Šventosios žemės vaizdai XIX a. Vakarų Europos dailėje
The images of the Holy Land in the 19th c. West European art

Summary/Abstract: The vision of the Holy Land attracts Jewish and non-Jewish artists from the time of Roma Empire till our days. The each generation of the artists had a patent way of showing the Palestine or Holy Land, Promised Land, Eretz Israel, Israel. Some of them imagined the Holy Land as mystical country and place of miracles, others – as country of their dreams; for the third group of artists the Holy Land was the place of hope, where they were able to change, to improve or to revive. The enlarged attention to the Holy Land in West European art is noticed from the beginning of the 19th century. This extreme attention was determinated by some reasons: first of all, by the ideology of Romantism; secondly, the decrement of Ottoman Empire; thirdly, the opening of the Suez canal, which allowed to organize the fashionable cruises for tourists to the East; fourthly, the increasing studies of Bible and biblical events. The growing interest to genre of landscape in art and the development of photography had played an important part as well. The two main groups of artists traveled to the Holy Land. The earliest painters of the Promised Land were pilgrims from the Renaissance times. In the 19th century the Nazarenes of Germany or Austria, Templars and Pre-Raphaelites were attracted of pilgrim journeys to Palestine, as well as, the romantics, usually with military, scientific or diplomatic mission, joined them. Both pilgrims and romantics preferred the same artistic motives to paint. They enjoy painting the Jerusalem and the areas around the city, the views from the Mount of Olives and the Valley of Jehosaphat, the Abbey of St. Catherine and the Mount of Sinai, the Sea of Galilee and the Dead Sea. Though, the different purposes of both pilgrims and romantics journeys inspired dissimilar way of showing the same views in art. The journeys of pilgrims were stimulated by religious passion, search for spiritual wealth and longing for peace of soul. Therefore, their artistic works were full of symbolic-religious images. The pilgrims sought to show the biblical events in the natural and realistic environment, so, the landscape of Palestine corresponded to their wishes the most. Ethnographic precision and pernickety showing of each detail identify the artistic works of pilgrims. The romantics were drawn to the Holy Land by intellectual curiosity, exotic environment, striving for beauty and novelty. Therefore, the artistic works of romantics were composed from the point of view of tourist, as if we see them from the objective lens of photo camera. They admired the untouched and, as it looked them, ancient landscape of Palestine, as well as, uproar of cities and exotic types of local dwellers, so, their artistic works played in lights and shadows and shined in theatrical illumination, plenty of colors and radiance.

• Details
• Contents