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BEST WORKS OF SCULPTURE
For a list of the world's top 100
3-D artworks, by the best sculptors
in the history of art, see:
Greatest Sculptures Ever.
BEST SCULPTORS
For a list of the world's most
talented 3-D artists, see:
Greatest Sculptors.
FORMS OF SCULPTING
For different types of carving,
and modelling media, see:
Stone Sculpture
From igneous, sedimentary,
and metamorphic rocks.
Marble Sculpture
Pentelic, Carrara, Parian marbles.
Wood Carving
Chip carving, relief carving of
softwoods and hardwoods.
Bronze Sculpture
Lost-wax casting method,
sandcasting, centrifugal casting.
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On the northern side of the cathedral,
the large reclining nude of 'Eve' also exemplifies Gislebertus' excellence
in expressionism and carving technique (although 'Eve' is now housed in
the Rolin Museum, Autun). Gislebertus also created 60 capitals in the
interior and doorways, most of which depict scenes from the bible. The
imagination the artist showed in creating these pieces is renowned –
for example, the tenderness he managed to portray in the sculptures of
Christ's infancy, in stark contrast to the frightening scenes of judgement
and damnation.
The Annunciation to the Magi (Saint-Lazare,
1120-30)
This famous capital from the church of
Saint-Lazare in Autun is masterful in how much it conveys through its
simple effective composition. the three kings are shown sleeping; they
are identified by their number and their crowns. As they sleep, they have
a vision of an angel, only the upper part of whom is shown, the rest being
hidden behind the blanket of the sleeping magi. The angel gestures to
the magi, and to the star above them, and we can almost hear his directions
to them. The lines marking the folds of the angel's robes, and of the
blanket, add dynamism to the composition that evokes the swirling drapery
of the Parthenon's metopes: see for example south metope No 30, Battle
of the Lapith and the Centaurs.
Although Gislebertus would undoubtedly
have worked with numerous assistants, his works from this period can be
clearly identified as he took the unusual step at the time of signing
his work very prominently with the words 'Gislebertus hoc fecit' (Gislebertus
made this). The fact he was allowed to do so, is an indication that he
was highly regarded in his own time.
Legacy
Gislebertus (not to be confused with Gilabertus,
another sculptor of the same period who signed two figurative sculptures
at St Etienne Cathedral in Toulouse) is considered one of the masters
of Romanesque-style medieval sculpture. It was his vivid imagination,
combined with practical skill that inspired a generation of other sculptors
who would march towards the expressive style of Gothic art and architecture.
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