More Sophisticated Than You Think

Medieval art followed principles different from Renaissance realism but no less intelligent:

• Hierarchical scaling signaled spiritual importance, not physical position
• Gold backgrounds represented divine eternity, not artistic failure
• Workshop production prized consistent quality over individual expression
• Manuscript marginalia preserved the era's humor and creative freedom

Calling medieval art primitive is like calling sheet music ugly because it doesn't look like a photograph. It's a different system with different goals.