[Gothic Art (2)(continued (36)])[15th March 1991]

[Redbook8:335][19910315:1000q][Gothic Art (2)(continued (36)])[15th March 1991]

19910315.1000

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‘... During the first half of the 13^th century [ce], realism in sculpture was much appreciated. Sculptors seem to have been consciously attempting to impress the physical presence of their work on the spectator by its realistic and humane qualities. This is manifested as much in the extreme realism of some of the carved foliage as in the sometimes startling essays in emotional expressions. The statues of the Wise and Foolish Virgins on the portal of Magdeburg Cathedral show contrasting degrees of smug self-satisfaction and despairing grief and frustration of a sort probably never explored since Classical Antiquity. The changing drapery conventions and the spasmodic classicism may be seen as successive attempts to reach a realistic solution, without sacrificing the aesthetic demands of decorative pattern. However, it is equally apparent that the figurative arts were not in step....*

**

*[Sentence repeated in next ts entry]

** [– ibid (Encylopaedia of Visual Art 4:) 602)]

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