Page - 253 - in Europäische Bild- und Buchkultur im 13. Jahrhundert

253 illuminators’ matErials and tEchniquEs Drapery modelling Though not universally embraced either, the modelling of drapery to evoke the three-dimensional human form developed gradually as the 1200s progressed. Those artists who engaged with naturalistic modelling created the first three-dimensional figures in Parisian manuscripts of the 1260s, probably in response to the new sculp- ture style from the 1240s onwards31 as well as the optical ideas mentioned above.32 Among the earliest examples are the Psalters made for Louis IX and Isabelle. Each reveals the complex dynamics of the new development: draperies painted with the same materials are modelled in varying degrees by artists of different inclinations or generations. Only two of the four masters in Isabelle’s volume created convincing illusions of three-dimensional form and movement.33 Blue, grey, pink, orange, purple and vio- let draperies are shaded with glazes or saturated passages of the base pigment, and highlighted in mixtures of the same with increasing proportions of lead white (pls. 7a‒d). Master C’s palette is the most extensive and nuanced in the volume, often juxtaposing several tones of the same hue or modelling in contrasting colours (pls. 2b, 7a‒c). Master D’s palette is more saturated, featuring an intense purple mixture of ultramarine, organic red and lead white, shaded with indigo (pls. 2c, 7d). His rendering of drapery is the most advanced in the manuscript, with gradations of colour that lend remarkable plasticity to the figures. Master D probably belonged to the younger generation of Parisian artists who would develop the painterly mo- delling of drapery to the full as the century drew to an end. The same applies to the Saul Master in St Louis’ Psalter.34 He painted the most compelling three-dimensi- onal figures, using glazes and smooth blends of graded hues (pls. 7f‒h). The only other artist in St Louis’ Psalter who made a similar use of glazes was Master C of Isabelle’s Psalter (pl. 7e); another contributor employed an impasto-like technique to create textured fabrics (pl. 7i).35 The destruction or unsympathetic restoration of Parisian monumental painting has left little evidence of the new modelling technique outside manuscripts. The only contemporary example to avoid drastic over-painting is the Westminster Re- table made c. 1259‒1269 for Henry III’s newly rebuilt Westminster Abbey and de- monstrating the mastery of the new medium in England.36 Despite the Retable’s standard palette, the figures are painted with unprecedented plasticity thanks to the skilled application of glazes and the slow-drying oil medium (linseed oil).37 31 Nigel Morgan: Aspects of Colour in English and French Manuscript Painting of the Late 13th Century. In: Europäische Kunst um 1300, ed. by Elisabeth Liskar, Vienna 1986, pp. 111‒116. Stahl, Picturing kingship (cit. n. 14), pp. 86, 116‒126. Nigel Morgan: Modelling in Manuscript Painting c. 1050‒c. 1500. In: Panayotova, Colour (cit. n. 4), pp. 221‒228. 32 See n. 17. 33 Panayotova, Prayer book (cit. n. 15). 34 Stahl, Picturing Kingship (cit. n. 14), pp. 74‒77. 35 See the case study on the royal Psalters in Panayotova, Handbook (cit. n. 10). 36 The Westminster Retable. History, Technique, Conservation, ed. by Paul Binski / Ann Massing, Cambridge / London 2009. 37 The palette consists of lead white, carbon black, ultramarine, verdigris, red lead, vermili- on, organic red (lac), red and yellow earths. Marie Louise Sauerberg et al.: Materials and Techniques. In: Binski / Massing, Retable (cit. n. 36), pp. 233‒251.