How to identify the Christian figures of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John by their iconography, or symbols, in art
Christianity
The stories behind the art—a quick guide for understanding Byzantium's most common images.
The lives of Christ and the Virgin ...
Why does St. John the Baptist carry a lamb? Catherine a wheel? Mary Magdalene a jar?
Who’s who? How to recognize saints…
The Christian Bible has had a long and complex genesis.
The Christian Bible
Neither words nor images fully capture the Christian God. Despite this inherent difficulty, painters still tried.
The problem with Christ
Empty, blank, or unfinished spaces leave paintings open to the viewer and create compelling ambiguities.
Unspeakable images: when words fail
In paintings as in sacred spaces, curtains play with revelation and draw attention to the limits of human vision.
So near and yet so far: visions ...
Temporal and spatial ambiguity imbue two images of the Virgin and Child—and this portrait of Christ’s suffering.
This world and the next: Christ on ...
Like place, time is an important theological category and, like the divine, it can be hard to comprehend.
Time and eternity: Yesterday, today, and always
Renaissance painters like Lippi devised spatial metaphors in order to convey the mystery of Christ’s conception.
Putting God in his place: here, everywhere, ...
Where does a painting end and our reality begin? Crivelli’s humble snail prompts more questions than answers.
Christ is not like a snail: Signs ...
Liturgy provided the script, architecture the set—and the altar sat center stage.
Architecture and liturgy
From the Annunciation to the Last Judgment, this handy guide explains key moments in Christian art.
The life of Christ in medieval and ...
Can artists be Christians? Are images lies? The use of art has been debated throughout the history of Christianity.
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