Illuminating the Renaissance The Triumph of Flemish Manuscript Painting in Europe

593 Pages·2003·83.93 MB·English

by  Thomas Kren and Scot McKendrick

I L L U M I N A T I NG T HE R E N A I S S A N CE
ILLUMINATING
T H E R E N A I S S A N C E
THE TRIUMPH OF FLEMISH MANUSCRIPT
PAINTING IN EUROPE
THOMAS KREN AND SCOT MCKENDRICK
with contributions by
Maryan W. Ainsworth, Mari-Tere Alvarez, Brigitte Dekeyzer,
Richard Gay, Elizabeth Morrison, Catherine Reynolds
T HE J. P A UL G E T T Y M U S E UM • LOS A N G E L ES
© 2003 J- Paul Getty Trust
Getty Publications
1200 Getty Center Drive, Suite 500
Los Angeles, California 90049-1682
www.getty.edu
This publication is issued in conjunction with the exhibition Illuminating the
Renaissance: The Triumph of Flemish Manuscript Painting in Europe, held at the
J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, and the Royal Academy of Arts, London.
The exhibition is on view in Los Angeles from June 17 to September 7, 2003,
and in London from November 29, 2003, to February 22, 2004.
This exhibition is supported by an indemnity from the Federal Council on the
Arts and the Humanities.
Christopher Hudson, Publisher
Mark Greenberg, Editor in Chief
Ann Lucke, Managing Editor
Dinah Berland, Project Editor
Karen Jacobson and Nomi Kleinmuntz, Manuscript Editors
Kurt Hauser, Designer
Anita Keys, Production Coordinator
Typeset by Diane L. Franco and G & S Typesetters
Separations by Professional Graphics Inc., Rockford, 111.
Printed and bound in England by Butler & Tanner Limited
COVER: Simon Bening and Antonio de Holanda, Genealogical Tree of the Kings
of Aragon (detail, ill. 147a); HALF-TITLE PAGE: Master of James IV of Scotland,
The Last Judgment (detail, ill. ma); FRONTISPIECE: Vienna Master of Mary of
Burgundy, Alexander Takes the Hand of Roxanne (detail, ill. 54a); TITLE PAGE:
The Spinola Hours, fol. 269 (detail; see cat no. 124); PAGE ix: Master of the
Dresden Prayer Book, Crossing of the Red Sea (detail, ill. 93b); PAGES x, xi:
Simon Bening and workshop, Stein Quadriptych (detail, ill. 146)
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kren, Thomas, 1950-
Illuminating the Renaissance : the triumph of Flemish manuscript
painting in Europe / Thomas Kren and Scot McKendrick with
contributions by Maryan W. Ainsworth ... [et al.],
p. cm.
Exhibition at the Getty Museum from June 17 to September 7, 2003,
and at the Royal Academy of Arts from November 29, 2003 to February
22, 2004.
ISBN 0-89236-703-2 (hardcover)-ISBN 0-89236-704-0 (pbk.)
i. Illumination of books and manuscripts, Flemish-Exhibitions. 2.
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Renaissance-Flanders -
Exhibitions. I. McKendrick, Scot. II. J. PaulGetty Museum. III.
Royal Academy of Arts (Grea t Britain). IV. Title.
