in the city of Rome – consists of two semicircles merged together and is by no means open-ended. Another allusion to the Greek architecture is that the décor of the Colosseum combines different orders – Doric, Ionic, Corinthian – and yet, the columns are not free standing (the Parthenon in Athens) but they are engaged in the walls (like in the Maison Carrée in Nimes).
The Romans were abscessed with technology and that allowed them to build in a very different way. The arch became the fundamental element of Roman architecture enabling them to erect bridges (The Alcántara Bridge), aqueducts (Devil’s bridge in Tarragona) and even the Pantheon – a temple to all the gods with a lot of altars.
The Romans were more interested in entertainment than in dramatic performances. And yet, the situation has been changing and not long ago they have started to organize concerts at the Colosseum, such as “The Three Tenors” in 1994.
How to Understand a Work of Art? Step I
There are places and works of Art that could change your life right away.
“The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa” by Gian Lorenzo Bernini located at Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome. It was a rainy day and when I entered the church there it was – glowing in the dark, Mysterious and unreal.
“The Moses” by Michelangelo Buonarroti at San Pietro in Vincoli which differs greatly from the other sculptures decorating the Tomb of Pope Julius II. I came to the church early in the morning and there was nobody inside it but me.
Michelangelo’s “Pieta” which I noticed during my second visit to Saint Peter’s Basilica. By the way, despite the fact that it is located rather far from the isle and you need a very good camera to take a photo, the sculpture is absolutely amazing.
Argentine Tango full of passion and sensuality also will not leave you unchanged.
Nevertheless, from time to time it could be helpful to make an effort and use our imagination in order to find out how monuments of the past might have looked like in those days when Roman Culture reached its height.
On the one hand, during my first visit to Santa Maria Maggiore, the interiors of which are richly adorned with mosaics in Byzantine style, I tried to “deconstruct” it, metaphorically speaking, so as to appreciate the Beauty of the original church.
On the other hand, while wandering around the Roman Forum, the place where people used to gather and discuss important issues, I had to “reconstruct” half-destroyed or even missing buildings.
To sum it up, on the whole, there is a variety of possibilities for those who are determined to succeed in studying Art. And if one of the methods mentioned above do not appeals to you, you should try another one.
To be continued…
Chapter II
Once Upon a Time
I decided to go from Minsk to Vilnius. Surprisingly, it turned out that it was not a tourist trip as I had expected, but a pilgrimage tour.
Firstly, when I passed through the Sharp Gate or Ostra Brama and entered the old part of the city, it dawned on me that there are a lot of churches in Vilnius. Suffice it to say that while walking from the Gate to the Vilnia River I visited Roman Catholic Church of St. Teresa in Baroque style, Orthodox Church of St. Nicholas in Neo-Byzantine style, Roman Catholic Church of St. Anna in Flamboyant Gothic and Brick Gothic styles and even Choral Synagogue in Moorish style, etc.
Moreover, there is a marvelous Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter and St. Paul on the other bank of the Vilnia River. Built in Baroque style, the church is richly decorated with sculptures and stucco reliefs inside and outside and thus it looks like a gorgeous porcelain casket. Needless to say, it completely took my breath away.
Secondly, despite the fact that the Memorial Museum of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis is a little off the beaten track, it is definitely worth visiting. To cut a long story short, Čiurlionis’ Mysterious Paintings complemented by his Music which was being performed at the Museum made a strong impression on me.
Finally, when I returned to Minsk, I saw everything in a different light. Pardon me for mentioning it, but in spite of the fact that I had been studying in Minsk for about six years, I had never been in most of its churches until then. Wandering around the Church of Saints Simon and Helena, I realized that it bears striking resemblance to the Church of St. Anna in Vilnius. Furthermore, one day my friend took me to the Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul and showed the place where the choir is standing during the service. I will never forget how enchanting it was.
To sum it up, it seems to me that nothing happens accidentally; on the contrary, everything has its purpose. All you need to do is believe in yourself and you will live happily ever after, I presume.
Literary Essay II
Now when most parts of the world are on lockdown because of the virus and I have to work from home, my flat reminds me of Monastic Cell and I imagine myself being a Medieval Scholar who describes historical events and ponders the future.
As we all know, religious issues were of utmost importance in those days. Suffice it to mention “The Confessions” of Saint Augustine in which he is examining his own life, talking about his yearning for truth and his struggle with worldly desires, discussing the nature of sin and telling us about his conversion to Christianity.
At the same time, Chivalric Romances describing adventures of knight-errant and praising Courtly Love for idealized lady were extremely popular in the Middle Ages. For instance, “Lancelot, the Knight of the Cart” by Chrétien de Troyes or “Roman de la Rose” two parts of which were written by Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun respectively. When I had seen highly detailed miniature from illuminated manuscript depicting the Lover entering the walled garden in search of the Rose symbolizing his lady’s love, I was dazzled by its refined Beauty.
As for love, it is said that there were the so-called “Lovers of Teruel” who lived in the 13th century and died young since the farther of the bride-to-be was against their marriage and made his daughter marry another man. One can find their tombs in the Mausoleum of the Amantes in Teruel – a city in Aragon where, by the way, there are a lot of buildings designed in the Mudéjar style bearing traces of Islamic Art. Rumor has it that William Shakespeare may have been inspired by this story of forbidden love when writing “Romeo and Juliet”.
During the Carnival of Venice, which also dates back to the Middle Ages, people could do what they liked and wear what they wanted hiding their faces behind elaborate Masks so that nobody could find out their identity. After all, life is a dream and only death “organizes” it, gives it shape and meaning.
And yet, let us hope for the best and continue our “investigation” following the example of Franciscan friar William of Baskerville, the main character of Umberto Eco’s novel “The Name of the Rose”.
Philosophical Issues II
The importance of Neoplatonism is that it provided the philosophical framework that dominated Medieval thought until the 11th-12th centuries. And it continued to be a powerful instrument after the Reformation, during the Renaissance, the Enlightenment, etc. That is to say, it has been tremendously influential.
Firstly and most importantly, Neoplatonists thought of the Hierarchy of Being with Emanations from the One, the Divine Being, to Nous or Intelligence, Logos, then to the World Soul and, finally, to the Phenomenal World. Moreover, there was an upward movement, parallel to this downward Emanation, known
