Gargoyle (pronounced gahr-goil)
(1) A grotesquely carved figure of a human or
animal crafted as an ornament or projection, especially in Gothic and
neo-Gothic architecture.
(2) In architecture, a spout, terminating in a
grotesque representation of a human, animal or supernatural figure with open
mouth, projecting from the gutter of a building for throwing rain water clear
of a building.
(3) Archaic slang for person with a grotesque
appearance, especially if small and shrivelled.
(4) Fictional monsters; pop-culture creations
inspired by the decorative and/or functional projections in Gothic and
neo-Gothic architecture.
1250–1300: From the Middle English gargoile & gargurl (grotesque carved waterspout) from the Old French gargouille & gargoule (throat) and it’s from here modern English gets gargle. Even in the Gothic period, not all gargoyles
were conduits for draining rainwater; many were purely decorative and were
therefore grotesques.
Grotesque (pronounced
groh-tesk)
(1) In architecture, a thing odd, unnatural or
fantastic in the shaping and combination of forms, as in the sixteenth-century
decorative style (in any material) combining incongruous human, animal or
supernatural figures with scrolls, foliage etc.
(2) Distorted, deformed, weird, antic, wild.
(3) In the classification of art, of or
characteristic of the grotesque.
(4) In typography, the family of 19th-century
sans serif display types
1555:1565: From the Middle French grotesque from
the Italian grottesco (of a cave),
derived from grotta from the Vulgar
Latin grupta. Ultimate root is the Classical Latin crypta from which English picked up
crypt. Grotta entered French from the Italian pittura (grottesca)
(cave-painting) and it was via French English picked up grotto. Connection with the decorative forms attached
to gothic architecture is the fantastical nature of some cave-paintings. Spreading from Italian to the other European
languages, the term was long used interchangeably with arabesque and moresque
for decorative patterns using curving foliage elements.
The Gargoyle and Water Management
Often used interchangeably, the technical difference between gargoyles and grotesques is that gargoyles contain a water sprout, carved usually through the mouth, whereas grotesques do not. A gargoyle thus has a function in engineering whereas a grotesque’s purpose is essentially decorative although it is nominally functional in that they were believed to provide protection from evil, harmful, or unwanted spirits. The application of more modern techniques of rainwater management has had the effect of turning many gargoyles into grotesques although architectural historians maintain the original designations. As long ago as the sixteenth century, drainpipes were installed in the Notre Dame cathedral in Paris so the gargoyles became merely ornamental, although, they did of course continue to ward off evil.
The
number of gargoyles attached to a building and their size and shape was a
product of climate and fluid dynamics. Architects
used multiple gargoyles to divide the flow of rainwater off the roof to
minimize the potential damage of a rainstorm and that number was influenced by
the rainfall prevalent in the area where the structure sat. The architect needed to consider not the
annual rainfall but the heaviest prolonged rain-events expected; they thus had
to cater for peak demand and the gargoyles needed to be sufficient in total
capacity to evacuate the volume of water expected during the heaviest falls. To achieve this, a trough was cut in the back
of the gargoyle, rainwater typically exiting through the open mouth. Gargoyles usually assumed their elongated
fantastical animal forms because the length of the gargoyle determines how far
water was thrown from the wall, the shape thus determined by fluid dynamics. Prior to the extensive use of pipes reaching
to the ground, the gargoyles were sometimes augmented by other techniques; when
Gothic flying buttresses were used, aqueducts were sometimes cut into the
buttress to divert water over the aisle walls.
Typically cut from stone, Non-ferrous metals and alloys such as
aluminium, copper, brass and bronze have been used.
The
term originates from the French gargouille
(throat; gullet) from the Latin gurgulio,
gula & gargula (gullet; throat)
and similar words derived from the root gar
(to swallow) which represented the gurgling sound of water (such as the Spanish
garganta (throat) & g‡rgola (gargoyle)). It was connected also to the French verb gargariser (to gargle). Most helpful are the languages where the
translation is architecturally precise.
The Italian word for gargoyle is doccione
o gronda sporgente (protruding gutter), the German is Wasserspeier (water spewer) and the Dutch is waterspuwer (water spitter or (even better) water vomiter). A building with gargoyles is said to be "gargoyled"
but, during the Middle Ages, babewyn was
slang used to describe gargoyles and grotesques, a word derived from the
Italian babuino (baboon), an
indication of what the things resembled, especially when viewed from a
distance. The size and shape of a gargoyle
was thus dictated by function but the detail was left to the imagination of the
designer. Those creating grotesques had
few limitations. Because of the need to scare
off and protect from evil or harmful spirits, the carvings often had the
quality of chimeras, creatures a mix of different types of animal body parts creating
a new animal, some notable chimeras being griffins, centaurs, harpies, and
mermaids, these eerie figures serving as a warning to those folk who might underestimate
the devil.
In
water management, the gargoyle has a long history. In the architecture of Ancient Egypt, there
was little variation, the spouts typically in the form of a lion's head carved into
the marble or terracotta cymatium of the cornice. The Temple of Zeus had originally 102 of
these but, being rendered from marble, they were heavy and many have broken off
or been stolen and only 39 remain. Nor
have they always been chimeric, some instead depicting monks, or combinations
of real animals and people, many of which were humorous but as urbanisation
increased, building codes were imposed which rendered the gargoyles, expect for
their spiritual purpose, obsolete.
Typical was London’s 1724 Building Act which mandated the use of
downpipes compulsory on all new constructions.
