Role of Art Culture Science and Philosophy in the Italian Renissance

The Italian Renaissance

Learning Objectives

The fine art of the Italian Renaissance was influential throughout Europe for centuries.

Key Takeaways

Key Points

• The Florence school of painting became the dominant style during the Renaissance. Renaissance artworks depicted more than secular subject matter than previous artistic movements.
• Michelangelo, da Vinci, and Rafael are among the best known painters of the High Renaissance.
• The High Renaissance was followed past the Mannerist movement, known for elongated figures.

Key Terms

• fresco: A type of wall painting in which colour pigments are mixed with water and applied to moisture plaster. As the plaster and pigments dry out, they fuse together and the painting becomes a part of the wall itself.
• Mannerism: A style of fine art developed at the stop of the High Renaissance, characterized by the deliberate baloney and exaggeration of perspective, especially the elongation of figures.

The Renaissance began during the 14th century and remained the dominate style in Italy, and in much of Europe, until the 16th century. The term "renaissance" was developed during the 19th century in gild to describe this period of time and its accompanying artistic style. However, people who were living during the Renaissance did see themselves every bit dissimilar from their Medieval predecessors. Through a diverseness of texts that survive, nosotros know that people living during the Renaissance saw themselves as different largely because they were deliberately trying to imitate the Ancients in art and compages.

Florence and the Renaissance

When you hear the term "Renaissance" and motion picture a fashion of art, you are probably picturing the Renaissance style that was developed in Florence, which became the boss style of fine art during the Renaissance. During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, Italy was divided into a number of different urban center states. Each urban center land had its own government, civilization, economy, and artistic manner. There were many dissimilar styles of art and architecture that were developed in Italy during the Renaissance. Siena, which was a political ally of France, for case, retained a Gothic element to its art for much of the Renaissance.

Sure weather condition aided the evolution of the Renaissance way in Florence during this time period. In the 15th century, Florence became a major mercantile center. The production of cloth drove their economy and a merchant class emerged. Humanism, which had developed during the 14th century, remained an important intellectual movement that impacted fine art production as well.

Early Renaissance

During the Early on Renaissance, artists began to reject the Byzantine style of religious painting and strove to create realism in their depiction of the human form and infinite. This aim toward realism began with Cimabue and Giotto, and reached its tiptop in the art of the "Perfect" artists, such as Andrea Mantegna and Paolo Uccello, who created works that employed one point perspective and played with perspective for their educated, art knowledgeable viewer.

During the Early on Renaissance we too see important developments in subject affair, in add-on to way. While religion was an of import element in the daily life of people living during the Renaissance, and remained a driving factor backside creative production, we too come across a new avenue open to panting—mythological subject thing. Many scholars point to Botticelli's Birth of Venus as the very first panel painting of a mythological scene. While the tradition itself likely arose from cassone painting, which typically featured scenes from mythology and romantic texts, the development of mythological panel painting would open a earth for artistic patronage, production, and themes.

Birth of Venus: Botticelli'southward Birth of Venus was among the well-nigh important works of the early Renaissance.

High Renaissance

The period known every bit the High Renaissance represents the culmination of the goals of the Early Renaissance, namely the realistic representation of figures in space rendered with credible motion and in an appropriately decorous style. The most well known artists from this phase are Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, and Michelangelo. Their paintings and frescoes are among the most widely known works of fine art in the world. Da Vinci'southward Final Supper, Raphael's The Schoolhouse of Athens and Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel Ceiling paintings are the masterpieces of this period and embody the elements of the High Renaissance.

Marriage of the Virgin, by Raphael: The painting depicts a marriage ceremony between Mary and Joseph.

Mannerism

High Renaissance painting evolved into Mannerism in Florence. Mannerist artists, who consciously rebelled against the principles of Loftier Renaissance, tended to represent elongated figures in casuistic spaces. Modernistic scholarship has recognized the capacity of Mannerist art to convey potent, often religious, emotion where the High Renaissance failed to do and so. Some of the main artists of this flow are Pontormo, Bronzino, Rosso Fiorentino, Parmigianino and Raphael's pupil, Giulio Romano.

