Author: Araseli Mendez

During our previous classes I began to notice certain similarities between art composition between the illuminated Book of Festivities and the Japanese Heiji: Monogatari Emaki (Sanjo) Scroll. While one may be part of a book and the other a scroll, they both tell a narrative.The Book of Festivities depicts a large crowd clustered together and based on the title of the book one can suggest that they celebrating something. On the other hand the Sanjo Scroll tells a the tale of the attack on the Sanjo palace during the Heiji period. The night of the event is narrated as the scroll unfolds form right to left. The most prominent similarity between these two works of art was the composition. Why did the artist decided to cluster people together in these pieces? 

(to see the full scroll go to, https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/17/Heiji_Monogatari_Emaki_-_Sanjo_scroll_complete.jpg)

The Book of Celebrations was not the only thing that made me think of Japanese art but also the the portrait  shown in class “An Imperial Celebration by Surname-I Hümayun.” The portrait closely imitates the portrait Minamoto no Yoritomo. As it is common to create portraits of important people, I can assume that the person in “An Imperial Celebration by Surname-I Hümayun” is a Sultan of some sort. In the Hanging scroll of Minamoto no Yoritomo, the scroll depicts the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate. Both figures appear to be sitting/kneeling in the portrait. The face the same way as well. The portraits vary in the color and angles used. What do think? Is this a coincidence or is there some influence? If so, where is it coming from?

The Très Riches Heures du Duc de Berry is a famously known French illuminated manuscript that was painted by the Limbourg brothers. Although the Limbourg brothers were unable to finish the book, this Book of Hours is still considered a valuable piecework. The Très Riches Heures features all the months of the year and depicts the labors during those months for both the duke’s court and servants. Each month piece holds an astrological calendar with the appropriate zodiac sign. The Très Riches Heures is good representation of the seasons as well a demonstration of power and wealth. The Duc de Berry’s Book of Hours was a way to showcase the duke’s his wealth.

Although the Limbourg brothers were unable to finish the Très Riches Heures, I feel like the book should not have been given to another painter to finish. This most likely due to my preference but I would have rather preferred the piece to be unfinished than have something added to the book that was inconsistent with the style. The difference in style can be seen in November and December. The styles for these months are a huge contrast to the orginal Limbourg brother’s style. For instance, in the Limbourg brothers’ paintings, the duke’s castles are always shown but in the last two months they are not. The previous months are lighter while the last two months are darker.This might just be a problem of preference but I believe the Très Riches Heures should have been left unfinished. What do you think?

After watching The Secrets of Kells, I began to search for other animations that referenced illuminated manuscripts. What I found was interesting. I found the reference to illuminated letters in the well known children’s showSpongeBob SquarePants. The illuminated letter was used to invoke humor. In class we were told that these embellished lettered marked the beginning of chapters since illuminated manuscripts lacked punctuation. In this children’s show the Illuminated letter represented both the beginning of a written essay as well a source of procrastination.

The other reference I found was in the movie Shrek. The beginning of the movie starts with a book that appears to have illuminated manuscript characteristics. It tells a story that also accompanied by illustration. While not as embellished as The Book of Hours, the introduction of the movie mimics storytelling. I am sure that there exists other sorts of animations that have referenced illuminated manuscripts or have been inspired by the art work, that I might have missed. What do you think?