ND3171.K74 2003
745 -6V'09493107479494 -dc2i
2003001611
C O N T E N TS
vii Foreword
Deborah Gribbon, Professor Phillip King, C.B.E., Lynne Brindley
viii Lenders to the Exhibition
xii Acknowledgments
xv Notes to the Reader
i Introduction
Thomas Kren and Scot McKendrick
15 Illuminators and the Painters' Guilds
Catherine Reynolds
35 Illuminators and Painters: Artistic Exchanges and Interrelationships
Thomas Kren and Maryan W. Ainsworth
59 Reviving the Past: Illustrated Manuscripts of Secular Vernacular Texts, 1467-1500
Scot McKendrick
C A T A L O G UE
81 PART 1
From Panel to Parchment and Back: Painters as Illuminators before 1470
Thomas Kren
Flemish Artists of the Turin-Milan Hours • Rogier van der Weyden • Petrus Christus •
Simon Marmion (A) • Willem Vrelant
121 PART 2
Revolution and Transformation: Painting in Devotional Manuscripts, circa 1467-1485
Thomas Kren
Vienna Master of Mary of Burgundy (A) • Master of the Moral Treatises • Hugo van der Goes
Master of the Houghton Miniatures • Ghent Associates • Master of the First Prayer Book of
Maximilian (A) • Simon Marmion (B) • Master of the Dresden Prayer Book (A) • Dreux Jean (A)
Master of Margaret of York Group (A)
223 PART 3
Painting in Manuscripts of Vernacular Texts, circa 1467-1485
Scot McKendrick
Vienna Master of Mary of Burgundy (B) • Loyset Liédet - Jean Hennecart • Dreux Jean (B) *
Lieven van Lathem • Master of Margaret of York Group (B) • Rambures Master •
Master of the Privileges of Ghent and Flanders • Master of the Harley Froissart • Master of
Anthony of Burgundy • Master of the Dresden Prayer Book (B) • Master of the London Wavrin •
Master of the Getty Froissart • Master of the White Inscriptions • Master of the Soane Josephus •
Master of Edward IV (A) • Master of the First Prayer Book of Maximilian (B) • Master of the
Flemish Boethius
313 PART 4
Consolidation and Renewal: Manuscript Painting under th e Hapsburgs, circa 1485-1510
Thomas Kren
Master of the First Prayer Book of Maximilian (c) • Simon Marmion (c) • Master of Edward IV (B) •
Gerard David • Master of James IV of Scotland (A) • Master of the Lübeck Bible •
Master of the David Scenes in the Grimani Breviary (A) • Master of the Dresden Prayer Book (c) •
Master of the Prayer Books of around 1500 • Master of Antoine Rolin
411 PART 5
New Directions in Manuscript Painting, circa 1510-1561
Thomas Kren '
Master of James IV of Scotland (B) • Gerard Horenbout • Lucas Hornebout • Master of the David
Scenes in the Grimani Breviary (B) • Master of the Soane Hours9 Simon Bening • Anonymous •
Jan Gossaert • Cornells Massys • Pieter Bruegel the Elder • Master of Charles V and Circle •
Master of Cardinal Wolsey • Anonymous • Pieter Coecke van Aelst
517 Appendix
The Scribes
Scot McKendrick
Selected Scribe Biographies
Richard Gay
523 Bibliographies to the Catalogue Entries
532 References
561 Index of Names
567 Index of Works of Art
573 Illustration Credits
575 About the Authors
vii
F O R E W O RD
Manuscript illumination, the quintessential medieval art form, enjoyed its final triumph during the
Renaissance. In the wake of the invention of printing, Flemish illuminators created extravagant and lavish
manuscripts in which their art was revitalized and given new direction. These manuscripts were col­
lected by rulers, their consorts, and their courtiers across Europe: the dukes of Burgundy in Flanders; their
Hapsburg successors in Spain, Germany, and Flanders; the Yorkist and Tudor monarchs in England;
and the Aviz dynasty of Portugal. The art and achievements of these illuminators are the subject of
Illuminating the Renaissance: The Triumph of Flemish Manuscript Painting in Europe.
This publication accompanies the first exhibition to bring together the greatest works produced
by Flemish illuminators during this exceptional period. Some of the objects included have never been
exhibited previously, and most have been seen only rarely. Illuminating the Renaissance encompasses works
that reveal the full range of sizes and formats in which illuminators worked: from a monumental geneal­
ogy to diminutive private altarpieces on parchment, from huge folio-size volumes to tiny prayer books,
and from single, independent miniatures to books containing one hundred or more illustrations. The
types of texts also vary: from histories, chronicles, and romances to Christian devotional writings, bre­
viaries, and books of hours. The exhibition presents manuscript illumination within the broader context
of painting in oil on panel and explores the close relationship between the two media, including objects by
artists who worked in both.
Thomas Kren, curator of manuscripts at the J. Paul Getty Museum, and Scot McKendrick, cura­
tor of manuscripts at The British Library, conceived the exhibition and catalogue. The Getty Museum's
Flemish manuscripts, some of the finest in the world, are among the high points of its collection. The
British Library's holdings, founded on the manuscripts purchased by King Edward IV more than five
hundred years ago, are arguably without rival. With these strengths, the Getty and The British Library
were ideal collaborators for this exhibition. For the presentation in London, this collaboration required a
third partner. In 2001, when given the opportunity of providing the London venue, the Royal Academy of
Arts was delighted to participate. With its own successful history of exhibiting illuminated manuscripts,
including the 1994-95 exhibition The Painted Page, which showed the highest achievements of Italian
Renaissance book illumination, the Royal Academy offered its full commitment to the realization of this
project. The British Library continued to support the exhibition through unprecedented and generous
loans and through the participation of Scot McKendrick as co-curator of the exhibition.
