The Iconographic Tradition

Works discussed in this talk:

 

A 6th-century illuminated manuscript page showing a scene of the crucifixion.
Detail of a 10th-century illuminated manuscript page showing Mary Magdalene on her knees before Jesus.
Detail of a 12th-century engraved plaque showing figures of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
Panel of a fresco showing the figures of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
Painting showing Mary Magdalene reaching out for Jesus.
Painting showing Mary Magdalene reaching for the robes of Jesus.
Painting showing figures of Mary Magdalene, Jesus, and two angels outside of a cave.
Neoclassical painting showing the figures of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
Painting showing the figures of Mary Magdalene and Jesus.
Diane Apostolos-Cappadona is Professor Emerita of Religious Art and Cultural History in the Catholic Studies Program at Georgetown University. The author of numerous articles for scholarly journals and collected volumes, including several focused on the iconology of Mary Magdalene, and Guest Curator for In Search of Mary Magdalene: Images and Traditions (2002), her new book Mary Magdalene: A Visual History is scheduled for publication in Spring 2022.
Our project takes the words spoken by Jesus to Mary Magdalene in the garden after she discovers his empty tomb — noli me tangere (“touch me not”) — as a provocation for reflection on the COVID-19 pandemic, and on other pandemics, viral and social, that engulf us.

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Learn more about our project.