Category: Renaissance

Introduction

During the Dark Ages, there was emergence of various types of arts following civilization in Europe. The medieval period of art covers a span of over a 1000 years ranging from about 2^nd Century to 16^th century, marking great development in the history of art. After series of evolution of arts during this period, Gothic art emerged in 12^th century marking a significant period that led to the development of Italian Renaissance.

Behind Italian Renaissance was a great painter and architect, Giotto di Bondone, who existed in the 13^th and 14^th centuries. “The Renaissance was a period of artistic and cultural achievement in Europe from the fourteenth to the sixteenth century. It was characterized by a number of distinctive ideas about life, specifically secularism, individualism, humanism, and materialism.”

Renaissance art revolutionized the history of art in Italy and the entire Europe. Pietro Cavallini, an Italian mosaic designer and a painter, is a contemporary of Giotto di Bondone. He made significant contributions to the Renaissance in Rome and expansive parts of Europe. Since they were contemporaries of Renaissance period, how does the work of Pietro Cavallini challenge the idea of Giotto as the first Renaissance painter?

Giotto di Bondone

Giotto di Bondone was an Italian architect and a painter who lived from 1267 to 1337. Since he was a Roman Catholic, his paintings and mosaics reflected his religious beliefs. His contemporaries credited him as an expert artist during the Italian Renaissance because he was a brilliant sculptor and painter, as well as an astonishing architect. Giotto di Bondone gained prominence in arts during late 13^th and early 4^th century when people were transforming their lifestyles and traditions from medieval period to Renaissance period.

During the time of transformation, Giotto di Bondone emerged as a great painter for he received more credit from his contemporary artists, religious leaders, and politicians. Due to his immense contribution to Renaissance, particularly great Italian paintings, many people considered him the father of European painting. His artistic works and medieval art formed foundation of the Renaissance that led to revolution of arts in Europe.

Although Giotto di Bondone had humble background, Comune of Florence did employ him and this gave him an opportunity to expand his artistic talents thus making him a great painter in Italy. Giotto di Bondone was very talented in arts because art historians acknowledge that he did not have any knowledge about arts yet he was able to depict his paintings in three dimensions.

During medieval period, artists were only able to paint in two-dimension but Giotto’s paintings made significant transformations in painting styles by introducing three-dimensional painting style. Giotto di Bondone’s biography shows that he got his early education from Cimabue, a Florentine painter.

Many artists believe that Cimabue took Giotto di Bondone when he was a boy and taught him varied artistic skills that shaped his talent in arts. Thus, great painting and architectural skills that Giotto di Bondone had came from the teachings of Cimabue. His paintings depict that Giotto di Bondone liked natural and religious objects as he depicted saints and religious icons in diverse frescoes, common in cathedrals. Therefore, Giotto’s inclination to nature and religion made him a naturalist painter during Renaissance.

Great works of paintings made Giotto di Bondone become a prominent painter during Renaissance. His works included embellishments of cathedrals and chapels in places such as Assisi, Padua, Naples, Italy, and Florence. The masterworks of Giotto include the decorations done on the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua in about 1305, generally called as the Arena Chapel. His work in the Arena Chapel is a strong depiction of Roman naturalism that is an unambiguously the key to the Florentine Renaissance artists.

The work marked Giotto’s existence as a Renaissance artist and therefore gained enough fame on it because it entails lives of the Virgin Mary and the Christ. Frescoes that he created made him so popular that the church of Florentine assigned him another noble task of designing the bell tower, Campanile, in 1334. These two works, the Florence Cathedral, and the Arena Chapel, are the works that Giotto di Bondone claims complete authenticity and make him the great painter of Renaissance.

As aforementioned, the significant frescoes and paintings of Giotto di Bondone are Arena Chapel in Padua, Basilica in Assisi, San Francesco monastery in Assisi, and Santana Croce in Florence and Oganissanti Madonna in Florence. These works portray his excellence in painting, which has earned him great fame in the history and development of arts during Renaissance.

The paintings and frescoes depict three-dimensional icons of catholic saints and apostles, and this represented the highest point of his paintings. However, the fresco cycle of the life of San Francesco depicted on the upper church at Assisi by Giotto di Bondone was an attribution. Some of the German art historians, who supported Giotto di Bondone, have received criticism because there were a number of artists who contributed to the fresco paintings in Assisi.

One of his early works of around 1290 includes the Dominicans at Santa Maria Novella, which depicts the frescoes of Annunciation and Oganissanti Madonna. Giotto had enormous fame in his time as Padua for the Scrovegni Chapel and various cathedrals invited him to limn the life of Virgin Mary and Christ. Thus, great paintings and frescoes made Giotto di Bondone the first Renaissance painter.

Pietro Cavallini

Pietro Cavallini is an Italian mosaic designer and a painter who lived between 1259 and 1330 in Rome. Like Giotto di Bondone, he was born in Rome and became a Roman Catholic, thus his paintings carried religious figures and icons as well. He was a mosaic designer and worked during the period of Renaissance when many artists credited him as a leading artist of his time.

Other artists consider Pietro Cavallini a painter who actually transformed from the Byzantine style towards classical forms of art when dealing with the elements of space, illusion, and naturalism in his work. He made masterpieces in fresco and mosaics, which presented three-dimensional forms, precluding stagnant and static paintings and enhancing the areas that portrayed reality in forms, and illustrating figures that were influential.

His work gained prominence in painting because he was an expert in mosaic design. Pietro Cavallini’s first legitimate work is fresco cycles for the Basilica di San Paolo Fluori le Mura, which illustrated the stories of the Old and New Testament in the Bible. Fresco cycles were Cavallini’s masterpieces as they depicted individuality in style and a cosmos that was yet unknown in the medieval art. Like Giotto’s tendency of naturalism, fresco cycles portrayed the elements of naturalism in his artistic skills.

Apart from fresco cycles, Pietro Cavallini also portrayed naturalism in his paintings of Basilica of San Francesco d’ Assisi in Assisi, which was in honor of St. Francis late in the 13 century. Being a Roman Catholic, he did the paintings to reflect religious icons and saints. Due to the great deal of similarity between the works in San Francisco and that of the Florentine artist Giotto, he received much credit from some of the fresco paintings, although many of the art historians believe it to be a false claim.

Despite many criticisms that tend to degrade artistic ability of Pietro Cavallini, apse mosaics and fresco cycles are the major works that have managed to stand the test of time. The apse of mosaics in the church of Santa Maria Trastevere illustrated the scenes of Virgin Mary and her baby. Since this illustration forms central part of Catholic beliefs, Pietro Cavallini gained prominence in religious spheres, which made him continue in making religious paintings as well as mosaics.

Moreover, fresco cycles in the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere portrayed the history of the church including its destiny and judgment of Christians. Such delineations depicted a great message for many Christians and enhanced Cavallini’s prominence during Renaissance. Pietro Cavallini used incredible solid of drawings, contemporary styles of art, subtle colors, and emphatic space, as rendered in uniform placement of the apostles or other religious icons.

Although most of his works hardly survived, art historians preserved his works in pristine conditions, which attests his great contribution to the revolution of art in Renaissance. Art historians have saved and preserved various pieces of work such as the artifacts of the Last Judgment and fresco cycles as significant work of Pietro Cavallini that contributed to the emergence of Renaissance in Rome and Europe during 14^th to 16^th centuries.

Apse mosaics and fresco paintings are great works of Pietro Cavallini that made him prominent during Renaissance and in modern art. Fresco paintings identify him as one of the Renaissance painters who transformed the nature of paintings in Renaissance by introducing three-dimensional painting and naturalism. Pietro Cavallini learned great deal of artistic skills in painting from his contemporary, Giotto di Bondone, and incorporated the concept of naturalism.

Moreover, he painted the apse fresco in St. Giorgio in Velabro, which was a ravishing piece of art done with beautified technique of fresco and made reforms in the area of dignified and linear arts. Sharing his contemporary knowledge and contributing to Renaissance, Pietro Cavallini created masterpieces in fresco painting and mosaic. As a proof of his contribution to the Renaissance and modern art, there are some remains of his work from 1320s in the church of St. Maria Donna Regina in Naples.

Renaissance Painters

Historians believe that medieval art formed the foundation of the Renaissance art, which spread across Europe between 14^th and 16^th centuries. Among other great artists, Giotto di Bondone and Pietro Cavallini are prominent painters who revolutionized the history of arts in Europe. Although Giotto di Bondone seemed to be more prominent during the Renaissance period, the artistic works of Pietro Cavallini were very competitive and thus he was equally famous in some Roman cities.

Since Giotto di Bondone was prominent in Rome and Europe as a painter and architect, Comune of Florence employed him and this offered him an opportunity to explore his artistic talents relative to Pietro Cavallini. Giotto di Bondone “is famous for his frescoes such as St. Francis Preaching to the Birds. His realistic paintings replaced the artificial two-dimensional art represented in the Middle Ages and designed a bell tower, usually called Giotto’s Tower, for the Cathedral of Florence.”

He specialized in religious frescoes that were in cathedrals, which increased his fame during Renaissance period. Many of his contemporaries like Pietro Cavallini learned from his paintings and employed skills gained in development of novel artistic styles that revolutionized history of art.

