10

th

January 2010

Le Cellier AltarpieceIn the next paragraph Im going to write about the credit line of this tryptich, Ill describe what I see and what I think are the elements of art of it and the function. Le Cellier Altarpiece is a tryptich of Jean Bellegambe (1504 34 a.C) central panel 40 x 24 in. (101.6 x 61 cm); left wing 37 3/4 x 10 in. (95.9 x 25.4 cm); right wing 37 1/2 x 9 1/2 in. (95.3 x 24.1 cm.) Saint Bernard, a reformer of the Cistercian order, gathers with his family around the throne of the Virgin. This tryptich was accredited by Jeanne de Boubais, abbess of the Cistercian convent of Flines; she is shown ate the right in the guise of Saint Bernards sister, Humbeline, and for this reason wears the black Benedictine habit. On the middle wing is represented Bernards vision of the Virgin, who, it is said, miraculously wet the saints lips with her milk. On the background there is the city with dark sky and you can see in the right exterior wing a river. In the top edges of the exterior wings on some branches there are drawn two angels, there are priests and a pope in the right wing. In the middle you can see the Virgin sitting on a throne made out of stone with angels around her and on her laps Jesus Christ. Above the head of the Virgin there is like a flame on a candle that gives off light on her head. There is a light that enters from the whole in the roof of the throne that surrounds the Virgin and Jesus Christ. All around it is all dark with. I think that the function of this tryptich is, as you can see, religious and I believe that the elements of art that he used is mostly lines and space. Space is positive or negative. Positive is when spaced is occupied by something in an area and negative space, is the space around something in the area. In this tryptich space it is an illusion to our eyes showing depth. Even if theres the depth it can seem that this tryptich is in perspective but it isnt because all lines dont meet at the vanishing point and horizontal lines dont remain horizontal and parallel. This is what I believe the elements of art and the function is.