Gothic

The Gothic period lasted from 1140-1500 and was during the time of the Middle Ages. This period was the bridge between the Romanesque and the Renaissance. Paris was the center of the Gothic world and churches the center of city life. During this time, there was a lot of competition in the construction of cathedrals. The black plague also happened during this time, killing 75 million people, nearly 1/3 of the population of Europe. Religious expression was the heart of design during this period. The Pope and the church had immense power and wealth. Because of the larger number of worshipers, this lead to larger spaces for them in churches. There was also advances in architecture during this time, including the use of pointed arches, ribbed vaults, and flying buttresses. The goal of a cathedral was to appear weightless with its tall walls and stained-glass windows. There were variations in the look of cathedrals in different places in Europe. English cathedrals were lower and longer, German cathedrals had larger towers, Spanish cathedrals were wider and more complex.

Classic examples
   
Norte Dame at Paris


Wells Cathedral, England

Wells Cathedral, England

Regensburg Cathedral, Germany

Barcelona Cathedral, Spain

Modern examples

Stanford Building at Duke University

Pointed arch table

Tracery

Peer review

Paige: I liked how she went into some history of Abbot Suger, including his death, also how she went into detail about the entry ways. Her pictures were spot on as well.

Alecia: I liked how she went into further detail about each part of the Gothic cathedrals that made them unique and her pictures really helped illustrate her points.