CIP - Kataložni zapis o publikaciji Narodna in univerzitetna knjižnica, Ljubljana 27-772:7.072(497.4Ljubljana)"1461/2012"(083.82 4)(0.034.2) KOVAČIČ, Nataša, 1982- [Five hundred and fifty] 550 years of the Ljubljana diocese [Elektronski vir] : 1461-2012 / text authors Nataša Kovačič, Ferdinand Šerbelj ; translation Arven Šakti Kralj Szomi. - El. knjiga. - Ljubljana : National Gallery, 2012 Način dostopa (URL): http://www.ng-slo.si/ ISBN 978-961-6743-35-8 (ePub) ISBN 978-961-6743-36-5 (mobi) 1. Šerbelj, Ferdinand 263139072 © National Gallery of Slovenia and authors, 2012 Introduction The Establishment of the Diocese of Ljubljana on 6 December 1461 was a turning point that 550 years ago marked the political, religious and cultural development of Ljubljana (its founding was confirmed by Pope Pius II on 6 September 1462). The National Gallery commemorates this important anniversary with the exhibition, which enriches our permanent collection of Slovenian art with an introduction of thirteen works of art from 15 century to the present day that represents events and people associated with the Diocese of Ljubljana and its history. Even though Emperor Frederick III had political intentions directed against the Patriarch of Aquileia when he established the Diocese, this was an act of greater significance. It was the first Diocese on Slovene territory. By this, Ljubljana, became a finer city (civitas insignis), which had an impact on its development. Until then, the highest ecclesiastical dignitary on Slovene soil had been the Abbot of Stična, and consequently the Stična Monastery was also the most important religious and cultural centre of Carniola. In the Ljubljana of the time there was only a Franciscan Monastery, and outside its walls there were the monasteries of the Augustinians, the Teutonic Order and the Poor Clares. Located outside the city was also the Parish Church of St Peter, to which the subsidiary churches of St James, St Elizabeth and St Nicholas belonged; the latter was promoted to a diocesan church. The economic and cultural situation in the Slovene lands was very tough during the late Middle Ages as numerous Turkish raids ravaged the area, as well as contagious diseases and natural disasters. Only the heavily fortified provincial town of Ljubljana was able to resist such conditions. This was a time when less was being constructed and more was being adapted and renovated. Most of the ecclesiastical orders were being carried out by carving and sculpture workshops, as well as painting workshops. In the area of today’s central Slovenia, and probably based in Ljubljana, two workshops appeared in the 1440s: the so-called Ljubljana Sculpture Workshop and a workshop by painter Janez that had arrived from Carinthia, who was a citizens of Ljubljana at around 1440. What was typical for the sculpture workshop was its sculpting of stone, which indicates its coastal roots. The only works known by Janez of Ljubljana are the frescoes in the churches, yet he is almost certain to have also produced panel paintings. Both workshops with their interesting stylistic analogies are derived from the conservative traditions of the »soft style«, which was established in the region of Slovenia at the beginning of the 15th century, but diminished with the end of that century, when the period of the Renaissance spirit and form took prominence, owing to the first bishops of Ljubljana. The initially fragmented diocesan estate of parishes in Carniola, Carinthia and Styria was mostly rounded up into the region of the Duchy of Carniola with the reforms implemented by Emperor Joseph II in the late 18th century. As the Imperial (Habsburg) patronage of the Diocese ceased after the First World War, the Bishop of Ljubljana also no longer held the Prince-Bishop title. In 1964, the Ljubljana Diocese was promoted to an Archdiocese, and in 1968 to a Metropolis. In 2006 the lower part of the Ljubljana Archdiocese in Novo mesto became the Diocese of St Nicholas. Exhibition and publication Published by National Gallery of Slovenia, for the Gallery Barbara Jaki Exhibition and text authors Nataša Kovačič, Ferdinand Šerbelj Conservation-restoration preparation of material Miha Pirnat jr., Martina Vuga, Rado Zoubek Translation Arven Šakti Kralj Szomi Publication design and page layout Luka Hribar The exhibition was supported by Ministry of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of the Republic of Slovenia From 6 September 2012, National Gallery of Slovenia, Cankarjeva 20, Ljubljana, Slovenia Index Introduction Exhibition and publication Selected works of art Selected works of art 1. Janez of Ljubljana (listed between 1443 and 1459) St Nicholas Saves the Young Men, 1443 copy, tempera on canvas. inv. no. NG S 1677 after the original fresco in the Succursal Church of St Nicholas at Visoko pod Kureščkom 1. The presbytery of the church was painted in its entirety by Janez of Ljubljana. His style, developed in his father’s workshop in Carinthia, is characterized by the pronounced coloured modelling used in the idolatry calmness of the soft style of the Late Gothic tradition. The scene refers to the miraculous salvation of three young men before the executioner’s sword. The church space at Visoko is aesthetically complemented by a flat painted wooden ceiling in the nave of the church. 