Giants and dwarfs in European art and culture, ca. 1350-1750: real, imagined, metaphorical

Uittreksel

Not since Edward Wood's 'Giants and Dwarfs' published in 1868 has the subject been the focus of a scholarly study in English. Treating the topic afresh, this volume offers new insights into the vogue for giants and dwarfs that flourished in late-medieval and early modern Europe. From chapters dealing with the real dwarfs and giants in the royal and princely courts, to the imaginary giants and dwarfs that figured in the crafting of nationalistic and ancestral traditions, to giants and dwarfs used as metaphorical expression, scholars discuss their role in art, literature, and ephemeral display. Some essays examine giants and dwarfs as monsters and marvels and collectibles, while others show artists and writers emphasizing contrasts in scale to inspire awe or for comic effect. As these investigations reveal, not all court dwarfs functioned as jesters, and giant figures might equally be used to represent heroes, anti-heroes, and even a saint.

Inhoud

Pt.1. Northern climes. Out of scale: naming and identity of late medieval giants / Assaf Pinkus -- St. Christopher the giant: imagining the sublime in fifteenth-century south Tyrol / Michal Ozeri -- Giants as primordial ancestors in sixteenth-century art and poetry / Andrea Bubenik -- A champion large of portratour: Robert the Bruce as "Giant" in anti-Tudor propaganda / Giovanna Guidicini -- Giants and dwarfs in Tyrolean courts: documents, portraits, and the Kunst-und Wunderkammer at Schloss Ambras / Hansjörg Rabanser -- A model Christian and "Child of God": a German court dwarf and his funeral sermon / Eva Seemann -- Pt.2. Spain and Italy. Ordinary marvels: the case of dwarf attendants in Habsburg Spain / Janet Ravenscroft -- A ducal dwarf, military prowess, and a portrait in the Farnese Dynastic collection / Robin O'Bryan -- Per mano della Maria Nana: a female dwarf in the retinue of Eleonora di Toledo / Sarah McBryde -- Dwarfs and giants in early modern caricature / Sandra Cheng -- "Biancone": giants, dwarfs, and the rise of a popular nickname / Felicia Else.