No previous exhibition or catalogue of Flemish manuscript illumination of this period matches
the scope and ambition of the present undertaking. We are most grateful to Thomas Kren and Scot
McKendrick for their vision, determination, and scholarship. They undertook the task of selecting objects
for the exhibition. Aided by their colleagues in the fields of manuscript illumination and northern Renais­
sance art, they pursued the relevant manuscripts, paintings, and drawings, securing loans with tenacity
and diplomacy. As they did so, they took the opportunity both to explore the broad themes of this era and
to approach the more perplexing problems of connoisseurship. This catalogue is a testament to their
achievement. We extend our gratitude to the many institutions and private individuals, both named
and anonymous, whose generosity has made this exhibition possible. It is our privilege to present these
precious objects to a larger public.
Deborah Gribbon, Director, J. Paul Getty Museum
Professor Phillip King, C.B.E., President, Royal Academy of Arts
Lynne Brindley, Chief Executive, The British Library
viii
L E N D E RS TO T HE EXHIBITIONS
Alnwick Castle, The Duke of Northumberland London, Lambeth Palace Library
Antwerp, Museum Mayer van den Bergh London, The National Gallery
Arundel Castle, The Duke of Norfolk London, Public Record Office
Baltimore, The Walters Art Museum London, Sir John Soane's Museum
Basel, Kunstmuseum London, Victoria and Albert Museum
Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Preussischer Los Angeles, The J. Paul Getty Museum
Kulturbesitz, Gemaldegalerie Madrid, Biblioteca de la Fundación Lázaro
Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Preussischer Galdiano
Kulturbesitz, Kupferstichkabinett Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional
Berlin, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin, Preussischer Manchester, The John Rylands University Library
Kulturbesitz, Handschriftenabteilung of Manchester
Bibermühle, Heribert Tenschert Montserrat, Biblioteca de FAbadia de Montserrat
Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery Munich, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek
Blackburn Museum and Art Gallery Naples, Biblioteca Nazionale "Vittorio
Brussels, Bibliothèque royale de Belgique Emanuele III"
Cambridge University Library New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Cambridge, The Fitzwilliam Museum New York, The Pierpont Morgan Library
Cambridge, St Johns College Nova Rise, The Premonstratensian Abbey of
Cambridge, Mass., Fogg Art Museum, Nova Rise
Harvard University Oxford, Bodleian Library
Cambridge, Mass., The Houghton Library, Oxford, Christ Church
Harvard University Oxford, Magdalen College
Chatsworth, The Duke of Devonshire and the Paris, Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal
Chatsworth Settlement Trustees Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France
The Cleveland Museum of Art Paris, Ecole nationale supérieure des Beaux-Arts
Copenhagen, Det Kongelige Bibliotek Paris, Musée du Louvre
Darmstadt, Hessisches Landesmuseum Philadelphia Museum of Art
Dublin, Chester Beatty Library San Marino, The Huntington Library
El Escorial, Real Biblioteca del Monasterio Stonyhurst College
de El Escorial (Patrimonio Nacional) Toronto, Art Gallery of Ontario
Glasgow University Library Valencia, Colección Serra de Alzaga
The Hague, Koninklijke Bibliotheek Vatican City, Biblioteca Apostólica Vaticana
Hatfield House, The Marquess of Salisbury Vienna, Ôsterreichische Nationalbibliothek
Holkham Hall, The Earl of Leicester and Trustees Waddesdon Manor (The National Trust)
of the Holkham Estate Ware, St Edmund's College
Kingston Lacy (The National Trust) Wilton House, The Earl of Pembroke
Lisbon, Fundaçâo Calouste Gulbenkian, Museu Windsor Castle, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,
Calouste Gulbenkian The Royal Library
London, The British Library Wormsley Library, Sir Paul Getty, K.B.E.
London, The British Museum
London, The Courtauld Institute Gallery and other collectors who wish to remain anonymous
London, Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II,
The Royal Collection Trust