During the Gothic period (12th - 16th c) cathedrals were becoming popular, and more and more were being built. The invention of the flying buttress had to do with the sudden growth in number of the cathedrals. Although, it is interesting that is what people wanted to have built, and how that contributes to Western civilization.
Culture greatly affected the design of the cathedrals. The common belief among people of the book: God is all things good and perfect. To the architects, that translated into, among other things: God is the great mathematician, and He is creative. This led to measurement, symmetry, extreme beauty, and creative art, such as images in stained glass, becoming extremely popular among architects.
Culture has always affected art, which always translated into our buildings. For instance, in the U.S., from the Progressive Era through 1970s, buildings, like school buildings and even churches, took on a look reminiscent of factories. This is thanks to a combination of resources, and the novelty of factories during the Industrial Revolution. Now, this has become the common look of buildings, cities, and towns. Most don’t have an opinion on how all the buildings are designed. However, those who take an interest in the subject would argue the old cathedrals and other buildings were much more extravagant.
Buildings, and the world, were all prettier back when theology was the biggest influence in art. People largely believed that everyone should be able to have beauty in their lives and have a place to worship. Those two ideas correlated, and spectacular cathedrals were the result.
Man cannot live on bread alone. That was the idea, all were welcome to come to the cathedrals and worship. In turn, everyone who wasn’t a one-percenter should still be able to view the beauty in God’s creations when they come to worship in God’s house. Big concepts were within all the extravagant beauties in the churches. From gargoyles looking up to the heavens, placed so high on the buildings that only the Lord could see them, to the stained glass images and paintings that showed Bible stories, and even theological nuances like Mary and Eve in the garden together.
The older days weren’t just filled with spooks afraid of black cats, and so-called crazed Bible thumpers. The whole Western world used to be full of people with a common goal, common hopes, and a nuanced look on life itself. It’s important to look upon the example of others from years past, regardless of the flaws.
Comments