Mikó Árpád szerk.: "Magnificat anima mea Dominum" M S Mester vizitáció-képe és egykori selmecbányai főoltára (A Magyar Nemzeti Galéria kiadványai 1997/1)

TANULMÁNYOK / ESSAYS - TÖRÖK GYÖNGYI: M S mester virágábrázolásai és a középkori műhelygyakorlat

GYÖNGYI TÖRÖK NEW FINDINGS ABOUT THE FLOWERS BY MASTER M S IN THE CONTEXT OF THE GENERAL WORKSHOP PRACTICE IN THE MIDDLE AGES This study reports the results of the recent restoration process, which throw new light on the particularities of Master M S's style and procedures in connection with the overall workshop practice in the Middle Ages. It compares in detail the flower motifs of iris and peony and proves that these are comparable to nature studies such as those by Schongauer, Jacopo Bellini and Dürer. Restoration has revealed that our iris has visible air roots such as were portrayed in the earlier herbaria, especially in North Italian examples. The peonies by Master M S have close similarities to a realistic coloured study by Martin Schongauer (private collection), and they are in the tradition of the depiction of nature in the Netherlands. Similar preparatory coloured nature studies which predate the painting could also be attributed to Master M S, based on the two emphasized flowers of his Visitation. The differences between the Master M S paintings, especially between his Visitation and Passion panels and their underdrawings, may also derive from the general workshop procedures of the time: from master and assistants collaborating on a painting. His very individualistic style cannot be related directly to any of the known master workshops of the period, but he represents - in 1506 - a unique synthesis of what is today labelled „Nothern Renaissance". This very early dating is again validated by this most recent examination and restoration. The study does not deal with the often mentioned possibility that all known pictures by Master M S belong to one altarpiece, but it is evident from their large size that the four Passion scenes belonged together, as parts of a high altar, since compared to side altarpieces in Upper Hungary, all Master M S's Passion scenes are on the average larger in scale. The high altars of parish churches were commissioned by the town councils and the citizens, as e. g. the altarpieces of Kassa and Lőcse. The collective religious function of the altarpiece does not exclude the leading role of an individual - whether a clergyman or secular person - as a consultant in the planning of the altarpiece. The subject of the sculptures in the shrine and the reliefs on the inside of the wings, which were visible only during the major feasts, was determined by the patron saint of the particular church. The commission for an altarpiece was set down in a detailed contract, and simultaneously a drawn design (Riss, Visierung) was prepared, which, in this case, was most probably carried out by Master M S himself

. This design was most often a pen and ink drawing, which indicated the division of labor between sculptor and painter, the subject matter, iconography and the composition, as well as the frame and ornamentation, including the overall proportions. The light brush strokes found on the back of the Resurrection scene show a kneeling female figure behind which stands her executioner reaching for his sword. This drawing cannot be related to the style of Master M S's underdrawings, but is more likely the work of one of his assistants. Furthermore, this drawing cannot be positively connected to the subject of the altarpiece; rather, it shows that preparatory drawings were sketched on the wood panels, randomely, such as seen on the backside of the St. Anne altarpiece from Leibic. The technical examinations proved that under the grounding rabbit hair is pressed onto the wood surfaces of the Visitation scene, similar to the animal hair found in certain Spanish and Italian paintings, while in Wolgemut's Nürnberg workshop hemp tow was fashionable for reinforcement. In Master M S's Esztergom and Budapest pictures the underdrawings and the incised contouring for the parts to be gilded indicate that an exactly planned composition preceded the painting process. For example in the Agony in the Garden scene, the lamp and torchlights are incised for gilding. The contour of the gilt background is incised in the grounding which could have also been carried out by a special craftsman. In the case of the Visitation, the exactness and detail of the background landscape - showing trees, bushes, mountains, must have been drawn following a preparatory drawing on paper whose lines were pressed on the panel. Similarly, the contours of the reliefs of the inside of Christ Carrying the Cross and Crucifixion scenes are incised to indicate that the gilding was to be done around the figures. These traces lead to the conclusion that here there were two carved figures in relief. There are even traces of working drawings for the reliefs. Remains of joints are visible here and also on the present-day reverse of the Visitation, which on the front are covered