Within
the Church however, the spiritual function wasn’t without controversy. Gargoyles were thought to keep evil outside a
church but existed also to convey messages to a people who usually were illiterate,
scaring them into attending church, a reminder that the end of days was near. However, there were some medieval clergy who viewed
gargoyles as a form of idolatry and Burgundian abbot, Saint Bernard of
Clairvaux (1090–1153), was famous for his frequent denunciations, his
objections theological, aesthetic and fiscal:
"What
are these fantastic monsters doing in the cloisters before the eyes of the
brothers as they read? What is the
meaning of these unclean monkeys, these strange savage lions, and monsters? To what purpose are here placed these
creatures, half beast, half man, or these spotted tigers? I see several bodies with one head and several
heads with one body. Here is a quadruped
with a serpent's head, there a fish with a quadruped's head, then again an
animal half horse, half goat. Surely if
we do not blush for such absurdities, we should at least regret what we have
spent on them."
Even after drainpipes took over responsibilities for drainage, the tradition was maintained by the grotesque, sometimes emulating the earlier elongated lines, sometimes more upright. Grotesques were popular as decoration on nineteenth and early twentieth century skyscrapers and cathedrals in cities such as New York Minneapolis, and Chicago, the stainless steel gargoyles on New York’s Chrysler Building especially celebrated by students of the art. The twentieth century collegiate form of the Gothic Revival produced many modern gargoyles, notably at Princeton University, Washington University in Saint Louis, Duke University, and the University of Chicago. One extensive collection of modern gargoyles is on the National Cathedral in Washington DC. Beginning in 1908 the cathedral was first encrusted with limestone demons but, over the years, many have been added including Star Wars character Darth Vader, a crooked politician, robots and other modern takes on the ancient tradition. In England, Saint Albans Cathedral has a grotesque of former Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Robert Runcie and one of an astronaut adorns the Cathedral of Salamanca in Spain.
Grotesques modernes, left to right: Star Wars' Darth Vader (from the Star Wars film franchies), National Cathedral, Washington DC; Astronaut or cosmonaut, Cathedral of Salamanca, Spain; Lindsay Lohan, Notre Dame Cathedral of Reims, Marne France (digitally altered image); Dr Robert Runcie (Baron Runcie, 1921–2000; Archbishop of Canterbury 1980-1991) (centre), St Albans Cathedral, England.
Grotesques and chimeras
So, in architecture, gargoyles are a specialized class of grotesques that include the functional feature of a waterspout and even if a building is renovated with a modern water management system added which means a gargoyle’s spout now longer is connected to the flow, it does not become reclassified as a grotesque; it remains a gargoyle, albeit a “dry” one. While the difference between a gargoyle and grotesque is a matter of whether the design incorporates the handling of fluid, the distinction between a chimera and a grotesque is at the margins fluid in the metaphorical sense, both being ornamental sculptures most associated with Gothic architecture but critics have created criteria, however loose the parameters may seem. Classically, a chimera was a fantastical, mythical creature, often a hybrid of multiple animals or a mix of human and animal features and for the architectural feature to be classified thus, it has to conform to this model. In that chimeras differ from any grotesque which is a representation, however bizarre, of a creature from a single species. What that means is that while all chimeras are grotesques, not all grotesques are chimeras.
Horodecki House (House with Chimaeras), Ukraine, Kyiv.
One of the
most celebrated buildings said (erroneously) to be adorned with chimeras is Horodecki
House in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, a structure better known on Instagram as “House
with Chimaeras” which received much attention when Volodymyr Zelensky (b 1978,
president of Ukraine since 2019) in February 2022 stood in front of it to
deliver his “Our weapon is truth” address following the Russian “special
military operation” (invasion of Ukraine).
Classified as being in the Art Nouveau style, the building was designed
by Polish architect Władysław Horodecki (1863–1930) and despite all the
intricate detailing and other complexities, it was completed in little more
than two years, opened in 1903. One
thing which made the speed of construction possible was the core technique of
using concrete piles as the underpinning, something necessitated by the land
being steeply sloped, resulting in an asymmetric building with six floors on Ivan
Franko Square while three face Bankova Street.
Another novelty was the use of cement as the finishing material,
something at the time not unknown but still rare. Despite the popular moniker “House with
Chimaeras”, the many sculptures which lend Horodecki House its distinctiveness
are technically grotesques because all, bipeds & quadrupeds, are representations
of real animals, not figures from mythology or fantastical hybrids and it’s
believed it picked up the romantic nickname because it imparts such a wonderful
air of gloominess and recalls the Gothic style.
The grotesques, rendered in cement, were the work of the Italian
sculptor Emilio Sala (1864-1920) who spent most of his working life in St
Petersburg and Kyiv.
Interior detailing, Horodecki House Ukraine, Kyiv.
The motif was the theme also for the interior detailing with stuccos, high reliefs and sculptures decorating the ceilings, walls and stairs and of particular interest is that while what’s depicted on the exterior uses only living creatures as a model, inside, everything is dead and often dismembered; Horodetskyi was an avid hunter. Despite the pervasive feeling of gloom as one approaches the thing, it’s different inside because (the many carcases notwithstanding) the rooms are bright and airy with the floral ornaments typical of early Modernism although it’s of regret all the original furniture and many of the frescos fell victims during World War II (1939-1945) to marauding Red Army soldiers and other looters. Although in recent years substantially restored, no attempt was made to re-create the frescos, the space not taken by paintings.
Following restoration, in 2004 the building was designated a museum but since 2005 it has enjoyed official status as the “Small Residence of the President of Ukraine”, curious term meaning it’s used for meetings with foreign dignitaries and in that there are many advantages, it’s location meaning it’s easy for the security forces to secure the site, the larger rooms are spacious and an make a most attractive backdrop for photo opportunities. Daily Art Magazine has a feature with a fine collection of images.
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