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A note on Roger Scruton’s latest book on Beauty:
Friday, May 01, 2009
Roger Scruton on Beauty
by Shawn TribeWhile philosopher and thinker Roger Scruton is not a Catholic writer, he quite often has some very interesting and very Catholic things to say, even if we might also find some areas for civil disagreement as well.
He has produced some rather interesting titles; two such are On Hunting, which looks at some of the cultural and philosophical issues surrounding the hunt, and An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Modern Culture (both published by St. Augustine’s Press).
While reading the Arts and Letters Daily recently, I came across a reference to a new offering from Scruton, this time published by Oxford University Press, and on a subject that should be of particular interest to those with a philosophical bent and who are interested in the sacred liturgy.
The book is simply titled Beauty and is so described by the publisher:
“‘Beauty can be consoling, disturbing, sacred, profane,” writes Roger Scruton. “It can be exhilarating, appealing, inspiring, chilling. It is never viewed with indifference: beauty demands to be noticed; it speaks to us directly like the voice of an intimate friend.’ In a book that is itself beautifully written, renowned philosopher Roger Scruton explores this timeless concept, asking what makes an object–either in art, in nature, or the human form–beautiful. This compact volume is filled with insight and Scruton has something interesting and original to say on almost every page. Can there be dangerous beauties, corrupting beauties, and immoral beauties? Perhaps so. The prose of Flaubert, the imagery of Baudelaire, the harmonies of Wagner, Scruton points out, have all been accused of immorality, by those who believe that they paint wickedness in alluring colors. Is it right to say there is more beauty in a classical temple than a concrete office block, more beauty in a Rembrandt than in an Andy Warhol Campbell Soup Can? Can we even say, of certain works of art, that they are too beautiful: that they ravish when they should disturb. But while we may argue about what is or is not beautiful, Scruton insists that beauty is a real and universal value, one anchored in our rational nature, and that the sense of beauty has an indispensable part to play in shaping the human world.”
Not having read the volume, I can provide no commentary — either positive or critical — upon it. However, for certain, excerpts such as these certainly pique one’s interest:
Simply put, kitsch is a disease of faith… The Disneyfication of art is simply one aspect of the Disneyfication of faith -and both involve a profanation of our highest values. Kitsch, the case of Disney reminds us, is not an excess of feeling but a deficiency. The world of kitsch is in a certain measure a heartless world, in which emotion is directed away from its proper target towards sugary stereotypes, permitting us to pay passing tribute to love and sorrow without the trouble of feeling them.
Such a title will not be for everyone, but it is worth mentioning for the sake of those who already have a solid basis in the Catholic philosophical approach to the three trascendentals of the Good, the True and the Beautiful.And his other great classical masterpiece: Ou Lady of Guadalupe
http://www.traditional-building.com/Previous-Issues-08/DecemberProject08OLG.html
Some shots of Duncan Stroik’s masterpiece -the recently comnpleted chapel of Aquinas College at Santa Paola in California:
http://www.stroik.com/portfolio/ourladyofthemostholytrinity/
A more ample English language account of the Pope’s discourse on germanus of Constantinople:
Benedict XVI on St. Germanus of Constantinople, defender of holy images
From Vatican Information Services:GERMANUS OF CONSTANTINOPLE: DEFENDER OF HOLY IMAGES
VATICAN CITY, 29 APR 2009 (VIS) – During his general audience this morning Benedict XVI dedicated his catechesis to St. Germanus of Constantinople, who “played an important role in the complex history of the battle for images during the so-called iconoclastic crisis, and was able to resist the pressure of an iconoclastic emperor, … Leo III.
“During Germanus’ patriarchate (715-730)”, the Pope added, “the capital of the Byzantine empire, Constantinople, was subject to a threatening siege by the Saracens. On that occasion (717-718) a solemn procession was organised and passed through the streets carrying the image of the Mother of God … and the relic of the Holy Cross to call upon the Most High to defend the city. In fact, Constantinople was freed from the siege”.
This event convinced the patriarch “that God’s intervention was to be interpreted as evident approval of the reverence people showed towards holy icons. Leo III on the other hand, who came to the throne in that year of 717, … began ever more openly to show his conviction that the consolidation of empire had to begin by reorganising expressions of faith, with particular reference to idolatry, a risk to which, in his view, the people were exposed by their excessive veneration for icons”.
