4.1 - The Renaissance
To-Do Date: Nov 18 at 11:59pmLate medieval or proto-renaissance?
The Renaissance does not have a start date. Its origins are often located around 1400 but as early as the late 1200s we see changes in painting and sculpture that lay the foundation for what we will come to recognize as the Renaissance Links to an external site.. Some scholars call this early period the “Late Gothic Links to an external site.“—a term which refers to the late Middle Ages, while other people call it the “Proto-Renaissance”—the beginnings of the Renaissance. In any case, a revolution is beginning to take place in Italy the early 1300s in the way people think about the world, the way they think about the past, and the way they think about themselves and their relationship with God.
What was humanism?
Humanism was the educational and intellectual program of the Renaissance. Grounded in Latin and Greek literature, it developed first in Italy in the middle of the fourteenth century and then spread to the rest of Europe by the late fifteenth century. This program, called the studia humanitatis, or the humanities, was thought to teach citizens the morals necessary to lead an active, virtuous life, which its proponents contrasted with the contemplative life of ascetic monks and scholars. As a product of the Italian city-state republics, humanism was a system born in the city and made for the citizen. Although scholars in earlier centuries had embraced classical learning Links to an external site., humanists rediscovered many lost texts, read them with a critical and secular eye, and, through them, forged a new mentality that shaped Italian and European society from from approximately the mid-14th to the mid-17th centuries.
Humanists were a diverse group as individuals but shared a common passion for antiquity and for Latin prose and rhetoric. At their core, humanists were educators. Humanists wanted a curriculum that would not make theologians but make citizens useful to governments and society. They placed five disciplines in the curriculum of the studia humanitatis: grammar, rhetoric, poetry, moral philosophy, and history. Each of these disciplines served a specific purpose in fostering virtuous, active citizens of the city-states. These subjects, based on reading Latin (and, later, Greek) authors was to arm citizens with the eloquence, morality, and examples of virtuous behavior of the ancients. The values of the ancient Romans and Greeks would perfect citizens and help them realize their potential as individuals endowed with free will to know the good and to act on it.
The figure
In ancient Greece and Rome, artists embraced the realities of the human body and the way that our bodies move in space (naturalism). For the next thousand years though, after Europe transitioned from a pagan culture to a Christian one in the middle ages, the physical was largely ignored in favor of the heavenly, spiritual realm. Medieval human figures were still rendered, but they were elongated, flattened and static—in other words, they were made to function symbolically.
Space
Bonaventura Berlinghieri, Altarpiece of St. Francis, c. 1235 (Church of San Francesco, Pescia, Italy)
Instead of earthly settings, we often see flat, gold backgrounds. There were some exceptions along the way, but it’s not until the end of the 13th century in Italy that artists began to (re)explore the physical realities of the human figure in space. Here, they begin the long process of figuring out how space can become a rational, measurable environment in which their newly naturalistic figures can sit, stand and move.
Florence & Siena
In Italy, there were two city-states where we can see this renewed interest in the human figure and space: Florence and Siena. The primary artists in Siena were Duccio, the Lorenzetti Brothers, and Simone Martini. And in Florence, we look to the art of Cimabue and Giotto.
Whereas medieval artists often preferred a flat, gold background, these artists began to construct earthly environments for their figures to inhabit. We see landscapes and architecture in their paintings, though these are often represented schematically. These Florentine and Sienese artists employed diagonal lines that appear to recede and in this way convey a simple illusion of space, though that space is far from rational to our eyes. When we look closely, we can see that the space would be impossible to move through, and that the scale of the architecture often doesn’t match the size of the figures.
Giotto
Fresco cycle by Giotto, Arena (Scrovegni) Chapel, Padua, c. 1305 (photo: Steven Zucker Links to an external site., CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
The artist who takes the biggest step away from the medieval style of spiritual representation in painting in the early 14th century is Giotto. Giotto is perhaps best known for the frescoes he painted in the Arena (or Scrovegni) Chapel. They were commissioned Links to an external site. by a wealthy man named Enrico Scrovegni, the son of a well-known banker (and a banker himself). Commissioning works of art for churches was a common way of doing “good works” which could help you earn your way into Heaven.
(l) Giotto, Lamentation, c. 1305, fresco (Scrovegni Chapel, Padua). (r) Enrico Scrovegni assisted by a priest, presents the chapel to the Virgin Mary and two other figures (detail), Giotto, Last Judgment, c. 1305, fresco cycle (Arena (Scrovegni) Chapel, Padua, Italy; photo: Steven Zucker Links to an external site., CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Rather like a comic book without words, Giotto tells the story of Christ and his parents through pictures. Most of the population of Europe was illiterate at this time and so couldn’t read the Bible Links to an external site. for themselves (Bibles were rare and expensive in any case—there was no printing press and so each was copied by hand). People learned the stories of the Bible—stories that would help them get to heaven—by hearing the words of the priest in the church, and by looking at paintings and sculptures.
