The historiography of the thirteenth-century wall painting at Boiana: another case of parallel universes?

Abstract

The historiography of wall painting in medieval church at Boiana is a representative case in current critical discussion of basically empiricist approaches and more overtly theoretical methods of modern scholarship described as coexisting as parallel universes in art history today. 1 The parameters of this critical discourse offer an appropriate perspective in which to consider historiography of these thirteenth-century schemes of wall painting in Balkans. In turn, this exercise is useful in pointing out new directions in which reappraisals of wall paintings at Boiana can contribute to field of Byzantine studies. Before tackling bibliography on Boiana, it will be useful to describe wall paintings of thirteenth century and their location in architectural interiors of church at Boiana, particularly as significance of location in understanding their function will be discussed later. The donor's inscription states in Slavonic that a Sebastokrator of noble lineage named Kaloyan built a church dedicated to S1. Nicholas and to S1. Panteleimon which was painted 1. I refer in particular to critical discussion of art history carried in Byzantine and Modem Greek Studies: John Haldon, '''Jargon'' vs. the Facts? Byzantine History-Writing and Contemporary Debates', BMGS 9 (1984-85) 95-132; Robin Cormack, '''New Art History vs. Old History: writing art history', BMGS 10 (1986) 223-231; Leslie Brubaker, 'Parallel Universes: Byzantine art history in 1990 and 1991', BMGS 16 (1992) 203-233; Leslie Brubaker, 'Life imitates art. Writings on Byzantine art history, 1991-1992', BMGS 17 (1993) 173-223.