The Holy Father went on: “Patriarch Germanus’ appeals to Church tradition and to the real effectiveness of certain images, unanimously recognised as ‘miraculous’, were all to no avail. The emperor became ever more intractable in implementing his policies of reform. … Germanus had no desire to bow to the emperor’s will in matters he considered vital to orthodox faith. … As a consequence he felt obliged to resign as patriarch, condemning himself to exile in a monastery where he died in obscurity. Nonetheless his name re-emerged at the Second Nicean Council … of 787 where his merits were recognised”.
Of Germanus’ works “certain homilies on Marian themes have survived, of which some have had a profound influence on the piety of entire generations of faithful, both in the East and the West”, including one which Pope Pius XII “set like a pearl in the 1950 Apostolic Constitution ‘Munificentissimus Deus'”, dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary.
Benedict XVI went on to recall the “great contribution” this saint made to the Byzantine tradition in which “the rhetorical forms used in preaching, and even more so in hymns and poetical compositions, … are as important to the celebration of the liturgy as the beauty of the sacred building in which it takes place”.
The Holy Father concluded by considering three aspects in which St. Germanus still has something to say to modern man. Firstly, in the need to recognise “the visibility of God in the world and in the Church”, because “God created man in His image but that image was covered with dirt and sin” and the Creator “could almost no longer see it. Thus the Son of God became man and … in Christ, the true image of God, we too can … learn to see ourselves as His image”. If, to prevent idolatry and the danger of pagan images, God prohibited the Israelites from creating His image, yet “when He became visible in Christ through the Incarnation it became legitimate to reproduce the face of Christ. … Holy images teach us to see God in the face of Christ, … of the saints and of all human beings”.
Secondly, Germanus shows us “the beauty and dignity of the liturgy”, which must be celebrated “with an awareness of the presence of God and with a beauty and dignity that enable us to glimpse His splendour”.
The third aspect is that of “love for the Church”, the Pope concluded. “It may be that in the Church, as in ourselves, we see sin and other negative things, yet with the help of faith … we can always rediscover divine beauty in the Church. In the Church, God offers Himself to us in the Eucharist, He speaks to us, … He forgives us and He teaches us to forgive. Let us pray that God may teach us to see His presence and His beauty in the Church, to see His presence in the world”.
• Benedict XVI on the other Ambrose (April 22, 2009)
And here we have a short historical note on Germanus of Constantinople:
St. Germanus I
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Patriarch of Constantinople (715-30), b. at Constantinople towards the end of the reign of Emperor Heraclius (610-41); d. there 733 or 740. The son of Justinianus, a patrician, Germanus dedicated himself to the service of the Church and became a cleric at the cathedral of the metropolis. Some time after the death of his father, who had filled various high official positions, at the hands of the nephew of Heraclius, Germanus was consecrated Bishop of Cyzicus, but the exact year of his elevation is not known. According to Theophanes and Nicephorus, he was present in this capacity at the Synod of Constantinople held in 712 at the insistance of the new emperor, Philippicus, who favoured Monothelitism. The object of the council was to re-establish Monothelitism and to condemn the Acts of the Sixth General Council of 681. Even Germanus is said to have bowed to the imperial will, with the majority of the Greek bishops (Mansi, Conc. Coll., XII, 192-96). However, immediately after the dethronement of Emperor Philippicus (713) his successor, Anastasius II, restored orthodoxy, and Monothelitism was now definitively banished from the Byzantine Empire. If Germanus really yielded for a short time to the false teachings of the Monothelites, he now once more acknowledged the orthodox definition of the two wills in Christ. John, Patriarch of Constantinople, appointed by Philippicus to succeed the deposed Cyrus, sent to Pope Constantine a letter of submission and accepted the true doctrine of the Church promulgated at the Council of 681, whereupon he was recognized by the pope as Patriarch of Constantinople. On his death Germanus was raised to the patriarchal see (715), which he held until 730. Immediately (715 