Jill Miser
HUM300
Angels
Individual Research Essay
Figures of angels play a prominent role in medieval, renaissance, and baroque art; one of the most notable and commonly depicted scenes including angels is the Annunciation of the birth of Jesus to the Virgin Mary. As the beginning of the most significant event in human history, it is not surprising that visual artists throughout the centuries have created works of art based on both the Biblical account and their own imaginations. Although each painting, sculpture, or work of literature is unique, there are common elements that link the various pieces of art, both in the angels’ figures themselves and the other symbols present in the scene. Exploring the various symbols present in Annunciation art allows us to discover how artists, both past and present, view the significance of this event, the beginning of a new era in human history. In order to properly interpret the Annunciation, it is helpful to look at the Biblical account of the angel Gabriel’s visit to the Virgin Mary. The New International Version describes it this way: “28The angel went to her and said, ‘Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.’29Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be.” The angel tells her she is going to give birth to the Son of God, and she replies, “34’How will this be,’ Mary asked the angel, ‘since I am a virgin?’ 35The angel answered, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. 36Even Elizabeth your relative is going to have a child in her old age, and she who was said to be barren is in her sixth month. 37For nothing is impossible with God.’ 38’I am the Lord's servant,’ Mary answered. ‘May it be to me as you have said.’ Then the angel left her” (Luke 1:28-29, 34-38, NIV). Obviously, this event was significant; the coming of Christ is the most important event in human history, and this marks the beginning of that time. Because this was such an important moment, many artists, both historical and contemporary, have chosen to use it as a subject for their work.
Although the Biblical account of the Annunciation is crucial, many of the details are left to the imagination; here is where the artists’ influence begins. Most illustrations of the Annunciation have some standard symbols included in them. One such detail is the clothing worn by each angel. The angelic garb seems to be one of the most changeable themes in Annunciation art. In paintings such as Il Garofalo’s The Annunciation, Gabriel wears magnificent robes of blue and red, which echo the colors of Mary’s robe, as well as golden sandals that leave no doubt to the majestic character of this angelic figure. However, in a 15th century illuminated manuscript’s depiction of the Annunciation, Gabriel is clothed in a simple white garment. The plain white coloring, a typical symbol of purity, shows the angel’s holiness. While the angel’s garments differ from painting to painting, they each demonstrate a typically “angelic” quality.
While artists depict the angel in a variety of different colors and styles, Mary is almost always wearing blue. Most often, she wears a red or pink dress, with a robe of blue covering her. Blue “represents many things:…truth, constancy and fidelity” (Steffler 131). An article entitled The Color Blue: its Use as a Metaphor and Symbol reiterates this idea, saying, “blue is defined as signifying heaven, heavenly love, and truth, constancy, and fidelity” (Jacobs 29). Mary embodies these ideas by her response to the angel’s strange news; while she is at first shocked and confused, she quickly accepts what he is telling her, saying, “’I am the Lord's servant…May it be to me as you have said’” (Luke 1:38). In fidelity to her faith, she graciously accepts what must have been a scary prospect for the young girl. For this reason, artists from Da Vinci (1472) to Botticelli (1490) have portrayed her in the color blue.
While blue is the dominant choice of color for Mary, kneeling is the dominant choice of posture for the angel. In Donatello’s Cavalcanti Annunciation, the stone angel kneels before Mary; another example of this is Malozzo da Forli’s Annunciation. Malozzo’s work presents Gabriel kneeling, presenting Mary with a stalk of lilies. Because many of the Annunciation images are displayed in Catholic churches, it makes sense that they would show the honored position that Mary holds, a fundamental Catholic tenet, by representing the angel kneeling before her. Even angels who are not kneeling are at least showing signs of respect and honor, as the angel in Alesso Baldovinetti’s 1450 Annunciation.. This angel seems to be floating or running towards Mary, with arms crossed in a posture of deference.
As the angel approaches Mary, often he will be proffering a branch of lilies. These white blossoms are one of the most prominent symbols found in Annunciation art. In almost every depiction of the Annunciation, the lilies appear either in the angel’s hands as a gift to Mary, or as part of the background of the scene. For example, in the Cavalcanti Annunciation, the scene itself is simple, but in the background of the stone carving small gold lilies adorn the panel. In Robert Campin’s Annunciation with Patrons and Saint Joseph in His Workshop, the lilies are simply placed in a vase on the table next to Mary, part of the scene rather than the interaction between Gabriel and Mary. However they are utilized, the lilies appear in almost every painting or sculpture of the Annunciation. Sometimes called the “Madonna lily” (Benton 333), these flowers symbolize the purity and chastity of the Virgin Mary.