Critical analysis of the contributions that Pietro Cavallini made to the Renaissance period challenges the idea that Giotto di Bondone was the first Renaissance painter. The work of Pietro Cavallini includes Santa Maria mosaics and Santa Cecilia paintings that dominated cathedrals in Rome.

“The mosaics and paintings of the Life of the Virgin in the apse in Santa Maria in Trastevere are still typically attributed to Cavallini because of the remains of his name in an inscription found in the seventh-century watercolor copy of the mosaics.” Following his artistic works, Pietro Cavallini was a great mosaic designer and a painter who worked for the kings. Since he did make great art, many people have credited his work to other artists thus affecting his prominence and contribution to the Renaissance art.

Revolution of Art in Western Europe

Revolution of art during 13^th century in Northern Italy stemmed from metaphysical swing, a crevice that was eventually going to separate and define religion and science. Medieval artists have been grappling with religious issues during the late antique period that ended about 11^th century paving way for the emergence of Renaissance.

At the transition of medieval art and Renaissance art are two great artists that marked significant contributions, which marked revolution in art. “Although at a crucial time of transformation in Europe, the early fourteenth-century court in Naples defies definition as either medieval or Renaissance,” thus making it a transition period.

This means that Giotto di Bondone and Pietro Cavallini existed in the transition of medieval and Renaissance that saw revolution of art. Since both artists were contemporaries, Giotto di Bondone became more prominent as a Renaissance painter for he concentrated in paintings while Pietro did both painting and mosaic design. Moreover, given that introduction of three-dimensional paintings improved clarity and emotional depiction of objects, Giotto di Bondone earned much credit and fame.

During the 13^th century, everyone questioned philosophy of medieval painting because it had elements of barbaric art, late antique art, and classical art. The philosophy of art at that time dictated that direct experience was the only way of understanding complexity of the world, which prohibited medieval wisdom and initiated revolution in art.

During this period, there were tremendous changes that included application of science, reawakening of classical age new ways of rationalism, and defining self-identity. From general perspective of Renaissance, “…historians have shown that the Medieval Era, or Middle Ages, did produce art, architecture, literature, and other ideas in law, languages, and economics that influenced Europe in the fourteenth century and provided the foundation for the Renaissance.”

During the period of transition, many factors of civilization such as politics, society, religion, education, and arts played critical roles as integral elements of Renaissance. This means that Giotto di Bondone and Pietro Cavallini made their own unique contribution to the Renaissance of art through at various capacities.

Renaissance marked line of contrast between medieval art and modern art. In painting art, it was a transformation from flat and flat Byzantine images to more naturalistic depictions in three dimensions. In three-dimensional delineations, the artists incorporate emotional aspect of the painting thus enhancing attraction to the eyes of observers.

Giotto di Bondone and Petro Cavallini employed three-dimensional skills in their paintings, which increased their prominence during Renaissance making them the leading artists of the revolution. Pietro Cavallini, being a student and contemporary artist of Giotto di Bondone, gained enough experience in arts to warrant recognition as one of the Renaissance painters as well.

Art historians acknowledge that both Giotto and Cavallini worked together making “St. Francis cycles of frescoes in the Upper Church at San Francesco at Assisi … also worked in Rome on the projects associated with ecclesiastical and papal patrons, which Vasari noted and later scholars have thus studied.” Thus, Pietro Cavallini had equal ability in paintings as Giotto di Bondone and deserved credit as one of the Renaissance painters.

Giotto’s paintings in the Arena Chapel in Padua, which were commissioned by the Scrovegni family and completed between 1304 and 1306, are extraordinary.

However, it is debatable with the altarpiece for the Florentine Church of the Oganissanti, finished about 1310, that he first attained the realism we associate with the Renaissance. Here we see a Madonna sculpted in lustrous light, her underlying figure and ravenous shape revealed, rather than covered, by her clothing, the essence of full-breasted motherhood, which contemplates and stares directly at us with all-knowing tranquility.

The Oganissanti altarpiece is now in Florence Cathedral where it sits between two altarpieces with the same theme, done late 13^th century, by Duccio and Cimabue. The Oganissanti altarpiece was a great work of Pietro Cavallini that boosted his prominence as a painter who made significant contribution to the revolution of the arts during Renaissance.

Rich patrons were responsible for the revolution of Renaissance for they mobilized resources and employed artists who could make arts that suited their political and religious interests. Bardi and Peruzzi were two patrons who commissioned chapels ornamented by Giotto in Santa Croce in Florence. Due to religious and political patronage of the paintings, Giotto di Bondone had an upper hand for the patrons favored him relative to Pietro Cavallini.

Giotto di Bondone gained patronage when “he painted the chapels of the Bardi and Peruzzi in Santa Croce in Florence before leaving for Naples, so perhaps the artist came to Robert’s attention through those families.” On the other hand, Pietro Cavallini’s art did not attract much political and religious patronage, hence did not gain much prominence as a great Renaissance painter.

Conclusion

Giotto di Bondone and Pietro Cavallini were great artists who made significant contributions to the revolution of art during the Renaissance. The Renaissance occurred due to cumulative knowledge of arts of the medieval period that lasted for over 1000 years. The two artists lived in 13^th and 14^th centuries when there was transition of medieval art and Renaissance art, thus they participated actively in the revolution of art.

Although Giotto di Bondone appeared to have gained great prominence as a Renaissance painter, Pietro Cavallini also had equal capacity. The prominence of Giotto di Bondone was due to religious and political patronage that he received, thus enhancing his competitive advantage and drowning Pietro Cavallini’s fame during the Renaissance.

Bibliography

Fleck, Cathleen. The Rise of the Court Artist: Cavallini and Giotto in Fourteenth-Century Naples. Art History 31, no. 4, (September 2008): 460-483.

Hetherington, Paul. Pietro Cavallini, Artistic Style, and Patronage in Late Medieval Rome. The Burlington Magazine 114, no.2 (January 1972): 826-38.

Ross, Leslie. Artistic Achievement of the Renaissance 1350-1550. The Journal of Art 45, no. 11, (May 1996): 33-46.

Smart, Alastair. The dawn of Italian painting, 1250-1400. Ithaca. New York: Cornell University, 1978.

Zanardi, Bruno, and Donal Cooper. Book Reviews: Giotto e Pietro Cavallini. La Questione di Assisi e il Cantiere Medievale Della Pittura a Fresco. The Burlington Magazine 146, no. 1220, (November 2004): 764

The Renaissance Period was a time of rediscovery of classical art and ideals of Ancient Greece and Rome. The focus turned to the individual, as opposed to the overall anonymity typical of the Middle Ages. The importance of nature and physical world combined with the rekindled interest in the individual paved the way for the birth of humanism. Pregnant women were seen as a symbol of natural processes of creation and destruction, of endless life cycles, worthy of admiration. When comparing the Renaissance attitude with the modern viewpoint, it is clear that the differences are significant.

Renaissance Attitude to the Pregnant Female Body

The Mona Lisa, painted by Leonardo Da Vinci, has become a female archetype over the years. Garrard and Broude elaborate on this phenomenon by providing several interpretations offered by art critics, art historians, as well as other experts (67). The author refers to the interpretation by Kenneth Clarke, wherein he links the female figure of Mona Lisa to the landscape in the background (Garrard and Broude 67). Combined with the paysage behind her, Gioconda becomes a symbolic reference to the natural processes of life. According to this interpretation, the female image is intertwined with the powers of nature, pertaining to the creative and destructive processes. Garrard and Broude also refer to the opinion aired by Kenneth D. Keele, who saw several signs of an advanced stage of pregnancy in Leonardo’s Gioconda (68). Thus, he considered Mona Lisa to be a symbol of the origin of life, and the female image as a symbolic source of natural powers of creation and destruction.

The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck, the Flemish artist, is an allegorical piece, depicting a wealthy couple in a home setting. Although the pregnancy of the female figure in this painting is widely disputed, there are various symbolic references to the ideas of childbirth and fertility in the background. The image of St. Margaret, the saint of childbirth, over the marriage bed, symbolizes the idea of fertility and a healthy family (“The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck” par. 7).

Even though the woman’s protruding abdomen is often attributed to the fashion at the time, the symbolic dimension of the van Eyck’s piece hints at the idea of pregnancy and childbirth. According to Soraya, even if the woman was not actually pregnant, the idea was crucial for the Renaissance artists to convey (par. 7). Therefore, it means that the aspect of fertility was of utmost importance in the Renaissance period, and the image of a pregnant female body was essential, as it was employed to illustrate the nature of humanity.

Raphael’s La Donna Gravida depicts a pregnant woman, touching the protruding abdomen with her hand as if drawing our attention to her condition. The red and black colors of her clothing indicate that she is of noble descent. Raphael’s image of a female pregnant body seems to aim at combining the idea of fertility and nobility. The look on the woman’s face is calm, peaceful, and rather serene. The image depicted by Raphael seems harmonious and natural, full of serenity and tranquility.

