Wall paintings on Gotland
The glass and wall paintings on Gotland are a sign of the lively medieval art in the country churches on the Swedish Baltic island of Gotland . Since the beginning of the 13th century, lime paintings have been created by "master craftsmen" over and over again for about three centuries. In terms of their quality and degree of preservation, they are an important example of religious art in the Scandinavian region. With their expressiveness and the sometimes very high level of skill with which they were carried out, they indicate the proximity to developments in other regions in Northern Europe. They indicate an exchange between immigrant and local artists. Some of the 13th and 14th century wall and stained glass paintings are unique remnants of medieval church art in Northern Europe.
Churches with glass and wall paintings
Earliest wall paintings from the 12th century
The few surviving wall paintings from the 12th century, such as those in the Guard and Källunge, are of particular importance . They show Byzantine influence on Gotland , which was formative until the early 13th century. The influence, also evidenced by lily stones , presumably came through the Russian Novgorod , where merchants from Gotland had their own trading post, the so-called Gotenhof . Russian merchants had a church in Visby on Gotland and so, in addition to the exchange of trade goods, there was probably an encounter between Gotlandic and Byzantine influenced Russian art.
The glass and wall paintings from the 13th century
Stained glass and wall paintings can be found on Gotland in the church of Dalhem , where the oldest stained glass can be seen, in Gerum and Grötlingbo . Special stained glass can also be found in Barlingbo , Burs , Lau , Lojsta , Lye , Rone and in the church of Sjonhem . Wall paintings from this period can be found in the churches of Boge , Bro , Bunge , Ekeby , Eskelhem, Fide , Garde , Gothem , Hall , Hamra , Lau and in the church of Källunge .
Rediscovery of the wall paintings
Analysis of restorations revealed that most of the wall paintings were painted over by the 18th and 19th centuries at the latest. Wall paintings were also lost when Romanesque churches were converted into Gothic ones. The remaining ones are all the more important as they are rare in comparison to stained glass and evidence of sculpture and wood carving on Gotland. From the 20th century many wall paintings were rediscovered during renovations and could be preserved with modern means.
The painters of the glass and wall paintings
The names of the painters of the glass and wall paintings on Gotland are not known. Some outstanding artists in art history have been given names to group their works on Gotland. For example, the following artists have been named.
The Michael Master
The Michaelsmeister was named as an important master in the second half of the 13th century , to whom large-scale compositions are mainly attributed. Perhaps he is (after B. Söderberg) a Saxon artist. The most important example of his art is the monumental weighing of souls of Emperor Henry II in the church of Vamlingbo . It goes to comparable representations in z. B. back in Bamberg Cathedral. Works in the Church of Eskelhem and in the Church of Hejdeby are also attributed to the Michaelsmeister .
The motif of the weighing of souls, which the Michael Master depicts, became popular on Gotland; Around 1300 the motifs of the Michael Master were imitated in the churches of Sanda , Hall and Väskinde with a little less artistic skill.
The passion master
In many churches you come across wall paintings by an artist who, like a frieze, painted scenes from the childhood or passion of Jesus along the walls of the nave. The so-called Passion Master was active in the 15th century. “Master” or his workshop created the wall paintings in the churches of Boge , Bro , Ekeby , Endre , Fide , Gerum , Lojsta , Lummelunda , Lye and Rone .
The master of othems
One of the advanced artists on Gotland is that of the Othems Masters , who worked in the Church of Othem and the Church of Fide in the 14th century .
The union champion
The Union champion is also suspected in Gotland. This painter was a medieval painter who was not known by name and who was probably active in other parts of Sweden from 1400 to the middle of the century.
Successor to Albertus Pictor
Furthermore, in the painting style in the church of Öja, a painter is assumed to be the successor of Albertus Pictor (approx. 1440 - approx. 1509), Albertus had emigrated from Germany to central Sweden and probably influenced this painter.
More painters
The hand of a German artist from 1300 is seen in the church of Gothem. An artist from England may have worked in the church at Lye.
literature
- Ulrich Quack: Gotland: the largest island in the Baltic Sea; a Swedish province of particular charm; Culture, history, landscape. DuMont Cologne 1991, ISBN 3-7701-2415-4
- Ernst Rieber: Gotland in History and Art Ludwigsburg 1974 Issue 3