El Greco's representation of mystical ecstasy
This article deals with one of El Greco’s most original inventions, namely the gesture expressing mystical ecstasy in angelic and human figures. It is introduced with a brief explanation of figural representation in Renaissance painting which was achieved by applying the premises of rhetoric in a v...
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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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University of the Free State
2008-12-01
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| Series: | Acta Theologica |
| Online Access: | https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/view/2229 |
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| Summary: | This article deals with one of El Greco’s most original inventions, namely the gesture expressing mystical ecstasy in angelic and human figures. It is introduced with a brief explanation of figural representation in Renaissance painting which was achieved by applying the premises of rhetoric in a visual way, that is by the means of the expressive gestures of figures. In El Greco’s later paintings, which were influenced by Neo-Platonic spiritual ideals, not only the figures of the angels — who are links between heaven and earth — embody spiritual ecstasy, but also human aspirants are portrayed as losing themselves in an ecstatic experience. These figures, merging themselves in a divine vision, are depicted with distinctive vertical forms, gesturing heavenwards in a specific way. The ecstatically gesturing figures are selected from El Greco’s most distinctive paintings.
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| ISSN: | 1015-8758 2309-9089 |