Narrative art
Narrative art is art that tells a story, either as a moment in an ongoing story or as a sequence of events unfolding over time. Some of the earliest evidence of human art suggests that people told stories with pictures.
Siphnian Treasury North Frieze tells a story of the Greek gods.
Trajan’s Column retells a tale of an ancient Roman war.
The Bayeux Tapestry tells of events leading
up to the epic battle of Hastings in 1032.
It was made in around 1070.
It is embroidered and is 70 meters
or 230 feet long.
Tribute Money by Massacio, 1420. The main character, Peter, is depicted 3 times in this painting. The repetition of characters is called a continuous narrative.
Scenes from the Passion of Christ is an oil painting, c.1470 by German-born Early Netherlandish painter Hans Memling. The painting shows 23 vignettes of the Life of Jesus, in one narrative composition without a central dominating scene
The Ramayana is an epic tale from India, illustrated in countless formats.
Historical narrative of the shamen in Africa and Australia looks abstract to most. Holy people use these works to document oral tradition.
lukasa
“The Dreamtime,” refers to Aboriginal Australian creation stories.
20th and 21st century artists continue to use narrative
War rugs depict narrative of a history of invasions and war in Afghanistan
Judith
Schaechter
is a glass
artist
American Illustrator, Norman Rockwell, made each detail integral to the narrative.
Graphic novels are contemporary narrative.
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds, illustrated by Danica Navgorodoff
Gettysburg The Graphic Novel By C. M. Butzer
by Chris Ware
Pop-up books use paper engineering for illustrations. Work by Colette Fu.
A triptych is one artwork made of 3 separate, but related, parts often illustrating a narrative.
Panels may be connected with hinges so the artwork can be folded closed.
Medieval European triptychs.
The Kaavad is a portable shrine used by a teller to tell stories and therefore serves not just as a religious shrine but also a theatre of narratives with visual imagery. (India)