These interpretations of the Mona Lisa, the Arnolfini Portrait, and La Donna Gravida provide invaluable insights into our understanding of the Renaissance attitude towards an image of female pregnant body. A pregnant woman for the Renaissance artists was a symbol of natural processes, an essential part of human condition, and a link to the powers of creation and destruction. A female pregnant body is often depicted with peaceful, distinguished features, indicating the admiration artists felt for the female fertility.

Comparison with the Modern Perception

Compared to the Renaissance depiction of the female pregnant body, modern images are rather different. Due to the fashion trends and the expectations of society, women are put under a great deal of pressure regarding their body. While the Renaissance paintings show that a pregnant woman is admired and cherished, modern media and fashion feed the society the image of an ideal woman, which is far from the notion of fertility. Nowadays, pregnancy is a concern for women, as due to this change, their body might never look the same, and, more importantly, might not adhere to the modern beauty standards determined by media and high fashion.

Compared to the Renaissance attitude towards pregnancy, where a pregnant woman is seen as an astonishing phenomenon, symbolizing the origin of life, and worthy of admiration, modern image of a pregnant woman seems rather mundane, or even unappealing. The symbol of life has disappeared from this image, making way for the idea of eternal youth and beauty valued above everything else. Thus, a conclusion may be drawn: perhaps the principal difference between the Renaissance attitude towards pregnancy and its modern analogy lies in the temporal aspect. Renaissance artists depicted pregnant woman with admiration, as this condition symbolized the idea of ever changing nature of things, of endless cycles of natural processes, and the immense powers of nature. Nowadays, however, pregnancy is seen as an inconvenience. Youth and eternal beauty, unhindered by ageing and other natural life processes are top priorities. The notion of pregnancy cannot be held in high regard in such a context, as it is symbolic of change, which is not appreciated in the modern society.

Conclusion

Throughout the ages, the image of a female pregnant body has changed a great deal. Female fertility, seen in Renaissance as the origin of life, the symbol of incredible powers of nature, transformed into an inconvenience, hindering the lives of women in modern society. The cycles of natural phenomena, an endless process of change, including ageing, were the sources of inspiration. However, modern attitude towards pregnancy differs from the Renaissance perception. The admiration of the process of change gave way to the ongoing efforts to halt the ageing process and remain young and unchanging throughout our increasingly long lives.

Works Cited

Da Vinci, Leonardo. The Mona Lisa. 1503-1506, oil on wood panel, Louvre Museum, Paris.

Garrard, Mary D., and Norma Broude. The Expanding Discours: Feminism and Art History. New York: HarperCollins Publishing, 1992. Print.

Raphael. La Donna Gravida. 1505-1506, oil on panel, Palazzo Pitti, Florence.

Soraya, Jane Kashfi. Six Steps to Decoding The Arnolfini Portrait. 2016. Web.

The Arnolfini Portrait by Jan van Eyck. Interpretation of Flemish Oil Painting: The Arnolfini Marriage Web.

Van Eyck, Jan. The Arnolfini Portrait. 1434, oil on oak panel, National Gallery, London.

Introduction

The word renaissance refers to a change of state or a revival. It is in context the change in cultural activities recorded among the European countries in the early times beginning from fourteenth century to the seventeenth century. The cultural change brought transformation in many aspects of lives.

Among the aspects transformed were economics, politics, social dynamics, religion, art and philosophy. This paper seeks to discuss a defining aspect of renaissance in a personal perspective. The paper will examine the state of art as a defining element of the renaissance period. It will examine the changing aspects of art that took place during the period.

Art- The Defining Element of Renaissance

Art is the category of elements that are “subject to aesthetic criteria”. It refers to the things that pertain to skills and techniques, involving emotional appeal in a significant way. Renaissance in general took place in the fifteenth and the sixteenth century.^[1] It was a moment of change that saw the transformations of the historical middle period human beings to the current modern man.

Though the artistic revolution is considered in this article as the major element of the renaissance, it was a result of the revolutions in the other elements such as the scientific, philosophical and the linguistic advancements. The advancement of knowledge and themes was a motivation to the development of better techniques and styles in the field of art.

The identity of the art as a form of creation and respect accorded to the artists for their skills became a boost to the development of art during the period. The artistic renaissance can be distinguished into three categories: the first category is known as the early renaissance followed by high renaissance and lastly the late renaissance.^[2]

The new era of art in Italy was marked in Florence. The developments saw the inclusion of mathematical aspects that enabled a three dimensional representation in painting. This development was achieved as early as the fifteenth century. The then early painting methods were at best crude. There were two commonly used methods: tempera and fresco. One technique, the tempera, involved painting on a dry plane.

Colors from items like vegetables and eggs were used to copy expressions from drawings. Another technique, the fresco, was done on wet surface. This latter technique was mostly used in paintings for church use. On drying of the plaster used, the drawing colors became part of the painting.

The evolution saw the establishment of a painting school that trained on a two dimensional picture production. The religious paintings at that moment brought about sense of respect and nobility and triggered peoples’ emotions and interest on the painted pictures; most of this was in respect to religion.

High Renaissance

The high renaissance began in the time of the renowned Leonardo da Vinci. The paintings of the time were more enhanced with more identifiable originality. The artistic qualities like landscaping and expression of attitude and gesture was then evident in the paintings.

The paintings were expressed in “simplicity; austere rejection of the incidental and the merely pretty; nobility and grandeur in the figures involved in actions of depth and significance.”^[3] The art of painting was taken a notch higher by the introduction of oil paints. Further developments followed into the spread of art revolution to outside Italy.^[4]

According to Paoletti and Radke, the field of art had developed significantly by the fifteenth century. They depict a painted picture of an organized scene that involved quite a number of aspects.

The description, according to the authors, was a painting of the 15^th century. This illustrates how drastic the developments were during the renaissance period. The evolution by this time had taken a totally different dimension with clarity in the paintings. Other important developments were the introduction of tempera, oil paintings, mosaic and stained glass among others.

The developments also saw a variety of styles and tone to express emotions and situations. Different styles were introduced on different subjects depending on whether they were devotional or narrative. The art renaissance was an effective element during the 14^th century in urban centers where Christian religious monuments and designs of structures was a necessity.^[5]

According to Brotton, a study in England indicates that art and individuality were celebrated as “defining features of renaissance.”^[6] Elements like politics, science and economics have dismissed on the grounds of being irrelevant to the aspect of renaissance.

Art has been accredited by appraisal words like “the pleasure of the sense and the imagination.”^[7] Art in its aspects was more identified as an element of the change than the other aspects.

During the renaissance artists represented the observable features of the world in a more precise and natural way. Though in a negatively perceived way, the artistic monuments that were put in churches were the major reason for the protestant movement that saw the revolt against the Roman Catholic Church. The Catholic Church however still used the artists to make appeals to people.

The protestant movement was perceived as a break through to real worship among Christians and the perceived freedom of worship can be attributed to the art presentations that were put in the catholic churches.

Besides the religious revolution, art is still being used to pass religious information in terms of paintings even at the current time.^[8]

Graham also recounted that the patrons of renaissance in Italy competed among themselves in artistic works that, in their opinion, would give them immortality. A very important aspect about art was raised; patrons of renaissance themselves identified art as a tool to immortality.

The association of the patrons, not just of art but of the entire renaissance, to associate with art is enough credibility. The association of art to immortality can also be seen as the status that was accorded to art at that time. The interaction of these patrons with the artists accorded status not only to the artists, but to the entire field of art.^[9]

Another credit to the art aspect of renaissance is the information about Filippo Breunelleschi. Fillippo who is identified as the first great architect of renaissance was an artist. The status accorded to him and the fact that renaissance is considered to have origins in Italy is an indication that art was the origin of renaissance.

It can therefore be argued that art was the basis for the movement and a credit to art over the positive effects of the cultural movement that followed.^[10] In a probably personalized view, art was identified as a way that was used to represent God and the earthly elements that he created. Art was also used to express science for example the concepts of anatomy. The events of renaissance also led to discoveries and triggered pleasure among people.

Conclusion

Renaissance was an event of advancement in different aspects of life. It is believed to have originated in Italy as early as the 13^th century. It was a continuous process categorized into three periods. The development of art as well has its origin was associated with the city of Florence in Italy.

The development of art was not an exclusive or independent aspect but it incorporated within itself aspects of mathematics. The products of the art like paintings also became significantly valuables in religion. The artists were accorded status for their work and this is an indication of how important art was.

Its inclusion in scientific representation of anatomy and religious representation gives it diverse backgrounds that originate from its origin. Art can also be identified as a source of information.

It has emotional and intellectual attachments that elicit reactive actions like the religious revolution that was as a result of artistic placements in churches. Art was therefore a central element of renaissance and the other elements can be seen to have been products of the development in art.

References

Brotton, Jerry. The Renaissance: a very short introduction. New York, NY: Cengage, 2006.

Eurasia, Carrie. “Italian Renaissance Art.” The World Wide Web Virtual Library, 1999. Web.

Fitzpatrick, Anne. The Renaissance. Mankato, MN: The Creative Company, 2005.

Graham, Andrew. Renaissance. California: University of California Press, 1999.

Hay, Denys. The Italian Renaissance in its historical background. Cambridge: Cambridge, 1977.

