Olivia Fertig

VA Comp (8-2)
Assessment #1
I chose my illuminated letter and my poem as my artwork. I think it resembles the work of the
Irish monks in The Book of Kell. The Book of Kell is an illuminated manuscript written somewhere
around 800 AD. It contains the four gospels of the New Testament, which are written in Latin. It is
argued where the book was originally drafted, but most sources say it written and painted in Iona,
Scotland, by monks in a monastery. The monks worked very hard painting each illuminated letter on
each page of the book. Out of 680 pages, there are only 31 that do not contain some sort of
embellishment. The Book of Kell has impacted many people over the years due to its intricate design
throughout and its biblical meaning to many as well. It has amazed many how it has been kept
preserved all these years and it serves as a memento of their age. The Book of Kell still exists today and
is located in the Library of Trinity College in Dublin. It attracts visitors from around the world.
My work is similar to many of the pieces located within The Book of Kell. My art is an illuminated
letter that starts off a poem. It is brightly colored and has some decorative paint brushes on the sides.
Some of the selections in The Book of Kell are large letters while some are abstract symbols. The styles
of the letters and decorations in the book tend to be more ornate, or complicated. They have more
detail and use duller, faded colors. Another difference between the two is that I used colored pencils
while the monks used colors made from assorted minerals and extracts from plants. The lines in my
piece are casual and curving while the ones in the book are intricate and diverse. Lastly, my artwork was
created simply for school, while the art in The Book of Kell, it was created for more religious purposes.
They were influenced by their biblical teachings, while I was influenced by my teacher.
Unfortunately, I do not think the monks would have liked my work. Even though our basic topics
were the same, my art was way more modern than theirs and was less complex. Our overall style was
different.

My art piece