The NorthernThe NorthernRenaissance Renaissance The NorthernThe NorthernRenaissance Renaissance

How cultural diffusion spreads the ideas of the Italian Renaissance to

the rest of Europe

Northern RenaissanceNorthern RenaissanceNorthern RenaissanceNorthern Renaissance

Renaissance ideas soon spread beyond Italy to northern Europe by means of trade, travel, and printed

material, influencing the art and ideas of the north.

Trade Spreads the Trade Spreads the RenaissanceRenaissance

Trade Spreads the Trade Spreads the RenaissanceRenaissance

Trading Goods

• As cities grew, vast trading network spread across northern Europe

• Network dominated by Hanseatic League, merchant organization, 1200s to 1400s

– Protected members from pirates, other hazards

– Built lighthouses, trained ship captains

Trading Ideas

• Northern Europeans traded ideas, goods; spread Italian Renaissance north

• Fleeing violence, Italian artists brought humanist ideas, painting techniques north

• Northern scholars traveled to Italy, brought ideas home

• Universities started in France, Netherlands, Germany

Northern RenaissanceNorthern RenaissanceNorthern RenaissanceNorthern RenaissanceGermany and the Low Countries

• German and Dutch began to replace Latin in writing• Lots of books were printed• Art took on a very religious tone• Humanism and Christianity were blended together—

Christian Humanists

English Renaissance • 1485—The War of the Roses is over in England and the

Renaissance comes to England• The English Renaissance was known for its writers

Writers and PhilosophersWriters and PhilosophersWriters and PhilosophersWriters and Philosophers• Northern humanists expressed their own ideas• Combined interests of theology, fiction and history

• Created philosophical works, novels, dramas, and poems

• Northern Humanist writers include Erasmus and More

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE

•Many believe English playwright William Shakespeare was the greatest writer of the Northern Renaissance•Plots not original, but treatments of them masterful•Drew inspiration from ancient, contemporary literature•Knowledge of natural science, humanist topics was expressed in plays

ArtistsArtistsArtistsArtistsLike literary counterparts, northern European

artists influenced by Italian Renaissance

• Adopted Italian techniques

• Works reflected more realistic view of humanity

Italian artists tried to capture beauty of Greek, Roman gods in paintings

Northern artists tried to depict people as they really were

ArtistsArtistsArtistsArtists• 1400s, German artist

Albrecht Dürer visited Italy• On return, used Italian

techniques of realism, perspective

• Oil paintings exhibit features unique to northern Renaissance

• Oils reproduced textures; reflection of objects, scenes outside window

• Artists of Netherlands developed own style, Flemish School

• Used technique perfected by Jan van Eyck, 1400s

• Fused the everyday with religious; lit candle represents God’s presence

Art of the Northern Renaissance

Renaissance Art in Northern Renaissance Art in Northern EuropeEurope

Renaissance Art in Northern Renaissance Art in Northern EuropeEurope

• Should not be considered an extension of Italian art.• But, Italian influence was strong.

Painting in OIL, developed in Flanders, was widely adopted in Italy.

• The differences between the two cultures: Italy - change was inspired by humanism with its emphasis

on the revival of the values of classical antiquity. Europe - change was driven by religious reform, the return

to Christian values, and the revolt against the authority of the Church.

• More princes & kings were patrons of artists.

Characteristics of Northern Characteristics of Northern Renaissance ArtRenaissance Art

Characteristics of Northern Characteristics of Northern Renaissance ArtRenaissance Art

• The continuation of late medieval attention to details

• Tendency toward realism & naturalism-less emphasis on the “classical ideal”

• Interest in landscapes• More emphasis on middle-class and

peasant life• Details of domestic interiors• Great skill in portraiture

Flemish Realism

Van EyckVan Eyck

The The CrucifixionCrucifixion

&&

The Last The Last JudgmentJudgment 1420-14251420-1425

Van EyckVan Eyck

The The CrucifixionCrucifixion

&&

The Last The Last JudgmentJudgment 1420-14251420-1425

Comparing the Last Judgment

Crucifixion, Andrea Mantegna

Comparing the Crucifixion

Giovanni Giovanni Arnolfini Arnolfini and His and His

WifeWife

(Wedding (Wedding Portrait)Portrait)

