Outbreaks & Artwork– How the Plague Shaped 14th Century Paintings
The pandemic has had an impact on so many aspects of our lives, and its influence on art cannot be overlooked. Many artists confined to their homes are unavoidably producing works that directly address this problem, or that the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic will be expressed in their future works indirectly.
Many historical and popular paintings, at least in their slightly altered or quote-attached versions, are widely circulated on social media for both parody and acknowledgment. These amusing works are quickly gaining popularity. During the Last Supper, there’s the “Mona Lisa” wearing a mask, or Jesus Christ dining alone and having a video chat with his apostles. Many other popular paintings are now being used as memes on social media sites.
Many expressive works are produced by street artists. The streets have been adorned with artwork expressing support for those fighting the virus, especially health care workers. In the days when the outbreak’s effect fades and curfews are lifted, exhibitions on the coronavirus may be of interest.
Outbreaks have often been depicted in art, especially paintings, throughout history. Artists have developed a variety of works based on the disease’s form and social effects. Until the twentieth century, the plague was one of the most popular pandemic diseases in the world, and it had influenced European art.
The Black Death
Flea bites spread the plague, which is a rodent disease spread by flea bites. It is one of the most well-known epidemics that has struck humans at various times in history. The plague is first mentioned in the Old Testament and in Homer’s “Iliad.”
The plague of Justinian was the first recorded significant outbreak, occurring in the sixth and seventh centuries. It happened in 541, according to historical accounts, and resulted in a large number of deaths in Constantinople, the Byzantine Empire’s capital. Between 541 and 544, historians estimate that the overall death toll in Constantinople alone reached 300,000.
The most lethal strain of the plague struck Europe in the 14th century. The outbreak resulted in significant deaths and ushered in significant changes in medieval history. The exact death rate cannot be given due to a lack of funding, but today’s researchers say that Europe’s population declined by 45 percent to 60 percent at the time.
The pandemic, called the Black Death, is said to have arrived in Crimea by the Mongols and was transported to Europe by sea by merchants. After all, many diseases were spread by ships and animals in the old world. The disease was spread by ship rats, also known as rattus rattus.
Giovanni Boccaccio lived through the Black Death in the 14th century. He explains high mortality rates and how they are a cause for many sociocultural changes in his book “Decameron.” He describes the outbreak’s reach as follows:
“The condition of the lower and middle classes was much more deplorable to witness. Thousands became ill as a result of the majority of them remaining in their homes, either due to poverty or in the hope of safety. Almost all of them died as a result of the lack of treatment and consideration they got. Many people died in the streets at all hours of the day and night, and many others who died in their homes were only discovered dead when their neighbors smelled their rotting corpses. Every corner was littered with bodies. The survivors viewed the majority of them in the same way, as they were more concerned with getting rid of their decaying bodies than with compassion for the dead. They took the bodies out of the houses with the help of porters, if they could find them, and laid them at the entrance, where large numbers of the dead could be seen every morning.”
Divine Retribution
The Black Death wreaked havoc on medieval Europe’s economic, political, and cultural landscapes. It had a major impact on the church as well. Priests were in charge of burying the corpses of plague victims, and they were among the most affected members of society. Because of the reduction in clergy, illiterate priests were recruited, resulting in a change in the standard of the church’s administration.
The plague ravaged much of Europe from the sixth century onwards, producing a bleak, death-filled environment. Artists of the period have created works that were influenced by the psychology of such devastation.
People sought care from saints and priests because medicinal practices against the Black Death were unknown in the 14th century. Diseases and death were seen as divine punishment for sins. Its artistic expression was also influenced by these religious interpretations. A manuscript illustration from 1424 portrays Christ throwing arrows at the victims, symbolizing the plague.
There were Christian communities in Bocaccio’s turbulent community who believed that Jews were the source of the disease. They said that the Jews polluted the water and spread the disease. They incurred God’s wrath because they did not believe in Jesus. The tensions rose over time, and the Jews who were apprehended were placed on stakes.
The first of these massacres occurred in France in 1348, and they quickly spread across Europe. In the 14th century, artists painted paintings that became known as Jewish massacres.
The extermination of Jews, however, had little effect on the disease’s spread. Death became a common occurrence in Europe after that. Many works of art discussed this problem.
The term “Danse Macabre” or “Dance of Death” started to be used. Death was personified in these paintings as skeletons dancing arm-in-arm with humans. These paintings depicted the idea that one day, regardless of ethnicity, gender, or social status, everyone would be able to participate in this dance. Death himself would ask anyone to dance, regardless of whether they were male or female, rich or poor, noble or peasant, including the emperor.
The “Triumph of Death” movement began in the art world again as a result of the plague years. This movement, named after Italian poet Petrarca’s “Triumph of Fame,” spread throughout Europe over time.
In the 16th century, Flemish artist Pieter Bruegel produced the most striking work. The entire effect of the plague in Europe was portrayed in this painting. The plague was often portrayed as confusion using metaphors such as an unhealed wound, a ravenous dog, horsemen, a swallowed cloud, or death itself in the form of a skeleton, as well as an attacking enemy.
Saint Patron
In the wake of the plague, Saint Sebastian, one of Christianity’s first martyrs, was regarded as one of the disease’s patron saints. Despite the fact that he was killed by an arrow, a connection was formed between him and the plague, as depicted in these paintings. The church’s effect on the citizens, as well as the plague, is depicted in paintings as many patron saint figures.
For a long time, the theme of death and the plague was a subject of art. This theme would reappear in new works centuries later. Other significant historical figures, in addition to saints, are portrayed in paintings about the plague. One of them is Napoleon Bonaparte.
In a painting by Antoine Jean Gros from 1799, he is depicted visiting his army in Syria. Syria was experiencing a plague epidemic at the time. The French commander is seen curing a plague victim with a single touch, just as Jesus did in the Biblical story with a leprosy victim.
Survivors created monuments as mementos of their survival after the plague had passed. The Pestsäule (Plague Column) statue in Vienna, Austria, is the most famous of these monuments. Since its conception, the column has been decorated with motifs related to the Habsburg dynasty and faith, in addition to the plague tragedy. Matthias Rauchmiller started the project in 1683, and Paul Strudel finished it in 1693.
Many works on the subject of the plague can be found in the history of art. We hope that the coronavirus will not have the same tragic consequences as the plague. However, it is clear that its consequences would be severe in countries that have not been able to fully recover from the disease. I’m not sure if new works depicting people dancing with death will emerge. When the COVID-19 pandemic is over, how do you think art will be shaped? We’ll just have to watch and see what happens.
