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| The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin | Spring 2010 |
Many Pompeian villas had murals that featured garlands, and we must assume that for festive occasions, real garlands were hung as well. The garland above came from the house of P. Fannius Synistor, whose color scheme I've adapted to my own Pompeii Room.
According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where the mural fragment resides, this garland celebrates the god Bacchus. The bull's head represents a real one that would have been used as sacrifice. If you look closely you can see that a strand of pearls adorns its horns. The bearded satyr head represents a mask, a snake rises from a cista mystica, which was used in Bacchic initiation rites, and on the far right is a cymbalum, used to make Bacchic music.
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| The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin | Fall 2009 |
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Pompeii No. 1, I mentioned that Andrea Mantegna ranks as my favorite Renaissance artist. He and many other Renaissance artists employed garlands in their paintings, doubtlessly as a nod to Ancient Greece and Rome, for to be an intellectual during the Renaissance was to be immersed in Classicism. Above is a detail from Mantegna's ceiling in Mantua's Palazzo Ducale.
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| The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin | Fall 2009 |
Here's a detail from Mantegna's altarpiece from the Church of San Zeno, in Verona. I've chosen it as the source for my Pompeian garlands. I'll start on my wall with the center garland, under the clipeus, and I'll use the garlands that are surrounded by the white box above.
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| click to enlarge | I Maestri del Colore: Mantegna | Alberto Martini |
Here's what they look like enlarged. One of the things I like about Mantegna is that he brought the same eye for detail to absolutely every inch of his paintings.
What I have to be conscious of is that the central garland will be a different shape than the others, though at the same scale and hanging depth. And if I keep the clipeus garland's foliage in scale with the other garlands, I will need to invent extra foliage to "span the gap" at its center.
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| L'Art de Vivre | The Vendome Press |
I started painting my garlands in greens and reds, as Mantega had, but quickly realized that the ones with auburn backgrounds wouldn't pop out as much as I would like. As I've said before, it's only paint, and I started over. I looked at this handsome book cover, which features a 19-century French wallpaper design, and realized that it was a bolder, more effective garland for my purposes.
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| click to enlarge |
Here's the first garland finished. Next week, we'll take a look at the remaining garlands, also based on Mantegna designs. I hope you'll check back then!
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Dear Mark - I love what you have achieved, and in particular admire all the fine details. The fabric covering the hanging cord - done as well as, if not better, than Mantegna! The wonderful collection of fruit and nuts, but especially the pea pods, which you may remember I collect.
ReplyDeleteDear Rosemary,
DeleteIn my book, anyone who would suggest that I was approaching Mantegna is indeed a treasured friend — so thank you! As I was painting those cloth covers, I though, "So this is how it is done!" And I did think of you as I painted those pea pods.
Now that is a surprise, Mark! Would not have thought that YOU would add a garland to your Pompeian Room. Next to Griffins, Garlands are my next favorite design element. I have used them on walls and plates and murals. They give you so much freedom to add as much or as little color as your design scheme dictates. Your project is getting more and more exciting. Looking forward to the next installment. Just when I think that you have incorporated everything possible you surprise us with yet another fabulous addition.
ReplyDeleteDear Gina,
DeleteI can't imagine why you would think I would not include garlands, since they are ubiquitous to Pompeian murals. Perhaps you are thinking that my own creations would be more tailored and spare, but I assure you that when all the details are finally included, the mural will be VERY complex.
Dear Mark,
ReplyDeleteI see what you mean about the garlands. I guess Mantegna wanted his to be visible but not to be the focus of attention - rather something you notice on the periphery, and look at approvingly. Your garlands are more of a feature. I think that the example you have shown us is fantastic and works well with the blue sky background.
I most certainly will be back to see the rest of the garlands. Wild Pompeiian horses couldn't keep me away!
Bye for now
Kirk
Dear Kirk,
DeleteAs I said in the comment to Gina, the mural will become much more complex, so it's going to be all the more important that each feature stand on its own but also complement the next. It will be somewhat of a juggling act, and making the colors work well together will be a big part of that. See you next week . . .
I'll make sure to bring the tea and the tarts. . .
DeleteHello Mark, I love the way you transformed that garland. When you first showed the picture of the original Mantegna version, I was worried that so much color might overwhelm the space. For your room, making it monochromatic and golden was the perfect solution. It now looks like the gold wreaths one sees from antiquity, or those seen rendered into metal on old coins. giving your lion and griffin another treasure to guard.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for the top picture of the Pompeian garland--so much could be borrowed (or outright stolen) from that small vignette.
--Jim
Dear Jim,
DeleteHello! My sense is that P. Fannius Synistor employed the best artists of that time in Pompeii.
As this mural evolves, I'm going to have several themes emerge, and one of them, primarily on the main wall, will be the symbolism of luck, health and success. The clipeus and griffin are the first of those.
Beautiful, Mark!! I am a fan of garlands!! I especially love them draped on the aprons of tables - a popular Swedish Gustavian theme. Have a wonderful Memorial weekend, Loi
ReplyDeleteHi, Loi!
DeleteYour comment is going to send me back through your archives to find those garlanded tables! Your blog has really given me a huge appreciation of Gustavian style. Enjoy the holiday!
Hello Mark,
ReplyDeleteEach element of your design stands out as a miniature work of art in its own right. Your golden garland looks very effective. Beautifully detailed and suggestive of a bountiful harvest which surely augurs well as a good omen for the future.
The sources of inspiration from which you draw are equally as fascinating as the end result in paint. We are learning so much from you.
Hello, Jane and Lance,
DeleteThis comment is coming to you a little later than usual because today is our Memorial Day, a commemoration that started after our Civil War.
When I draw inspiration from a source like Andrea Mantegna, part of my great enjoyment is to immerse myself in that person's history and the totality of his life and art. In the case of the garlands, Mantegna incorporated them in many of his paintings, and the cloth and drawstrings that held them was invariably red.
Good morning. I agree with Rosemary. Your fabric painting rivals, if not surpasses, Mantegna's. Were decor elements always so symbolic in ancient times? It seems you could almost "read" these rooms if you understood the language. I am learning so much from this project! Thank you, Mark.
ReplyDeleteGood evening, Barbara! I'm late in responding to comments because I have a computer on the blink, and am moderating from a friend's!
DeleteThere was indeed a lot of symbolism in Pompeian murals, and much of it revolved around good luck. As my own mural unfolds, I'll be incorporating good luck in numerous ways, too. In my own cosmology, the consciousness that one puts forward attracts more of the same.
I love garlands too, Mark. Maybe we ought to start a garlands fan club! I love your idea of keeping them in the gilted golden ochre family. And as you say, it's only paint. If you're not satisfied as you go along, you can always darken or lighten or ripen the color as you please. Since you are your own client in this marvelous enterprise, you are free to do as you please. I can't wait to see what happens next. Thanks once again Mark for bringing us along on this adventure.
ReplyDeleteHi, Yvette,
DeleteI see now that I could do several blog postings on garlands and have a steady following. Incidentally, I've found that some of the very best reference for painting garlands can be found in French Neoclassic wallpaper of the 18th century, especially from the companies Dufour and Zuber.
I am catching up with your blog as a reward to myself! The garlands will be wonderful! I do love della robbia and all the elements they contain.
ReplyDeleteHi, Theresa,
DeleteI am honored to be a reward for what I'm guessing is the conclusion of another exciting project of your own!