Open AccessMartin Luther on <i>Deësis</i>: His Rejection of the Artistic Representation of "Jesus, John, and Mary"
Author(s) -
Franz Posset
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
renaissance and reformation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.1
H-Index - 5
eISSN - 2293-7374
pISSN - 0034-429X
DOI - 10.33137/rr.v32i3.11576
Subject(s) - motif (music) , humanity , martin luther , the arts , theology , art , relation (database) , representation (politics) , art history , philosophy , aesthetics , visual arts , law , political science , computer science , database , politics
At times, Reformation scholars and art historians are confused about Luther's attitude toward the visual arts which depict saints as intermediaries between God and humanity. Rarely do they thematize the issue in relation to the deësis, i.e. Christ enthroned, with Mary and John the Baptist as intercessors. After a review of the wide-spread motif of the deësis, light is being shed on Luther's statements of the 1530s which reflect his rejection of the motif.