L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein
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0:03 - 0:05Art ...
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0:05 - 0:06ArtSleuth
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0:12 - 0:14Two men
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0:16 - 0:18beside a set of shelves…
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0:19 - 0:21… littered with objects.
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0:23 - 0:24A picture by Holbein!
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0:25 - 0:27At first sight, wealth,
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0:27 - 0:28power
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0:28 - 0:30and arrogance personified.
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0:30 - 0:32But something jars!
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0:32 - 0:35This pale and threatening shape
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0:35 - 0:37suspended below them ...
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0:38 - 0:40The first step towards deciphering the picture’s meaning
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0:40 - 0:42is to look at it sideways;
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0:44 - 0:47when we do,
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0:47 - 0:49the rich trappings fade out
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0:50 - 0:54- and the ultimate victor comes into focus!
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0:56 - 0:59Death eclipses everything!
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1:04 - 1:08So what does this carefully constructed scene really mean?
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1:09 - 1:11These two men, are they trampling death underfoot
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1:11 - 1:15- or is it preparing to seize them?
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1:15 - 1:19Episode 6: *The Ambassadors* by Hans Holbein
*Can death be defeated?* -
1:20 - 1:21Part 1: Death - the Invincible
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1:23 - 1:25Trying to beat death?
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1:25 - 1:29The two humans in the picture
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1:29 - 1:32in their heavy clothing …
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1:32 - 1:35…and cluttered setting…
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1:35 - 1:38… with its jumble of motifs : do they look like winners?
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1:42 - 1:47Their world seems artificial, ponderous and static …
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1:47 - 1:50… while death, by comparison, looks sleek and dynamic!
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1:50 - 1:52The only natural, non-fabricated object in the picture,
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1:52 - 1:55the skull has its own special lighting, from the right …
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1:57 - 1:59… and its own vigorous diagonal.
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2:00 - 2:02Apparently wearing ...
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2:02 - 2:05an ear-to-ear grin,
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2:05 - 2:08it even seems to be the picture’s real hero!
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2:11 - 2:15Initially, then, the moral seems obvious - and edifying:
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2:17 - 2:19Death enters,
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2:19 - 2:23and the world and its vanities simply disappear:
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2:24 - 2:26neither wealth,
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2:26 - 2:29power
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2:29 - 2:30nor even knowledge
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2:30 - 2:32can save us!
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2:33 - 2:36But the barely visible figure of Christ in the top left-hand corner
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2:36 - 2:40reminds us that there is a second viewpoint,
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2:40 - 2:46which wipes death itself from the picture.
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2:46 - 2:50Holbein is using our physical movement, as we view his picture from different angles, ...
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2:50 - 2:54to make us realise that we must move spiritually as well, ...
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2:55 - 3:03as we turn away from the things of this world…
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3:03 - 3:08towards God and salvation in the next.
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3:12 - 3:15But that is not the Ambassadors’ only message!
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3:19 - 3:22We must also move into the picture,
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3:22 - 3:24immersing ourselves in its details,
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3:26 - 3:29and particularly the sturdy, H-shaped set of shelves
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3:29 - 3:32on which the two men are leaning.
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3:32 - 3:35They seem to lord it over death
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3:35 - 3:38- but where does their self-assurance come from?
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3:41 - 3:43Part 2: *Death - and Politics*
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3:46 - 3:491533: Two ambassadors …
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3:49 - 3:51Both young:
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3:51 - 3:54their ages are marked discreetly on a dagger,
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3:54 - 3:5629…
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3:56 - 3:57and a book,
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3:57 - 3:5925.
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4:01 - 4:03Both French:
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4:03 - 4:09they wear the insignia of the Order of St. Michael, instituted by the King of France
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4:09 - 4:13And both sharing the same vision of diplomacy –
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4:13 - 4:16a vision symbolised on the shelves.
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4:17 - 4:20On the upper shelf, perfection - the divine order.
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4:22 - 4:24On the lower shelf, confusion - the worldly order,
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4:24 - 4:28insecure and beset by evil omens:
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4:28 - 4:32The flute case with one flute missing
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4:32 - 4:36The broken lute-string
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4:36 - 4:41The arithmetical treatise open at “division”
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4:41 - 4:44And the topsy-turvy globe.
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4:48 - 4:50All of this reflects a major problem:
France... -
4:50 - 4:52...is Europe’s leading power...
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4:52 - 4:53...but the balance is now tipping in favour of...
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4:53 - 4:55...its rivals, and its very survival is at risk.
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4:56 - 5:00Portugal and Castille are building global empires.
