“They preach not by speaking out loud but by signifying”: Vitreous Arts as Typology

Matters of Materiality in Byzantium. The Archangel Gabriel in Hagia Sophia, Constantinople

“…In Byzantium, in contrast to the medieval West, glass itself does not appear to have been highly valued as a medium either in itself or in a symbolic sense. 16 Colours did matter, however. 17 The difference in colours between the red Mother of God at Kiti and the blue Mother of God at Hagia Sophia may have been a matter of deep theological significance (at Kiti, she is designated Hagia Maria, Holy Mary, but in Hagia Sophia there is no inscription).…”

Animism, Materiality, and Museums

“…On craft's conception and realities, see the useful historical studies ofMagoulias 1976; Burford 1998, 186-200;Sparkes 1998; Morel 1993, 214-44; and Burford 1972, 184-218. And now the significant studyKessler 2019, 59-89. 2 Cutler 1997 3 Bray 2015 makes a case for her artistic practice as anthropological research in which a portrait gets "more intimate, truthful and 'thick' than were it to have been done in just a few hours."…”