or 716) he convened at Constantinople a synod of Greek bishops, who acknowledged and proclaimed anew the doctrine of the two wills and the two operations in Christ, and placed under anathema Sergius, Cyrus, and the other leaders of Monothelism. Germanus entered into communication with the Armenian Monophysites, with a view to restoring them to unity with the Church, but without success. Soon after his elevation to the patriarchal dignity the Iconoclastic storm burst forth in the Byzantine Church, Leo III the Isaurian, who was opposed to the veneration of images having just acceded to the imperial throne (716). Bishop Constantine of Nacoleia in Phrygia, who like some other bishops of the empire condemned the veneration of the pictures and images of Christ and the saints, went to Constantinople, and entered into a discussion with Germanus on the subject. The patriarch represented the traditional use of the Church, and sought to convince Constantine of the propriety of reverencing images. Apparently he was converted to the teaching of the patriarch, but he did not deliver the letter entrusted to him by Germanus for the Metropolitan of Synnada, for which he was excommunicated. At the same time the learned patriarch wrote to Bishop Thomas of Claudiopolis, another Iconoclast, and developed in detail the sound principles underlying the reverencing of images, as against the recent innovations. Emperor Leo III, however, did not recede from his position, and everywhere encouraged the iconoclasts. In a volcanic eruption between the islands of Thera and Therasia he saw a Divine judgment for the idolatry of image- worship, and in an edict (726) explained that Christian images had taken the place of idols, and the venerators of images were idolaters, since, according to the law of God (Exodus 20:4), no product of the hand of man may be adored. Immediately afterwards, the first Iconoclastic disturbances broke out in Constantinople. The Patriarch Germanus vigorously opposed the emperor, and sought to convert him to a truer view of things, whereupon Leo attempted to depose him. Germanus turned to Pope Gregory II (729), who in a lengthy epistle praised his zeal and steadfastness. The emperor in 730 summoned the council before which Germanus was cited to subscribe to an imperial decree prohibiting images. He resolutely refused, and was thereupon compelled to resign his patriarchal office, being succeeded by the pliant Anastasius. Germanus withdrew to the home of his family, where he died some years later at an advanced age. The Ecumenical Council of Nicaea (787) bestowed high praise on Germanus, who is venerated as a saint in both the Greek and the Latin Church. His feast is celebrated on 12 May. Several writings of Germanus have been preserved (Migne, P.G., XCVIII, 39-454), viz., “Narratio de sanctis synodis”, a dialogue “De vitae termino”, a letter to the Armenians, and three letters on the reverencing of images, as well as nine discourses in the extravagant rhetorical style of the later Byzantines. Of doubtful authenticity is the “Historia ecclesiastica et mystica”, also attributed to him (Migne, loc. cit., 383-454).The Pope today gave an interesting discourse on beauty and its effects on ecclesiastical art, architecture and worship. Here is the Italian text with an English synopsis:
CATECHESI DEL SANTO PADRE IN LINGUA ITALIANA
Cari fratelli e sorelle,
il Patriarca Germano di Costantinopoli, del quale vorrei parlare oggi, non appartiene alle figure più rappresentative del mondo cristiano orientale di lingua greca e tuttavia il suo nome compare con una certa solennità nella lista dei grandi difensori delle immagini sacre, stesa nel Secondo Concilio di Nicea, settimo ecumenico (787). La Chiesa Greca celebra la sua festa nella liturgia del 12 maggio. Egli ebbe un ruolo significativo nella storia complessa della lotta per le immagini, durante la cosiddetta crisi iconoclastica: seppe resistere validamente alle pressioni di un Imperatore iconoclasta, cioè avversario delle icone, quale fu Leone III.
Durante il patriarcato di Germano (715-730) la capitale dell’impero bizantino, Costantinopoli, subì un pericolosissimo assedio da parte dei Saraceni. In quell’occasione (717-718) venne organizzata una solenne processione in città con l’ostensione dell’immagine della Madre di Dio, la Theotokos, e della reliquia della Santa Croce, per invocare dall’Alto la difesa della città . Di fatto, Costantinopoli fu liberata dall’assedio. Gli avversari decisero di desistere per sempre dall’idea di stabilire la loro capitale nella città simbolo dell’Impero cristiano e la riconoscenza per l’aiuto divino fu estremamente grande nel popolo.
