Renaissance Gothic in the Netherlands: The Uses of Ornament

Around 1500 there arose in the Netherlands a highly refined variant of Late Gothic architecture that was nurtured by prominent patrons and artists through the 1530s. Designers emphasized recognizable tracery motifs that caught the eye, oriented viewers, and lent prominence to the parts of larger structures they adorned. Music and literature relied comparably on short melodic passages and verbal phrases, implying habits of perception deeply rooted in the culture. Further, distinctive tracery designs might serve as markers of identity, generic badges of individuals or institutions. Changes in social structure and conventions for representing public images were closely related to these developments.