Paoletti, John & Radke, Gary. Art in Renaissance Italy. London, UK: Laurence King, 2006.

Pioch, Nicholas. “La Renaissance: Italy.” The Public Library and Digital Archive, 2002. Web.

Putatunda, Rita. “Italian Culture: Renaissance Art and Artists.” Buzzle, 2011. Web.

Footnotes

1. Hay, Denys., The Italian Renaissance in its historical background, Cambridge: Cambridge, 1977.
2. Pioch, Nicholas. La Renaissance: Italy, (The Public Library and Digital Archive, 2002).
3. Eurasia, Carrie. ITALIAN RENAISSANCE ART, (The World Wide Web Virtual Library, 1999).
4. Ibid
5. Paoletti, John & Radke, Gary., Art in Renaissance Italy, London, UK: Laurence King, 2006.
6. Brotton, Jerry., The Renaissance: a very short introduction, New York, NY: Cengage, 2006.
7. Ibid
8. Fitzpatrick, Anne., The Renaissance, Mankato, MN: The Creative Company, 2005.
9. Graham, Andrew, Renaissance, California: University of California Press, 1999.
10. Putatunda, Rita. Italian Culture: Renaissance Art and Artists, (Buzzle, 2011).

Renaissance art period

Renaissance is an art period which originated from Italy between the thirteenth and the fourteenth century. Some people refer to it as a rebirth of art. In Italy, some artists and scholars had a self-made belief that they were rekindling the achievements and morals previously exhibited by the Roman culture. The renaissance era was around 1280-1400 (Earnshaw, 2010).

Giovanni and his counterpart Petrarch are some of the known painters of the era. They were so keen on identifying language structures to communicate key messages. The Roman Empire broke down because the style was not showing any progress for quite long. The artists in the early period relied mainly on the patrons who sustained them with the money they got. The paintings of the time alongside the artwork were presented mythically and also depicted the religious aspect. Such paintings were acquired through artistic developments that used imaginary lines to create moderate views of things.

The distance between the paintings and the viewers was not an essential element in renaissance art. The information found in the style was deep and with natural details. Real information was used in the renaissance period to show reality. Images of humans were used as a natural entity to make the reality deeper. There was a different administration strategy used during the period which was centralized in the city-states rather than capitalism. The presence of the monarchial administration helped most merchants to come up, something that led to the development of the economy in Italy as a country. Such growth in the economy supported both public and private projects of arts.

On the eve of the renaissance era, three great artists sprang up and changed the general view of the period by developing interesting artistic elements. Michelangelo greatly contributed to the birth and development of the period. He was later joined by Leonardo da Vinci who came up with the use of real nature at a tender age. Raphaelo, a charming youngster later came up though he had a short life in the art industry because he died at the age of 37. By then the renaissance period was characterized by the use of human internal features (Earnshaw, 2010). The artists focused on studies that dealt with how to improve previous artwork and methods of making them appealing to the eye. This was between the 14^th and 15^th century where all the paintings had a symbolic meaning. By then the renaissance style had gone as far as European countries.

Realism period

In ancient times, most artistic features were greatly based on romanticism and had included the culture of the ancient. With intentions of abolishing such ancient traditions, realism introduced a new school of thought which dealt with real things in the world. It was first initiated in France by a novelist in the year 1840s. Courbet, a major proponent of realism was rejected in his exposition of paintings, something that provoked him to open a marquee. In his artistic works, he was against the ancient paintings which had similarities to the renaissance style (Pettegree, 2010). According to him, ancient realism had some concepts of romanticism hence could not get along with the modern world. To him, Colors symbolized different aspects of the nation. In realism, details used enabled viewers to have analytical analysis. It showed the message in a real and natural way without covering up some of the issues. In realism, the art or painting is presented as an ordinary object available in the surrounding. Also, objects used should bring accurate messages without causing too many suspensions. The realism artists adopted it since they perceived it as an honest way of using painting to deliver their message. It also showed the total image needed by most rulers in their politics. Moreover, it was used to show the real image of the subjects without provoking the rulers to react.

In the 19^th century, a sub-branch of realism sprout up which intentions of drifting away from real realism. It formed the late realism in which politics and social issues were left out from the paintings and images. The new branch specialized with naturalism in history and biological sciences. The term “naturalism” was therefore introduced by Jules-Antoine Castagnary in 1863. The main aim was to balance the facts of nature with science, something which real realism failed to achieve. Artists of this period used most traditional brushwork and gloomy weather in landscapes. The paintings majorly covered an analogous range of subjects. This style was therefore introduced because the artist had seen the need to incorporate science in natural arts to bring out clear and more natural images.

Analysing the historical periods

Renaissance and realism are styles of art used by the artist to send a message or portray a picture of something. Both styles aimed at communicating deep artistic messages to the viewers without provoking hard feelings. Though they differed in origin they almost had the same objective to the viewers. The renaissance period used religious and emotional thoughts while realism dealt with real aspects of life.

Similarities

Both styles used human sculptures for religious purposes in the paintings during the early period while the late period showed concern in studies. Secondly, in the early period, the images were showing the outer images of the human while in the late period the images showed deeper anatomy of humans (Pettegree, 2010). Thirdly in the late period color was used to signify some ideas in both periods which made the paintings more captivating.

Differences

The early period of renaissance came up to help cover the culture and beliefs of Rome while the late period advent due to the need to accommodate other countries’ beliefs not to be concentrated on Rome. The early period of realism came up to do away with the style of romanticism which included many personal feelings while the late period brought some sense of naturalism into the paintings and images. In the late period, the artist depended on their skills (Earnshaw, 2010). In realism, during the early period, the arts were used to bring out some political issues while in the late period they tried to avoid politics and social issues, therefore, combining science with nature. Realism mainly majored in the common man and did not put into account the extraordinary man. Early realism considered all the facts about all beings including the extraordinary man.

Purpose of continuing with earlier historical art period or deviating from it

Later renaissance period was better compared earlier since most of the artifacts were based on real and natural situations. Most paintings depicted nature and existing circumstances. For instance, the painting of Leonardo da Vinci which he painted “The Last Supper” showed the last gathering of the disciples of Jesus Christ with their master. It brought out a deeper meaning when related to the name itself. In the early renaissance, the images were carved and painted to create a form of a human but had depth and strength to make the viewer have a closer view despite the viewing distance. The painting of Brancacci Chapel of the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine in 1427 in Florence depicts the lack of attractiveness of the paintings. They were made long but they are not very influential (Pettegree, 2010).

The later period of realism was the most influential because it included science in the artwork. Though it was later rejected too, it used better ways of expressing life. For instance, the use of photography to create a natural image was a good method of capturing the real world. Ilya Repin was one of the period’s artists and he came up with the realism style as in the art Bargemen in the Volga (1870). Later on, people came to identify realism by relating it to art schools that led people like Courbet to lead the French school. Other paintings produced in the era included paintings like those done by Romantic Theondore Gericault especially his asylum portraits.

Influence of the later historical periods on the art world

The later period of renaissance led to the evolvement of the real and natural artifacts which were mythical and had a historic world. Renaissance was an endeavor of the intellectuals to learn and perk up the material and sophisticated through reinforcement of views from ancient times and through work of fictional approaches to consider.

Realism generally moved away from ideology and this created a new approach towards the average life. It reflected a progressive and extremely influential swing in the importance and purpose of art (Pettegree, 2010). It also prejudiced some contemporary art styles like Impressionism.

References

Earnshaw,S.E.(2010). Beginning realism.Manchester: Manchester University Press.

Pettegree,A.Y.(2010). The book in the Renaissance.New Haven: Yale University Press New Haven, CT.

Introduction

Renaissance is a period in art history that represents a historical era known as rebirth. It is a period described by the renewal of classical art and culture and presents the changeover period between medieval and modern times. It was also a cultural period between the 14th and 15th centuries, it is believed to have begun in Florence in Italy before spreading to the rest of Europe. The historical era was characterized by learning using ancient sources, development in painting, and renewed scholarly efforts. It had a great influence on academic aspects such as philosophy, religion, political, and at most art among others. During this time artists were considered to have exceptional aptitude rather than craftsmen. It was also the period when artistic works became significantly popular and important in Europe.

The Italian renaissance was characterized by an artistic, cultural and intellectual explosion. Italian culture during this era has been expressed in roman architecture which is found in artifacts and ruins in many parts of Italy today. Renaissance began in Florence; artistic skills of painting and sculpturing became a common practice by the artist. Artistic works led to the development of mathematical inventions resulting from the logic portrayed by the art. The early artworks lacked logic in some aspects like some paintings appeared unreal as the arrangements in them do not obey rules of nature like gravity. The artist focused on relaying messages and demonstrating human nature in their art (Hay, 1977).

There was one famous artist known as Michelangelo, he had a great influence on Florence and Rome culture due to the dominance of his art. He was at one point hired by Pope to sculpture his tomb and a sculpture of Moses. Michelangelo was also influential in expressing religious messages to the people around him. One famous sculpture was the one on David, from the Bible David was responsible and a great king who rose from a humble small boy. His message was that people should become responsible and get focused on achieving their aim just as David did.