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5:02 - 5:07With the Pope’s blessing, they are carving up the world and sharing it:
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5:07 - 5:10the new lands discovered east of this boundary go to Portugal,
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5:10 - 5:13those west of it to Spain.
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5:14 - 5:18To make things worse, Castille and Aragon are ruled by France’s hereditary enemy,
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5:18 - 5:20the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation.
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5:23 - 5:25And the English still hold Calais.
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5:26 - 5:30In effect, France is surrounded all on all sides.
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5:30 - 5:36The Ambassadors’ job is to save it, and they hold four strong diplomatic cards to help them do that:
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5:36 - 5:42The first, symbolised by this hymn - the work of Luther, founder of Protestantism…
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5:42 - 5:46… is the division of Christendom between Catholics and Protestants!
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5:46 - 5:50By supporting the Protestant princes and towns, they can weaken the Empire,
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5:50 - 5:52which is already fragmented into thousands of states.
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5:56 - 5:59The second is their contacts with the Muslim world,
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5:59 - 6:01symbolised by this carpet.
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6:01 - 6:05When Holbein paints his picture, the Ottomans have reached the gates of Vienna
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6:05 - 6:06and are threatening Christendom.
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6:07 - 6:10But this doesn’t stop the ambassadors from
negotiating a treaty with them, -
6:10 - 6:14and so forcing the Empire to move its forces east.
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6:15 - 6:19The third is the love-life of the King of England,
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6:19 - 6:24symbolised by this tiled floor, which replicates that in London’s Westminster Abbey.
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6:24 - 6:28France has backed the King’s decision to repudiate his first wife,
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6:28 - 6:33who has links with the Empire, and marry Anne Boleyn.
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6:33 - 6:39This is its way of forestalling a possible alliance between England and the Empire.
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6:48 - 6:52In short, *the Ambassadors* embody a new religion:
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6:52 - 6:55a religion which allows a country to side with the enemies of Papacy,
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6:55 - 6:57Christendom
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6:57 - 6:58and Empire
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6:58 - 7:01whenever its own vital interests are at stake:
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7:01 - 7:05politics and raison d’état are its guiding principles.
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7:05 - 7:07The idea comes from Machiavelli’s *The Prince*,
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7:07 - 7:10which pre-dates *The Ambassadors* by one year
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7:10 - 7:16- and shows that politics follows rules of its own.
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7:16 - 7:21“*To maintain the state, the prince is often obliged to act in a manner contrary to humanity,* ...
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7:21 - 7:25*...charity and religion.*
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7:25 - 7:29*He should, whenever possible, follow the path of virtue, ...*
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7:29 - 7:34*...but should also be able, in case of necessity, to follow that of vice.*”
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7:36 - 7:40Essentially, *The Ambassadors* celebrates three kinds of movement:
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7:40 - 7:42-spiritual, as the converted believer...
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7:42 - 7:46...turns from the world and its vanities to God;
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7:46 - 7:51-diplomatic, as national envoys conjure peace from conflict;
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7:51 - 7:53-artistic,
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7:53 - 7:55as Holbein gives us an illusion of reality
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7:55 - 7:59which comes and goes with our shifting viewpoint.
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7:59 - 8:01Life and death are intertwined:
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8:01 - 8:02we must face that fact
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8:02 - 8:04or perish!
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8:10 - 8:12*The Ambassadors* holds more secrets...
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8:12 - 8:15Watch the film in its original long version
(available on DVD and VOD) -
8:15 - 8:20Next episode: Bellini
*Beyond movement: the vitality of Nature* -
8:20 - 8:27For more information, visit www.canal-educatif.fr
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8:27 - 8:30Written and directed by:
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8:30 - 8:33Produced by:
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8:33 - 8:36Funding: sponsors & public support
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8:36 - 8:39Voiceover:
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8:39 - 8:42Editing & motion graphics:
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8:42 - 8:45Extra editing / Sound recording
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8:45 - 8:48Musical selection:
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8:48 - 8:51Music
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8:51 - 8:54Special thanks:
English subtitles: Vincent Nash -
8:54 - 8:56A CED film
- Title:
- L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein
- Description:
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"Why do two diplomats face death with such arrogance? Have they found an antidote?
This film originally exists in a long version (37min) available on DVD and VOD: http://www.canal-educatif.fr/en/videos/art/4/holbein/hans-holbein-the-younger-the-ambassadors.html
More on http://www.artsleuth.net" - Video Language:
- French
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande edited English subtitles for L'Art en Question 6 : les Ambassadeurs d'Holbein | ||
Canal Educatif à la Demande added a translation |