Defining the Renaissance: Art, Architecture, and Key Masters
Renaissance Architecture: Materials and Design
Key Characteristics: Stone was the main material for building. Architecture utilized Greek and Roman classical orders in the columns, featuring flat and vaulted ceilings. Churches often employed a Latin or Greek cross ground plan.
The Quattrocento (15th Century)
Florence was the main artistic center during this period.
- Filippo Brunelleschi: Famous for the dome of Florence Cathedral (Duomo). He covered the space of 417 meters by ingeniously building a double dome.
- Leon Battista Alberti: Notable works include Santa Maria Novella, the Rucellai Palace, and Sant’Andrea. His designs emphasized blocks of stone, several floors, and windows framed by classical columns.
The Cinquecento (16th Century)
Rome became the main city, where the Popes commissioned numerous monumental buildings.
Renaissance Painting: Masters and Techniques
Quattrocento Painting (15th Century)
Influenced heavily by classical art, artists were deeply interested in the human body. Main subjects included mythology, religion, and portraits.
- Sandro Botticelli: Known for mythological paintings characterized by movement and grace.
Cinquecento Painting (16th Century)
- Michelangelo: Focused on nudes, dynamic movements, and diverse topics. He emphasized drawing and volume. His most important work is the set of paintings decorating the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican.
- Raphael: Renowned for his mastery of drawing, composition, and color. His most famous work is The School of Athens.
- Leonardo da Vinci: Produced relatively few works. He pioneered the sfumato technique, blurring images to create soft transitions. He sought human proportion and was also a prolific inventor.
Renaissance Sculpture: Idealism and Perfection
Quattrocento Sculpture
- Lorenzo Ghiberti: Applied the laws of perspective in his relief work.
- Donatello: Considered the greatest sculptor of the Quattrocento. He captured the Renaissance ideal of beauty and naturalism.
Cinquecento Sculpture
- Michelangelo: Created magnificent sculptures made of marble, achieving works that demonstrated anatomical perfection.
The Renaissance Across Europe (16th-17th Centuries)
The Renaissance spread across Europe, especially in the 16th century, although the Gothic style predominated in some areas until the 17th century.
Germany
- Albrecht Dürer: Introduced Renaissance principles to Germany, notably through his printmaking and portrait painting.
France
The Renaissance began during the reign of Francis I, who commissioned several castles along the Loire River.
Spain: Architecture and Unique Styles
In Spanish architecture, the Gothic style predominated until the 17th century. Notable early Renaissance buildings include the Palace of Charles V in the Alhambra (Granada) by Pedro Machuca, and the Cathedral of Granada.
Spanish Architectural Styles
- Herrerian Style
- Characterized by austerity and solemnity. Example: The Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial by Juan de Herrera. This building is said to reflect the personality of King Philip II.
- Plateresque Style
- Known for abundant and delicate ornamentation. It is called “Plateresque” because the decoration resembles “silver work.”
- Purist Style
- Less decorated and more sober than the Plateresque style.
Spanish Painting and Sculpture
Painting:
- El Greco: Known for religious paintings and portraits, featuring an original, dramatic style full of movement and a characteristic use of light and vibrant colors.
- Other painters showing Italian influence include Pedro Berruguete, Vicente Masip, Juan de Juanes, and Luis de Morales.
Sculpture:
A unique style developed where pieces were usually made of wood that was later painted (polychromed). Sculpture focused on realism and religious motifs for altarpieces and choir stalls.
- Alonso Berruguete: Famous for works like The Sacrifice of Isaac.
- Juan de Juni: Known for his dramatic realism.
The Low Countries (Flemish Renaissance)
Renaissance painting developed significantly here, driven by a wealthy middle class keen on art who commissioned paintings to decorate their homes.
Important Flemish Painters
- Jan and Hubert van Eyck: They initiated the Flemish School. They painted The Ghent Altarpiece. Jan van Eyck is also famous for The Arnolfini Portrait.
- Rogier van der Weyden
- Hieronymus Bosch
- Pieter Bruegel the Elder: Known for painting scenes of peasants and everyday life.