Gothic Marian Art

Gothic Art developed from France in the 12th century and flourished until the Renaissance. New cathedrals rose up through all of Europe with magnificent stained-glass windows. Chartres Cathedral is among the finest examples of this art.

Brightness and slender lines

Gothic Art is characterized by light, slimness and verticality: Gothic naves are higher than Romanesque naves, generous amounts of light enter through large stained-glass windows, and the vaults are arched and slender. A great number of these cathedrals and basilicas are dedicated to Mary: Notre-Dame de Paris, Laon and Noyon cathedrals (France), Our Lady of the Assumption Basilica in Gdańsk (Poland), and other Marian cathedrals in the rest of Europe.

The art of floral stained-glass

Statuary developed on a wide scale in the Gothic period: statues of Mary were less rigid and more realistic, with more supple lines and curved contours than the previous era, for example the Gothic Madonna and Child of Notre Dame de Paris or the “beautiful Madonnas” which bloomed especially in German statuary art. Stained-glass art developed rapidly to its full expression and spread rapidly, bringing vivid and shimmering colors and depicting many scenes of Marian mysteries.

Little by little, Gothic Art evolved from the sober at first to the more “flamboyant” style, notably in Germanic countries.