Summary
Highlights
The lecture introduces oil paint as a new medium used in the Renaissance, particularly by Flemish painters in the 15th century. Although known since the 8th century, its widespread use began in the North, not Italy. Oil paint allowed for unprecedented levels of naturalism and detail.
Oil paint has a slow drying time, which enables blending colors, achieving crisp lines, and correcting mistakes, leading to greater naturalism. It also offers versatility, allowing for deep, saturated colors as well as sheer, translucent glazes. Compared to fresco, oil paint produces richer, more luminous colors and a sense of clarity.
Fresco is painting on plaster. There are two types: true fresco (buon fresco) and fresco secco (dry fresco). True fresco involves applying paint to wet plaster, making it very durable as the paint adheres deeply to the wall, though it requires fast work and results in less vibrant colors. Fresco secco involves painting on dry plaster, offering more time but being less stable and durable as the paint sits on the surface.
The painting 'The Deposition' by Roger van der Weyden, from around 1436, exemplifies the qualities of oil paint. The subject is Christ being taken down from the cross. The artist includes many figures, such as Mary Cleophas, St. John the Evangelist, Mary Salom, the Virgin Mary, Nicodemus, a servant, Joseph of Arimathea, and Mary Magdalene, identified by her anointing jar.
Important iconography includes the skull and bones at the base of the cross, a momento mori (reminder of death) specific to crucifixion scenes, and also a reference to Golgotha, the 'place of the skull.' Roger van der Weyden is known for his theatricality, making his paintings feel like staged plays. He uses compositional arcs to direct the viewer's eye and employs gold leaf in the background, a throwback to medieval art, to push figures uncomfortably close to the viewer, intensifying involvement in the religious drama and the moment.