Jan Van Jan Van

EyckEyck

14341434

Jan van EyckJan van Eyck - Giovanni - Giovanni Arnolfini & His WifeArnolfini & His Wife

(details)(details)

Jan van EyckJan van Eyck - Giovanni - Giovanni Arnolfini & His WifeArnolfini & His Wife

(details)(details)

Rogier van der Weyden (1399-Rogier van der Weyden (1399-1464)1464)

Rogier van der Weyden (1399-Rogier van der Weyden (1399-1464)1464)

The The DepositionDeposition

1435 1435

van der Weyden’s van der Weyden’s DepositionDeposition (details)(details)

van der Weyden’s van der Weyden’s DepositionDeposition (details)(details)

Massys’ Massys’ The Moneylender & His WifeThe Moneylender & His Wife, 1514, 1514Massys’ Massys’ The Moneylender & His WifeThe Moneylender & His Wife, 1514, 1514

France

Renaissance Art in FranceRenaissance Art in FranceRenaissance Art in FranceRenaissance Art in France

• A new phase of Italian influence in France began with the French invasions of the Italian peninsula that began in 1494.

• The most important royal patron was Francis I.Actively encouraged humanistic learning. Invited da Vinci and Andrea del Sarto to

France.He collected paintings by the great Italian

masters like Titian, Raphael, and Michelangelo.

The School of FontainebleauThe School of FontainebleauThe School of FontainebleauThe School of Fontainebleau

• It revolved around the artists at Francis I’s Palace at Fontainebleau.

• A group of artists that decorated the Royal Palace between the 1530s and the 1560s.

• It was an offshoot of the Mannerist School of Art begun in Italy at the end of the High Renaissance. Characterized by a refined elegance, with

crowded figural compositions in which painting and elaborate stucco work were closely integrated.

Their work incorporated allegory in accordance with the courtly liking for symbolism.

The School of The School of FontainebleauFontainebleauThe School of The School of FontainebleauFontainebleau

• Gallery [right] by Rosso Fiorentino & Francesco Primaticcio

• 1528-1537

Germain Pilon (1525-1590)Germain Pilon (1525-1590)Germain Pilon (1525-1590)Germain Pilon (1525-1590)

• The Deposition of Christ• Bronze, 1580-1585.

Jean GoujonJean Goujon(1510-1565)(1510-1565)Jean GoujonJean Goujon(1510-1565)(1510-1565)

“Nymph,”1548-1549

“Nymph & Putto,”1547-1549

Germany

Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553)1553)

Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553)1553)

• Court painter at Wittenberg from 1505-1553.

• His best portraits were of Martin Luther (to the left).

Lucas Cranach the ElderLucas Cranach the ElderLucas Cranach the ElderLucas Cranach the Elder

Old Man with a Young Old Man with a Young WomanWoman

Amorous Old Woman with a Amorous Old Woman with a Young ManYoung Man

Matthias Grünewald’s Matthias Grünewald’s The The CrucifixionCrucifixion, 1502, 1502

Matthias Grünewald’s Matthias Grünewald’s The The CrucifixionCrucifixion, 1502, 1502

Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)• The greatest of German

artists.• A scholar as well as an

artist.• His patron was the

Emperor Maximilian I.• Also a scientist

Wrote books on geometry, fortifications, and human proportions.

• Self-conscious individualism of the Renaissance is seen in his portraits.

• Self-Portrait at 26, 1498.

Albrecht DurerAlbrecht DurerAlbrecht DurerAlbrecht Durer

Dürer Dürer

The Last The Last SupperSupper

Woodcut, Woodcut, 15101510

Dürer Dürer

The Last The Last SupperSupper

Woodcut, Woodcut, 15101510

Comparing the Last Supper

England

Holbein’s, Holbein’s, The AmbassadorsThe Ambassadors, , 15331533

Holbein’s, Holbein’s, The AmbassadorsThe Ambassadors, , 15331533

A SkullA Skull

Multiple PerspectivesMultiple PerspectivesMultiple PerspectivesMultiple Perspectives

The English Were More The English Were More Interested in Architecture Interested in Architecture

than Paintingthan Painting

The English Were More The English Were More Interested in Architecture Interested in Architecture

than Paintingthan Painting

Hardwick Hall, designed by Robert Smythson in the 1590s, for Hardwick Hall, designed by Robert Smythson in the 1590s, for the Duchess of Shrewsbury [more medieval in style].the Duchess of Shrewsbury [more medieval in style].