Art and Patronage

The Medici family used their vast fortune to control the Florentine political system and sponsor a series of creative accomplishments.

Learning Objectives

Talk over the relationship between art, patronage, and politics during the Renaissance

Key Takeaways

Key Points

• Although the Renaissance was underway before the Medici family unit came to power in Florence, their patronage and political support of the arts helped catalyze the Renaissance into a fully fledged cultural movement.
• The Medici wealth and influence initially derived from the textile trade guided past the guild of the Arte della Lana; through financial superiority, the Medici dominated their city'south government.
• Medici patronage was responsible for the majority of Florentine art during their reign, as artists generally only made their works when they received commissions in advance.
• Although none of the Medici themselves were scientists, the family is well known to take been the patrons of the famous Galileo Galilei, who tutored multiple generations of Medici children.

Key Terms

• Lorenzo de' Medici: An Italian statesman and de facto ruler of the Florentine Commonwealth, who was one of the most powerful and enthusiastic patrons of the Renaissance.
• patronage: The support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another, peculiarly in the arts.

Overview

It has long been a thing of argue why the Renaissance began in Florence, and non elsewhere in Italy. Scholars have noted several features unique to Florentine cultural life that may have caused such a cultural movement. Many have emphasized the function played past the Medici, a banking family and later ducal ruling house, in patronizing and stimulating the arts. Lorenzo de' Medici (1449–1492) was the catalyst for an enormous corporeality of arts patronage, encouraging his countrymen to committee works from the leading artists of Florence, including Leonardo da Vinci, Sandro Botticelli, and Michelangelo Buonarroti. Works by Neri di Bicci, Botticelli, da Vinci, and Filippino Lippi had been commissioned additionally past the convent di San Donato agli Scopeti of the Augustinians society in Florence.

The Medici House Patronage

The House of Medici was an Italian banking family, political dynasty, and later on royal house that beginning began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici in the Republic of Florence during the showtime one-half of the 15th century. Their wealth and influence initially derived from the material trade guided by the order of the Arte della Lana. Like other signore families, they dominated their city's government, they were able to bring Florence under their family unit'southward ability, and they created an environs where fine art and Humanism could flourish. They, along with other families of Italy, such equally the Visconti and Sforza of Milan, the Este of Ferrara, and the Gonzaga of Mantua, fostered and inspired the birth of the Italian Renaissance.

The biggest accomplishments of the Medici were in the sponsorship of fine art and architecture, mainly early and Loftier Renaissance art and architecture. The Medici were responsible for the bulk of Florentine art during their reign. Their money was significant because during this period, artists generally merely made their works when they received commissions in advance. Giovanni di Bicci de' Medici, the first patron of the arts in the family, aided Masaccio and commissioned Brunelleschi for the reconstruction of the Basilica of San Lorenzo, Florence, in 1419. Cosimo the Elder's notable artistic associates were Donatello and Fra Angelico. The well-nigh significant add-on to the list over the years was Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475–1564), who produced work for a number of Medici, beginning with Lorenzo the Magnificent, who was said to be extremely fond of the immature Michelangelo, inviting him to study the family collection of antiquarian sculpture. Lorenzo besides served as patron of Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) for seven years. Indeed, Lorenzo was an artist in his ain right, and an author of poetry and vocal; his support of the arts and letters is seen as a high signal in Medici patronage.

The Medici House: Medici family unit members placed allegorically in the entourage of a king from the Three Wise Men in the Tuscan countryside in a Benozzo Gozzoli fresco, c. 1459.

