Blog Post 6: 2/21/11

Composition: 
Amiens vs. Cologne

In class we worked on comparing gothic cathedrals to one another based on different aspects and my group was comparing Amiens cathedral and Cologne cathedral based on composition.

Composition: regional differences come to bear on design features

"There were, of course, distinctive regional variations in Gothic cathedrals, such as the comparatively low and horizontal character of English churches, or the more highly colored ornamentation of Italian examples." -Roth

Not long after Gothic cathedrals started showing up they quickly became standardized in their plans and basic components.  These two cathedrals are from the same family but each have their own unique qualities.  It is just like having two different people who speak the same language but they each speak it in their own dialect.  

Cologne cathedral is much steeper and more dangerous looking.  The base of this cathedral is broader because just like what we learned with making the coke can cathedrals you have to have a thicker base in order to be able to build higher and that is exactly what they had to do to achieve the verticallity they wanted.  When it comes to dealing with the religion associated with the building Cologne gives of more of a sense that it is suppose to send the message that it towers over man because God towers over man and it makes man seem insignificant compared to God.  The dark feel the building seems to radiate also gives of this effect that God is to be feared because God can destroy man just as easily as he created him. 

Amiens cathedral fits more into the landscape around it whereas Cologne seems more like a jagged scar that stands out from everything else around it.  Amiens relates more to man and God and how they work together rather then making one seem more important.

It is clear they are both French cathedrals because of their double towers at the front of the structure whereas the German cathedrals only have one tower.  

"The most conspicuous property of Carolingian and Romanesque buildings is there combination of massive enclosure and manifest verticality... So the Romanesque church is simultaneously stronghold and gate to heave, and the two main building types of the period, the church and castle, are profoundly related."

                 -Christian Norberg-Schulz,

Meaning in Western Architecture, 1975

The floor of the Amiens Cathedral was planned out using the golden section.  They started at the center with the labyrinth and then radiated outward in a form the almost looks like the form of a nautilus sea shell.  The four figures represented in the labyrinth are thought to be the four bishops who oversaw the construction of the cathedral

Golden section with labels of steps added by me

Nautilus Sea Shell that I added lines to show golden section pattern on

Labyrinth

Even though this labyrinth is not a circle I feel that it does mark the most sacred spot within the cathedral.  I feel this way because of the importance of the labyrinth itself and because the entire layout of the cathedral started with this point and then radiated outward form this octagonal shape.