chiesa e degli eruditi della corte carolingia di secolo VIII fino al Gotico di Giovanni Pisano. La conclusione del secondo capitolo percorre le varianti iconografiche del sostegno antropomorfo, dagli evangelisti che sorreggono i lettorini di amboni e pulpiti alle Virtù che elevano i sepolcri dei defunti. Il terzo capitolo è interamente dedicato a Giovanni Pisano, principalmente al telamone del pulpito della chiesa di Sant’Andrea a Pistoia e al presunto autoritratto accovacciato del pulpito del Duomo di Pisa. È indagata, in relazione con ciò, la questione relativa all’autoritratto d’artista come telamone e sostegno dell’opera.
The following thesis analyses the origin and the diffusion of the anthropomorphic support’s iconography – atlas or caryatid – from the ancient period (Greek and Roman art) to the end of the Middle Ages. The first chapter focuses on Ancient art, also by bringing attention to specific manifestations of the examined iconographic motive in Mesopotamic art. The main theme of this chapter regards the transformations occurred between the mythologic narration concerning the figure of the titan Atlas, and its necessary reinterpretation on behalf of the Roman Empire. The second chapter studies the characteristics of the iconography of the atlas, i.e., the medieval telamon, after its collocation into the visual repertoire of Christian art. The last paragraph of this chapter follows the processes of revaluation and positive metamorphosis of the motive, its translation into Evangelists and Virtues, who support pulpit’s lecterns and funerary sarcophagi. The third chapter is entirely dedicated to Giovanni Pisano’s telamons, such as the one crouched under a column that bears the weight of the upper portion of Pistoia’s pulpit, inside the church of Sant ’Andrea, or the supposed self-portrait hunched under the caryatid representing Christ of the pulpit of the cathedral of Pisa.
Papers by Ilaria Matteoni
Finxit. Dialoghi Tra Arte E Scrittura Dal Medioevo all’Età Moderna, 2, 2023
ITA: Considerando i telamoni scolpiti d’ambito wiligelmico affiancati e connotati da iscrizioni,... more ITA: Considerando i telamoni scolpiti d’ambito wiligelmico affiancati e connotati da iscrizioni, solitamente di breve estensione, i cui versi sembrano essere direttamente pronunciati dal personaggio e rivolti allo stesso osservatore, il tema iconografico del sostegno antropomorfo offre un interessante spazio di riflessione utile all’indagine del connubio tra scultura, scrittura e fruitore. Ragionando sulle possibili implicazioni metatestuali e su come la relazione possa chiarificare l’iconografia del telamone, il presente contributo percorre alcuni degli episodi di tale itinerario guardando non solo alle iscrizioni che corrono attorno al pulpito commissionato a Giovanni Pisano per la cattedrale di Pisa, ma anche alle immagini dantesche che, tra Purgatorio X e XI, tentano di spiegare al lettore l’atroce pena dei Superbi, costretti a portare su di sé pesanti massi, com’è il caso del miniatore Oderisi.
ENG: The iconographic matter of the anthropomorphic support offers an interesting space for reflection and a useful instrument for the analysis of relationships between sculpture, writing and the observer, especially by considering the sculpted wiligelmic telamons that are accompanied and connoted by inscriptions, usually of short extension, whose verses seem to be directly pronounced by the figure, and addressed to the spectator. Starting from the meta-textual implications and from the clarification of the telamon’s iconography, the essay focuses on a selection of North-Italian instances from the Romanesque period drawing connections to coeval book illumination, as well as to the inscriptions that run to the base and apex of the pulpit commissioned to Giovanni Pisano for Pisa cathedral, but also to the images in Dante’s Commedia that, between Purgatory X and XI, flaunt the atrocious punishment of the superbs, forced to carry heavy boulders, as is the case of the illuminator Oderisi.
