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Art & Art History vocabulary · Movements & Periods

Gothic

Meaning in art & art history, with examples

/ˈɡɑːθɪk/adjectiveCommon term

In art & art history, Gothic means: Belonging to the style of European art and architecture from about the twelfth to the fifteenth century, known for cathedrals with pointed arches, tall windows and stained glass.

In Turkish: Gotik

How it is used

Used for architecture, sculpture, manuscripts and painting: a Gothic cathedral, Gothic sculpture, International Gothic. In the nineteenth century, Gothic Revival buildings copied the style. In everyday English, gothic can also mean dark and mysterious.

Example sentences

  1. Gothic cathedrals use pointed arches and flying buttresses to make the walls taller and lighter.

  2. The museum's Gothic galleries display altarpieces and carved wooden saints.

Common collocations

  • Gothic cathedral
  • Gothic architecture
  • International Gothic
  • Gothic Revival
  • late Gothic
  • RenaissanceThe period in European history, roughly from the fourteenth to the sixteenth century, when art and learning were renewed by a strong interest in ancient Greek and Roman culture.
  • art movementA group of artists who share similar ideas, aims or styles during a particular period, and the art they produce, such as Impressionism or Cubism.
  • triptychAn artwork made of three panels placed side by side, often hinged so that the two outer panels can fold over the central one; typical of medieval and Renaissance altarpieces.
  • temperaPaint made by mixing pigments with egg yolk and water; it dries quickly to a matt, durable surface and was the main technique for panel painting in Europe before oil paint.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: Movements & Periods

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