Donor Portraits in Byzantine Art

The Vicissitudes of Contact Between Human and Divine
Erscheinungsjahr 2018
ISBN: 978-1-108-41859-1
Verlag: Cambridge University Press

Buch, Englisch, 260 Seiten, Format (B × H): 188 mm x 251 mm, Gewicht: 680 g

This book explores the range of images in Byzantine art known as donor portraits. It concentrates on the distinctive, supplicatory contact shown between ordinary, mortal figures and their holy, supernatural interlocutors. The topic is approached from a range of perspectives, including art history, theology, structuralist and post-structuralist anthropological theory, and contemporary symbol and metaphor theory. Rico Franses argues that the term 'donor portraits' is inappropriate for the category of images to which it conventionally refers and proposes an alternative title for the category, contact portraits. He contends that the most important feature of the scenes consists in the active role that they play within the belief systems of the supplicants. They are best conceived of not simply as passive expressions of stable, pre-existing ideas and concepts, but as dynamic proponents in a fraught, constantly shifting landscape. The book is important for all scholars and students of Byzantine art and religion.

Autoren/Hrsg.

Franses, Rico

Fachgebiete

• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Alte Geschichte & Archäologie Vor- und Frühgeschichte, prähistorische Archäologie
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Geschichtswissenschaft Allgemein
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Europäische Geschichte
• Geisteswissenschaften Geschichtswissenschaft Weltgeschichte & Geschichte einzelner Länder und Gebietsräume Geschichte einzelner Länder Europäische Länder
• Geisteswissenschaften Kunst Kunstgeschichte Kunstgeschichte: Völkerwanderung und Mittelalter
• Geisteswissenschaften Kunst Kunstgeschichte Kunstgeschichte: Byzantinisch

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction: methodologies for the study of donor portraits; 1. The history and problematic of the donor portrait; 2. On meaning in portraits. The knot of intention and the question of the patron's share; 3. Awaiting the end after the end. Sin, absolution, and the afterlife; 4. Exchange and non-exchange. The gift between human and divine; 5. The literal, the symbolic, and the contact portrait. On belief in the interaction between human and divine; Postscript: the problem of terminology again. Donor portraits and contact portraits.

Über Autor(innen)

Franses, Rico
Rico Franses is an Associate Professor in the Department of Fine Arts and Art History, American University of Beirut, and Director of the University Art Galleries and Collections.