Accession Number
1983/1.174

Title
Église Saint Gervaise, Gisors

Artist(s)
John Taylor Arms

Artist Nationality
American (North American)

Object Creation Date
1932

Medium & Support
etching on paper

Dimensions
17 1/16 in x 12 1/2 in (43.4 cm x 31.8 cm);17 1/16 in x 12 1/2 in (43.4 cm x 31.8 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of the Marvin Felheim Collection

Subject matter
The image depicts the Saint-Gervais Saint-Protais church in the town of Gisors, Normandy, France. The church was originally built in the 13th century, with additions and alterations continuing into the 16th century. The print was No. 35 of Arms' series "French Churches".

Physical Description
This image builds up from a densely packed lower foreground, comprised of a tree and sloping rooftops littered with chimneys. A church tower, surrounded by birds, rises against a blank sky in the top center of the image, forming an overall pyramidal composition that leads the viewer’s eye up. The roofs of the houses in the foreground seem to waver with unevenly laid shingles, indicating that this is an old village. The church tower combines a gothic-style rose window and pointed arches with rounded windows and a much less ornately ornamented belltower, all more characteristic of Romanesque and Renaissance styles than Gothic.
The style of etching combines both precise descriptive detail and more summary, sketchy renderings. Title in pencil, lower left of margin. Signed and dated in pencil right of center below platemark: "John Taylor Arms, 1932".

Primary Object Classification
Print

Primary Object Type
intaglio print

Collection Area
Western

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
Aves (class)
Gothic (Medieval)
Gothic Revival
Renaissance
Romanesque
arches
bell towers
buildings
churches
churches (buildings)
modern and contemporary art
roofs
rose windows
stone (worked rock)
tower
trees
window