In architecture, the Medici are responsible for some notable features of Florence, including the Uffizi Gallery, the Boboli Gardens, the Dais, the Medici Chapel, and the Palazzo Medici. Later, in Rome, the Medici Popes continued in the family unit tradition by patronizing artists in Rome. Pope Leo X would importantly commission works from Raphael. Pope Clement Seven commissioned Michelangelo to paint the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel just before the pontiff's decease in 1534. Eleanor of Toledo, princess of Kingdom of spain and married woman of Cosimo I the Great, purchased the Pitti Palace from Buonaccorso Pitti in 1550. Cosimo in plow patronized Vasari, who erected the Uffizi Gallery in 1560 and founded the Accademia delle Arti del Disegno ("Academy of the Arts of Drawing") in 1563. Marie de' Medici, widow of Henry 4 of France and mother of Louis XIII, is the subject of a commissioned wheel of paintings known as the Marie de' Medici cycle, painted for the Grand duchy of luxembourg Palace by court painter Peter Paul Rubens in 1622–1623.

Although none of the Medici themselves were scientists, the family is well known to accept been the patrons of the famous Galileo Galilei, who tutored multiple generations of Medici children and was an important figurehead for his patron's quest for power. Galileo's patronage was eventually abandoned by Ferdinando II when the Inquisition accused Galileo of heresy. Withal, the Medici family unit did beget the scientist a safety oasis for many years. Galileo named the four largest moons of Jupiter after four Medici children he tutored, although the names Galileo used are not the names currently used.

Leonardo da Vinci

While Leonardo da Vinci is admired as a scientist, an academic, and an inventor, he is nearly famous for his achievements every bit the painter of several Renaissance masterpieces.

Learning Objectives

Draw the works of Leonardo da Vinci that demonstrate his most innovative techniques as an artist

Primal Takeaways

Key Points

• Among the qualities that brand da Vinci's work unique are the innovative techniques that he used in laying on the pigment, his detailed knowledge of anatomy, his innovative utilise of the man grade in figurative limerick, and his use of sfumato.
• Among the almost famous works created by da Vinci is the small portrait titled the Mona Lisa, known for the elusive smile on the woman'south face, brought about by the fact that da Vinci subtly adumbral the corners of the mouth and eyes so that the exact nature of the smile cannot be determined.
• Despite his famous paintings, da Vinci was not a prolific painter; he was a prolific draftsman, keeping journals full of pocket-size sketches and detailed drawings recording all fashion of things that interested him.

Key Terms

• sfumato: In painting, the application of subtle layers of translucent pigment so that at that place is no visible transition betwixt colors, tones, and often objects.

While Leonardo da Vinci is profoundly admired equally a scientist, an academic, and an inventor, he is near famous for his achievements as the painter of several Renaissance masterpieces. His paintings were groundbreaking for a diverseness of reasons and his works have been imitated by students and discussed at great length by connoisseurs and critics.

Among the qualities that make da Vinci's work unique are the innovative techniques that he used in laying on the paint, his detailed knowledge of anatomy, his employ of the homo form in figurative composition, and his apply of sfumato. All of these qualities are present in his nearly celebrated works, the Mona Lisa, The Terminal Supper, and the Virgin of the Rocks.

The Virgin of the Rocks, Leonardo da Vinci, 1483–1486: This painting shows the Madonna and Child Jesus with the baby John the Baptist and an angel, in a rocky setting.

The Last Supper

Da Vinci's most celebrated painting of the 1490s is The Terminal Supper, which was painted for the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan. The painting depicts the terminal meal shared by Jesus and the 12 Apostles where he announces that one of the them will betray him. When finished, the painting was acclaimed as a masterpiece of design. This piece of work demonstrates something that da Vinci did very well: taking a very traditional bailiwick affair, such as the Last Supper, and completely re-inventing it.

Prior to this moment in fine art history, every representation of the Last Supper followed the aforementioned visual tradition: Jesus and the Apostles seated at a tabular array. Judas is placed on the reverse side of the table of anybody else and is effortlessly identified by the viewer. When da Vinci painted The Last Supper he placed Judas on the same side of the table as Christ and the Apostles, who are shown reacting to Jesus as he announces that i of them will betray him. They are depicted as alarmed, upset, and trying to determine who will commit the human activity. The viewer also has to make up one's mind which figure is Judas, who will betray Christ. By depicting the scene in this fashion, da Vinci has infused psychology into the work.

