tailieunhanh - The Origins of Interlace in Romanesque Sculpture

Gabo, however, used a new system in which he employed a ‘stereometric cube.” This schematic design involved removal of four of the six sides of the cube, while retaining the top and the bottom, and replacing the rejected planes with two internal, interlocking diagonals. Thus the illusion of solid mass within the cube could be destroyed, allowing the interior space to appear open and free. After leaving Russia (about 1915), Gabo joined his brother and fellow sculptor Antoine Pevsner in Norway. Of this productive sojourn he said, “I was living in the fjords of Norway where the atmosphere was as if one were not of this world. Very often. | The Origins of Interlace in Romanesque Sculpture Introduction Across France but particularly in the West and in the South-east of France many hundreds of mediaeval churches feature sculptures of interlace. The interlace is similarly frequently used in sculpture in parts of Northern Spain. These sculptures show a remarkable variety of design and style. The following notes contain thoughts on the origins of the decorative motif and its spread across Western Europe. No consideration is being given to sculptures after the late XII century and the end of the Romanesque period. Definition The interlace is a decorative motif or pattern consisting of threads or ribbons that pass over and under each other like the threads in lace. The threads or ribbons may end in a stylised leaf. Origins In Britain there is a tendency to associate its origins with Celtic art. The Celts probably learned about the interlace from marauding Vikings the motif was present in Scandanavia before the VI century and it was certainly introduced to the British Isles from there by invading Vikings. Celtic Cross of Kong AD 1100 1 Jelling Stone Jutland Viking ship interlace Sweden IXc Axe head Mammen Danmark Xc 2 Sutton Hoo - Gold buckle In turn it is probable that the interlace pattern came to Scandinavia through trade with tribes from the South in what is now Germany. The Byzantine Empire was certainly familiar with the motif which was introduced to them by nomadic peoples from the East around the Caspian Region. Nomads were probably also responsible for taking the designs North to the Germanic tribes. It may be that the Barbarian tribes moving into Western Europe in the years following the end of the Roman Empire brought the motif with them only to find that it was already in use. Around the Southern littoral of the Mediterranean it has long been a familiar motif. Here the roots come from the Copts of Egypt who had acquired them from the Levant. Neither the Greeks nor the Romans used the interlace .