Month: April 2012

Noli Me Tangere, Fresco (1430), Fra Angelico (c.1387 – 1455)

Commentary by Hovak Najarian
Related post “Easter, April 8,2012′

In 1407, Guido di Pietro joined the Dominican order in Fiesole (near Florence, Italy) and at his vows took the name Giovanni. Thus, he was known as Friar Giovanni da Fiesole (Brother John of Fiesole). Vasari referred to him as Fra Giovanni Angelico (Brother John the Angelic one); now he is known simply as Fra Angelico. In Fra Angelico’s lifetime, Italy was in a state of transition. In the early part of the fifteenth century, medieval art was still a presence but Florence was at the heart of the Renaissance and Fra Angelico was aware fully of the trends toward humanism and the changes in art that were taking place.

In medieval art, figures are generally flat with little sense of individuality. They seem to exist in a mystic realm surrounded by gold leaf that shimmers as though reflecting heavenly light. Figures are not always anatomically correct in proportion and may be made larger or smaller according to a person’s status. During the Renaissance, the interest in humanism, an awareness of the world in which they lived, a better understanding of perspective, and the use of oil paints were factors that led artists toward the creation of paintings that were convincing effects of reality. Figures of a Modonna and Child no longer existed in another realm; they were given anatomically correct proportions and were presented as real people.

Fra Angelico’s life was devoted to the work of the church and one of his major undertakings was at the monastery at San Marcos in Florence where he and his assistants painted the cells (prayer and meditation rooms) with scenes from the life of Christ. Noli Me Tangere (“Don’t touch me”) is a fresco on the wall of one of the cells. The scene depicts Mary Magdalene just after she recognized the risen Christ. She is kneeling and reaching out toward him as Christ subtly gestures to her and steps aside.

There is pictorial depth in this fresco and the modeling creates an effect of solid figures under the draped clothing. Mary Magdalene’s kneeling position is believable as is the sense that Jesus has just moved his right foot as he withdraws slightly from Mary. Yet, although the figures are no longer painted as they would have been in medieval times, the tomb is quite stylized and tightly rendered. The landscape of springtime flowers and the backdrop of trees also are stylized.

Studies by perceptual psychologist Rudolph Arnheim have shown that viewers tend to “read” a painting from left to right. It also has been shown that from the standpoint of visual balance, we are more comfortable when there is more visual weight on the left side of a painting. Fra Angelico followed intuitively these compositional guidelines. If the painting, Noli Me Tangere, were to be divided in half (the background palm tree being the center) the larger and more passive visual mass on the left – the tomb and Mary Magdalene – is balanced by the more active figure of Christ on the right.

In Noli Me Tangere our eyes enter the painting on the left side at the tomb. We make a mental note of the darkness in the open door (this door is not designed to be closed by a large stone) and then we continue our visual journey to Mary Magdalene dressed in red, a color that also carries weight. The direction of Mary’s gaze, her arms, and her hand gesture lead our eyes to the figure of Jesus the focal point of the painting. In the figure of Jesus we find movement and we follow his gaze as it leads us back to the face of Mary. A fence in the background limits pictorial depth and keeps the focus of attention on the figures of Jesus and Mary Magdalene in the foreground. Although Noli Me Tangere seems to be a simple composition there is within the subtle gestures and facial expressions, a subtext that causes us to reflect on the moment this meeting occurred.

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© 2012 Hovak Najarian

Were You There?

To me, a Maundy Thursday or Good Friday service seems incomplete if I don’t hear, at least once, the old spiritual “Were You There When They Crucified My Lord?” The text and melody are so simple, yet profound, and I imagine I am not the only one who continues humming it long after the service is over. (Unless it’s a Maundy Thursday service, in which case, I can usually keep quiet at least until we make it to the car!)

As is the case with most of our beloved spirituals, there isn’t a clear composer or date of composition for “Were You There.” We know that it must have originated in the mid-1800s, before the Civil War and the abolishment of slavery. Spirituals developed as “work songs” that were sung while tending the fields, doing laundry, or fulfilling other responsibilities. Because of this, they tend to have simple melodies that are easy to learn and pleasant to sing. Most spirituals contain hidden messages of escape and freedom (such as “Deep River,” “Steal Away,” “Wade in the Water,” and “This Train is Bound for Glory”). Many of these songs carried literal directions, while others subtly provided inspiration for those who may have been thinking of making an escape.

However, it seems that “Were You There?” contains none of these messages, and is, instead, a song of reverence for Jesus’ suffering. Jesus’ story must have been one that American slaves could identify with, as they, too, knew what it was like to be mocked, humiliated, beaten, and abused.

Over time, “Were You There?” and several other spirituals have been included in our collection of regularly sung hymns. This is credited largely to African American composer Harry T. Burleigh (1866-1949). The majority of his life’s work was devoted to arranging spirituals and publishing them to ensure that they would not be forgotten. In 1924, G. Ricordi published his arrangement of “Were You There?” for high voice and piano. This particular arrangement is most closely associated with contralto Marian Anderson, as she released a recording of the piece in 1939.

Though we probably all know the text by heart, I’ve provided it below, along with two recordings of the work.

Were You There?

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they nailed him to the tree?

Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when they laid him in the tomb?

Were you there when God raised him from the tomb?
Were you there when God raised him from the tomb?
Oh, sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble.
Were you there when God raised him from the tomb?

Source: Lutheran Hymnal 

 Marian Anderson

Solo Piano Meditation

What good is that plastic bottle? You might be surprised.

Episcopal Public Policy Network (EPPN) shared this article via Twitter. From Development Marketplace comes news of community building, gaining hope, and caring for the environment. Plastic bottles, as you will see, can do more than take up space in a landfill.

Building with plastic bottles

“In the Philippines and Guatemala, local groups have taken the mantra ‘Reduce, Re-use, Recycle’ to a whole new level.” See for yourself: Transforming Plastic Bottles into Classrooms

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Image: First Bottle School in Asia