Il Patriarca Germano, dopo quell’evento, si convinse che l’intervento di Dio doveva essere ritenuto un’approvazione evidente della pietà mostrata dal popolo verso le sante icone. Di parere completamente diverso fu invece l’imperatore Leone III, che proprio da quell’anno (717) si insediò quale Imperatore indiscusso nella capitale, su cui regnò fino al 741. Dopo la liberazione di Costantinopoli e dopo una serie di altre vittorie, l’Imperatore cristiano cominciò a manifestare sempre più apertamente la convinzione che il consolidamento dell’Impero dovesse cominciare proprio da un riordinamento delle manifestazioni della fede, con particolare riferimento al rischio di idolatria a cui, a suo parere, il popolo era esposto a motivo dell’eccessivo culto delle icone.
A nulla valsero i richiami del patriarca Germano alla tradizione della Chiesa e all’effettiva efficacia di alcune immagini, che venivano unanimemente riconosciute come ‘miracolose’. L’imperatore divenne sempre più irremovibile nell’applicazione del suo progetto restauratore, che prevedeva l’eliminazione delle icone. E quando il 7 gennaio del 730 egli prese posizione aperta in una riunione pubblica contro il culto delle immagini, Germano non volle in nessun modo piegarsi al volere dell’Imperatore su questioni ritenute da lui determinanti per la fede ortodossa, alla quale secondo lui apparteneva proprio il culto, l’amore per le immagini. In conseguenza di ciò, Germano si vide costretto a rassegnare le dimissioni da Patriarca, auto-condannandosi all’esilio in un monastero dove morì dimenticato pressoché da tutti. Il suo nome riemerse in occasione appunto del Secondo Concilio di Nicea (787), quando i Padri ortodossi decisero in favore delle icone, riconoscendo i meriti di Germano.
Il Patriarca Germano curava molto le celebrazioni liturgiche e, per un certo tempo, fu ritenuto anche l’instauratore della festa dell’Akatistos. Come è noto, l’Akatistos è un antico e famoso inno sorto in ambito bizantino e dedicato alla Theotokos, la Madre di Dio. Nonostante che dal punto di vista teologico non si possa qualificare Germano come un grande pensatore, alcune sue opere ebbero una certa risonanza soprattutto per certe sue intuizioni sulla mariologia. Di lui sono state conservate, in effetti, diverse omelie di argomento mariano e alcune di esse hanno segnato profondamente la pietà di intere generazioni di fedeli sia in Oriente che in Occidente. Le sue splendide Omelie sulla Presentazione di Maria al Tempio sono testimonianze tuttora vive della tradizione non scritta delle Chiese cristiane. Generazioni di monache, di monaci e di membri di numerosissimi Istituti di Vita Consacrata, continuano ancora oggi a trovare in quei testi tesori preziosissimi di spiritualità .
Creano ancora adesso stupore anche alcuni testi mariologici di Germano che fanno parte delle omelie tenute In SS. Deiparae dormitionem, festività corrispondente alla nostra festa dell’Assunzione. Fra questi testi il Papa Pio XII ne prelevò uno che incastonò come una perla nella Costituzione apostolica Munificentissimus Deus (1950), con la quale dichiarò dogma di fede l’Assunzione di Maria. Questo testo il Papa Pio XII citò nella menzionata Costituzione, presentandolo come uno degli argomenti in favore della fede permanente della Chiesa circa l’Assunzione corporale di Maria in cielo. Germano scrive: “Poteva mai succedere, santissima Madre di Dio, che il cielo e la terra si sentissero onorati dalla tua presenza, e tu, con la tua partenza, lasciassi gli uomini privi della tua protezione? No. E’ impossibile pensare queste cose. Infatti come quando eri nel mondo non ti sentivi estranea alle realtà del cielo, così anche dopo che sei emigrata da questo mondo non ti sei affatto estraniata dalla possibilità di comunicare in spirito con gli uomini… Non hai affatto abbandonato coloro ai quali hai garantito la salvezza… infatti il tuo spirito vive in eterno né la tua carne subì la corruzione del sepolcro. Tu, o Madre, sei vicina a tutti e tutti proteggi e, benché i nostri occhi siano impediti dal vederti, tuttavia sappiamo, o Santissima, che tu abiti in mezzo a tutti noi e ti rendi presente nei modi più diversi…Tu (Maria) ti riveli tutta, come sta scritto, nella tua bellezza. Il tuo corpo verginale è totalmente santo, tutto casto, tutto casa di Dio così che, anche per questo, è assolutamente refrattario ad ogni riduzione in polvere. Esso è immutabile, dal momento che ciò che in esso era umano è stato assunto nella incorruttibilità , restando vivo e assolutamente glorioso, incolume e partecipe della vita perfetta. Infatti era impossibile che fosse tenuta chiusa nel sepolcro dei morti colei che era divenuta vaso di Dio e tempio vivo della santissima divinità dell’Unigenito. D’altra parte noi crediamo con certezza che tu continui a camminare con noi” (PG 98, coll. 344B-346B, passim).