Unfortunately, this masterpiece of the Renaissance began to deteriorate immediately after da Vinci finished painting, due largely to the painting technique that he had chosen. Instead of using the technique of fresco, da Vinci had used tempera over a ground that was mainly gesso in an attempt to bring the subtle effects of oil paint to fresco. His new technique was not successful, and resulted in a surface that was discipline to mold and flaking.

The Last Supper: Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper, although much deteriorated, demonstrates the painter's mastery of the human form in figurative composition.

Mona Lisa

Amid the works created by da Vinci in the 16th century is the small portrait known as the Mona Lisa, or La Gioconda, "the laughing one." In the present era it is arguably the virtually famous painting in the globe. Its fame rests, in item, on the elusive smile on the adult female's face—its mysterious quality brought about possibly past the fact that the artist has subtly adumbral the corners of the mouth and eyes so that the exact nature of the smile cannot be determined.

The shadowy quality for which the work is renowned came to be chosen sfumato, the application of subtle layers of translucent paint so that there is no visible transition between colors, tones, and often objects. Other characteristics institute in this work are the unadorned clothes, in which the eyes and hands take no competition from other details; the dramatic landscape background, in which the globe seems to be in a land of flux; the subdued coloring; and the extremely smooth nature of the painterly technique, employing oils, simply applied much like tempera and composite on the surface so that the brushstrokes are indistinguishable. And once more, da Vinci is innovating upon a type of painting hither. Portraits were very common in the Renaissance. Nonetheless, portraits of women were always in profile, which was seen as proper and modest. Here, da Vinci present a portrait of a adult female who non only faces the viewer only follows them with her eyes.

Mona Lisa: In the Mona Lisa, da Vinci incorporates his sfumato technique to create a shadowy quality.

Virgin and Child with St. Anne

In the painting Virgin and Child with St. Anne, da Vinci'due south composition again picks up the theme of figures in a mural. What makes this painting unusual is that there are ii obliquely set figures superimposed. Mary is seated on the human knee of her female parent, St. Anne. She leans forward to restrain the Christ Child as he plays roughly with a lamb, the sign of his own impending sacrifice. This painting influenced many contemporaries, including Michelangelo, Raphael, and Andrea del Sarto. The trends in its composition were adopted in particular past the Venetian painters Tintoretto and Veronese.

Virgin and Child with Saint Anne: Virgin and Child with St. Anne (c. 1510) by Leonardo da Vinci, Louvre Museum.

Michelangelo

Michelangelo was a 16th century Florentine creative person renowned for his masterpieces in sculpture, painting, and architectural pattern.

Learning Objectives

Discuss Michelangelo'south achievements in sculpture, painting, and compages

Key Takeaways

Key Points

• Michelangelo created his jumbo marble statue, the David, out of a single block of marble, which established his prominence every bit a sculptor of boggling technical skill and force of symbolic imagination.
• In painting, Michelangelo is renowned for the ceiling and The Concluding Sentence of the Sistine Chapel, where he depicted a complex scheme representing Creation, the Downfall of Man, the Salvation of Man, and the Genealogy of Christ.
• Michelangelo's primary contribution to Saint Peter's Basilica was the use of a Greek Cross class and an external masonry of massive proportions, with every corner filled in past a stairwell or minor vestry. The outcome is a continuous wall-surface that appears fractured or folded at unlike angles.

Cardinal Terms

• contrapposto: The standing position of a human being figure where nigh of the weight is placed on one pes, and the other leg is relaxed.  The effect of contrapposto in art makes figures look very naturalistic.
• Sistine Chapel: The best-known chapel in the Churchly Palace.