Where earlier works of art engage us with the embellished splendor of the heavenly, Giotto’s paintings capture our attention by representing holy figures and stories as if in a majestic but earthly realm. Bold modeling of draperies and the bodies beneath them gives his figures greater volume and a sense of sculptural relief. Clever kinds of perspective create the illusion that a space is opening up in front of the viewer, as if we might be peering onto a stage.
Art and Civic Pride in Florence
The Palazzo della Signoria (also known as the Palazzo Vecchio). This is where the Florentine government met
The Renaissance began in Florence in the 15th century. Breaking with the feudal traditions of the past, Florence had a progressive form of government: instead of being governed by a Duke or a King, Florence was an independent commune Links to an external site. governed by elected leaders drawn from the city’s leading merchant guilds (guilds were trade organizations, similar to unions). So it was a democracy, and Florentines were fiercely proud of their independence:
“Florence was a Republic in the sense that there was a constitution which limited the power of the nobility (as well as laborers) and ensured that no one person or group could have complete political control (so it was far from our ideal of everyone voting, in fact a very small percentage of the population had the vote). Political power resided in the hands of middle-class merchants, a few wealthy families (such as the Medici, important art patrons who would later rule Florence) and the powerful guilds.”
Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, “Florence in the Early Renaissance,” in Smarthistory
https://smarthistory.org/florence-in-the-early-renaissance/ Links to an external site.
Florence was also a center of Humanist learning, and a thriving commercial capital. It was therefore home to a wealthy merchant class that was educated, and eager to advertise their status, learning, and civic pride through commissioned works of art.
Agnolo Bronzino: Portrait of Cosimo il Vecchio
The Medici as Patrons
There were many wealthy families in Florence that patronized art to decorate their homes and private chapels, or to celebrate weddings and births. But the most influential family was the Medici, whose fortunes were made through banking. Cosimo de Medici began the family’s tradition of Humanist scholarship and patronage of the arts:
“Cosimo spent a considerably part of his huge wealth on charitable acts, live simply, and cultivated literature and the arts. He amassed the largest library in Europe, brought in many Greek sources, including the works of Plato, from Constantinople, founded the Platonic Academy and patronized Marsilio Ficino, who later issued the first Latin edition of the collected works of Plato. The artists supported by Cosimo included Ghiberti, Brunelleschi, Donatello, Alberti, Fra Angelico, and Ucello. During his rule and that of his sons and grandson, Florence became the cultural center of Europe and the cradle of the new Humanism.”
The Medici Family @ The Galileo Project Links to an external site.
The Rediscovery of Classical Antiquity
Fueling all of this innovation was the rediscovery of the Classical past, which inspired Florentines to consider themselves to be the heirs of the great civilizations of ancient Greece and Rome:
“The remains of Greco-Roman antiquity—coins, gems, sculpture, buildings, and the classics of Greek and Latin literature—fascinated the thinking men and women of the Italian Renaissance. The arts and the humanities, they reasoned, had declined during the “middle ages” that stretched between the end of antiquity and their own time, but by emulating the exemplary works of the ancients, even striving to surpass them, contemporary artists and writers might restore the arts and letters to their former grandeur. In Renaissance Italy, the desire to know and to match the excellence of the ancients often engendered passionate endeavor.”
The Rediscovery of Classical Antiquity Links to an external site.
Humanist Values in the Renaissance
Much of the art of the Renaissance remained religious in subject matter, but the influence of private patronage and Humanist ideas resulted in religious works of art that were often as much about God as they were about more earthly concerns. The Humanist values that we will see reflected in the art of the Renaissance can be summarized as follows:
- A new focus on individualism and celebrating the self
- A reverence for Classical learning and Classical art
- An increasingly secular worldview
- A belief in the dignity and beauty of the human being
- An emphasis on civic virtue and patriotism
The status of the artist in Renaissance Italy
In the Middle Ages, the artist was considered a craftsman, no different from a carpenter or bricklayer. They worked with large teams in workshops, rather than alone, and they were valued for their skill rather than their intellect or creativity. As artisans, their social status was similar to other skilled laborers, and they rarely achieved the celebrity status that artists enjoy today. Moreover, works of art were commissioned by wealthy patrons, who expected their employers to follow orders, rather than express their own creative vision. Creativity was neither expected nor valued.
But things began to change in the Renaissance. With the rediscovery of classical art, and new techniques such as the use of oil paint and perspective, increasing value was placed on artistic innovation and creativity. Artists began to believe that their profession deserved a higher status because it involved intellectual work rather than mere manual skill. After all, artists in the Renaissance had to know mathematics and geometry; they studied anatomy, classical culture, theology, and philosophy. All of this contributed to the idea that painting, sculpture, and architecture should be considered one of the “liberal arts,” rather than a menial trade.
Giorgio Vasari’s Lives of the Artists was published in 1568 and was one of the first works of art history. Celebrating the talent and creativity of the artists of the Renaissance, Vasari ensured that these artists would be remembered and admired for their achievements.
