Chapter 17
Renaissance Artists:
Disciples of Nature, Masters of Invention
Embrace of the natural world; lessons of antiquity
Revival of classical heritage
Spirit of individualism
da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo
realistic, concrete
II. Renaissance Art and Patronage
A. Catholic Church – traditional source of patronage
B. Merchant princes
C. Middle class patrons, urban centered guilds
D. Art as evidence of well being
E. Expression of extension of ego in age of individualism
F. The artist as craftsman
1. technician: grinding paints, making brushes
2. skills: copying images, forms
G. The artist as hero ex. da Vinci, genius
III. The Early Renaissance
A. Revival of the Classical Nude: Donatello, Botticelli
1. Study of Roman and Greek Statuary
2. Study of Human Anatomy
B. Classical Revival in Early Renaissance Architecture:
1. Brunelleschi, the Dome of Florence Cathedral
lantern, pilasters
2. symmetry, clarity
3. human form reflected order in the universe
C. The Renaissance Portrait
1. northern influences, recording documents
2. hidden symbolism, psychological portraits
3. open air (high Renaissance) vs. domestic interiors
4. life sized sculptures: Verrocchio
D. Early Renaissance Artist-Scientists
1. direct observation: examination, experimentation, record keeping
2. live studio models; study of human anatomy; natural light
3. rational inquiry à scientific analysis
4. picture plane: two-dimensional, transparent glass, window through technique of oil glazes
5. linear perspective: parallel lines converge at vanishing point on the horizon
a. from research in Arab science around 1420
Brunelleschi
b. stated mathematically and geometrically
Alberti in 1435; advanced by Leonardo & Dürer
c. fixed relationship: time and space
d. exact, accurate description of physcial world
e. Ghiberti’s Gates of Paradise
Vocabulary:
frescoe: painting medium to which colors are applied to wet plaster; image bonds with painting surface; used for murals
intarsia: inlay of various kinds of woods to achieve pictorial illusion, Figure 16.3
bas relief: relief sculpture, figures protrude slightly from a background, such as a coin
E. Leonardo d Vinci as Artist-Scientist
IV. The High Renaissance
A. Leonardo and Raphael
B. Architecture of the High Renaissance: Bramante and Palladio
C. Michelangelo and Heroic Idealism
D. The High Renaissance in Venice
V. The Music of the Renaissance
A. Early Renaissance Music: Dufay
A. High Renaissance Music: Josquin
B. The Madrigal
C. Instrumental Music of the Renaissance
D. Renaissance Dance
Summary