«Vitruvius», 2023
Vitruvius’ De architectura is a treatise with a strong figurative character and interesting insig... more Vitruvius’ De architectura is a treatise with a strong figurative character and interesting insights on myth and legend, as it’s shown into passages regarding the anthropomorphic support and both its architectural and decorative use. Those passages not only examine the etymological origins, but also build a narrative of the genesis and the spreading of the iconographic theme, portrayed as a reminder of righteousness. In this article I will consider the importance of Vitruvius’ revival during the Middle Ages: could the revival of his oeuvre provide a reason to create sculptures in the form of telamons? Or, instead, is Vitruvius to be considered the witness of an iconographic awareness that the citizens of the Empire shared?
Il De architectura è un trattato dal forte carattere figurativo, che trae l’utile da mito e leggenda. Un simile dispositivo si mostra all’interno dei passi dedicati al sostegno antropomorfo e al suo impiego entro strutture architettoniche. Tali passi non solo esaminano le origini etimologiche, bensì costruiscono un racconto relativo a genesi e diffusione del motivo iconografico, inteso come monito perpetuo alla rettitudine. Nel presente articolo si ragionerà sullo spessore della riscoperta vitruviana nel Medioevo: essa fornì un pretesto per la creazione di sculture in veste di telamoni? O lo stesso Vitruvio deve considerarsi memoria di una consapevolezza iconografica che accomunava i cittadini dell’Impero?
«Critica d'Arte», 2022
The article focuses on the dual meaning communicated by the supporting sculptures, conceived as s... more The article focuses on the dual meaning communicated by the supporting sculptures, conceived as self-portraits: ideas of humiliation and subordination on the one hand, as opposed to pride and haughtiness on the other. Paradigmatic occurrences are shown in Giovanni Pisano’s oeuvre, as can be seen from the crouching Adam under one of the columns of the pulpit of Pistoia, and from the hypothetical self-portrait embedded into the pulpit of Pisa. Scholars assumed the existence of Giovanni Pisano’s disguised self-portraits by referring, in the first place, to the obvious likeliness of particular facial expressions in his work (such as the keystones in the façade of the Sienese cathedral and the ascribed telamons of Massa Marittima and San Quirico d'Orcia). By analysing the iconography of the anthropomorphic support with the endorsement offered by scriptural sources and the Church Fathers, it is possible to broaden the scope of analysis and to draw lines of identification between the artist, the human being as a sinner, and Christ who, brought before Pilate, carries the cross on his way to Golgotha. Such similarities, together with the idea of Deus artifex who shapes the world, soon became for the artist the cornerstone of a research aimed at the reappraisal of craftsmanship, conceived as the foundation of his artistic identity and dignity. Finally, this significant comparison between God, who made man in his own image, and the craftsman, who made, in turn, the work of art in his own likeness, will be investigated through the study of Phidias’ self-portrait, which is said to have been carved on the shield of Athena Parthenos, and the literary testimonies left by Pseudo-Aristotle.
Uploads
Thesis Chapters by Ilaria Matteoni
The following thesis analyses the origin and the diffusion of the anthropomorphic support’s iconography – atlas or caryatid – from the ancient period (Greek and Roman art) to the end of the Middle Ages. The first chapter focuses on Ancient art, also by bringing attention to specific manifestations of the examined iconographic motive in Mesopotamic art. The main theme of this chapter regards the transformations occurred between the mythologic narration concerning the figure of the titan Atlas, and its necessary reinterpretation on behalf of the Roman Empire. The second chapter studies the characteristics of the iconography of the atlas, i.e., the medieval telamon, after its collocation into the visual repertoire of Christian art. The last paragraph of this chapter follows the processes of revaluation and positive metamorphosis of the motive, its translation into Evangelists and Virtues, who support pulpit’s lecterns and funerary sarcophagi. The third chapter is entirely dedicated to Giovanni Pisano’s telamons, such as the one crouched under a column that bears the weight of the upper portion of Pistoia’s pulpit, inside the church of Sant ’Andrea, or the supposed self-portrait hunched under the caryatid representing Christ of the pulpit of the cathedral of Pisa.
