Italian & Northern

Renaissance

Sistine Chapel Ceiling

What is the Renaissance?

• Renaissance = Rebirth (of classical ideas)

• HOW-Economic & Societal Structures changed after Middle Ages, allowing new ideas to emerge

• WHAT-These ideas led to a sustained period of renewed interest & remarkable developments in art, literature, science & learning

• WHY-Arose in Italy in part because of its thriving cities, increased trade & wealthy merchant class

How did we “escape” the Dark Ages?• Black Death, War/Invasion & Starvation----Not all bad! Unless, you

know, you DIED.

• Enormous loss of life→Farmers producing surpluses→Specialization!

• Food prices decline, people could spend $$ on other things, city-states focused on one good & traded w/neighbors

Causes of the Renaissance***• Increased trade w/Asia because of the Crusades

– Renewed interest in the classical learning of Ancient Greece & Rome

– Preserved by Muslims

• Growth of large, wealthy city-states (Italy)– Italian Peninsula---why?– Think back to the rise of Rome

• Rise of rich & powerful merchant class– Patrons, or financial supporters, of the arts

Italy-The Medici

• A wealthy merchant-class developed in each Italian city-state

• The Medici banking family came to dominate Florence– Cosimo de Medici was the

wealthiest European of his time– Grandson Lorenzo de Medici

became great patron of the arts– Patron: someone who

financially supports an artist or the arts

Renaissance Ideas-Humanism

• Church→Scholastic Education that relied on Religion, unity, not individuality

• Humanism→Emphasis on individuality & achievement; the potential of the human mind is limitless (similar to the Ancient Greeks)

• You could enjoy life (luxuries such as material wealth, expensive art & fine foods…Without offending God!

• Rhetoric, Grammar, Poetry, History, Latin & Greek formed the Humanities, and the movement they inspired was known as Humanism

Secular Writers

• What does Secular mean? Worldy, non-religious!• Humanist writers argued that individual achievement &

education could be fully expressed only if people used their talents & abilities to service their cities

Machiavelli & The Prince• Lived in Florence, during a time of

violent struggles for political power

• The Prince -philosophy on governance

• Most people are selfish & corrupt, so….

• Is it better to be feared or loved? Feared, b/c the threat of punishment keeps people in line

• Power more important than Idealism

• The end justifies the means

Castiglione & the ‘Renaissance Man’

• Universal, accomplished in the classics, but also a man of action who could respond to all situations

• Had to: Speak of serious subjects (not just amusing ones), have a knowledge of Latin & Greek, well-acquainted w/Poetry & History, as well as being able to write Prose & Poetry.

• Castiglione’s Renaissance Man represented the very best of Italian Society at this time…

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CRX_mqpzdU

Castiglione & the ‘Renaissance Man’

“[A gentleman should] speak not always of serious subjects, but also of amusing things such as games and jests and jokes, according to the occasion. He should always of course, speak out fully and frankly and avoid talking nonsense…

[A gentlewoman should] know how to choose topics suitable for the kind of person she is addressing…She should not introduce jests & jokes into a discussion about serious things. She should not…[pretend] to know what she does not know, but she should seek modestly to win credit for knowing what she does.”

Italian Renaissance VS the Northern Renaissance

• Before 1450, Italian Renaissance & humanism had little influence outside Italy. It was self-contained: had everything it needed (artists/patrons/$) and conditions welcomed artists so they did not travel out to other parts…

• From the late 15th century (1400s) the ideas spread around Europe. ...eventually making its way toward the North

• Writers and humanists of the Northern Renaissance were greatly influenced by the Italian Renaissance model and were part of the same intellectual movement.... Followed closely by artistic styles

• Thus Italian Renaissance started it all…. then throughcultural diffusion spread to the North where they modified to fit their needs

Art & Architecture

• Arts reflected the new humanist spirit– Medieval artists focused on religion– Renaissance artists depicted things they observed in

nature

• Patrons– Financial supporters of artists– Wealthy individuals, city governments, Catholic Church– Displayed your Power/Stature

• Development of Perspective– Allowed for 3-Dimensional to be painted on Flat Surfaces

Renaissance Art VS Medieval Art• Topic: Renaissance art focused on the Human Body -

Both used Religious themes but in the Middle Ages it was more so

• Purpose: Renaissance art was commissioned by wealthy families or churches . In the middle Ages, art was primarily used as decoration (usually churches)

• Style: Renaissance art – Human body was beautiful / uses of lighting and shading/ Realism!!!/ a 3D perspective develops. In the middle Ages, art was flat, DARK (coloring) /clothed religious figures

• Materials Used: Renaissance – Oil on canvass and Marble sculptures (& some frescos) Middle Ages-Some oil / mostly tempera paint base/Illustrated manuscripts

The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

were named after 4

Renaissance Masters

Leonardo da Vinci• True Representation of a

Renaissance Man• Could do it all, and did!

• Painter, writer, inventor, architect, engineer, mathematician, musician & philosopher

• 20,000 pages w/notes recording his ideas for building an armored tank, flying machine, sketches of human anatomy, designs for the 1st machine gun

• Da Vinci’s Journal Writing Techinque-http://www.msichicago.org/scrapbook/scrapbook_exhibits/leonardo/handwriting/index.html

Leonardo da Vinci

Mona Lisa

Mona Lisa---Who was she?

Last Supper

Michelangelo• Renaissance sculptor who studied

human anatomy in an effort to make his statues more lifelike

• David• Pieta• Sistine Chapel

Pieta-sculpture of Mary, the mother of Jesus, holding her son after his death; themes of grief, love, acceptance & immortality

Sistine Chapelhttp://vatican.com/tour/sistine_chapel_3D

About a year after creating David, Pope Julius II summoned Michelangelo to Rome to work on his most famous project, the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

Creation of AdamCreation of Eve

Separation of Light and Darkness The Last Judgment

Raphael

• Renowned painter & architect; • The School of Athens-Fresco that shows Plato & Aristotle

surrounded by Philosophers from the past and present who were admired by humanists

• Many paintings of the Madonna, or mother of Jesus

Alexander the Great & Socrates

Plato and Aristotle

Raphael (back)→

DONATELLO• Italian sculptor of the

Renaissance.• Known for St. George

(Sculpture) & Equestrian Statue

Jan Van Eyck• Jan van Eyck was a Flemish painter- one of the most

significant representatives of Early Northern Renaissance art

• Did a lot of Religious themed paintings

Albrecht Durer• Albrecht Durer was regarded as

the greatest German Renaissance artist.

• His work includes altarpieces, portraits and self-portraits, engravings, and woodcuts.

Desiderius Erasmus• Dutch Christian

humanist who was the greatest scholar of the northern Renaissance.

• Originally trained as a Catholic priest

• Erasmus was an important figure in classical education who wrote in a pure Latin style. But thought the bible should be in Vernacular

Sir Thomas More• English lawyer, social

philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist.

• He was also a councillor to Henry VIII, and Lord High Chancellor of England from October 1529 to 16 May 1532.

• Most known for his Book, UTOPIA

• Utopia is a work of fiction and socio-political satire

• Utopia tells of a fictional island society and its religious, social, and political customs

Shakespeare• English poet, playwright and

actor.• widely regarded as the

greatest writer in the English language and the world's greatest dramatist.

• That is the greatest all timenot just during therenaissance

• Plays include: Romeo & Juliet,Hamlet, Macbeth, the Tempest, King Lear….list goes on and on