During the renaissance era artist became the source of revolution in architecture, painting, sculpturing and religion. Society was changed bringing a new dogma of individualism; artists gained much dignity as the educated people based on the nature of their art. The fact that artist portrayed human aspect on their art it brought a new cultural change that was demonstrated by humanitarianism. Italian renaissance had a great influence in changing human culture from then even today. It had later brought a significant change in religion; there was the emergence of Protestants from the Roman Catholic main steam religion (Hay, 1977).

Northern renaissance can be described as the renaissance that took place in Europe outside Italy. Northern renaissance can be attributed to France, Germany, England and Netherlands with its center as Flanders. Flanders can be traced to current France and Belgium. This renaissance was characterized by the alteration of style from the ancient middle ages to practical and communicative styles. It shifted from minute and illuminated art to more vivid ones. The new development was more practical and expressive through the large paintings that were to be displayed in public. It’s from Flanders that oil painting originated (Whitlock, 2000).

Similarities between Italian and northern European renaissance

There are similarities between the northern European and Italian renaissance. Both shared a common or practiced similar religion, Christianity. Christianity was the main focus of the two renaissances since it was the guiding principle to both artists. Christian historical stories become the predominant artwork in both cases.

In both renaissance’s artists were grouped together in guilds. This was a self-policing arrangement where all the gains got by a particular guild were shared among its members; this showed that artists had social groupings. Both renaissances had printed materials as part of their art through the help of the printing press. In both they had an artistic center, in the Italian renaissance, it was Florence while in the northern European renaissance it was in Flanders. In both, they allowed a social system known as feudalism to continue. In both renaissances was contributed and driven by economic growth (Benton and DiYanni, 1999).

Differences between Italian and northern European renaissance

Between the Italian and northern European renaissance, there are social and cultural differences. One of the differences arises from the language used. Italian renaissance used Latin and Greek while the northern used local vernacular languages. The use of local languages made the art to be widely sued by people familiar with a particular language. The application of different languages had a great influence on the formation of countries that used similar languages.

Relationship between arts and culture in Italian and Northern European renaissance

Other than the northern European renaissance came later after the Italian renaissance, it was much tied to the gothic art and architecture than the Italian. The rate of change in the northern renaissance was quite lower based on the fact that the artists were fewer and scattered than the Italian renaissance complement. The north had few commercial centers compared to the Italian one; these centers were often visited by wealthy business people who spent a considerable amount of their money on art.

Italian renaissance was tied to humanism with most of the artists being philosophers and writers who studied the past in order to determine man’s fate in the future. Italians renaissance general course was towards human self-esteem and value. The north had no historical material to use but could only focus on religion, which they had quite some historical evidence. The north renaissance focused on religious culture since they believed that Rome had deviated from the core Christian doctrines. This led to the emergence of religious rebellion from Rome with the emergence of cults what today is known as Protestants (Whitlock, 2000).

The relationship between arts and culture in both Italian and northern renaissance is similar. Italian culture is related to its art. Italian artists were concerned with the scientific and philosophical doctrines behind their art while the north was just concerned with the appearance of their art. The fact that Italy and northern Europe are in different geographical positions, it is evident the materials used were different. Italian artists used frescoes, egg tempera, and marble while the northern artists used oil paints and wood.

Reflection of cultural and social differences in art

Social and cultural differences are reflected in the arts between Italian and northern renaissance. The north embraced religion very much than the Italians it is reflected in the dominance of the religious inclination of their arts. An example of an artistic work is the last judgment; the Italian was drawn by Michelangelo while the northern was drawn by Bosch. Michelangelo shows more of the saints on the upper part of the painting while Bosch shows more of the human suffering at the bottom. The difference shows that the northern renaissance was more practical human suffering than imaginary the saints hanging at the altar. Another artistic work is the famous painting ‘haymaking’ it focused on what peasant farmers were doing in plantations. This was reflected well in the cultural focus of the northern renaissance on daily life (Benton and DiYanni, 1999).

Finally, both Italian and northern European renaissance have both similarities and differences. It is well understood the reasons why there were differences based on the fact that the two were on different geographical locations. Renaissance in both cases can be attributed to social, cultural, and even to some religious advancement. Renaissance is also responsible for scholarly advancement from medieval to modern philosophy and religion.

Reference list

Benton, J. R., & DiYanni R. (1999). Arts and Culture; an Introduction to Humanities. Jersey: Prentice Hall.

Hay Denys (1977). The Italian Renaissance in its historical background. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Whitlock Keith (2000). The Renaissance in Europe: a reader. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Introduction: The Beginning of a New Era

Though the Renaissance Era was represented by a range of various artists, who seemed to follow the principles introduced by da Vinci and Michelangelo quite closely, there is only one person, who has practically become a household name, became the representation of the era.

Creating a range of artworks and developing his own original style by adding the concept of harmony into the theory of art that was followed at the time, he stood out of the rest of artists. Despite the fact that, in contrast to the tendency to experiment in his early works, Raphael was obviously following the staples of his own genre at the end of his career, his influence in the development of the Renaissance painting is not to be underrated.

Thesis statement

Although the style that Rafael developed over the course of his evolution as an artist was influenced greatly by the works of Leonardo da Vinci in terms of composition and technical expression and Michelangelo in that the latter defined a entirely new portrayal of human body in his sculptures, Rafael managed to not only blend the two styles into one, but also develop several unique characteristics, including the color cast harmony and a compositional balance, which led to the creation of an original style, which would later define the era of Renaissance and make Rafael’s artworks the representation of the epoch.

Following into the Footsteps of the Great Masters: The Influence of Michelangelo and da Vinci. The Umbrian Period

The earliest works of Raphael show clearly where he drew his inspiration from. Not that these works were unoriginal – far from it; however, they still lent a lot of their key features from the creations of da Vinci and Michelangelo. Taking one of Raphael’s most famous and well remembered works, Madonna and Child with the Book, as an example, one will notice inevitably that it shares a range of features with the paintings that da Vinci was so well known for.

For example, the color cast and the choice of the form point clearly at the fact that Raphael studied the technique that Mona Lisa was painted with very closely. However, even at this stage of his artistic progress, he managed to introduce new elements into the existing styles by “capturing the characters of his sitters” (Adams 350).

The similarities between da Vinci’s and Raphael’s approaches towards expressing their vision and depicting the Renaissance reality as they saw it can be traced easily when comparing da Vinci’s Mona Lisa to some of Raphael’s other early works. More to the point, these were not only the line work and the color cast that defined these similarities. The realization of the obvious link between the works of the two artists may come as one compares the very posture of Raphael’s numerous Madonnas to da Vinci’s “swan song.”

For example, the main character in Lady with the Unicorn clearly strikes the same pose as Mona Lisa in da Vinci’s painting; the same can be applied to the Portrait of Maddalena Doni and several other works of the Renaissance artist (Paintings During the Stay in Florence (1505-06) para. 15).

The aesthetics of a range of Raphael’s works of this period also bar a very distinct resemblance to the one of Michelangelo’s sculptures. Though not as obvious as the similarities between da Vinci’s and Raphael’s creations, the details that coincide in Raphael’s and Michelangelo’s artworks also give a lot of food for thoughts.

It is remarkable that Michelangelo and Raphael were rivals at the time. Nevertheless – or, perhaps, as a result of their rivalry – they shared a lot of common elements in their artworks, and especially in their manner of expression. The similarities in Michelangelo’s and Raphael’s works, however, did not end with the stylistics and overall aesthetics of the paintings. Much like Michelangelo, Raphael seemed to be inclined to create his own istoria (Adams 338), which resulted in an unusual representation of the traditional Biblical concepts.

For example, the human body sculpture, which Raphael follows very closely in each of his paintings, especially in the creation of the numerous Madonnas, such as the Madonna del Cardellino, shows the tendency for Raphael to experiment with his characters’ poses and use poses as one of the means of artistic expression; for example, some of his works feature a character that “reverses the pose of Michelangelo’s David” (Adams 328).

The heritage that Michelangelo left for Raphael, however, is not as impressive as the one of da Vinci. Though some of the artworks created by the two artists did have a number of points of contact, the impact that da Vinci had left on Rafael was still too strong for Michelangelo to overshadow it.

Vatican Decorations and Paintings in Rome: Idealism at Its Highest Peak

It would be wrong to assume that Raphael only blended the two styles without adding anything g of his own to them; instead, he worked very hard on both his technique and the expressivity of his work, creating the pieces of art that were literally packed with metaphors and allusions.

As soon as Raphael went to Rome after being invited to work on the Sistine Chapel, he displayed two scenes from the Old Testament, making a range of alterations to the traditional narrative. The assimilation and synthesis of several Biblical stories was an entirely new approach at the time, which allowed Raphael to gain an easily recognizable and very distinct style.

Another example, The Stanza Della Segnatura, which can be considered one of his major works in Rome, can also be viewed as another step towards developing a truly unique artistic style (The Stanza Della Segnatura para. 1). It was obvious that Raphael was experimenting with form and line, at the same time trying to fit in a range of Biblical allusions into his work.