Burghley House for William Burghley House for William CecilCecil

Burghley House for William Burghley House for William CecilCecil

The largest & grandest house The largest & grandest house of the early Elizabethan era.of the early Elizabethan era.

The LowCountries

Hieronymus Bosch (1450-Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516)1516)

Hieronymus Bosch (1450-Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516)1516)

• A pessimistic view of human nature.• Had a wild and lurid

imagination. Fanciful monsters &

apparitions.• Untouched by the

values of the Italian Quattrocento, like mathematical perspective. His figures are flat. Perspective is ignored.

• More a landscape painter than a portraitist.• Philip II of Spain was an admirer of his work.

HieronymHieronymusus

BoschBosch

The CureThe Cureof Follyof Folly

1478-1478-14801480

HieronymHieronymusus

BoschBosch

The CureThe Cureof Follyof Folly

1478-1478-14801480

HieronymHieronymusus

BoschBosch

The The TemptatioTemptatio

n of St. n of St. AnthonyAnthony

1506-15071506-1507

HieronymHieronymusus

BoschBosch

The The TemptatioTemptatio

n of St. n of St. AnthonyAnthony

1506-15071506-1507

Pieter Bruegel the Elder Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525-1569)(1525-1569)

Pieter Bruegel the Elder Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525-1569)(1525-1569)

• One of the greatest artistic geniuses of his age.• Worked in Antwerp and then moved to Brussels.• In touch with a circle of Erasmian humanists.• Was deeply concerned with human vice and follies.• A master of landscapes; not a portraitist.

People in his works often have round, blank, heavy faces.

They are expressionless, mindless, and sometimes malicious.

They are types, rather than individuals. Their purpose is to convey a message.

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, The BeggarsThe Beggars, , 15681568

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, The BeggarsThe Beggars, , 15681568

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, Niederlandisch ProverbsNiederlandisch Proverbs, , 15591559

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, Niederlandisch ProverbsNiederlandisch Proverbs, , 15591559

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, Hunters in the Hunters in the SnowSnow, 1565, 1565

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, Hunters in the Hunters in the SnowSnow, 1565, 1565

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, The HarvestersThe Harvesters, , 15651565

Bruegel’s, Bruegel’s, The HarvestersThe Harvesters, , 15651565

Spain

Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Greco)Greco)

Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Domenikos Theotokopoulos (El Greco)Greco)

• The most important Spanish artist of this period was Greek.

• 1541 – 1614.• He deliberately distorts & elongates his

figures, and seats them in a lurid, unearthly atmosphere.

• He uses an agitated, flickering light.• He ignores the rules of perspective, and

heightens the effect by areas of brilliant color.

• His works were a fitting expression of the Spanish Counter-Reformation.

El GrecoEl Greco

Christ in Christ in Agony on Agony on the Crossthe Cross

1600s1600s

El GrecoEl Greco

Christ in Christ in Agony on Agony on the Crossthe Cross

1600s1600s

El GrecoEl Greco

Portrait of aPortrait of aCardinalCardinal

16001600

El GrecoEl Greco

Portrait of aPortrait of aCardinalCardinal

16001600

El Greco’s, El Greco’s, The Burial of Count OrgazThe Burial of Count Orgaz, , 1586-15881586-1588

El Greco’s, El Greco’s, The Burial of Count OrgazThe Burial of Count Orgaz, , 1586-15881586-1588

El Greco’s, El Greco’s, The Burial of The Burial of Count OrgazCount Orgaz, 1586-1588 , 1586-1588

(details)(details)

El Greco’s, El Greco’s, The Burial of The Burial of Count OrgazCount Orgaz, 1586-1588 , 1586-1588

(details)(details)

El GrecoEl Greco

The View The View

of of ToledoToledo

1597-1597-15991599

El GrecoEl Greco

The View The View

of of ToledoToledo

1597-1597-15991599