2. Ljubljana Sculpture Workshop (mid-15th cent.) Madonna with Child, (ca. 1455) sandstone, inv. no. NG P 8 provenance: Sevnica 2. Characteristic for the sculpture workshop, probably of Karst origin that settled in Ljubljana in the second quarter of the 15th century, is the modelling of folds and the round face, indicating the reverberations of the idealised international soft style of the beginning of the century. Because of the many works found on the estate of the Stična Monastery, it is assumed that it was precisely this monastery that drew the workshop to central Slovenia. And so for the time and in terms of style, the workshop drew a parallel to the painting work carried out by Janez of Ljubljana. The remains of the polychromy on the exhibited sculpture vouch for the fact that it was painted, which is a characteristic of medieval stone sculpture. 3. Ljubljana Sculpture Workshop (mid-15th cent.) St James, ca. 1458 sandstone, inv. no. NG P 19 provenance: Strahomer near Ig, Succursal Church of St James 3. Although this is a rustic piece, the figure clearly displays its animated Gothic style in the way it is poised in an S-line. Its striking appearance is further enhanced by the old painting. The statue originates from the main altar, probably made of stone, in the Church of St James. 4. A Late Gothic stonemasonry and architecture workshop St Martin with a Goose, 1st quarter of 16th cent. sandstone, inv. no. NG P 64 provenance: Vrhika region 4. St Martin is more often portrayed as a Roman soldier on horseback, cutting his cloak in half with his sword to give to a beggar. The headstone, the work of a local Late Gothic stonemasonry and architecture workshop, represents Bishop Martin with a goose, which is the oldest known example of a depiction of this motif in Slovenia. The image of the saint with a goose bears witness to the fact that the goose was a recognisable symbol of Bishop Martin in as early as the late Middle Ages. 5. Osbald Kitell (active in the 1st half of the 16th cent.) Tombstone of Bishop Krištof Ravbar, 1527 cement copy, inv. no. NG P 847 after the original from the Parish Church of St Hermagoras and St Fortunatus in Gornji Grad 5. The only sculptor working in stone on Slovene terrain of any real significance in the first half of the 16th century is known by name, since Osbald Kitell pildschnitzel signed his name on the back of the altar relief of the martyrdom of St Andrew at Gornji Grad. The sculptor that followed the Renaissance style was most likely invited to this part of the world by Bishop Krištof Ravbar. As the Auxiliary Bishop of Ljubljana, Prince-Bishop, soldier, diplomat and knowledgeable arts patron who was educated in the humanist spirit, he chose Gornji Grad as his last resting place. Even though the tombstone has been placed horizontally, and despite the brocade pillow, the deceased is depicted standing up with eyes open. The Northern Renaissance composition plan on a relatively shallow relief is nevertheless sculpturally modelled and the depicted Bishop’s features reveal a capable master from the Augsburg art milieu. 6. Giulio Quaglio (1668−1751) The Coronation of Virgin Mary, 1703 ceiling fresco fragment. inv. no. NG S 1693 provenance: Cathedral of St Nicholas, Ljubljana 6. The most significant feat of construction and art performed by the Ljubljana Diocese was the building and furnishing of the Baroque cathedral, whereas the painting of the entire interior represented the most extensive work ever done by the master from Lombardy, Giulio Quaglio. After construction was completed, Quaglio arrived at his workshop in Ljubljana in the spring of 1703. He painted the Chapel of the Corpus Christi, the pendentives of the dome, and the Chapel of St Dismas. Instead of a real dome, a wooden frame was erected upon which Quaglio painted an illusionistic dome that required six weeks’ time. In 1841, the painted dome was replaced by a real one (as it stands today) and only a few fragments of the Baroque painting have been preserved. The largest piece that included a part of the scene with The Coronation of Virgin Mary was at the »crown« or above the glorification of the Cathedral’s patron, St Nicholas, which is also indicated by the iconography of the central part of the paintings. The only visual document illustrating how the dome was painted is a small copy produced by Matevž Langus, today kept in the Ursuline Convent of Ljubljana. All that can be seen on the preserved fragment is Mary kneeling on the clouds, the hand of God the Father with a crown, and a part of Christ’s knee. 7. Valentin Metzinger (1699−1759) The Glorification of St Francis de Sales, 1753 oil on canvas, inv. no. NG S 279 provenance: