Today, I'm happy to share a guest post by fantasy author Tracy Falbe about Renaissance art that inspired her new novel, Werelord Thal.
Researching a Novel with Help from My Favorite Renaissance
Artists
by Tracy Falbe
by Tracy Falbe
The saying goes that a picture is worth a thousand words,
and a masterpiece by a Renaissance artist equals at least ten thousand words in
my opinion.
When I chose a historical setting for my newest fantasy
novel, I knew I would need to do a lot of research. Werelord Thal: A
Renaissance Werewolf Tale is set in 1561 Bohemia
in the heart of the Holy Roman Empire.
In addition to reading many books, I poured over art books.
The great Renaissance masters let me see their world in marvelous emotive
detail.
Because I’m a very visual writer and craft my settings carefully,
I gained many important details about Renaissance Europe from art studies.
- Clothing styles
- Hair styles
- Social classes
- Mythological beliefs
- Images of landscapes
- Economic activity
Who were the artists that contributed the most to my research?
Albrecht Durer
Caravaggio
Titian
Pieter Bruegel
I’ve admired Albrecht Durer my whole life. He has many
famous works instantly recognizable to millions of people to this day. His
iconic Four Riders of the Apocalypse captured the fears and violence of the
time. He gained fame during his life because of his woodcuts that were widely
distributed through new printing technology.
He has an immense portfolio of works ranging from sublime
religious scenes to landscapes to common folk to portraits of wealthy people
and many self portraits. I’ve always been captivated by the details he packs
into every picture. His Madonna and Child is my favorite vision of the Virgin
Mary because she is beautiful and vital and the baby is cute. She looks like
the happy mother all mothers want to be. Then he filled the drawing with a
complex landscape filled with baffling details like a fox on a chain and an old
man with a cane.
As for Caravaggio, I must mention him because I love his
work so much. His portrait of the Roman God of Wine Bacchus thrills me every
time I look at it. The painting also exemplifies the Renaissance revival of
classical mythologies as European society recovered its lost history after a
long dark age.
In the Musicians by Caravaggio I see people outside the
mainstream. They live for pleasure. The painting has a very homoerotic feel as
the group of young men lounge with their musical instruments. I must admit this
painting inspired the trio of musicians I put in my novel.
Titian is another enormous talent from the Renaissance. I
especially admire his nude portrait of Venus. In a time when women were
increasingly oppressed and faced the terror of witch hunters, Titian was a man
painting a woman free of spirit and comfortable with her body. Her sexuality is
playfully inviting. The sassy beauty Titian gave her told me it would be fine
to write female characters in this era that were ready to break rules whenever
a chance arose.
Finally I come to Pieter Bruegel the Elder. His subjects
frequently depict scenes of the common people working and playing in their
villages. His paintings were invaluable for picturing clothing, home interiors,
and village life. His Hunters in the Snow is especially vivid because of its
depiction of people playing on a frozen river. The hunters with their dogs in
the foreground are marvelously detailed. His work revealed the joy of the folk.
By and large people wanted to enjoy their lives despite the constant threat of
war, disease, and famine.
Bruegel’s talent took on harsh themes as well. His Seven
Deadly Sins shows the severe mythos of the time. Sinners were to be judged and
punished harshly. He shows a world ruled by violence and fear.
Art is a crucial tool for historical research. It is the
expression of the hearts and minds from the time. Art reveals everything from
propaganda to truth and from horror to delight. All of which are vital to
developing the setting for a historical novel.
Please look at the accompanying Slide Share presentation to
see the artworks that inspired me while writing Werelord Thal: A Renaissance
Werewolf Tale.
Book Description:
Werelord Thal: A Renaissance Werewolf Tale by Tracy Falbe
Thal is wanted for Devil worship and shape shifting but still boldly walks the streets of 16th century Prague. Jesuits
hunt him. Mercenaries fear him. Musicians sing his praise, and women are
captivated by his alpha swagger.
Born of a witch and a sorcerer, he is summoned when his desperate
mother casts the werewolf spell before facing torture and execution. Burdened
with her magical call for vengeance Thal seeks the men that killed her. His
hunt is complicated when the Magistrate’s stepdaughter Altea Kardas crosses his
path. Horrified that her community is burning women to death, she can confide
her doubt and fear only to Thal.
He desires her greatly but knows he will bring ruin upon her. Across
Bohemia and
beyond people who are different are labeled heretics in a restless world
hobbled by tyrannical ignorance. The Renaissance has thrown the Holy Roman Empire into turmoil. Printed books are
spreading radical ideas. Firearms are triggering a new age of warfare. And the
human spirit is shaking off obedience.
Thal embodies the ancient magic of the pagan past. He challenges a
world conquered by a spiritual system that denies the flesh and forgets the Earth.
And he awakens within Altea recognition of these truths. She believes any risk
is worth loving him until she becomes the bait in a trap set by Thal’s enemies.
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Read the first 4 chapters of the novel:
Use this Slideshare to preview or click on the link below:
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1 comments:
Thank you so much for sharing my Renaissance Are slide show and guest post.
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