Byzantine Art: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting & Mosaics
Byzantine Architecture: Key Features
Byzantine architecture is characterized by a unique blend of Roman and Eastern influences. Some of its defining features include:
- Materials: Structures often used brick masonry, covered with decorative elements like paintings, and mosaics.
- Elements: Prominent use of domes on pendentives; arches with alternating stone and brick voussoirs; columns with capitals or impost blocks, often tapered; and plant or geometric decoration, frequently created using a bevel (two-plane) or drill technique (resembling wasp nests).
- Plans: Common floor plans included circular, Greek cross, polygonal (often octagonal), and basilica designs. Open spaces were generally preferred.
Examples of Byzantine Architecture
First Golden Age (6th-7th Centuries)
- Hagia Sophia (Istanbul): A prime example of Byzantine architecture from this period, built between 532 and 537 by architects Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus. Its design combines basilica and centralized plans, featuring a Greek cross inscribed within a rectangle. The interior is dominated by a massive, almost flat dome, supported by two semi-domes and buttresses.
- Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Istanbul): Features an octagonal design.
- San Vitale (Ravenna): Shows influences similar to the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus.
Second Golden Age (9th-12th Centuries)
- Basilica of San Marco (Venice): Built in 1063, this basilica is a prime example of this period, with a Greek cross plan inscribed within a rectangle and multiple domes on drums.
Third Golden Age (13th-15th Centuries)
- Kremlin’s Assumption Cathedral (Moscow): Built in 1475 within the Kremlin walls.
- Saint Basil’s Cathedral (Moscow): Constructed during the reign of Ivan the Terrible (1555-1560), this cathedral is known for its slender, bulbous domes on tall drums. Its plan is cruciform, with a central church surrounded by eight smaller churches (four octagonal on the main axes and four on the diagonals). The tent-shaped tower of the main building is surrounded by a variety of domes. Originally white, the exterior was painted in the 17th century when iron replaced colored tiles.
Byzantine Sculpture
Key characteristics of Byzantine sculpture:
- Few surviving examples, with limited human representation due to Eastern customs and iconoclastic controversies.
- Loss of classical idealism, replaced by a more expressionistic style with hieratic and schematic figures.
- Emphasis on details of clothing, ornaments, and other features to highlight power, solemnity, and spirituality.
- After the resolution of iconoclastic conflicts, fixed iconographic and theological schemes and prototypes were established, common to other artistic forms.
Byzantine Painting and Mosaics
Key characteristics of Byzantine painting and mosaics:
- Primarily used for interior decoration, creating a spectacle of color and light.
- Shared characteristics with sculpture, adapted to the unique resources of these artistic forms.
Mosaics
Mosaics were crafted using small tesserae (tiles) of enamel, glass, mother-of-pearl, and marble in various colors (including maroon, white, gold, and silver). Many of the most impressive examples were destroyed during the iconoclastic controversies. Surviving mosaics often depict figures and scenes from the Old and New Testaments, following established iconographic and theological conventions. Notable examples include:
- Mausoleum of Galla Placidia (Ravenna)
- Orthodox Baptistery (Ravenna)
- San Vitale (Ravenna)
- Sant’Apollinare Nuovo (Ravenna)
Painting
Byzantine painting included frescoes, icons (especially on wood for iconostases), and illuminated manuscripts. The most significant examples date from the 2nd and 3rd Golden Ages. Fresco painting became more popular than mosaics because it was less expensive and better suited to the evolving style. Iconostases, screens separating the altar from the nave, were adorned with painted panels. Decorative arts, such as enamel work (cloisonné) used in religious objects, and textiles, also influenced Byzantine art. A significant example is the Pala d’Oro in San Marco in Venice, which features enamel images.