An examination of women as mothers in medieval French sculpture. What can medieval sculptural representations of women tell us about medieval women's experiences of motherhood? Presumably the work of male sculptors, working for clerical patrons, these sculptures are unlikely to have been shaped by women's maternal experiences during their production. Once produced, however, their beholders would have included women who were mothers and potential mothers, thus opening a space between the sculptures' intended meanings and other meanings liable to be produced by these women as they brought their own interests and concerns to these works of art. Building on theories of reception and response, this book focuses on interactions between women asbeholders and a range of sculptures made in France in the twelfth through sixteenth centuries, aiming to provide insight into women's experiences of motherhood; particular sculptures considered include the Annunciation and Visitation from Reims cathedral, the femme-aux-serpents from Moissac, the transi of Jeanne de Bourbon-Vendome, the Eve from Autun, and a number of French Gothic Virgin and Child sculptures. Marian Bleeke is Associate Professor of Art History and Chair of the Department of Art and Design at Cleveland State University.
An examination of women as mothers in medieval French sculpture. What can medieval sculptural representations of women tell us about medieval women's experiences of motherhood? Presumably the work of male sculptors, working for clerical patrons, these sculptures are unlikely to have been shaped by women's maternal experiences during their production. Once produced, however, their beholders would have included women who were mothers and potential mothers, thus opening a space between the sculptures' intended meanings and other meanings liable to be produced by these women as they brought their own interests and concerns to these works of art. Building on theories of reception and response, this book focuses on interactions between women asbeholders and a range of sculptures made in France in the twelfth through sixteenth centuries, aiming to provide insight into women's experiences of motherhood; particular sculptures considered include the Annunciation and Visitation from Reims cathedral, the femme-aux-serpents from Moissac, the transi of Jeanne de Bourbon-Vendome, the Eve from Autun, and a number of French Gothic Virgin and Child sculptures. Marian Bleeke is Associate Professor of Art History and Chair of the Department of Art and Design at Cleveland State University.
Introduction: Motherhood and Meaning in Medieval Sculpture
Motherhood as Transformation: From Annunciation to Visitation at
Reims
Motherhood as Monstrosity: The Moissac Femme-aux-serpents and the
Transi of Jeanne de Bourbon-Vendome
Resurrecting Lazarus: The Eve from Saint-Lazare at Autun
Visualizing Parturition: Devotional Sculptures of the Virgin and
Child
Afterword: Motherhood and Meaning: Medieval Sculpture and
Contemporary Art
Bibliography
Index
There is much to admire about Bleeke's energetic and wide-ranging
study. A great strength of her book is her belief that public
sculpture could shape peoples' thoughts and behaviors, and that it
could do so in ways not intended by the designers of the
program.
*SPECULUM*
The impressive assembly of modern scholarship on the broad subject
of female reception and experience is evident.
*ECCLESIOLOGY TODAY*
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