While lilies represent purity, the other objects that can be found in many scenes of the annunciation also symbolize various qualities of the Virgin Mary. For example, in many Annunciation paintings, Mary appears to have just been holding either a book or a basket of yarn when the angel came to her. According to Betty Douglas, Professor Emerita at Geneva College, the book Mary holds in many such paintings contains readings from the book of Isaiah. Artists used this book to demonstrate that Christ was the fulfillment of the many messianic prophesies contained in Isaiah. However, if a basket of yarn is present instead of the book, it is typically intended to symbolize that Mary was simply a young Jewish girl, simply doing her duty as a betrothed woman, before the angel came to tell her, “Greetings, you who are highly favored!” (Luke 1:28)
Another oft-seen image in Annunciation art is the presence of the Holy Trinity somewhere in the painting. Often, God the Father will be depicted as an old man watching from the clouds in the upper left-hand corner of the painting, as He is in Tisi’s Annunciation, da Forli’s Annunciation, or the Psalter No. 13 (da Cremona, 15th cen.). As he breathes out, a dove flies on His golden breath towards the earth. This dove symbolizes “God the Holy Ghost” (Ferguson 73). Because this scene immediately preceded Jesus leaving heaven in order to come to earth as a baby, God the Son is not always explicitly represented with the rest of the Trinity in these paintings. However, the most common representation is of the Son as a baby, such as in Tisi’s painting. Here, Jesus can be seen coming out of the clouds as a toddler, carrying a small wooden cross. These figures serve as a reminder of the angel’s words to Mary: “The Lord is with you” (Luke 1:28b).
Although the figures and objects present at the moment of the Annunciation hold a great deal of symbolic meaning, the setting has a great deal of significance as well. The most commonly used setting for Annunciation art is in a location contemporary to the artist. There are many reasons for this; probably the most influential is that “locating the Annunciation within a contemporary setting is intended to make the sacred events more comprehensible and meaningful” (Wilkins 242). If viewers of these paintings were able to picture Mary as a girl who lived much as they did, it would allow them to be more touched by the scene and more able to relate to the moment. Some examples are Fra Angelico’s Annunciation, and Campin’s Annunciation with Patrons and Saint Joseph in His Workshop. Both of these are painted in a “contemporary building,” (Benton 302) allowing the viewer to be drawn in more fully to the story. Occasionally, such as in Tisi’s Annunciation, the artist will instead choose to place Mary in a more formal scene. Here, as she kneels in prayer, pillars divide her from the angel. These pillars remind the viewer of a church, placing Mary in a sacred setting instead of a more contemporary, familiar setting. Although this would tend to draw the viewer into the story less, it adds to the impression of the sacred nature of the scene.
Whether simple or complex, colorful or plain, Annunciation art has served its purpose throughout history. As the beginning of Jesus’ earthly life, it is an important part of the story of Christianity. Artists have used a variety of symbols and scenes to represent this part of the story, and they all give different insights on the nature of this event. While every detail of an Annunciation painting can be examined to give new perspective on what each artist wanted to portray, one should be careful not to lose sight of the overall meaning of this event. This is the day that Gabriel announced that God would send His Son into the world to redeem mankind from sin. In the words of poet Charles Causley, “They stored him safe as water/Under seven rocks./One Sunday morning he burst out/Like a jack-in-the-box.” This is the real beauty behind the Annunciation story, and the reason why so many artists throughout history have felt the desire to paint the beginning of the most beautiful story ever told.
Works Cited
Baldovinetti, Alessio. Annunciation. 1445-50. Tempura on panel. Uffizi, Florence.
Botticelli, Sandro. Annunciation. 1489-90. Tempura on panel. Uffizi, Florence.
Da Forli, Malozzo. Annunciation. Early 16th century. Fresco. Pantheon, Rome.
Da Vinci, Leonardo. Annunciation. 1472. Oil on panel. Uffizi, Florence.
Fra Angelico. Annunciation. 1438-45. Fresco. San Marco Monastery, Florence.
Tisi, Benvenuto. The Annunciation. 1528. Oil on canvas. Capitoline Museum, Rome.
Donatello. Cavalcanti Annunciation. 1433-1435. Stone. Santa Croce, Florence.
Campin, Robert. Annunciation with Patrons and Saint Joseph in His Workshop. 1425-30. Oil on wood. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.
Wilkins, David G., Bernard Schultz, and Katheryn M. Linduff. Art Past Art Present. 4th. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2001. 242-243. Print.
Benton, Janetta Rebold, and Robert Di Yanni. Arts and Culture: Introduction to the Humanities. 2nd ed. Combined volume. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005. 333. Print.
Causley, Charles. “Ballad of the Bread Man.” 1968. Web. 6 Apr 2010.
Jacobs, Vivan, and Wilhelmina Jacobs. "The Color Blue: Its Use as a Metaphor and Symbol." American Speech 33.1 (1958): 29. Web. 5 Apr 2010. .
Cremona, Girolamo da, and Venturino da Milano. Psalter No. 13. 15th century. Piccolomini Library, Siena.
Ferguson, George. Signs & Symbols in Christian Art: with illustrations from paintings of the Renaissance. Oxford University Press US, 1961. 73. Web.
Steffler, Alva William. Symbols of the Christian Faith. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2002. 131. Print.
