Sistine Chapel pictured above painted by Michelangelo
Renaissance Humanism and Art
The term "Renaissance" is the creation of the modern Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt ( his Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy was published in 1860). Petrarch (1304-1374), the father of humanism, already argued for a new age as early as the 1340's. One of the great painters of the medieval period, Giotto, acted as a powerful influence on later renaissance painters. Giotto most famous work was the fresco paintings in the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua shown below.
As the name suggests, humanist were fascinated by humans and their potential. The fabric of humanism is woven of several important strands:
Secularism- Humanists encouraged encouraged humans to focus their attention on the here-and-now, and less on the after world. Education, self-help manuals, and treatises on civility all reinforced the notion that humans stood to gain rewards. This was even displayed by artists while in their religious paintings glorified themselves more than god.
Classics- Ancient Greece and Rome acted as the moral center of many humanists'. Classics often scavenged ancient monasteries for evidence of the ancient way of life. The recovery of long lost Hellenistic sculpture Laocoon inspire Michelangelo masterpiece David.
Individualism- Idea of focus on learning and human affairs should involve the individual.This attitude can be observed in Castiglione's suggestion for achieving fame and wealth as well as the self-consciousness of Petrarch's verse.
Power- .Much of what humanists aimed to do was provide society with intellectual tools that could be used to master all skills.
Secularism- Humanists encouraged encouraged humans to focus their attention on the here-and-now, and less on the after world. Education, self-help manuals, and treatises on civility all reinforced the notion that humans stood to gain rewards. This was even displayed by artists while in their religious paintings glorified themselves more than god.
Classics- Ancient Greece and Rome acted as the moral center of many humanists'. Classics often scavenged ancient monasteries for evidence of the ancient way of life. The recovery of long lost Hellenistic sculpture Laocoon inspire Michelangelo masterpiece David.
Individualism- Idea of focus on learning and human affairs should involve the individual.This attitude can be observed in Castiglione's suggestion for achieving fame and wealth as well as the self-consciousness of Petrarch's verse.
Power- .Much of what humanists aimed to do was provide society with intellectual tools that could be used to master all skills.
Works in Oil, Marble, and Stone
Perspective- For centuries, artist had attempted to create realistic effect of three dimensional space, but their methods tended to be approximate. With the rediscovery of theories of optics and perspective geometry, Renaissance painters were able to achieve striking realistic features.
Naturalism- The Renaissance focus on the human body was reflected in its portrayal on canvas and stone. Painters and Sculptors gave increased attention to musculature and movement of the human body. This emphasis is clearly seen in Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel, where the master achieves a heroic view of the humans, and also in da Vince's sketches from anatomical dissection.
Artist
Donatello (1386-1466): Donatello revived the free-standing sculpture. His depiction of David is the first full-size statue cast in bronze since ancient times.
Masaccio (1401-1428):Masaccio portrayed perspective geometry for the first time in his Holy Trinity.
Fillipo Brunelleschi (1377-1446): Brunelleschi expressed his interest in all the arts, but by far his greatest achievement was the massive dome (il Duomo) he created on the cathedral in Florence.
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519): Perhaps the foremost "Renaissance Man" da Vinci gained fame for just a few paintings- Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and Madonna of the Rocks.
Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564): Michelangelo excelled in all artistic media- sculpture (David, Pieta), painting (Sistine Chapel, Last Judgement), and architecture (St. Peter's Basilica Dome, Laurentian Library).
Raphael (1483-1520): The youngest of the great masters, often considered to rival of Michelangelo. Raphael's School of Athens stands as a tribute to the ancient world and his fellow artist.
Naturalism- The Renaissance focus on the human body was reflected in its portrayal on canvas and stone. Painters and Sculptors gave increased attention to musculature and movement of the human body. This emphasis is clearly seen in Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel, where the master achieves a heroic view of the humans, and also in da Vince's sketches from anatomical dissection.
Artist
Donatello (1386-1466): Donatello revived the free-standing sculpture. His depiction of David is the first full-size statue cast in bronze since ancient times.
Masaccio (1401-1428):Masaccio portrayed perspective geometry for the first time in his Holy Trinity.
Fillipo Brunelleschi (1377-1446): Brunelleschi expressed his interest in all the arts, but by far his greatest achievement was the massive dome (il Duomo) he created on the cathedral in Florence.
Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519): Perhaps the foremost "Renaissance Man" da Vinci gained fame for just a few paintings- Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, and Madonna of the Rocks.
Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564): Michelangelo excelled in all artistic media- sculpture (David, Pieta), painting (Sistine Chapel, Last Judgement), and architecture (St. Peter's Basilica Dome, Laurentian Library).
Raphael (1483-1520): The youngest of the great masters, often considered to rival of Michelangelo. Raphael's School of Athens stands as a tribute to the ancient world and his fellow artist.
Northern Renaissance and Christian Humanism
Renaissance began in Italy but quickly spread via the new printing press and along trade routes to the rest of Europe. It was particularly strong in the Low Countries (today's Netherlands and Belgium). Though northern humanist employed the same tactics of textual analysis and criticism as their Italian neighbors, their emphasis tended to be on Christian readings, such as the bible, but also included the writings of early church fathers such as St. Augustine. For this reason northern humanism is often called Christian humanism.In general, Christian humanist were critical of the abuse in the Catholic church. They urged for reform from within through education years before Luther demanded change. Amidst the death and destruction of the fourteenth and fifteenth century Christians became obsessed with securing eternal life. On one hand, this fear fed the mechanical exercises of indulgences, relic variation and pilgrimages. In a positive sense many Christians wanted to have a meaningful relationship with God. Some turned to mysticism-- the belief that a Christian could bridge the gap between himself and the almighty. A popular book in this regard was Kempis's Imitation of Christ which provided daily exercises to communicate directly with God.In the Low Countries and Germany, an organization of laypersons called the Brothers and Sisters of the Common Life ministered to the poor, founded schools for the education of character and supported one another in a Christian life style. Clearly religion remained very important, if vibrant new protestant ideas had not disrupted religion, Catholicism may have faded slowly.
Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536) stood as the most famous intellectual of his day, and today his name remains a symbol of tolerance and scholarship. With humor and style, Erasmus poked fun at the clergy and its abuses in works such as Praise the Folly, which was even put on the Index of prohibited books. Erasmus's primary message, lay in the power of education to promote true reverence for God and in living out the Gospel message. It is often said "Erasmus laid the egg that Luther hatched".
Perhaps no intellectual better bridges the gap between the medieval and modern worlds than Thomas More (1478-1535). More's talents brought him to the attention of the monarchy, where he served in Parliament and as the first non-clerical Lord Chancellor (highest judicial position in England). More's literary fame rests primarily on Utopia, a satire of a sixteenth-century European society, and vision of better life based on communal living. More was also willing to die for his beliefs, which occurred when he opposed Henry VIII's takeover of the Catholic church. The scholar's last days were spent in the Tower of London, before his beheading in 1535.
Desiderius Erasmus (1466-1536) stood as the most famous intellectual of his day, and today his name remains a symbol of tolerance and scholarship. With humor and style, Erasmus poked fun at the clergy and its abuses in works such as Praise the Folly, which was even put on the Index of prohibited books. Erasmus's primary message, lay in the power of education to promote true reverence for God and in living out the Gospel message. It is often said "Erasmus laid the egg that Luther hatched".
Perhaps no intellectual better bridges the gap between the medieval and modern worlds than Thomas More (1478-1535). More's talents brought him to the attention of the monarchy, where he served in Parliament and as the first non-clerical Lord Chancellor (highest judicial position in England). More's literary fame rests primarily on Utopia, a satire of a sixteenth-century European society, and vision of better life based on communal living. More was also willing to die for his beliefs, which occurred when he opposed Henry VIII's takeover of the Catholic church. The scholar's last days were spent in the Tower of London, before his beheading in 1535.
Writers and Philosophers
Leonardo Bruni (1369-1444): Bruni studied under Chrysoloras, a Greek scholar who had escaped the Byzantine Empire , and translated Greek text into Latin. Bruni is most famous for his admiration of Cicero, the Roman statesman and model of civic virtue.
Lorenzo Valla (1406-1457): Valla excelled in the discipline of Philology, or the study of ancient languages. Through textual analysis he exposed that the "Donation of Constantine" which supposedly gave the pope power over political bodies, was a forgery.
Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494): A revival of Plato's philosophy occurred during the Renaissance, and there is no better example of this than Mirandola's "Oration on the dignity of Man" Neo-Platonism help that humans had once shared a divine nature and through they had freely chosen to enter the material world, they could retain some divinity through intellectual and spiritual regeneration.
Lorenzo de'Medici (1499-1492): Known as Lorenzo "the Magnificent" Lorenzo ruled Florence during its Golden Age. A strong advocate for civic humanism and a man of diverse interests, he is most famous for this patronage of intellectuals and arts. His untimely death in 1492 led to the invasion of Italy by foreign power, as well as the decline of Renaissance culture in Florence.
Lorenzo Valla (1406-1457): Valla excelled in the discipline of Philology, or the study of ancient languages. Through textual analysis he exposed that the "Donation of Constantine" which supposedly gave the pope power over political bodies, was a forgery.
Pico della Mirandola (1463-1494): A revival of Plato's philosophy occurred during the Renaissance, and there is no better example of this than Mirandola's "Oration on the dignity of Man" Neo-Platonism help that humans had once shared a divine nature and through they had freely chosen to enter the material world, they could retain some divinity through intellectual and spiritual regeneration.
Lorenzo de'Medici (1499-1492): Known as Lorenzo "the Magnificent" Lorenzo ruled Florence during its Golden Age. A strong advocate for civic humanism and a man of diverse interests, he is most famous for this patronage of intellectuals and arts. His untimely death in 1492 led to the invasion of Italy by foreign power, as well as the decline of Renaissance culture in Florence.
Renaissance for Women
For the most part, the accepted notion was that women's focus lay in the domestic sphere. More enlightened humanist favored women's education, but even this never equaled the type of education men had. Nonetheless, women often played a key political roles, especially when their statesman husbands were off at war. In some ways the status of women declined from the Middle Ages, as they came to be viewed as objects of art or pawns of marriage alliances. Some famous humanist and early feminist did leave a mark:
Christine de Pisan (1364-1431): A French noblewomen, de Pisan is believed to have published one of the first modern statements of feminism, The City of Ladies, which defends women's intellectual capabilities. She may have also been the first female to make a living of her writings.
Isabella d'Este (1474-1539): Often called the "First Lady of the World" d'Este married into the famous Gonzaga family of Mantua. After her husband departed of war, d'Este conducted diplomacy on his behalf and often behind his back. She also founded schools for girls, attract humanists to her court, and write hundreds of letters of literary quality.
*** Great person to use for AP Exam question
Christine de Pisan (1364-1431): A French noblewomen, de Pisan is believed to have published one of the first modern statements of feminism, The City of Ladies, which defends women's intellectual capabilities. She may have also been the first female to make a living of her writings.
Isabella d'Este (1474-1539): Often called the "First Lady of the World" d'Este married into the famous Gonzaga family of Mantua. After her husband departed of war, d'Este conducted diplomacy on his behalf and often behind his back. She also founded schools for girls, attract humanists to her court, and write hundreds of letters of literary quality.
*** Great person to use for AP Exam question