The famous Galatea, which appeared only a few years later, also featured the same approach.

Perhaps, one of the greatest changes that Raphael underwent as an artist and which contributed the most to the evolution of a new and unique style, concerned Raphael’s refusal to work with bright colors, which he preferred in the early stage of his artistic growth. Indeed, comparing the Parnassus, which heralded the era of the beginning of Raphael’s artistic journey, to such an artwork as Psyche Received on Olympus, one will notice that the color palette used by the artist shrank considerably.

Though the refusal to abandon bright colors was not complete, and even some of the latest works by Raphael featured very peculiar combinations of colors, for the most part, his works became rather restrained in terms of color cast and the use of bright and saturated palettes for rendering the idea behind the artwork.

Where the Journey Ends: Coining a New Manner of Artistic Expression

The latest works created by Raphael show clearly that he had found his niche by the time that he became a renowned artist. The aforementioned Sistine Chapel is a very graphic example of how Raphael’s vision of art changed throughout his own evolution as an artist and an original thinker; for instance, the Last Judgment Altar, which, according to the existing historical records, was not completed until 1520 (Adams 337).

The painting invites the viewer into the surreal world of the supposed Biblical event of the same name, and it does so in a very peculiar manner. Rafael’s tendency to avoid combinations of numerous colors in the same artwork reaches its peak in this work of art – the entire fresco is monochromatic. As a result, the focus is entirely on the Last Judgment and its participants, which allows for a closer analysis of Raphael’s interpretation of this event.

In addition, it would be erroneous to assume that da Vinci and Michelangelo were the only artists, whose creations Raphael drew his inspiration from. Apart from analyzing the artworks of his contemporaries, he also paid close attention to the way in which his predecessors worked on perfecting the tools for artistic expression.

For example, Villa Madama, and especially the interior of the loggia, was inspired by the works of Nero’s architects: “This was inspired by the ruins of Nero’s Golden House that had come to light in the early years of the sixteenth century” (Adams 355).

Conclusion: Influence and Followers

Though the era of Raphael’s’ influence on the Renaissance painting was rather short, the artist still defined the further stylistic evolution of the Renaissance by showing that art could be used for not only representing the traditional Biblical scenes and fables, but also offering the viewers the author’s unique interpretation of these events. Moreover, Raphael showed that it was actually possible to blend several metaphors into an original idea.

Despite the fact that the influence of two key artists of the Renaissance Era, Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, was very strong in Raphael’s works at first, as the artist gained new experiences and developed new skills, he managed to conjure an entirely new style by assembling the elements of the artistic expression tools used by Michelangelo and da Vinci and including them into his own vision of art as a means to provide new interpretations of the traditional Biblical narratives and characters.

Raphael was one of the few artists who were capable of reconsidering their vision of methods of artistic expression; though he had chosen a very distinct and rather bright color palette at first, he was finally convinced by the examples of da Vinci and Michelangelo that a more composed color cast was more appropriate for rendering the ideas related to the Biblical stories and characters.

Thus, the artworks kept the focus on the message behind them without distracting the viewer. Clearly one of the most influential people of the renaissance Era, Raphael became an accomplished artist comparatively fast and left a massive heritage for the followers to admire and mimic.

Works Cited

Adams, Laurie Schneider. Italian Renaissance Art. Boulder, CO: Westview Press. 2013. Print.

Paintings During the Stay in Florence (1505-06). Web.

The Stanza Della Segnatura. Web.

Introduction

The Italian Renaissance marked the end of one era in Europe and the start of a new one. For many people who lived in Italy between 1350 and 1550 Renaissance completely revolutionized Italy and established a new nation. It ushered in a moment in the history of Italy when people rediscovered a number of things, including effective learning. In addition, it was accompanied by various innovations and discoveries such as nicely constructed buildings.

The Spirit of the Renaissance Age

For some people, Renaissance was regarded as a period of recovery from various disasters that rocked Italy in the fourteenth century that included a poor political landscape and economic recession. As noted by Bartlett (25), Renaissance Italy represented an active and fast-growing nation that created numerous opportunities for the Italian people. Apparently, Italian cities were quickly transformed into political, economic, and social centers. During the Renaissance, people were mostly recognized for their abilities.

Clearly, the spirit of the people during the Renaissance age was that of progressive growth as individuals were mainly concerned with building a better future that they could be happy with. With a positive attitude, it became obvious that everyone was capable of accomplishing so much.

How Humanistic Ideals Impacted the Renaissance

The Renaissance was affected by humanistic ideals in a number of ways. First, individuals started to slowly detach themselves from their social classes and eventually broke down the feudal system. Scores of people also relocated to cities and opened businesses to sustain them. Individuals also embrace the art of reading as well as writing and no single person wanted to be seen as being lazy. The different business ventures that were started by those who moved to live in the cities later became very instrumental in producing a variety of products for consumers in the cities.

Arguably, the growth witnessed during the Renaissance period was mainly a result of people’s mindset and manner of thinking (Ruggiero 15). Many were open to changes and had a strong desire to try out new things and this helped to engineer the much-needed growth. At the start of the Renaissance, scholars in Europe discovered early writings of the Romans and Greeks and this helped to inspire growth among the people.

Piece of Art that is the Clearest Expression of the Spirit of the Age

As noted by Bayer (5), the most famous artworks of the Renaissance were made to celebrate love, marriage, and family. The one piece of art that best represents the spirit of the age is the Dome of Florence Cathedral. It was a public symbol of Florentine superiority during the early days of the Italian Renaissance. Furthermore, the structure demonstrates the importance of the Catholic Church in the Italy. Apparently, the Dome of Florence was an important symbol of Renaissance culture in Italy and was regarded highly by many. The Dome of Florence Cathedral is depicted by figure 1.

Conclusion

The discussion in this paper clearly indicates that historically, development has been as a result of the desire of men and women to explore new ways of living and doing things. To a large extent, the development agenda was driven by individuals at different levels in the society with a vision and motivated by the need to experience a better future.

Works Cited

Bartlett, Kenneth. The Civilization of the Italian Renaissance: A Sourcebook. Ontario, CA: University of Toronto Press, 2011. Print.

Bayer, Andrea. Art and Love in Renaissance Italy. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2008. Print.

Ruggiero, Guido. The Renaissance in Italy: A Social and Cultural History of the Rinascimento. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2014. Print.

Introduction

Throughout the history of art, nudity has been used to represent beauty, shame, power and frailty apart from sex and sensuality. Many works done by Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Giorgione, Titian and other renaissance artists have contained an aspect of nudity of the human body, both men and female.

Major paintings during the medieval and renaissance period represented religious icons like the cherubim, as semi naked beings. These depictions provide strong indications that nudity and nakedness of the human body was used not only in eroticism and sex but also to represent particular symbolic phenomena in relation to various aspects of humanity.

In Christianity, some aspects of nudity of the female body could be depicted on artworks illustrating a bare chest Mary breastfeeding the baby Jesus Christ. Some artwork on Adam and Eve depicted their nudity which illustrated their fall from the Garden of Eden.

One of the most famous female nudes in the history of art was the Spanish painting called ‘The Nude Maja’ done by Francisco Goya. Although the medieval period was also punctuated with such levels of nudity in artwork, it was not as profound as during the renaissance. Thus, the artists of the Renaissance brought about the rise of the Nude Female in their masterpieces.

Background

The nude has become a resistant illustration by enduring various challenges throughout history. For instance, after the roman period, nudity faced the challenge of extinction when some members of the Roman Empire wanted it banned. However, the church has since reviewed the matter and restored paintings of the popular renaissance artists. It is worth noting that nude figures are more acceptable when still, than the nude human figures that are moving. Artistic figures which are nude were also unlikely to spark public protests than real nude or naked people, during the renaissance.

Nudity in art during the middle ages was considered a normative act especially during social activities like dancing and also when a person was working (Goodson, Not Dated). This is quite evidenced by the unearthing of vases depicting nude illustrations of people performing in festivals and in fields by archaeologists especially among the Greeks. Nudity was often regarded among the Greeks, as a form of honesty to their gods.

From the Greek to Indian culture, people would pose naked in religious activities and cultural festivals. It was not uncommon to find artistic illustrations of semi naked or completely naked human statues and paintings. Thus, throughout this period, nudity in art and in real life was quite acceptable to the society.

During the middle ages, most paintings of women were mainly religious related. The Virgin Mary was often illustrated in paintings with much modesty. Nude female paintings, during this time would often be considered a representation of erotic and lustful impression (Hill, 200). It should also be noted that the paintings done during this period have sparked some debate on the difference between nude figures and naked figures. The argument is however not profound since it is considered as outdated by some scholars.

The Greco Roman Influence

During the renaissance, a new interest in Greek and Roman culture lead to an explosion in the knowledge about the human body, accompanied with major early innovations in scientific world. In this period, the artists were accorded respect because they were viewed as people who had climbed up the social ladder. Their artworks were viewed as miraculous creations inspired by divinity, and not just mere artistic creations.

The Greco Roman system influenced artistic works like the painting of Leda and the Swan. Sculptures of the nude human anatomy were also created by renaissance artists through the Greco Roman influence. Paintings like that of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ were also done under this influence.

