Veiled Epiphanies: Encountering the Body of Christ within the Art and Architecture of the Poor Clares of Central Italy (ca. 1212-1350)

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dc.contributor.advisorDerbes, Anneen_US
dc.contributor.advisorWolfthal, Dianeen_US
dc.creatorHarless, Michael Shaneen_US
dc.date.accessioned2024-08-30T18:17:15Zen_US
dc.date.created2024-08en_US
dc.date.issued2024-08-05en_US
dc.date.submittedAugust 2024en_US
dc.date.updated2024-08-30T18:17:15Zen_US
dc.descriptionEMBARGO NOTE: This item is embargoed until 2030-08-01en_US
dc.description.abstractThis dissertation focuses on the art and architecture of the Clarissan Order in Italy during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, and how these cloistered women participated in the church services from the remote location of their choir. To safeguard the enclosure of the nuns, the choirs of the Clarisse were routinely located in inferior positions that consistently prevented a direct line of vision to the altar. This limited contact with the contiguous lay church severely impacted the nuns’ visual participation in the Mass. By analyzing the spatial experience, architectural layout, sculptural and painted embellishment of extant nuns’ choirs throughout Italy, this research investigates how cloistered viewers sought access to the body of Christ through images, transforming their enclosed precincts into prime resources for ocular communion. Given the unexplored frontier surrounding the sacramental nature of Clarissan art, this study seeks to fill this research gap by examining how devotional images functioned as visual substitutes to facilitate communion with Christ. While the sealed walls of the choir functioned to regulate nuns’ vision, these entombed spaces became a world unto themselves. These painted prayer chambers provided a bridge to the Holy Land, offering visual foci to reignite the senses by illuminating an alternative path to consume Christ. By performing a series of detailed case studies of surviving works from select foundations throughout Umbria, Lazio, Tuscany, and Campania, this dissertation examines the complex iconography employed within these paintings, revealing an advanced form of visual literacy operating inside the convents of the Clarisse.en_US
dc.embargo.lift2030-08-01en_US
dc.embargo.terms2030-08-01en_US
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen_US
dc.identifier.citationHarless, Michael Shane. Veiled Epiphanies: Encountering the Body of Christ within the Art and Architecture of the Poor Clares of Central Italy (ca. 1212-1350). (2024). PhD diss., Rice University. https://hdl.handle.net/1911/117815en_US
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1911/117815en_US
dc.language.isoengen_US
dc.rightsCopyright is held by the author, unless otherwise indicated. Permission to reuse, publish, or reproduce the work beyond the bounds of fair use or other exemptions to copyright law must be obtained from the copyright holder.en_US
dc.subjectnunsen_US
dc.subjectsistersen_US
dc.subjectcommunionen_US
dc.subjectaffective pietyen_US
dc.subjectchoirsen_US
dc.subjectliturgyen_US
dc.subjectbridal mysticismen_US
dc.subjecttheologyen_US
dc.subjectFranciscanen_US
dc.subjectPoor Claresen_US
dc.subjectClarisseen_US
dc.subjectDamianitesen_US
dc.subjecteucharisten_US
dc.subjecttheologyen_US
dc.subjectarchitectureen_US
dc.subjectmonasteryen_US
dc.subjectconventen_US
dc.subjectwomenen_US
dc.subjectItalyen_US
dc.subjectmedieval opticsen_US
dc.subjectagencyen_US
dc.subjectpatronageen_US
dc.subjectspiritualityen_US
dc.titleVeiled Epiphanies: Encountering the Body of Christ within the Art and Architecture of the Poor Clares of Central Italy (ca. 1212-1350)en_US
dc.typeThesisen_US
dc.type.materialTexten_US
thesis.degree.departmentArt Historyen_US
thesis.degree.disciplineHumanitiesen_US
thesis.degree.grantorRice Universityen_US
thesis.degree.levelDoctoralen_US
thesis.degree.nameDoctor of Philosophyen_US
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