With this new recognition came a new appreciation for artistic creativity. Patrons began to seek out artists precisely because of their unique style or approach, and in 1568 Giorgio Vasari published The Lives of the Painters — one of the first works of art history. Vasari’s book was largely biographical in approach, and ensured that the artist’s of his day would enjoy the fame he felt they deserved. This new appreciation for creativity and artistic “genius” was fully manifested in the High Renaissance, when superstars like Michelangelo and Leonardo were treated as near equals to the Popes and Kings that employed them.
Masaccio, Holy Trinity
Masaccio was the first painter in the Renaissance Links to an external site. to incorporate Brunelleschi’s discovery Links to an external site., linear perspective, in his art. He did this in his fresco, the Holy Trinity, in Santa Maria Novella, in Florence.
Perspective diagram, Masaccio, Holy Trinity, c. 1427, fresco, 667 x 317 cm (Santa Maria Novella, Florence, Italy; photo: Steven Zucker Links to an external site., CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
God’s foot on the right (detail), Holy Trinity, c. 1427, fresco, 667 x 317 cm (Santa Maria Novella, Florence; photo: Steven Zucker Links to an external site., CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
Have a close look at this perspective diagram. The orthogonals can be seen in the edges of the coffers in the ceiling (look for diagonal lines that appear to recede into the distance). Because Masaccio painted from a low viewpoint, as though we were looking up at Christ, we see the orthogonals in the ceiling, and if we traced all of the orthogonals, we would see that the vanishing point is on the ledge where the donors kneel on.
God is standing in this painting. This may not strike you all that much when you first think about it because our idea of God, our picture of God in our mind’s eye—as an old man with a beard—is very much based on Renaissance images of God. So, here Masaccio imagines God as a man. Not a force or power, or something abstract, but as a man. A man who stands—his feet are foreshortened, and he weighs something and is capable of walking. In medieval art, God was often represented by a hand, as though God was an abstract force or power in our lives—but here, he seems so much like a flesh and blood man. This is a good indication of humanism in the Italian renaissance Links to an external site..
Between 1445 and the mid-1450s, Cosimo de’Medici, the most powerful man in Florence, built his family’s palace on a central thoroughfare in the heart of the city. Although technically private citizens of a republic, in reality, the Medici clan dominated the city’s politics, a fact they shrewdly endeavored to obscure. For a public figure like Cosimo, a private house was never private in our modern sense: the Palazzo Medici was a place of business (Cosimo was a banker and de facto ruler of Florence) and bustling social interactions with an open courtyard, visible from the street, leading to the main entrance. High upon an elevated base and visible when the main entry to the palace was open to visitors stood one of the most innovative sculptures of the early renaissance: Donatello’s bronze David.
Donatello’s hero is remarkable for numerous reasons, not least of which is it is the earliest known freestanding nude sculpture since antiquity. Furthermore, it is cast in bronze, a costly medium not generally used for large-scale freestanding sculpture in the medieval era—it would take a Medici to afford such an expense.
(r) Goliath’s severed head (detail), Donatello, David, c. 1440, bronze, 158 cm. (m) Donatello, David, c. 1440, bronze, 158 cm. (r) Donatello, David, c. 1440 (photos: Steven Zucker, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)
The subject of this statue is David, the future king and hero of the Hebrew Bible, who as a youth slayed the giant Goliath and liberated his people (the Israelites) from the tyranny of the Philistines. In Donatello’s sculpture, David’s immaturity is unquestionable: his nude body is that of an adolescent and is sharply contrasted with the heavy beard and maturity of Goliath, whose severed head is at his feet. David’s vulnerability is emphasized by the stone he clasps in his left hand, a reminder that though he holds a sword, he brought down his massive foe with a simple sling-shot. The message here is clear: David triumphed not through physical power, but through the grace of God.
David’s nudity serves several functions. Exposing his youthful (weak) body overtly reinforces the miraculous nature of his triumph. David is literally bared before God and the viewing public, victorious through God’s will alone. Standing in contrapposto Links to an external site. and displaying accurate anatomy, the sculpture also demonstrates the growing interest in humanism Links to an external site., an intellectual movement that looked to the Greco-Roman past for inspiration.
Donatello’s nude is reminiscent of ancient Greek and Roman statues. In ancient art being shown without clothing often had positive connotations: ancient Greek and Roman gods and heroes signaled their virtue through their idealized nude bodies. By showing David in the nude, Donatello appropriates this convention. From the point of view of renaissance Christians, David’s nudity would have been seen as an improvement upon the ancient tradition, heroizing a Judeo-Christian subject rather than a pagan one.
By the time the bronze David was created, the hero was already a symbol of the Florentine Republic. Donatello’s marble David had been on display in front of the Palazzo dei Priori since 1416 against a backdrop of lilies, an insignia of Florence. By placing this civic hero in their private courtyard, the Medici claimed for themselves this state symbol, making David a Medici emblem as well as a Florentine one.