This is because it was during this time that the Christian religion was rapidly growing. Thus, mythological and religious paintings depicting nude human figures, done by Michelangelo, Leonardo and Raphael contributed the most in the Italian renaissance artwork which was the foundation on which concepts of modern artwork were founded.

The Greek influenced the artwork mainly through their mythical stories like the story of Zeus who appeared in form of a Swan that raped Leda who gave birth to set of twins. The Greek were mainly involved in religious beliefs which were perceived as pagan by the emerging Christian religion.

Thus, the painting of Leda and the Swan was mainly inspired by such pagan beliefs. On the other hand, the Roman system which was swiftly embracing Christian religion influenced artistic works which did paintings like the bare breast Virgin Mary breast feeding the Baby Jesus Christ and the crucifixion of Jesus. These are just some of the reasons why the Roman and the Greek are viewed to have influenced major nude masterpieces done by reconnaissance artists through their religious and mythological practices.

The birth of Venus

‘The birth of Venus’ was the first nude female painting done by Botticelli in 1484 which was in no way related to religion. The artistic work illustrates the goddess Venus, as an adult woman coming from the sea and moving towards the shore. In the painting, there are breezes and winds in action that bring Venus on land.

This mythical painting depicts the nudity of a woman who was considered a goddess of love by the Greek during the renaissance period. The painting is considered by a section of scholars as one of the most sublime representation of the female form ever painted.

Leda and the Swan

‘Leda and the Swan’ was a masterpiece done by Leonardo da Vinci in 1508. The painting depicts a young nude female embracing a swan while looking at four nude infants hatching from two huge eggs on her right. This painting also illustrates several things on the female body outline which are symbolic. Leda shows a shy attraction towards the swan, while her head is slightly lowered giving the illustration of some virgin aspects. The figure of Leda is quite mature and shows some curved lines which emphasize fertility (Artworks, Not Dated).

However, it should be noted that ‘Leda and the Swan’ is a painting that has been done by many artists thereby coming in different versions. In an attempt to crystallize the real picture, Leonardo did three paintings. The first painting basically outlined his second painting which were however, a little bit different. In the first painting there were the four babies and the Swine.

The Swine is absent in the second painting while the third painting differs in the background from the other two. This painting illustrates mythological representations of stories which were common during the reconnaissance. The female nudity is expressed here as the young girl Leda is raped by Zeus, a man represented by the Swan (Shmoop, 2010).

Sleeping Venus

‘Sleeping Venus’ was done by Giorgione da Castelfranco, in the year 1510. The masterpiece illustrates the first lying female nude in the art history. Giorgione demonstrates a sensual mythological allegory in a nude woman who is reclining with her left hand appearing to be pleasuring her genitals (Paoletti & Radke, 2005).

According to gynecological treaties of those times, female masturbation was considered to make a woman more fertile. The entire width of the painting is covered by the nude goddess of love. The gentle curves on the body outline symbolically connect with the natural aspects depicted in the surrounding.

Conclusion

Renaissance artists like Titian, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Giorgione are known to have done the continuation of artistic nudity from the medieval period. After the renaissance the female nude became the most used subject in art history producing at least one masterpiece per year.

The artistic creations were mainly inspired by mythological and religious ideologies. That is why the artists were considered by the people to have been divinely inspired to do the paintings. Nude paintings of the female anatomy were created by these artists not only to depict sex and sensuality but also to represent shame, beauty and power.

The sleeping Venus, Leda and the Swan and the birth of Venus are good examples of artworks of nudity done on the basis of mythological ideologies. It is thus imperative to say that the Roman and Greek mythical and religious ideologies offered enough influence on the dimensions of renaissance art in terms of nudity.

Reference List

Artworks. Leda and the Swan. Web.

Goodson, A. Nudity in Ancient to Modern Cultures. Web.

Hill, S. (2007). Meaning in “The Birth of Venus”, Botticelli Shows Venus in a Pose Traditionally Held by Virgin Mary. Web.

Paoletti, T.J., & Radke, M.G. (2005). Art in Renaissance Italy, Ed. 3, London: Laurence King Publishing Ltd.

Shmoop (2010). Leda and the Swan: Shmoop Poetry Guide. Sunnyvale: Shmoop University, Inc.

Introduction: Women in Media. History and Evolution

Up until the XX century, women could not play significant roles in the world history for understandable reasons. Due to the chauvinist ideas that used to be widely accepted in the society, women were forced to remain in the shadow. However, women were still portrayed in the media; the manner of depicting women in media and art varied over centuries. Despite the fact that it has been quite long since the renaissance Era, it can be assumed that the renaissance traditions are still alive in the modern art in terms of female image.

The Portrayal of Women in the High Renaissance

Da Vinci and His Vision of Female Beauty

One of the most renowned representatives of the High Renaissance art, a Vinci was famous for breaking new grounds in the Renaissance culture.

Mona Lisa and the breach of traditions

When talking about da Vinci, it is practically impossible not to give proper credit to his most famous painting, Mona Lisa. On the one hand, da Vinci’s artwork followed the traditions of the High Renaissance. Following the High Renaissance traditions, da Vinci portrays Mona Lisa in a very realistic manner. Thus, the veil was finally taken off the audience’s eyes, and the latter could finally enjoy the beauty of a woman.

Leonardo’s contemporaries were creating portraits of women that emphasized their social status by the elegant costumes and jewelry they wore. Leonardo, on the other hand, removed any blatant display of luxury, instead focusing on the woman herself. Mona Lisa smiles at the viewer, a detailthat grants her a personality and denotes that Leonardo sought to capture her appearance as wll as psychology. (Zirpolo x)

On the other hand, the way in which Mona Lisa was portrayed in da Vinci’s painting clearly broke the Late Renaissance traditions. To make the matter even more intriguing, Mona Lisa can be considered a retrospective into the Medieval manner of depicting women. Comparing Mona Lisa to other Late Renaissance paintings of women, one must admit that da Vinci introduced new elements to the Renaissance traditions.

One of the features of Mona Lisa that truly stand out is the return to the celebration of humble beauty. The painting does not feature the traditional admiration of human bodily proportions, like the famous The Castration of Uranus fresco by Vasari and Christophano, or the artworks of the Early Renaissance, like the paintings by Botticelli.

It would be wrong to claim that da Vinci conceal Mona Lisa’s beauty from the audience; however, he clearly shifts the emphasis from the physical perfection, which was appraised so much in the High Renaissance Era, to the mystery of personality, which would be focus of an artwork somewhat later.

Lorenzo Lotto: reversing the time

Another peculiar example that needs to be considered to get a clear idea of how women were portrayed in the High Renaissance Era, the artworks created by Lorenzo Lotto can be regarded as an attempt to bring the humankind back to the appreciation of the beauty of human body and the perfection of its proportions. As critics remark, Lotto’s “painting of a richly dressed young woman with an engaging outward gaze” (Johnson 77) pretty much represented the female image staple of the century.

Comparing the two artists and the manner in which they depicted women, one has to say that the traditions of High Renaissance clearly went back to the Ancient Greek and Roman art.

Paying careful attention to the proportions of human body, Lotto also showed the female attractiveness in a less discrete way than da Vinci; it can be assumed that da Vinci’s and Lotto’s works represented the link between the highly spiritual, yet hardly healthy, and rather devastated, image of a woman that the Medieval art tended to promote, and the sensual portraits of women of the Renaissance and High Renaissance era (Tinagli 17).

Da Vinci and Lotto, Back to Back: A Comparison

Despite the fact that the two artists definitely used completely different techniques in the creation of their artworks, one could clearly see the pattern in the representation of women in the High Renaissance period. The changes that da Vinci’s and Lotto’s works represented concerned not only the physical features of the images portrayed; as it has been stressed above, the women of Renaissance as they were depicted in the media of the era also gained an element of earthiness.

While these women were still portrayed as virtuous and highly moral, they were closer to the audience than the women in the paintings of the Medieval Era; the audience could relate to Mona Lisa with her mysterious smile, which, with all its mystery, could not be considered a heavenly one – Mona Lisa was clearly flesh and blood.

The same can be said about Lotto’s works – the women portrayed by the artist were delightful, yet they no longer dwelled in the Heaven’s department. The reasons for the given change are quite hard to nail down; as it has been mentioned above, the bodies of the women in the pictures were no longer draped in long and shapeless clothes; however, these aspects of the women’s appearance in the High Renaissance Era could hardly be considered a legitimate reason for the representation of women in media to change completely in High renaissance.

The expressions in women’s faces changed, too. To start with, the famous and nonetheless mysterious smile of la Joconde should be given a proper mentioning – the High Renaissance clearly stated that women had many interesting things to say, therefore, turning the image of a woman in art into a more intellectual concept than the one that had been established previously.

Women in Modern Media: Revival of Renaissance Traditions

As it has been stressed, the manner in which the artists of the High Renaissance depicted women in their work had a lot of points of contact with the image of women in the modern media.

Despite the fact that much water has flown under the bridge since the era of High Renaissance came to an end, the influences of da Vinci, Latto and many more artists is still persistent. Reconsidering the artworks from the High Renaissance period and borrowing the ideas that the artists of the High Renaissance implied in their works, modern artists create the concept of women in media and the image of a female beauty based on the High Renaissance Era.