E’ stato detto che per i Bizantini il decoro della forma retorica nella predicazione, e ancora di più negli inni o composizioni poetiche che essi chiamano tropari, è altrettanto importante nella celebrazione liturgica quanto la bellezza dell’edificio sacro nel quale essa si svolge. Il Patriarca Germano è stato riconosciuto, in quella tradizione, come uno di coloro che hanno contribuito molto nel tener viva questa convinzione, cioè che bellezza della parola, del linguaggio e bellezza dell’edificio e della musica devono coincidere.
Cito, per concludere, le parole ispirate con cui Germano qualifica la Chiesa all’inizio di questo suo piccolo capolavoro: “La Chiesa è tempio di Dio, spazio sacro, casa di preghiera, convocazione di popolo, corpo di Cristo… E’ il cielo sulla terra, dove Dio trascendente abita come a casa sua e vi passeggia, ma è anche impronta realizzata (antitypos) della crocifissione, della tomba e della risurrezione… La Chiesa è la casa di Dio in cui si celebra il sacrificio mistico vivificante, nello stesso tempo parte più intima del santuario e grotta santa. Dentro di essa si trovano infatti il sepolcro e la mensa, nutrimenti per l’anima e garanzie di vita. In essa infine si trovano quelle vere e proprie perle preziose che sono i dogmi divini dell’insegnamento offerto direttamente dal Signore ai suoi discepoli” (PG 98, coll. 384B-385A).
Alla fine rimane la domanda: che cosa ha da dirci oggi questo Santo, cronologicamente e anche culturalmente abbastanza distante da noi. Penso sostanzialmente tre cose. La prima: c’è una certa visibilità di Dio nel mondo, nella Chiesa, che dobbiamo imparare a percepire. Dio ha creato l’uomo a sua immagine, ma questa immagine è stata coperta dalla tanta sporcizia del peccato, in conseguenza della quale quasi Dio non traspariva più. Così il Figlio di Dio si è fatto vero uomo, perfetta immagine di Dio: in Cristo possiamo così contemplare anche il volto di Dio e imparare ad essere noi stessi veri uomini, vere immagini di Dio. Cristo ci invita ad imitarLo, a divenire simili a Lui, così che in ogni uomo traspaia di nuovo il volto di Dio, l’immagine di Dio. Per la verità , Dio aveva vietato nel Decalogo di fare delle immagini di Dio, ma questo era a motivo delle tentazioni di idolatria a cui il credente poteva essere esposto in un contesto di paganesimo. Quando però Dio si è fatto visibile in Cristo mediante l’incarnazione, è diventato legittimo riprodurre il volto di Cristo. Le sante immagini ci insegnano a vedere Dio nella raffigurazione del volto di Cristo. Dopo l’incarnazione del Figlio di Dio, è diventato quindi possibile vedere Dio nelle immagini di Cristo ed anche nel volto dei Santi, nel volto di tutti gli uomini in cui risplende la santità di Dio.
La seconda cosa è la bellezza e la dignità della liturgia. Celebrare la liturgia nella consapevolezza della presenza di Dio, con quella dignità e bellezza che ne faccia vedere un poco lo splendore, è l’impegno di ogni cristiano formato nella sua fede. La terza cosa è amare la Chiesa. Proprio a proposito della Chiesa, noi uomini siamo portati a vedere soprattutto i peccati, il negativo; ma con l’aiuto della fede, che ci rende capaci di vedere in modo autentico, possiamo anche, oggi e sempre, riscoprire in essa la bellezza divina. E’ nella Chiesa che Dio si fa presente, si offre a noi nella Santa Eucaristia e rimane presente per l’adorazione. Nella Chiesa Dio parla con noi, nella Chiesa “Dio passeggia con noi”, come dice San Germano. Nella Chiesa riceviamo il perdono di Dio e impariamo a perdonare.