For a family of supposedly private citizens of a republican state who were all but absolute rulers in practice, the Medici had good reason to associate themselves with David’s anti-tyrannical symbolism. Cosimo and his family likely wanted all visitors to their palace to regard them—like David—as defenders of liberty. This reading is reinforced by an inscription (now lost) that once adorned the column at the statue’s base:
Renaissance Architecture was based on the study of Classical architecture, and emphasized harmony and perfection through the application of logic and geometry:
“Italian Renaissance architects based their theories and practices on Classical Roman examples. The Renaissance revival of Classical Rome was as important in architecture as it was in literature. A pilgrimage to Rome to study the ancient buildings and ruins, especially the Colosseum and Pantheon, was considered essential to an architect’s training. Classical orders and architectural elements such as columns, pilasters, pediments, entablatures, arches, and domes form the vocabulary of Renaissance buildings. Vitruvius’s writings on architecture also influenced the Renaissance definition of beauty in architecture. As in the Classical world, Renaissance architecture is characterized by harmonious form, mathematical proportion, and a unit of measurement based on the human scale.”
Architecture in Renaissance Italy Links to an external site.
Filippo Brunelleschi pioneered a new style of architecture based on Classical architecture. Features of his style include the use of classical columns and rounded arches (as distinct from the pointed arches of Gothic architecture), and simple geometric shapes such as the circle and the square. This simple, logical approach to architecture was a dramatic departure from the complicated, “mystical” style of Gothic architecture.
Filippo Brunelleschi, Pazzi Chapel, Santa Croce, Florence, begun 1420s, completed 1460s Speakers: Dr. Beth Harris and Dt. Steven Zucker
http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/brunelleschis-pazzi-chapel.html
Links to an external site.
Links to an external site.Divine Proportions
Renaissance architects believed that the circle and the square were “perfect” shapes that correspond to the proportions of the human body (this was the basis for Leonardo’s famous drawing of the Vitruvian Man). Brunelleschi designed his buildings using modular units based on these two shapes, arranged in logical sequences:
“Although Brunelleschi’s structures may appear simple, they rest on an underlying system of proportion. Brunelleschi often began with a unit of measurement whose repetition throughout the building created a sense of harmony, as in the Ospedale degli Innocenti (Florence, 1419). This building is based on a modular cube, which determines the height of and distance between the columns, and the depth of each bay.”
Architecture in Renaissance Italy Links to an external site.
Brunelleschi’s Santo Spirito exemplifies his style. In contrast to the complex, soaring interiors of the Gothic Cathedral, Brunelleschi’s space is simple, rational, and serene. Instead of being mystified or awed by the space, we sense its order and clarity — as if rationality, rather than faith, is its true message.
Filippo Brunelleschi’s Santo Spirito, Florence, 1428-81 Speakers: Dr. Beth Harris & Dr. Steven Zucker
http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/brunelleschis-santo-spirito.html
Links to an external site.
Alberti was another major architect of the Renaissance. He was deeply influenced by Vitruvius, a Roman architect who published several treatises on architecture. His design for the Church of Ant’Andrea in Mantua shows the influence of Roman architecture in its massive scale, and its use of vaults.
Alberti published his own treatise on architecture, which had tremendous influence on his successors:
“Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472) worked as an architect from the 1450s onward, principally in Florence, Rimini, and Mantua. As a trained humanist and true Renaissance man, Alberti was as accomplished as an architect as he was a humanist, musician, and art theorist. Alberti’s many treatises on art include Della Pittura (On Painting), De Sculptura (On Sculpture), and De re Aedificatoria (On Architecture). The first treatise, Della Pittura, was a fundamental handbook for artists, explaining the principles behind linear perspective, which may have been first developed by Brunelleschi.”
Architecture in Renaissance Italy Links to an external site.
Alberti believed that universal beauty could be achieved through mathematical proportions. His ideas were similar to ancient Greek architects and sculptors who believed that beauty and perfection could be mathematically derived. Alberti rejected the columns and arches of Greek architecture in favor of the massive piers and vaults that were typical of Roman imperial architecture.
The High Renaissance
As the name implies, the “High Renaissance” was a high point in the period of the Renaissance. Artists of the High Renaissance consolidated the discoveries of the 15th century and took it to the next level. Although the pioneers of the Renaissance had discovered a great deal, there was still much to be explored — including the use of oil paint, the representation of movement, and the expression of emotion or psychology. These three things are amongst the qualities that set the work of Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael apart from their Renaissances predecessors. Characteristics of the Renaissance include:
- An even deeper understanding of human body, fueled by the scientific study of anatomy (Michelangelo and Leonardo both dissected cadavers to better understand how the body works)
- An emphasis on ideal beauty as a physical expression of divinity
- Increasingly complex poses that introduce a sense of movement and energy
- Figures that interact with one another, both physically and psychologically, in complex groupings
- The expression of emotion and inner states of being (what Leonardo would refer to as “the intentions of the soul”) through facial expression, gesture, and body language
Uniting the Human and the Divine
High Renaissance artists also solved the problem of uniting the human and the divine. As Renaissance representations of religious subjects became more and more naturalistic, they also risked becoming too much like our world, thus sacrificing the aura of “divinity” that had been preserved in medieval paintings with the use of halos and golden backgrounds. Artists of the High Renaissance solved this problem by depicting Mary, Jesus, and the Saints as convincingly human and down to earth, but endowed with such a high degree of beauty and grace that the need for halos became obsolete! In High Renaissance art, ideal beauty became a vehicle for expressing divine perfection in physical form.