Papers by Ilaria Matteoni
ENG: The iconographic matter of the anthropomorphic support offers an interesting space for reflection and a useful instrument for the analysis of relationships between sculpture, writing and the observer, especially by considering the sculpted wiligelmic telamons that are accompanied and connoted by inscriptions, usually of short extension, whose verses seem to be directly pronounced by the figure, and addressed to the spectator. Starting from the meta-textual implications and from the clarification of the telamon’s iconography, the essay focuses on a selection of North-Italian instances from the Romanesque period drawing connections to coeval book illumination, as well as to the inscriptions that run to the base and apex of the pulpit commissioned to Giovanni Pisano for Pisa cathedral, but also to the images in Dante’s Commedia that, between Purgatory X and XI, flaunt the atrocious punishment of the superbs, forced to carry heavy boulders, as is the case of the illuminator Oderisi.
Il De architectura è un trattato dal forte carattere figurativo, che trae l’utile da mito e leggenda. Un simile dispositivo si mostra all’interno dei passi dedicati al sostegno antropomorfo e al suo impiego entro strutture architettoniche. Tali passi non solo esaminano le origini etimologiche, bensì costruiscono un racconto relativo a genesi e diffusione del motivo iconografico, inteso come monito perpetuo alla rettitudine. Nel presente articolo si ragionerà sullo spessore della riscoperta vitruviana nel Medioevo: essa fornì un pretesto per la creazione di sculture in veste di telamoni? O lo stesso Vitruvio deve considerarsi memoria di una consapevolezza iconografica che accomunava i cittadini dell’Impero?
The following thesis analyses the origin and the diffusion of the anthropomorphic support’s iconography – atlas or caryatid – from the ancient period (Greek and Roman art) to the end of the Middle Ages. The first chapter focuses on Ancient art, also by bringing attention to specific manifestations of the examined iconographic motive in Mesopotamic art. The main theme of this chapter regards the transformations occurred between the mythologic narration concerning the figure of the titan Atlas, and its necessary reinterpretation on behalf of the Roman Empire. The second chapter studies the characteristics of the iconography of the atlas, i.e., the medieval telamon, after its collocation into the visual repertoire of Christian art. The last paragraph of this chapter follows the processes of revaluation and positive metamorphosis of the motive, its translation into Evangelists and Virtues, who support pulpit’s lecterns and funerary sarcophagi. The third chapter is entirely dedicated to Giovanni Pisano’s telamons, such as the one crouched under a column that bears the weight of the upper portion of Pistoia’s pulpit, inside the church of Sant ’Andrea, or the supposed self-portrait hunched under the caryatid representing Christ of the pulpit of the cathedral of Pisa.
ENG: The iconographic matter of the anthropomorphic support offers an interesting space for reflection and a useful instrument for the analysis of relationships between sculpture, writing and the observer, especially by considering the sculpted wiligelmic telamons that are accompanied and connoted by inscriptions, usually of short extension, whose verses seem to be directly pronounced by the figure, and addressed to the spectator. Starting from the meta-textual implications and from the clarification of the telamon’s iconography, the essay focuses on a selection of North-Italian instances from the Romanesque period drawing connections to coeval book illumination, as well as to the inscriptions that run to the base and apex of the pulpit commissioned to Giovanni Pisano for Pisa cathedral, but also to the images in Dante’s Commedia that, between Purgatory X and XI, flaunt the atrocious punishment of the superbs, forced to carry heavy boulders, as is the case of the illuminator Oderisi.
Il De architectura è un trattato dal forte carattere figurativo, che trae l’utile da mito e leggenda. Un simile dispositivo si mostra all’interno dei passi dedicati al sostegno antropomorfo e al suo impiego entro strutture architettoniche. Tali passi non solo esaminano le origini etimologiche, bensì costruiscono un racconto relativo a genesi e diffusione del motivo iconografico, inteso come monito perpetuo alla rettitudine. Nel presente articolo si ragionerà sullo spessore della riscoperta vitruviana nel Medioevo: essa fornì un pretesto per la creazione di sculture in veste di telamoni? O lo stesso Vitruvio deve considerarsi memoria di una consapevolezza iconografica che accomunava i cittadini dell’Impero?