Doré wood cuttings
The Year of Our Lord 1866 witnessed the publication of a remarkable two-volume French-language folio edition of the Holy Scriptures, translated from the Vulgate, as La Grande Bible de Tours. And for this worthy and weighty tome, the French artist Paul Gustave Louis Christophe Doré produced 241 woodcuts illustrating the sacred texts. They are gorgeous and immensely popular works of art, dripping with drama and heavy with doom. Published simultaneously in the UK, Doré’s illustrations of the Tours Bible both influenced and were influenced by the Victorian Age (1837-1901). His Old Testament scenes focus on massacres and murderers; his New Testament on sentiment and sapience. He seems to have enjoyed high drama all around. We all know how the lurid bits of the Bible keep the rest of it arresting. Over the course of the following year, and by special request, we will take a monthly look at just under a dozen of these woodcuts corresponding to the Passion of the Christ; paying close attention...
Comments
Post a Comment