Preghiamo Dio perché ci insegni a vedere nella Chiesa la sua presenza, la sua bellezza, a vedere la sua presenza nel mondo, e ci aiuti ad essere anche noi trasparenti alla sua luce.
[00660-01.01] [Testo originale: Italiano]
Sintesi della catechesi in lingua inglese
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In our catechesis on the early Christian writers of East and West, we turn to Saint Germanus, Bishop and Patriarch of Constantinople, whose feast day is celebrated in the Greek Church on 12 May. In 717, while Constantinople was under siege by Saracen armies, Germanus led a procession with the venerated image of the Theotokos, the Mother of God, and relics of the Holy Cross. The siege was lifted, convincing him that God had responded to the people’s devotion. Some time later however, Emperor Leo III initiated his campaign against the use of sacred images, judging them to be a source of idolatry. When Germanus opposed the Emperor publicly in 730 he was forced to retire in exile to a monastery, where he later died. His memory was not forgotten, and in the Second Council of Nicea, which restored devotion to sacred images, his name was honoured. The writings of Germanus, steeped in an ardent love of the Church and devotion to the Mother of God, have had a wide influence on the piety of the faithful both of the East and the West. He promoted a solemn and beautiful Liturgy and is also known for his insights in Mariology. In homilies on the Presentation and the Dormition of the Virgin Mary, Germanus extols her virtue and her mission. A text which sees the source of her bodily incorruption in her virginal maternity was included by Pope Pius XII in his Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus. I pray that through the intercession of Saint Germanus we may all be renewed in our love of the Church and devotion to the Mother of God.
I offer a warm welcome to all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors from England, Scotland, Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Japan, Canada and the United States. Upon all of you I cordially invoke the Lord’s Easter blessings of joy and peace!
The Pugin Society is coming to Ireland:
Wed 20–Mon 25 May: Pugin in Ireland – the not to be missed definitive tour
At long last the Pugin Society is going to Ireland for what promises to be the definite tour of Pugin’s work in Ireland. Do not miss this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The tour has been devised by the distinguished architectural historian Professor Alistair Rowan and will be led jointly by him and Dr Rory O’Donnell of English Heritage. We will visit almost all of A.W.N.Pugin’s major works in Ireland, together with a number of important buildings by his son Edward Pugin and his son-in-law George Ashlin. Visits will be made to other Irish buildings to set the work of Pugin in its context including John Henry Newman’s University Church in St.Stephen’s Green, Dublin, the twin churches in Wexford, University College Cork, the Dominican Church, Popes Quay, Cork, Lismore Castle and Muckross House. We will stay for two nights in Dublin and three in Cork.
Itinerary
Wednesday 20 May: The tour starts at 5.00 with a walking tour of the centre of Dublin including Deane and Woodward’s Museum in Trinity College and Hungerford Pollen’s University Church on St Stephen’s Green.
Thursday 21 May: Maynooth College, Glasnevin cemetery, Rathfarnham Convent, Pugin & Ashlin at St Thomas’ church, J.J.McCarthy at St Saviours, Ashlin’s house at Killiney.
Friday 22 May: Tour of Pugin in the south-east including St Michael’s Gorey, St Aidan’s Cathedral, Enniscorthy, Tagoat Church and St Peter’s College and the twin churches in Wexford. The day ends with a drive to Cork.
Saturday 23 May: Walk around Cork seeing, among other things, Deane’s University College, William Burges’ St Finbarre’s Cathedral and Pugin and Ashlin’s St Peter’s and St Paul’s. Afternoon bus trip including Pugin and Ashlin’s Cobh Cathedral, Midletown parish church, Lismore Castle and Cathedral, Youghal town and Cloyne Cathedral.
Sunday 24 May: Bus tour to Killarney Cathedral, Muckross House and Abbey and scenic Co. Kerry.
Monday 25May: morning in Cork, followed by departure from Cork airport.Hotels: We will be staying in comfortable central hotels, The Mespil, Dublin, and Lancaster Lodge in Cork. If you are single and would like to share, please contact Julia Twigg.
Travel to Ireland: Flights are not included but Ryanair flies to both Dublin and Cork. Please note that the tour starts in Dublin and finishes in Cork.