This video from the folks at Smarthistory provides a summary of what we have learned about the Renaissance so far, and looks ahead at the distinguishing characteristics of the High Renaissance:
Status of the Artist
The status of the artist also changed dramatically during the High Renaissance. Artists such as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were treated as near equals by their patrons, which included Popes and Kings. Artistic genius came to be valued even more than skill, and artists were given unprecedented freedom to pursue their own creative ideas, rather than adhere strictly to the demands of their patron. This is the moment that our modern notion of the artist as a kind of “genius” with special creative powers began to emerge.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci: Renaissance Man
The concept of the Renaissance Man
Links to an external site. refers to an individual who is knowledgeable in a wide range of subjects. In the Middle Ages, one was expected to be expert in a single trade, but during the Renaissance the idea of a well educated individual come into being: in addition to being knowledgeable about a trade, the well educated gentleman should also have knowledge of philosophy, science, poetry, and art. This new ideal of a well-rounded and educated individual was an outgrowth of Renaissance Humanism, and is the basis of our Liberal Arts educational system today (that’s why you must take courses in history, math, and science, as well as art!). Leon Battista Alberti captured the spirit behind the idea of the “Renaissance Man” when he wrote that “a man can do all things if he will.”
Leonardo da Vinci is widely regarded as the quintessential Renaissance Man Links to an external site.. In addition to being an accomplished artist, he was an inventor and engineer, and an expert in anatomy, astronomy, and botany. He was also a charming conversationalist, and he spent his last years at the court of Francis I, where he frequently entertained the King with his knowledge and wit. According to legend, the King was at his bedside when he died – quite an honor for a mere artist!
(l) Leonardo da Vinci, drawing of a fetus in the womb, c. 1510-12. The Royal Collection. (r) Leonardo da Vinci, Self Portrait
Science, Art, and Religion
Leonardo’s studies and interests combined three areas that we normally consider distinct — science, religion, and art — but Leonardo believed that these three fields were closely related. He believed that scientific knowledge made him a better artist, and his studies of anatomy and nature certainly enabled him to render the physical world with unprecedented naturalism. But Leonardo also believed that the scientific study of nature could bring him closer to God.
Links to an external site.
Links to an external site.
Leonardo da Vinci, Madonna of the Rocks, c. 1485. Louvre
Leonardo’s artistic innovations in can be seen in this painting, which depicts the Virgin Mary in a rocky landscape setting, with the Christ Child, Saint John the Baptist, and an angel. An almost identical version of the picture can be seen at the National Gallery in London Links to an external site.. Here is a description from Smarthistory.org:
“The figures are all located in a fabulous and mystical landscape with rivers that seem to lead nowhere and bizarre rock formations. In the foreground we see carefully observed and precisely rendered plants and flowers.”
Leonardo’s Virgin of the Rocks, Smarthistory Links to an external site.
Painted in oil (which was new to Italian artists), the figures are enveloped in a dark, shadowy light called sfumato, which is Italian for “smoky.” The hazy lighting sets the “mood” of the picture, and creates a palpable sense of atmosphere, as if we can actually see and feel the air.
Pyramidal Construction
Another innovation in Leonardo’s picture is his use of pyramidal construction, or a pyramidal grouping of his figures. The figures are arranged in the shape of a pyramid, which establishes a balanced and harmonious organizational structure, and enhances the three-dimensionality of the grouping. The figures are united by interlocking gestures and glances that direct the eye from one figure to the next. Mary’s gaze leads our eye towards John the Baptist, whose praying gesture points towards Christ, whose gesture of blessing leads our eye back to the top of the pyramidal arrangement. Through this complex circuity of interlocking gestures the figures seem to interact in a shared moment of reverence and adoration.
Leonardo realized that it was not enough to just capture the outward appearance of an individual; equally important was the expression of an inward state of being that could only be communicated through facial expression and gesture, as well as lighting and composition. Early Renaissance artists had mastered the techniques of representing the observable world, but their pictures often appear lifeless, and devoid of “personality.” It was Leonardo who discovered how to bring the human figure to life by endowing it with a psychological dimension.
Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa, 1503-1504. Louvre
One of Leonardo’s most famous works of art, this small painting represents the wife of a wealthy Florentine; for some reason the commission was never completed and the painting was with Leonardo when he died (which has led to speculation that it may have had personal significance for him). Leonardo departed from the traditional profile format that was common in Italian art by portraying the sitter in a three-quarter pose, and including the hands, rather than cutting the picture off at the bust. This enabled the artist to focus on the sitter’s personality, rather than external signs of wealth and status. The figure is arranged in the shape of a pyramid, with her hands placed gracefully in her lap. Dressed simply, with no jewelry or distracting finery, her pose communicates dignity and poise.
