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DATE: March 7, 2012 MEDIA CONTACT FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Alexandria Sivak Getty Communications (310) 440-6473 asivak@getty.edu

THE DEVIL’S IN THE DETAILS—GETTY’S NEW MANUSCRIPT EXHIBITION GIVES DEATH AND THE AFTERLIFE A WARM WELCOME

Heaven, Hell, and Dying Well: Images of Death in the Middle Ages

At the J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Center

May 29–August 12, 2012

LOS ANGELES—The Middle Ages produced

many of the most fantastical and arresting

images of death and the afterlife. Medieval

depictions of cruel demons, valiant angels, and

gruesome deaths continue to inform our visual

understanding of the horrors of hell and the

rewards of heaven. Drawing primarily from the

Getty Museum’s permanent collection and

featuring several new acquisitions, Heaven, Hell,

and Dying Well: Images of Death in the

Middle Ages, on display May 29–August 12, 2012,

at the J. Paul Getty Museum, Getty Center,

features a collection of remarkable imagery from

illuminated manuscripts, stained glass, printed

books, and paintings.

“Death was everywhere in medieval

culture, and the unshakable belief in an afterlife

motivated much of the art we see from this

period,” said Martin Schwarz, curator of the exhibition. “The centrality of death played out in

the popular and religious imagination in many ways, from poetry to literature to the uplifting

and terrifying images seen in the exhibition.”

Lazarus's Soul Carried to Abraham (DETAIL), about 1510‐1520. Master of James IV of Scotland (Flemish, before 1465‐about 1541). Tempera colors, gold, and ink on parchment. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, Ms. Ludwig IX 18, fol. 22.

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The exhibition features three sections that address the universal and inescapable fact of

death: “The Art of Death”, “The Descent into Hell”, and “Damnation and Salvation”.

The Art of Death

Morbid imagery found in late medieval prayer

books sheds light on the intense preoccupation with

matters of death. The intimate scale of these books

encouraged devout Christians to prepare themselves

inwardly and contemplate death in solitude. Solemn

depictions of deathbed scenes, funeral rites, and the

uncertain fate of departed souls focused attention on the

viewer’s own mortality and the transience of material

wealth. In The Three Living and the Three Dead (about

1480–85), noble riders encounter three corpses risen from

the dead that block their path. The scene is based on a

medieval poem in which the three dead are described as

the nobleman’s forefathers who criticize their descendents

for being too materialistic and pleasure-loving. The image

reminds the viewer that death is hidden among beautiful

objects—the three skulls nestled among golden leaves and

flowers in the illustration further emphasize this lesson.

In Denise Poncher Before Death (about 1500), the young woman who owned the

manuscript is seen facing a terrifying vision of Death, a skeleton covered in rotting flesh and

holding numerous sickles. This image offers a reminder that despite the woman’s youth and

beauty, she is nonetheless mortal. The piece is also a recent acquisition by the Getty, and its

ghoulish delights will be publicly exhibited for the first time since it was made.

The Descent into Hell

Hell. Where is it? What does it look like? What horrors await sinners there? In widely

read stories such as The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, medieval audiences followed the

main characters into the depths of the underworld. These vivid accounts were frequently

illustrated with terrifying images that exceeded even the most gruesome textual descriptions.

A prime example is The Beast Acheron (1475) from The Visions of the Knight Tondal, where a

Denise Poncher before Death, about 1500. Master of the Chronique scandaleuse (French, about 1493–1510). Tempera colors, gold, and ink on parchment. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, Ms. 109, fol. 156.

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knight’s journey through the afterlife brings him

to the infernal monster Acheron, who busily

devours souls as they disappear into the hellish

red of a beastly abyss.

Dante’s references to the location, shape,

and structure of hell drove Renaissance scholars

to translate his text into detailed maps. One

such map, printed in 1515 and on loan from

UCLA’s Special Collections, features a detailed pit that is 3,400 miles wide and deep with nine

concentric circles representing different levels of sin. The dialogue between the artistic

imagination and a burgeoning scientific interest in the afterlife produced an idea of hell as a

real, physical place infused with wild fantasies.

“Aside from vague descriptions and references to hell in early Christian writings, there

were very few visual interpretations of it until the Middle Ages,” adds Schwarz. “Artists greatly

enriched the imagination of hell with their inventiveness, and these first depictions have

shaped the way we visualize it, from serpent-like demons to the pitchfork wielding, pointy-

tailed Satan.”

Damnation and Salvation

While images of hell instilled fear and fascination in the Middle Ages, there was also

imagery that suggested control over one’s fate, if one lived a good life. In the face of God’s

final ruling over each soul, Christ’s death on the cross to redeem the sins of mankind offered

hope. Artists turned Christian beliefs into arresting images of damnation and salvation

intended to unsettle and motivate their audiences. In The Feast of Dives and The Soul of

Lazarus Carried to Abraham (about 1510–20), Dives is tortured by demons for rejecting

Lazarus’s request for food, while Lazarus is received by Abraham in heaven. These depictions

of heaven and hell, often juxtaposed in a single image, increased the impact of the eternal

delights and horrors waiting in the next life.

Heaven, Hell and Dying Well: Images of Death in the Middle Ages is curated by

Martin Schwarz, former intern in the J. Paul Getty Museum’s Department of Manuscripts.

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The Beast Acheron (DETAIL), 1475. Simon Marmion (Flemish, active 1450–1489). Tempera colors, gold leaf, gold paint, and ink on parchment. The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles, Ms. 30, fol. 17.

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The J. Paul Getty Trust is an international cultural and philanthropic institution devoted to the visual arts that includes the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Getty Research Institute, the Getty Conservation Institute, and the Getty Foundation. The J. Paul Getty Trust and Getty programs serve a varied audience from two locations: the Getty Center in Los Angeles and the Getty Villa in Malibu. The J. Paul Getty Museum collects in seven distinct areas, including Greek and Roman antiquities, European paintings, drawings, manuscripts, sculpture and decorative arts, and photographs gathered internationally. The Museum's mission is to make the collection meaningful and attractive to a broad audience by presenting and interpreting the works of art through educational programs, special exhibitions, publications, conservation, and research. Visiting the Getty Center The Getty Center is open Tuesday through Friday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is closed Monday and major holidays. Admission to the Getty Center is always free. Parking is $15 per car, but reduced to $10 after 5 p.m. on Saturdays and for evening events throughout the week. No reservation is required for parking or general admission. Reservations are required for event seating and groups of 15 or more. Please call (310) 440-7300 (English or Spanish) for reservations and information. The TTY line for callers who are deaf or hearing impaired is (310) 440-7305. The Getty Center is at 1200 Getty Center Drive, Los Angeles, California. Additional information is available at www.getty.edu. Sign up for e-Getty at www.getty.edu/subscribe to receive free monthly highlights of events at the Getty Center and the Getty Villa via e-mail, or visit www.getty.edu for a complete calendar of public programs.