Medieval Illuminators and Their Methods of Work

by Jonathan J.G. Alexander

In this beautifully produced and illustrated volume (247 illustrations, about 30 in color, including a number of full-page plates) Alexander (art, Institute of Fine Arts, New York) presents a survey of manuscript illumination throughout Europe from the fourth to the sixteenth century. He discusses the social and historical context of the illuminators' lives, considers their methods of work, and presents a series of case studies to show the range and nature of the visual sources and the ways in which they were adapted, copied, or created anew. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.

Genres: Nonfiction, Art, History, Art History, Historical, Medieval

222 pages, Hardcover

First published December 23, 1992

Reviews

[E · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent book I bought some years ago. It illustrates the methods and expertise of the monastic illustrator.

In a world lit only by candlelight, these talented artists worked for years to complete hand illuminated prayer books, Bibles, documents, and Liturgical sheet music.

Of course, these works would only be affordable at the time to royalty and very wealthy nobility. Many of the manuscripts were kept in the monastery libraries as canonical treasures.

The book is plentiful with the beautiful detailed breathtaking examples of the work and corresponding explanations.

The only thing I would have liked to have seen is more colored plates than what was offered.

There were so many examples of these masterpieces, I could only assume the cost would be prohibitive to make the book affordable to a wide audience.

[Brad Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok. Mostly art history that is boring to me. A few good images, but there are better resources for that.