As is characteristic of Leonardo’s style, the figure is bathed in a dark, smoky haze (sfumato). The edges of her face are soft and indistinct, while the gradations of light to dark are so subtle that the light appears to flicker, rather than being frozen in time. Equally fugitive is the expression on her face: while the shadows around her lips and eyes evoke the hint of a smile, it is difficult to determine whether she is smiling or smirking. This uncertainty lends a sense of mystery to her expression, since we are left to wonder what she is thinking. Equally mysterious are the craggy mountains in the background, which recall the primordial landscapes he often used as the backdrop for religious subjects. As Walter Isaacson explains, Leonardo used science to achieve a likeness of an individual that is so alive, it seems to react to our gaze.
Michelangelo
The Superiority of Sculpture
Michelangelo and Leonard were contemporaries –and they were also rivals! Their rivalry stemmed from professional competition, as well as their respective views on the superiority of painting versus sculpture. Leonardo claimed that painting was superior to sculpture, because the painter can create entire worlds, much like God. Michelangelo also likened artistic creation to God. In his poems, he extolled the virtues of sculpture, and likened the act of creating a figure out of stone to God’s creation of man.
After the fall of the Medici in 1494, Michelangelo traveled to Rome. When democracy was restored in Florence, Michelangelo was called home to create a statue of David for the cathedral. The block of marble he was given had been started by a previous artist, and the dimensions presented considerable challenges. But when the statue was completed, it was so widely regarded as a masterpiece that it was placed in front of the Palazzo Vecchio (instead of on the cathedral, as originally planned), where David was called upon once again to be a rousing symbol of Florentine political freedom.
Michelangelo, David, marble, 1501-04 (Galleria dell’Accademia, Florence)
Standing over 14 feet tall, Michelangelo’s David is an imposing figure. Like the Greek statues that inspired it, the figure is completely nude, and is standing in the classical contraposto pose. While Donatello’s David had depicted the calm moment after the battle, Michelangelo chose to depict the tense moment before David’s encounter with the giant. With the sling thrown over his shoulder, and the rock clutched in his right hand, David scans the horizon anticipating the arrival of his enemy. Tension can be read in his concentrated gaze, and in the contractions of the muscles of his otherwise relaxed body. Outwardly calm, we sense the inward feeling of tension and gathering strength.
Artistic License
Michelangelo took great liberties with his statue of David. While the biblical account describes David as an adolescent boy (which Donatello adhered to faithfully), Michelangelo chose to show him as a full-grown man. It is as if he wanted to show the inner soul of the hero, rather than his physical appearance – for although David may have been a boy, he had the courage of a giant!
Michelangelo also took liberties with the proportions of the body. While David looks perfect, the anatomy is all wrong: his arms are too long, and his hands and feet are too large. In spite of his scientific study of anatomy, Michelangelo believed that the artist should not just “copy” reality (indeed, he did not like Van Eyck’s work because of its realism). Instead, he believed that the artist should improve upon nature to achieve ideal perfection, and that the ultimate judge of beauty was the eye of the artist. As Michelangelo explained, measure and proportion should be “kept in the eyes,” and true beauty can only come from the concette, or “idea” in the mind of the artist, rather than from nature alone.
Sistine Chapel
To any visitor of Michelangelo’s Links to an external site. Sistine Chapel, two features become immediately and undeniably apparent: 1) the ceiling is really high up, and 2) there are a lot of paintings up there. Because of this, the centuries have handed down to us an image of Michelangelo lying on his back, wiping sweat and plaster from his eyes as he toiled away year after year, suspended hundreds of feet in the air, begrudgingly completing a commission that he never wanted to accept in the first place.
Michelangelo, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, 1508–12, fresco (Vatican City, Rome)
Reconstruction of the Sistine Chapel prior to Michelangelo’s frescoes
For Pope Julius II
Michelangelo began to work on the frescoes for Pope Julius II in 1508. Originally, the pope asked Michelangelo to paint the ceiling with a geometric ornament, and place the twelve apostles in spandrels around the decoration. Michelangelo proposed instead to paint the Old Testament Links to an external site. scenes now found on the vault, divided by the fictive architecture that he uses to organize the composition.
![Diagram of the subjects of the Sistine Chapel [1] (photo: Begoon, CC BY-SA 3.0)](https://smarthistory.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/1280px-Sistine_Chapel_ceiling_diagram.svg.png)
Diagram of the subjects of the Sistine Chapel [1] (photo: Begoon Links to an external site., CC BY-SA 3.0)
The subject of the frescoes
The narrative begins at the altar and is divided into three sections. In the first three paintings, Michelangelo tells the story of The Creation of the Heavens and Earth; this is followed by The Creation of Adam and Eve and the Expulsion from the Garden of Eden; finally is the story of Noah and the Great Flood.
Ignudi, or nude youths, sit in fictive architecture around these frescoes, and they are accompanied by prophets and sibyls (ancient seers who, according to tradition, foretold the coming of Christ) in the spandrels. In the four corners of the room, in the pendentives, one finds scenes depicting the Salvation of Israel.
