The Trees of the Cross: Wood as Subject and Medium in the Art of Late Medieval Germany

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Gregory C. Bryda

The Trees of the Cross

Wood as Subject and Medium in the Art of Late Medieval Germany

Gregory C. Bryda

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English

Yale University Press
08 September 2023

History of art: Byzantine & Medieval art; Non-graphic art forms; Religious subjects depicted in art

A revelatory study exploring wood’s many material, ecological, and symbolic meanings in the religious art of medieval Germany

In late medieval Germany, wood was a material laden with significance. It was an important part of the local environment and economy, as well as an object of religious devotion in and of itself. Gregory C. Bryda examines the multiple meanings of wood and greenery within religious art—as a material, as a feature of agrarian life, and as a symbol of the cross, whose wood has resonances with other iconographies in the liturgy. Bryda discusses how influential artists such as Matthias Grünewald, known for the Isenheim Altarpiece, and the renowned sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider exploited wood’s multivalent nature to connect spiritual themes to the lived environment outside church walls. Exploring the complex visual and material culture of the period, this lavishly illustrated volume features works ranging from monumental altarpieces to portable pictures and offers a fresh understanding of how wood in art functioned to unlock the mysteries of faith and the natural world in both liturgy and everyday life.

By: Gregory C. Bryda
Imprint: Yale University Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 279mm, Width: 216mm,
ISBN: 9780300267655
ISBN 10: 0300267657
Pages: 224
Publication Date: 08 September 2023
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Gregory C. Bryda is assistant professor of art history at Barnard College, Columbia University.

Reviews for The Trees of the Cross: Wood as Subject and Medium in the Art of Late Medieval Germany

Going deeper into history and daily life than scholarship on materiality and ecology ordinarily ventures, Bryda's argument persuasively demonstrates that late medieval German art is invested with a rhythm of seasons, harvest, and bloom. Elegantly written and packed with new discoveries, this is a book to be imbibed, ingested, and oft consulted. -Shira Brisman, University of Pennsylvania