Gothic
Revival
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pbw00382
Uncle Tom's Cabin
(J.H. Sears and Company, 1923) |
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Gothic was the major European style from
about the 12th to the 15th century. This was the era of
cathedrals like Notre Dame, Reims and Canterbury with their
soaring vaulted ceilings, flying buttresses and beautiful
stained glass. This architectural and decorative movement
declined during the Renaissance era, but there were periodic
renewals and revivals off and on in the centuries that
followed. It was in the mid 18th to late 19th century that
Gothic art received the greatest surge of attention in
a more formal Gothic Revival. This revival made its strongest
impact on architecture but also influenced decorative arts
like bookbinding.
On a popular level, many people idealized
the medieval period as a particularly spiritual and chivalrous
era.
During the 19th century, there was much discussion about
the most morally and nationally appropriate style for contemporary
buildings, particularly public ones such as churches and
government structures. There were two main camps in this
debate: the neoclassicists and
the Gothic revivalists. The classical supporters thought
their style represented
mathematical and aesthetic perfection and the intellectual
sophistication of the Greek philosophers, unlike the Dark
Ages art of the Gothicists. On the other hand, Gothic revivalists
argued that their style had its roots in Christianity and
European history and was therefore a better style for religious
and government buildings, in contrast to the pagan Greek
art.
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pbw00872
(spine)
Biblia Fr. Dette, 1877 |
There were several writers who advocated
for the Gothic style and provided resources for designers.
One of the earliest
was Horace Walpole, an aristocratic connoisseur and collector
who renovated his London home Strawberry Hill in Gothic Revival
style in the mid-18th century. Eugene Emanual Viollet-le-Duc
was the French advocate for the style in the 19th century.
John Ruskin, one of the most important voices in 19th century
art history, was also an ardent Gothicist for a period of
time.
Probably the most vocal supporter of the style was Augustus
Welby Northmore Pugin. A British architect and writer,
he published several books on the subject; the most well
known is The True Principles of Pointed or Christian
Architecture (1841). He argued that Gothic architecture was "the
only correct expression of the faith, wants, styles and
climate of our country." He designed a number of Gothic
churches, though financial limitations usually prevented
him from completely elaborating on his ideals.
His writings influenced many others, including
American Richard Upjohn, who modeled Trinity Church of
New York on Pugin's drawings in True Principles. Though
most government buildings in the United States were designed
in the neoclassical style, many churches in the
19th century were neo-Gothic because of its associations
with Christian spirituality. Other well-known Gothic revival
buildings are the British Parliament at Westminster and
the Hungarian House of Parliament in Budapest.
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pbw01615
The Role Call of Westminster Abbey
(The Macmillan Company, 1902) |
Many bindings also incorporated gothic features, particularly
for books with religious subject matter. The elements were
primarily architectural in origin: stamping based on pointed
arches, window tracery, crocket detailed lancets, quatrefoils
and trefoils. A popular style in the 1830s and 40s for leather
bound religious works was to emboss a picture of the entire
facade of a gothic church on the cover (see From Gothic
Windows to Peacocks for examples). Less elaborate versions were stamped
like various types of cathedral windows, and this appeared
more often in cloth bindings. Just as Gothic style building
projects continued into the 20th century, so too did cover
designers continue to incorporate these features, particularly
for books that looked back to the age of the Gothic cathedral.
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pba00149
Autobiography of Peter Cartwright, The Backwoods Preacher
(Carlton and Porter, 1857) |
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Search the PBO database for
Gothic Revival
Sources:
Howe, Katherine
and David Warren. The Gothic Revival Style in America,
1830–1870. Houston, TX: Museum of Fine Arts, 1976.
Jervis, Simon. High Victorian Design. Ottawa: National
Gallery of Canada, c1974.
Lewis, Michael J. The Gothic Revival. London: Thames and
Hudson, 2002.
Pippa, Shirley. "Gothic Revival." Dictionary
of Art. Edited by Jane Turner. New York:
Grove, 1996. (online version is available at some colleges and universities)
Wolf, Edwin. From Gothic Windows
to Peacocks - American Embossed Leather
Bindings 1825-1855. Philadelphia, Pa.: The Library Company of Philadelphia,
1990.
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