Cost: Single 695 Euros: Double 525 Euros per person. Please note that the tour is priced in Euros not pounds because of uncertainties over the exchange rate. With luck it will move in our favour. We are asking people to send a deposit of £150 to secure a place. The remaining sum will be due two weeks before the tour.
Some more information on the company:
John Hardman is still trading from 25 Frederick Street, Birmingham is is currently experiencing a renaissance of interest in neo-Gothic art work.
On John Hardman of Birmingham:
http://www.themagazineantiques.com/articles/john-hardman-and-company-pugins-glasspainters/3/
Judging stainedglass in Class 30 at th Great Exhibition at the CrystalPalace in 1850:
John Hardman (1811 – 67) was one of the pioneers of the stained glass revival of the nineteenth century. His Birmingham based operation started out as an ecclesiastical metal works but, at the suggestion of A.W.N. Pugin, the business expanded into glass manufacture in 1845. Pugin designed for the firm until his death in 1852 when this role passed onto his nephew John Hardman Powell.
The Chapel glazing scheme was designed in house in the 1860s as part of Principal Forbes’ restoration project. Unlike Forbes’ architectural improvements, which were funded by the government, the stained glass was paid for by donations from private individuals. The whole process of the commission can be traced through documentation kept in the University Library and the unusually complete records of Hardman’s (now in the collections of Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery).
Only two of the windows survive in situ but the University Collections hold the panels removed in the 1960s to make way for William Wilson’s new windows. The surviving windows occupy bays four and five (counting from the Chapel’s west end) and are excellent examples of the Gothic Revival style. Intricate tracery forms the matrix for designs that reflect the Victorians’ profound respect of the twelfth century stained glass of Canterbury and Chartres. Ruby reds and deep blues predominate in the compositions. Each window is divided into three lights which feature a Biblical scene framed by an elaborate canopy above and a Latin inscription beneath. Below the figurative scenes are placed square memorial panels. The centre panel bears heraldic motifs relevant to the personage commemorated in the winding scrolls of the flanking panels. All of the inscriptions are drawn in the Lombardic script popular in the twelfth century. The top third of each window is given over to ornamental, foliate designs and intricate tracery – trefoils, quatrefoils and similar Gothic forms.
The first Hardman window to be seen on entering the Chapel (in bay four) is dedicated to Lord Colonsay. The scenes depicted are, from left to right: Moses and the Ten Commandments; Christ Healing the Sick; and The Judgement of Solomon. The other window commemorates Jesse Playfair, the wife of the famous Provost Playfair who carried out a major renovation of the Chapel in the 1840s. The scenes depicted are: Moses and the Burning Bush; Joseph Triumphant in Egypt; and Joseph Sold by his Brethren.
Mid-nineteenth century stained glass is often viewed with derision by those more used to the agonies and ecstasies of the Pre-Raphaelite designs of Morris & Co. but there is much to commend in the windows of firms such as Hardman’s. The crisp, bright colouring and vigorous modelling of the figures in the Chapel windows is typical of the firm’s work. The juxtaposition of the Hardman windows with the neighbouring designs by Henry Holiday and William Wilson presents a striking contrast to the viewer. It is one not altogether unfavourable to the oldest surviving windows in St Salvator’s Chapel.
Design for stained glass, Bolton Abbey
Drawing: A.W.N. Pugin (c. 1840)
Source: RIBA British Architectural Library Drawings & Archives CollectionStained glass was extremely important to Pugin. He delighted in the striking effects that could be gained from its rich colours and stylized forms. Also, as a devout Catholic, he employed stained glass for its potential to teach and inspire.
Dating from the end of his career, this drawing reveals Pugin’s expertise as a stained glass designer. One of a set of cartoons describing the life of Christ, this was prepared for the decorative firm of J.G. Crace, who had been commissioned by the Duke of Devonshire to begin the restoration of Bolton Abbey. Pugin’s glass was intended for its nave, the only part of the abbey to survive the Dissolution of the Monasteries.
Like the Easter Sepulchre design for Cheadle, this is a working drawing. Scribbled all over the figures are notes for the craftsmen, indicating which colours should be used. These, however, do not detract from the drawing. Pugin’s ability to combine strong lines with a sense of movement is clear. And despite the simplicity of the figures, this scene possesses a great deal of emotion: the grief of Christ’s followers is inescapable.
