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From 1347 to the late 17th century, Europe was stalked by the Black Death. During that time art not only survived, it flourished. Surprisingly, the age when European art rose to glory was a time of disease and death. In 1347, the Black Death was brought to Sicily by a Genoese ship. The black rats that lived on the ship carried the disease.

The Black Death
The Black Death was an epidemic of bubonic plague. This disease is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. This bacterium spreads among large, dense populations of rats. The black rat, also called the “ship rat” or “house rat,” tends to live close to people. The rats carry fleas that become infected. The fleas then bite humans and pass along the disease. At that time, people were frequently bitten by fleas.

Symptoms included swollen lymph nodes, high fevers, black, liquid filled pustules, joint pain, and vomiting. While the exact number of deaths caused by the Black Plague is unknown, estimates are that it killed 75 to 200 million people in Europe, reducing the population of Europe by 30 to 60 percent.

The Grim Reaper on a boat holding an hourglass and scythe.
The Grim Reaper.
The Plague’s Effect on Art
The horrors of the Black Death infiltrated all aspects of European culture, especially art. It stopped the progress being made in art because so many artists died from this horrible disease. While the first half of the 14th century saw the creation of art that displayed civic pride and joy, the art created after the Black Death was severe and emphasized guilt and the need for repentance.

These effects were long lasting and brought a gloomy darkness to visual art, music, and literature. The gruesome trauma of this era activated the imaginations of writers and painters in very unsettling ways for decades. The insecurity regarding survival created an atmosphere for doom and gloom that influenced artists to move away from optimistic themes and turn to images of Hell, Satan, and the Grim Reaper. Many painters and sculptors simply gave up art because they believed that it was utterly hopeless to create beauty in a hellish world.

How did art change as a result of the Black Death?

Answer 1

The Black Death reinforced dark realism in art. Fear of divine wrath terrified both poor and rich. Many artists began painting scenes of hell as opposed to glorifying biblical figures, as most people saw the pandemic as the acts of an enraged God and therefore painted what they believed would become of themselves if they did not atone for their sins.