Michelangelo was a 16th century Florentine artist renowned for his masterpieces in sculpture, painting, and architectural design. His about well known works are the David, the Terminal Judgment, and the Basilica of Saint Peter's in the Vatican.

Sculpture: David

In 1504, Michelangelo was commissioned to create a jumbo marble statue portraying David equally a symbol of Florentine liberty. The subsequent masterpiece, David, established the artist'southward prominence as a sculptor of extraordinary technical skill and strength of symbolic imagination. David was created out of a single marble block, and stands larger than life, as it was originally intended to adorn the Florence Cathedral. The work differs from previous representations in that the Biblical hero is not depicted with the head of the slain Goliath, as he is in Donatello's and Verrocchio'southward statues; both had represented the hero standing victorious over the head of Goliath. No earlier Florentine creative person had omitted the giant altogether. Instead of appearing victorious over a foe, David'southward confront looks tense and prepare for combat. The tendons in his neck stand out tautly, his forehead is furrowed, and his eyes seem to focus attentively on something in the altitude. Veins bulge out of his lowered correct mitt, but his body is in a relaxed contrapposto pose, and he carries his sling casually thrown over his left shoulder. In the Renaissance, contrapposto poses were thought of as a distinctive characteristic of antique sculpture.

The David by Michelangelo, 1504: Michelangelo's David stands in contrapposto pose.

The sculpture was intended to be placed on the exterior of the Duomo, and has get one of the most recognized works of Renaissance sculpture.

Painting: The Last Judgement

In painting, Michelangelo is renowned for his work in the Sistine Chapel. He was originally commissioned to pigment tromp-l'oeil coffers later the original ceiling adult a crack. Michelangelo lobbied for a unlike and more circuitous scheme, representing Creation, the Downfall of Human, the Promise of Salvation through the prophets, and the Genealogy of Christ. The piece of work is part of a larger scheme of decoration within the chapel that represents much of the doctrine of the Catholic Church.

The composition eventually contained over 300 figures, and had at its center nine episodes from the Book of Genesis, divided into three groups: God's Creation of the Globe, God's Creation of Humankind, and their autumn from God's grace, and lastly, the state of Humanity equally represented by Noah and his family. Twelve men and women who prophesied the coming of the Jesus are painted on the pendentives supporting the ceiling. Amidst the most famous paintings on the ceiling are The Creation of Adam, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the Great Flood, the Prophet Isaiah and the Cumaean Sibyl. The ancestors of Christ  are painted around the windows.

The fresco of The Last Judgment on the chantry wall of the Sistine Chapel was commissioned past Pope Cloudless Seven, and Michelangelo labored on the project from 1536–1541. The piece of work is located on the chantry wall of the Sistine Chapel, which is non a traditional placement for the subject. Typically, concluding judgement scenes were placed on the exit wall of churches every bit a way to remind the viewer of eternal punishments as they left worship. The Last Judgment is a depiction of the 2nd coming of Christ and the apocalypse; where the souls of humanity rise and are assigned to their various fates, as judged by Christ, surrounded past the Saints. In contrast to the earlier figures Michelangelo painted on the ceiling, the figures in The Last Judgement are heavily muscled and are in much more bogus poses, demonstrating how this work is in the Mannerist style.

In this work Michelangelo has rejected the orderly depiction of the last judgement as established by Medieval tradition in favor of a swirling scene of anarchy as each soul is judged. When the painting was revealed it was heavily criticized for its inclusion of classical imagery as well as for the corporeality of nude figures in somewhat suggestive poses. The ill reception that the work received may exist tied to the Counter Reformation and the Council of Trent, which lead to a preference for more bourgeois religious fine art devoid of classical references. Although a number of figures were made more modest with the add-on of pall, the changes were not made until afterward the death of Michelangelo, demonstrating the respect and adoration that was afforded to him during his lifetime.

The Last Judgement: The fresco of The Final Judgment on the chantry wall of the Sistine Chapel was commissioned by Pope Clement Vii. Michelangelo worked on the project from 1534–1541.