Goričane near Medvode, Bishop’s Palace Chapel 7. During the renovations to the Bishop’s Palace, the Ljubljana Bishop Ernest Amadej Attems, who was knowledgeable on art and passionate about construction, commissioned Metzinger to decorate the chapel. But as the painter was a master of the oil technique only, he used oils to produce an image of the glorification of the chapel patron for the ceiling of the chapel. By using an illusory approach and with the assistance of architectural scenery, the painter depicted the moment when the saint surrounded by angels rises towards the heavenly Mother of God on a cloud. Keeping to the veneration of the Baroque saint, Metzinger produced two other paintings for the chapel, St Francis of Sales Presenting to St Jeanne-Françoise de Chantal the Book Filotea, and St Francis of Sales Hearing a Nobleman's Confession, which are linked to the oval painting in terms of content, and relate to the workings of the Geneva reformer and apostolic pastor, who was an example to other bishops. 8. Valentin Metzinger (1699−1759) St Francis of Sales Presenting to St Jeanne-Françoise de Chantal the Book Filotea, 1753 oil on canvas, inv. no. NG S 274 provenance: Goričane near Medvode, Bishop’s Palace Chapel 8. The scene excels in its realist Baroque aesthetic, which the painter from Ljubljana used to portray the event from 1610, when the Geneva Bishop, who was very active in recatholisation, clothed in 17th century dress, hands Jeanne-Françoise de Chantal the book of rules for founding the Salesian Order. An altarpiece of Mary’s visitation in the background draws attention to the order of the Visitation of Holy Mary. Regarding motif, this places the image within so-called historical painting, which is in terms of content still interpreted through the Baroque eye view. 9. Valentin Metzinger (1699−1759) St Francis of Sales Hearing a Nobleman's Confession, 1753 oil on canvas, inv. no. NG S 276 provenance: Goričane near Medvode, Bishop’s Palace Chapel 9. The importance of confession was strongly emphasized in the Catholic environment. Therefore, here too the role of the Bishop de Sales (d. 1622) as confessor is elevated to an important part of the activities performed by saints. Attention is drawn to the old costume of the nobleman that is reminiscent of the early 17th century. Perhaps the artist used an older model for his work, or perhaps the young man in old-fashioned dress is supposed to be an allusion to the fierce and wicked nobles, who were more at home on the battlefield than in church. And even the confessor himself wept over their fate. An allegorical contrast can be discerned between this painting and the preceding image of the pious noblewoman Francis de Chantal. 10. Matevž Langus (1792−1855) Jernej Vidmar, a later Ljubljana Bishop, ca. 1831 oil on canvas, inv. no. NG S 1896 provenance: purchased 1979 10. The bust representation against a neutral background was produced following the fashion of Biedermeier portraits with carefully depicted details. At first glance the person seems totally secular, as if he were a representative of an artisan or a merchant class. But the barely noticeable white collar and visible piece of red clothing under the coat suggest that he is a priest. The portrait was probably produced in 1831, when Vidmar, a student at the Vienna Augustineum, spent a few months in Ljubljana due to a cholera outbreak in Vienna. 11. Matej Sternen (1870−1949) Bishop Anton Bonaventura Jeglič, 1939 oil on canvas, inv. no. NG S 1518 provenance: Directorate of LRS presented the painting to the National Gallery of Slovenia in 1956 11. The painting is a posthumous portrait of the Bishop, died in 1937, that was commissioned by Vzajemna zavarovalnica insurance company in Ljubljana. Therefore the depiction deviates from the usual portrayals of church dignitaries. The prelate in a Bishop’s cassock stands at the table and with gaze directed at the viewer points to the document and donation deed dated 1900, by which he is donating 100,000 crowns to the institution. The painter has created a subtle harmony between the old, already resigned image of the man, and the surrounding space in restrained shades of colour and a muted atmosphere. 12. Mirsad Begić (* 1953) Two studies for the south doors of the Cathedral, ca. 1995 patinated bronze provenance: property of the artist, stored at the National Gallery of Slovenia 12. For the occasion of the first visit of Pope John Paul II to Slovenia in 1996, two doors were cast for the Ljubljana Cathedral. The south doors of the Cathedral depicting the bishops of Ljubljana are the work of Mirsad Begić. The two small pieces belong to the series of studies and drafts that were cast in bronze and reveal the artist’s arduous ways in planning and searching for suiting features, which brought him to the expressive image of the final appearance of the door. © National Gallery of Slovenia and authors, 2012 From 6 September 2012 National Gallery of Slovenia, Cankarjeva 20, Ljubljana, Slovenia