Background
Benton, Janetta Rebold was born on July 6, 1945 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Daughter of Joseph and Lillie (Frankel) Rebold.
( Multitudes of gargoyles haunt the medieval buildings of...)
Multitudes of gargoyles haunt the medieval buildings of western Europe, peering down from churches and cathedrals, houses and town halls. Holy Terrors offers a fresh and irresistible history of these wildly varied characters — a society of stone creatures perched high above the workaday world. The true gargoyle is a waterspout, an architectural necessity that medieval artisans transformed into functional fantasies. The informative introduction to Holy Terrors explains everything that is known or conjectured about the history, the construction, the purposes, and the mysterious meanings of these often rude and rowdy characters. The three chapters that follow are devoted to the gargoyles themselves, imaginatively carved of stone in the form of people, real animals, and fantastic beasts. In clear, lively language, Janetta Rebold Benton puts these personality-filled sculptures into the context of medieval life and art and captures their quirky diversity in her engaging color photographs. Concluding the book is an invaluable guide to gargoyle sites throughout western Europe, as well as suggestions for further reading. This is the first book for adults to provide an intelligent and entertaining overview of medieval gargoyles, and it is bound to increase the already abundant legions of gargoyle admirers.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0789201828/?tag=2022091-20
(A general introduction to the art, and architecture, of m...)
A general introduction to the art, and architecture, of medieval Europe from the Early Christian to Late Gothic period. Arranged chronologically and regionally, the text is full of illustrated examples, with particular emphasis on France.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0500203504/?tag=2022091-20
( Materials, Methods, and Masterpieces of Medieval Art pr...)
Materials, Methods, and Masterpieces of Medieval Art provides a comprehensive and detailed analysis of the work done by artists in western Europe during the Middle Ages. Art historian Janetta Rebold Benton uses examples such as the Book of Kells, Bury Saint Edmunds Cross, and the Bayeux Tapestry, and the work of artists such as Jan van Eyck and Giotto to explore the various media available to medieval artists and the ways in which those media were used to create a stunning array of masterworks. Although the visual arts of the Middle Ages were extremely colorful, today much of that color has diminished or disappeared, the pigments and threads faded, the gold abraded, the silver tarnished. Materials, Methods, and Masterpieces of Medieval Art allows these works to sparkle once more.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/027599418X/?tag=2022091-20
(Featuring incredible creatures and grotesque gargoyles, "...)
Featuring incredible creatures and grotesque gargoyles, "The Medieval Menagerie" takes us from the improbable to the impossible as it traces the depiction and the meaning of real and imaginary animals in medieval art. From unicorns and dragons to elephants, lions, and monkeys, medieval society was fascinated with animals, whether they actually existed or not. The more fantastic the creature, the greater its hold seems to have been on the fertile imaginations of the Middle Ages. Both art and literature abound with vividly concocted examples of Gothic monsters (gargoyles and griffins), bizarre ideas about real if exotic beasts (lions were believed to be born dead and resurrected by the father lion three days later), and strange visions of composite creatures (such as a widely accepted animal believed to be a cross between an ant and a lion). Featuring the celebrated collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, "The Medieval Menagerie" is illustrated with the splendid and amusing beasts found in medieval painting, sculpture, architecture and decorative arts, as wello as in bestiaries and manuscripts. The text explores the depiction and the meaning of real and imaginary animals in medieval art. Elegant, lively and intelligent, "The Medieval Managerie" captures some of the wildest creatures ever to grace a Gothic cathedral.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1558591338/?tag=2022091-20
( The art of the medieval era was primarily executed in t...)
The art of the medieval era was primarily executed in the service of the Church and is often perceived as serious in message. In this lavishly illustrated book, Janetta Rebold Benton overturns this notion, revealing the amusing, unexpected, and even risque elements that coloured medieval art and architecture. From the carving of a poacher being cooked on a spit by a rabbit to a spoon painted with a fox preaching to geese; from the sculpture of a man squashed under the weight of a pillar to a tapestry showing a unicorn sticking out its tongue, the art and architecture of the Middle Ages teem with humour. Stonemasons and woodcarvers were able to leave their very personal mark and find expression for their native wit in the huge buildings of medieval Europe. Their mischief could be artfully camouflaged among pious and noble images, and there was clearly enjoyment in poking fun at the establishment. Yet the purpose of these clever images was unlikely to be limited to amusement. For a largely illiterate population, visual messages were far more potent than the written word. The Church was certainly aware of this, using art such as the carving on Atun Cathedral of an angel and a devil weighing souls - and both cheating - to instruct their congregation. Janetta Rebold Benton offers rich and revealing insights into the medieval mentality, sense of humour and approach to life, bringing together some of the most delightful examples of medieval visual humour in a collection that will continue to amuse and entertain today.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0750927739/?tag=2022091-20
professor art historian writer
Benton, Janetta Rebold was born on July 6, 1945 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Daughter of Joseph and Lillie (Frankel) Rebold.
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, 1967. Master of Arts, George Washington University, Washington, District of Columbia, 1969. Doctor of Philosophy, Brown University, Providence, 1981.
Diploma, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 2000.
Museum curator department education National Gallery Art, Washington, 1968—1969. Lecturer art history George Washington University, 1969—1970. Instructor art history University Virginia Northern Virginia Center, 1969—1970, University Massachusetts, Boston, 1970—1971, Boston College, Chestnut Hill, 1973—1975.
Assistant professor art history Massachusetts State College, Bridgewater and Framingham, 1971—1971, 1977—1978. Instructor art history University Maryland European division, Paris, 1982—1985, Pace University, Pleasantville, New York, since 1986, acting chairman department fine arts, 1997, director Pforzheimer Honors College, since 1998, distinguished professor art history, since 2004. Lecturer DeCordova Museum, Lincoln, Massachusetts, 1977—1978, Cloisters, New York City, 1986—1989, Metropolitan Museum Art, New York City, staff lecturer department concerts and lectures, since 1988.
Chairman numerous conference sessions in field. Presenter, lecturer in field.
(Featuring incredible creatures and grotesque gargoyles, "...)
( Materials, Methods, and Masterpieces of Medieval Art pr...)
( Multitudes of gargoyles haunt the medieval buildings of...)
( The art of the medieval era was primarily executed in t...)
(A general introduction to the art, and architecture, of m...)
(1st)
Married Elliot Raymond Benton, February 4, 1967. Children: Phillips Alexander, Ethan Aubrey, Meredith Rebold, Leland Samuel.