Michelangelo, The Creation of Adam, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, 1508–12, fresco (Vatican City, Rome; photo: Jörg Bittner Unna, CC BY 3.0)
A shift in style
In 1510, Michelangelo took a yearlong break from painting the Sistine Chapel. The frescoes painted after this break are characteristically different from the ones he painted before it, and are emblematic of what we think of when we envision the Sistine Chapel paintings. These are the paintings, like The Creation of Adam, where the narratives have been pared down to only the essential figures depicted on a monumental scale. Because of these changes, Michelangelo is able to convey a strong sense of emotionality that can be perceived from the floor of the chapel. Indeed, the imposing figure of God in the three frescoes illustrating the separation of darkness from light and the creation of the heavens and the earth radiates power throughout his body, and his dramatic gesticulations help to tell the story of Genesis without the addition of extraneous detail.
The Sibyls
(l) Michelangelo, Delphic Sibyl, Sistine Chapel Ceiling, 1508–12, fresco. (r) Michelangelo, Libyan Sibyl, c. 1511, fresco, part of the Sistine Chapel ceiling (Vatican Museums; photo: Jörg Bittner Unna, CC BY 3.0)
This new monumentality can also be felt in the figures of the sibyls and prophets in the spandrels surrounding the vault, which some believe are all based on the Belvedere Torso, an ancient sculpture that was then, and remains, in the Vatican’s collection. One of the most celebrated of these figures is the Delphic Sibyl.
The overall circular composition of the body, which echoes the contours of her fictive architectural setting, adds to the sense of the sculptural weight of the figure. Her arms are powerful, the heft of her body imposing, and both her left elbow and knee come into the viewer’s space. At the same time, Michelangelo imbued the Delphic Sibyl with grace and harmony of proportion, and her watchful expression, as well as the position of the left arm and right hand, is reminiscent of the artist’s David Links to an external site..
The Libyan Sibyl Links to an external site.is also exemplary. Although she is in a contorted position that would be nearly impossible for an actual person to hold, Michelangelo nonetheless executes her with a sprezzatura (a deceptive ease) that will become typical of the Mannerists Links to an external site. who closely modelled their work on his.
Legacy
Michelangelo completed the Sistine Chapel in 1512. Its importance in the history of art cannot be overstated. It turned into a veritable academy for young painters, a position that was cemented when Michelangelo returned to the chapel twenty years later to execute the Last Judgment fresco Links to an external site. on the altar wall.
The chapel recently underwent a controversial cleaning, which has once again brought to light Michelangelo’s jewel-like palette, his mastery of chiaroscuro Links to an external site., and additional iconological details which continue to captivate modern viewers even five hundred years after the frescoes’ original completion. Not bad for an artist who insisted he was not a painter.
Venetian Painting
Venice, the city of lagoons, was the capital of a prosperous mercantile republic and home of a distinctive school of painting known for its rich handling of color. While Florentine art was known for its drawing and design, Venetian painters were renowned for their vividly rich and colors and radiant light — made possible by the use of oil painting technique.
As private patronage stimulated the exploration of secular themes, Venetian artists pioneered a new kind of subject matter where the narrative story played a less important role than the overall mood and visual pleasure of the picture.
Titian, Venus of Urbino, 1538 Oil on canvas. Uffizi Gallery
This painting was commissioned for another “man cave” – the private apartments of the Duke of Urbino. Sensual and overtly flirtatious, the painting depicts the Duke’s mistress reclining on a couch, with a lap dog (symbol of fidelity) at her feet. Set in a richly furnished Venetian interior (complete with maids), the painting transforms the mythological goddess of love into a flesh and blood woman whose pose is both teasing and seductive, while she gazes invitingly at the viewer.
Colorito vs. Disegno
In Renaissance art, disegno and colorito represent two distinct approaches to painting. Disegno, championed by artists in Florence and Rome like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, emphasizes the importance of drawing and design. This approach prioritizes precise lines, clear contours, and detailed preparatory sketches, reflecting an intellectual and analytical mindset that focuses on form and structure. In contrast, colorito, which flourished in Venice with artists such as Titian, Giorgione, and Veronese, highlights the primacy of color and the act of painting itself. This method is characterized by rich, vibrant colors, the interplay of light and shadow, and direct application of paint on canvas, emphasizing sensory and emotional effects.
While disegno is rooted in careful drawing and planning, colorito is more spontaneous and visually oriented, celebrating the harmony and impact of colors. Colorito was often viewed as less intellectual, focusing more on the overall aesthetic experience rather than detailed planning. Together, these approaches illustrate the diverse techniques and philosophies that shaped Renaissance art, with disegno associated with the art of Florence and Rome, and colorito with the art of Venice.