Architecture: St. Peter's Basilica

Finally, although other architects were involved, Michelangelo is given credit for designing St. Peter's Basilica. Michelangelo'due south chief contribution was the use of a symmetrical program of a Greek Cross form and an external masonry of massive proportions, with every corner filled in by a stairwell or minor vestry. The effect is of a continuous wall surface that is folded or fractured at different angles, defective the right angles that ordinarily define change of direction at the corners of a building. This exterior is surrounded by a giant order of Corinthian pilasters all set at slightly different angles to each other, in keeping with the ever-irresolute angles of the wall's surface. To a higher place them the huge cornice ripples in a continuous band, giving the appearance of keeping the whole building in a country of pinch.

St. Peter'due south Basillica: Michelangelo designed the dome of St. Peter's Basilica on or before 1564, although it was unfinished when he died.

Mannerism

Mannerist artists began to reject the harmony and ideal proportions of the Renaissance in favor of irrational settings, artificial colors, unclear subject matters, and elongated forms.

Learning Objectives

Describe the Mannerist style, how it differs from the Renaissance, and reasons why it emerged.

Key Takeaways

Key Points

• Mannerism came after the Loftier Renaissance and before the Baroque.
• The artists who came a generation after Raphael and Michelangelo had a dilemma. They could non surpass the great works that had already been created by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo. This is when we start to see Mannerism sally.
• Jacopo da Pontormo (1494–1557) represents the shift from the Renaissance to the Mannerist way.

Fundamental Terms

• Mannerism: Style of art in Europe from c. 1520–1600. Mannerism came after the High Renaissance and before the Baroque. Not every artist painting during this period is considered a Mannerist artist.

Mannerism is the name given to a style of fine art in Europe from c. 1520–1600. Mannerism came later the High Renaissance and before the Bizarre. Not every artist painting during this menstruation is considered a Mannerist creative person, however, and there is much debate among scholars over whether Mannerism should be considered a separate motion from the Loftier Renaissance, or a stylistic stage of the High Renaissance. Mannerism volition be treated as a split fine art motility here as there are many differences betwixt the High Renaissance and the Mannerist styles.

Way

What makes a work of art Mannerist? Starting time we must understand the ethics and goals of the Renaissance. During the Renaissance artists were engaging with classical antiquity in a new way. In addition, they developed theories on perspective, and in all ways strived to create works of art that were perfect, harmonious, and showed platonic depictions of the natural earth. Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo are considered the artists who reached the greatest achievements in art during the Renaissance.

The Renaissance stressed harmony and beauty and no i could create more than beautiful works than the great three artists listed above. The artists who came a generation subsequently had a dilemma; they could not surpass the great works that had already been created by da Vinci, Raphael, and Michelangelo. This is when nosotros outset to see Mannerism emerge. Younger artists trying to practice something new and different began to reject harmony and ideal proportions in favor of irrational settings, artificial colors, unclear subject matters, and elongated forms.

Jacopo da Pontormo

Jacopo da Pontormo (1494–1557) represents the shift from the Renaissance to the Mannerist way. Accept for example his Deposition from the Cantankerous, an altarpiece that was painted for a chapel in the Church of Santa Felicita, Florence. The figures of Mary and Jesus announced to be a direct reference to Michelangelo's Pieta. Although the work is called a "Degradation," in that location is no cantankerous. Scholars also refer to this work equally the "Entombment" but there is no tomb. This lack of clarity on subject matter is a hallmark of Mannerist painting. In addition, the setting is irrational, almost as if information technology is non in this world, and the colors are far from naturalistic. This work could not have been produced by a Renaissance artist. The Mannerist motion stresses different goals and this work of art by Pontormo demonstrates this new, and different manner.

Pontormo, Deposition from the Cross, 1525-1528, Church of Santa Felicita, Florence: This work of art by Pontormo demonstrates the hallmarks of the Mannerist style: unclear subject affair, irrational setting, and artificial colors.

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