Sederi Yearbook 29



Sederi 29
Sederi 29 — 2019
EDITOR
Ana Sáez-Hidalgo
MANAGING EDITOR
Keith Gregor
REVIEW EDITOR
María José Mora
ISSN 1135-7789

 

Sophie Chiari, “The limner’s art in Shakespeare’s Macbeth.” SEDERI 29 (2019): 61–83.

 

DOI: https://doi.org/10.34136/sederi.2019.3                                                          Download PDF

 

Abstract

Macbeth is a graphic work whose visual rhetoric mirrors the outside atmosphere of the Scottish heath and the inner psyche of the titular characters. This article explores the early modern visual praxis in Macbeth in connection with the art of limning to show that, against a dark background symbolizing evil, the playwright uses golden and gaudy hues as a mirror reflecting Macbeth’s perturbed mind. Eventually, the colour spots in the play are “diapered over” by the white fog of the Scottish heath. Shakespeare thus resorts to specific colour codes in order to create a visual symphony where “foul” becomes “fair.”

Keywords: Macbeth; limning; miniature; Nicholas Hilliard; Isaac Oliver.

 

 

 

 

 

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