Mannerism
Mannerism derives from the Italian word maniera, which means “style” or “manner.” Inspired by Michelangelo’s concept of “artistic license” and the strange distortions of his later work, Mannerism became popular in the 16th century, and was especially appealing to aristocratic patrons who appreciated the exaggerated elegance of the style. Often referred to as the “stylish style,” Mannerism emphasized artifice and distortion, rather than naturalism. This emphasis on artifice and “personal style” rather than fidelity to nature, foregrounded artistic creativity and invention, and downplayed the role of the artist as a mere “copier” of observed reality:
“The sixteenth-century artist and critic Vasari—himself a mannerist—believed that excellence in painting demanded refinement, richness of invention, and virtuoso technique, criteria that emphasized the artist’s intellect. More important than his carefully recreated observation of nature was the artist’s mental conception and its elaboration. This intellectual bias was, in part, a natural consequence of the artist’s new status in society. No longer regarded as craftsmen, painters and sculptors took their place with scholars, poets, and humanists in a climate that fostered an appreciation for elegance, complexity, and even precocity.”
Mannerism, National Gallery of Art Links to an external site.
In many ways, Mannerism anticipated Modern art in its affirmation of artistic license and creativity.
Jacopo da Pontormo, Entombment of Christ, 1525-1528
Capponi Chapel, Santa Felicitá, Florence
Pontormo’s Entombment of Christ exemplifies the Mannerist style, with its strangely distorted proportions, ambiguous space, and exaggerated drama. Departing from the naturalism of the High Renaissance, the painting’s artifice and invention takes precedence over fidelity to nature.
The Influence of the Renaissance in Northern Europe
The Protestant Reformation spread throughout Northern Europe in the 16th Century and brought an end to Catholic domination in Europe. The impact on art was profound. Religious images were banned, since Protestant leaders denounced the use of religious images as a form of idolatry (the worship of images), while many existing images were destroyed. Deprived of lucrative religious commissions, artists were therefore forced to find new subjects.
Albrecht Dürer
Albrecht Dürer was one of the first Northern artists to travel to Italy to study Italian Renaissance art. He forged a synthesis of Northern realism, and the Italian emphasis on measure, proportion, and science. Dürer published several treatises on perspective and proportions, and he was also a master printmaker. The emergence of printmaking coincided with the invention of the printing press, and Dürer was responsible for making it a major art from.
Albrecht Dürer, Great Piece of Turf, 1503
Like the Flemish painters that preceded him, Dürer was fascinated by nature. This watercolor reflects his belief that all things in nature, no matter how humble and insignificant, are made by God, and are therefore deserving of attention. The painting is so precise that botanists can identify the specific types of plants depicted (there is dandelion, yarrow, meadow grass, and grass rush). The painting is like a scientific illustration, that records observed reality with meticulous precision.
Links to an external site.
Albrecht Dürer, Fall of Man (Adam and Eve), 1504
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
This woodblock print exemplifies Dürer’s fusion of Northern and Italian influences. The figures of Adam and Eve are both derived from Durer’s study of classical sculpture, so the figures have a monumentality that contrasts with the more diminutive figures that were common in Northern art. The figures are also informed by Dürer’s studies of ideal proportions.
Yet the setting of the picture is distincitvely Northern in its attention to minute detail. The dense forest with its foliage and menagerie of wild animals is rendered with such exactitude it is as if we are seeing it under a magnifying glass. So Dürer has fused Northern and Italian art by placing his idealized, classically-inspired figures in a realistic, Northern setting.
Another Northern characteristic is the inclusion of disguised symbolism: the cat, elk, rabbit, and ox are symbols of the “four humors” believed to influence personality, according to Medieval medical science.
The Netherlands
During the 16th century the Netherlands was divided into the Catholic Union of Arras and the Protestant Union of Utrecht. Protestants believed that religious imagery led to idolatry, so religious images were banned in churches, and many existing images were destroyed. Protestant iconoclasm led to a decrease in large-scale altarpieces and religious works, and an increased market for genre scenes (scenes of everyday life). These scenes provide delightful glimpses in human behavior, and often rely on proverbs — popular sayings — to comment on human folly.
Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Peasant Wedding, c. 1556-69 Kunsthistoriches Museum, Vienna
One of the leading Netherlandish painters of the 16th century was Pieter Bruegel the Elder, who became famous as a painter of peasant scenes. This painting depicts a peasant wedding, and is filled with incidental detail that gives us insight into the everyday life of peasants in the Netherlands in the 16th century. The wedding celebration takes place in a barn, and is packed full of people eating and drinking with abandon. In the foreground, two men carry bowls of porridge served in heavy earthenware bowls, and carried on a door that has been taken off its hinges and converted to a makeshift serving tray. A third man passes the bowls to the table, nearly spilling its contents as he rushes to keep up with the demands of the voracious crowd.
The painting is filled with anecdotal detail, as our eye scans the scene to observe the behavior of the guests. We see a small boy in the foreground, hungrily scooping up the last bits of porridge with his finger, or the man just above him, leaning out to get the waiter’s attention to refill his mug of beer. The painter seems to revel in the pleasures of everyday life, and the sometimes comic behavior of simple, common folk. When we think back to the values of the Middle Ages, where all focus was on Heaven and God, this celebration of earthly pleasure indicates how far we have come in the Humanist embrace of human activities, and the world in which we live.
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