Indeed, a mere look at the specimens of modern portrayal of women in media brings one back to the time when women finally started shaking off the burden of sanctimony. It is no secret that in the present-day world, the image of a liberated woman is traditionally accepted. However, it is worth keeping in mind that women’s liberation took place not so long ago. Therefore, the parallels between the way in which the High Renaissance women were portrayed and the images of a modern woman in a modern media are quite obvious.

However, there is no use denying that the differences between the two concepts of female image in art and media are also quite prominent. Unfortunately, these differences do not even speak in favor of the modern times.

While in the High Renaissance Era, the manner of depicting women in their natural beauty was highly appreciated and, therefore, the artworks were clearly turning somewhat feminist. In the modern world, the image of women, which is conveyed through media, is less than inspiring; moreover, it clearly succumbs to the current idea of beauty instead of longing for a more timeless idea of natural beauty (Papel 120).

Nevertheless, physical appearance is not the only point at which the concept of the High Renaissance art and the modern art cross and at the same time differ so greatly. The legend behind the image of a woman has suffered considerable changes as well. As one must have expected, the ideas of a modern image of a woman in art and media have split into two different concepts.

While the portrayal of women in art remains an attempt to express the individuality of the author and appraise the wisdom of women, in popular media, the legend behind a female image is somewhat shallower and is usually limited to women whose achievements are labeled as successful by the standards of society (Engstrom 10).

Therefore, it can be considered that the way in which women are portrayed in art and media has both evolved and regressed since the High Renaissance era. The regression can be observed at the mass media level, where women are depicted as shallow characters with a personality of a hairspray can.

The progress, however, can clearly be tracked in the opportunities that women are offered nowadays; referenced in the mass media images of women, this progress shows that the High Renaissance ideas have served their purpose well, not only satisfying the audience’s lust for beauty, but also upgrading the image of a woman in the eyes of the crowd.

Conclusion: The Recent Tendencies and the Future Changes

Despite the fact that the present-day world seems strikingly different to the High Renaissance era, with the recent innovations, the technological breakthrough and the concept of human rights and freedoms, it can be considered that there is a great similarity between the way in which women were portrayed in the specified era and the modern images of women promoted in the mass media.

It would be wrong to assume that the given phenomenon shows that time has reversed; instead, the similarities between the concept of women in media in High Renaissance and the Post Modern Era can be viewed as a spiral development of a female image. While the modern portrayal of women in media cannot be technically viewed as the return of the Renaissance standards, it is still clear that the present-day image of a woman owes much to how women were depicted then.

Works Cited

Engstrom, Erika. The Bride Factory: Mass media Portrayals of Women and weddings. London, UK: Peter Lang. 2012. Print.

Johnson, Geraldine. Renaissance Art: A very short Introduction. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. 2005. Print.

Papel, Ira. Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery. New York, NY: Thieme. 2009. Print.

Tinagli, Paola. Women in Italian Renaissance Art: Gender, Representation and Identity. Manchester, UK: Manchester University Press. 1997. Print.

Zirpolo, Lilian H. Historical dictionary of Art. Lanham, MD: Scarecrow Press. 2008. Print.

Renaissance, also known as “Rebirth”, is considered as the start of modern history during the 14^th century. The Renaissance was first experienced in Italy and then adopted by the rest of Europe. After the Renaissance ended in 1600, the Baroque period was experienced from 1600 to 1800.

Both periods employed polyphony and used same instruments in compositions. The differences experienced in the Renaissance period were still common in the Baroque period but in regards to factors such as, texture, medium, and genres (LiveReal, 2005). This paper focuses on the various techniques of art that were portrayed by these eras.

Baroque period was highly influenced by the Roman Catholic Church. The church was against secular art hence it was in support of art that was based on religion when many artists wanted to present art of reality by exhibiting events as they were instead of sticking to the elements of art and design. The major characteristics of baroque art included dynamic mobility in art as well as clear emotion. This means that the theme of art was very clear for everyone to understand the meaning behind any given work.

The Catholic Church preferred to use this art to draw more people to the church. Perhaps, the church knew that people are most likely to visit a place where they are entertained. The Catholic Church intended to use baroque to fight the activists who led to the split the Roman Catholic Church but it was not easy because the reformers also incorporated baroque art when they felt it was necessary.

In this era artists did not rely so much on the elements of design while adding features such as shadows and contrasts in their images. Before this period, contrast and shadowing was artificial because it was generated by blending various colors. In baroque era, the artists worked on their art in open places such as gardens where the sunlight struck the surfaces of their works and thus the shadows that they portrayed were real as opposed to previous eras where artists worked indoors and thus the aspects of art were based on assumptions.

The paintings that were done in baroque presented a lot of mobility in them because the subjects were accorded some gestures, unlike in renaissance where the images were stiff. The era of baroque was an outcome of the struggle of the artists who denied a chance to exhibit their talents in the renaissance period. In fact baroque was started by the artists whose work was rejected at the exhibitions of art (Fitzpatrick, 2005).

The rebels who had split from the Roman Catholic Church did not apply religious themes in their works unlike their counterparts who supported the use of religious themes in art. Baroque was not only used in painting alone in other areas as well. For instance, baroque was employed in architecture.

If you look at the chapel of St Theresa in Ecstasy which was built in 1645 you will notice that its designer Bernini (1598-1680) employed a lot of baroque style on this building. This includes the modification on the structure of the Catholic Church building. Fitzpatrick (2005) argues that the buildings were meant to be appealing hence people used to be amazed by their elegance. Baroque period certainly had the most creative artists in all fields.

In theatre the baroque style played a very important role because it led to the introduction of multimedia technology based on baroque style. This meant that the scenes of a play could be changed instantly. The changing of scenes is important because it helps people to notice how the events in a play unfold unlike when the scene remains constant. Monteverdi’s Orpheus is a good example of plays that applied baroque style.

The sculptors also embraced this style in their work and they did this by making sculptures that could be viewed from various perspectives. The sculptures had integrated lighting which means that the lights were fixed on their surface. They also had water fountains and thus they were used in palaces to add beauty.

In this regard, renaissance in art is a period that started from 1400 and ended in 1600 to pave way for baroque style. According to Nash (2008), in renaissance the artists were very conservative because most of their work was based on religion. The major achievement of this period is the emergence of oil paints. During this era artists brought back the ancient styles of art that had been forgotten due to the rise of new styles. The renaissance commenced in Italy and northern Europe. The changes were the results of political stability and economy.

People’s way of life changed and as well as art. The works in art were limited to religion but later on artists begun to draw paintings of nude people which were rejected by the church. Despite of this, artists who did not have an opportunity to display their art came together and established their own exhibitions that comprised of rejected works. There are artists who remained dormant to an extent that they combined new and old techniques in their art.

When renaissance begun in Italy the artists shifted their emphasis to the form of human body unlike their counterparts in northern Europe who paid more attention to the surfaces of their works. The European artists were also concentrating on lighting and symbolism.

This means that their paintings had an underlying meaning. Among the new aspects that were reborn include perspective which refers to the various points from which an image can be observed. The artists of renaissance merged the shadows of their paintings to create intensity in their works. Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa (1503-1506) provides the best impression of renaissance in art. Contrast was created by merging multiple bright colors.

The artists who existed during renaissance used to travel frequently and that’s how they managed to come up with creative ideas that were influenced by what they had seen in other places. The church motivated the artists by sourcing artwork from artists. It seems the church dominated the art market because most of the artworks were of religious nature. Renaissance was further enhanced by the invention of the printing press.

The emergence of printing press meant that people could share ideas and reserve them in books. It is not art only that was affected by renaissance but the religion too was evolved. The Roman Catholic Church was split into two which led to the formation of the Protestants wing. The rebels were against the oppressive teachings of the Roman Catholic which they perceived to be enslaving them. They thought that they understood the teachings of the Bible after it was printed in their respective native languages.

In renaissance the financing of the art also shifted from being funded by a royal family to being funded by the church. The Roman Catholic had a passion for art and that’s why they did not consider the expenses that they were incurring on art works. In the final end there was a competition among churches based on art. This means that art had ceased from being a form of entertainment and communication and become a symbol of wealth. This is because some paintings and buildings took long timeframes for the artworks to be completed.

In conclusion, renaissance and baroque came as a result of enlightenment among artists. We can also say that the artists were very creative and paid attention to detail. If this was not true the various new aspects of art would not have been realized if the artists did not consider doing things in diverse ways as opposed to their predecessors.

The church was involved actively in both periods. Moreover, in the two periods there are reforms which are directed towards art. Therefore, the eras were not only concerned with studying classical text, but also influenced painting, carving, and architecture. Paintings and sculptures sought new ideas to standard and visual problems which incorporated arithmetic and linear perspective in the work of art.

Reference

Fitzpatrick, A. (2005).The Baroque Period. Minnesota Creative Company.

LiveReal. (2005) Renaissance and Baroque Europe. Web.

Nash, S. (2008).Northern Renaissance Art. New York: Oxford University Press.