A Time of Individual Expression and Worldly Experience….The Renaissance Movement
The Renaissance, referring to rebirth and cultural revolution that took place between the late fourteenth and mid-seventeenth centuries, served as a cultural bridge between the Middle Ages and modern history. Many aspects led to this change from the Middles Ages to the Renaissance. This movement describes the revival of interest in artistic achievements in the Classical world. Many artists developed the passion of acknowledging mankind in nature. According to History.com, “…Renaissance art sought to capture the experience of the individual and the beauty and mystery of the natural world”. THESIS STATEMENT
In terms of Renaissance, “ Humanists or umanisti were practitioners of the studia humanitatis or liberal arts: grammar, poetry, rhetoric, history, and moral philosophy” (“Humanism: Renaissance”). Humanism first became known through scholar Francesco Petrarca and his ideals. “Humanism, also known as Renaissance Humanism, was an intellectual movement embraced by scholars, writers, and civic leaders in 14th- and early-15th-century Italy. Humanism primarily began as a literary movement, but its influence quickly spread to re-introduce classical Greek and Roman art. Humanism ultimately influenced contributed to the growth of the Renaissance movement. “Humanists considered the ancient world to be the pinnacle of human achievement, and thought its accomplishments should serve as the model for contemporary Europe” (“Boundless Art History”). This movement was considered an optimistic philosophy “that saw man as a rational and sentient being, with the ability to decide and think for himself” (“Boundless Art History”). It was believed that man was good by nature. The Humanism greatly influenced the Renaissance movement in so many ways.
The Renaissance period was identified through a lengthy variety of characteristics. During the Renaissance era, the Church of England and the Jesuit Order of Roman Catholic Priests originated. The movement, mainly characterized by the rediscovery of ancient philosophy, art, and science, had been neglected or censored in the Middle Ages. This movement also had emphasis on an individual’s ability, also known as the humanism belief. Great artworks of this period emphasized balance, proportion, and harmony. A revival of interest in ancient texts and ideas was best reflected in the art, music, and literature of this influential period. Renaissance literature focused generally on religion, classic antiquity, scholarship, and politics. Sonnets, a popular style of poetry, and comedy also became a popular genre during this time. Painters began to veer away from religious themes and focused more on people and landscapes. Johann Gutenberg’s reinvention of the printing press in the 1450s became extremely important for this era for these reasons: more people published books, the spread of technology and information caused people to experiment with new ideas, recording information, and overall the spreading of new information (“Johannes Gutenberg”). Italian scholar Petrarch, born Francesco Petrarca, referred to as the “Father of Humanism”, revitalized interested in the classical thought of the Greeks and Romans during this movement as well. A scholar and poet and with humanist philosophy, he set the stage for the Renaissance, as well as becoming known as one of the fathers of the modern Italian language. Petrarch’s philosophy indeed helped spark the Renaissance. “Renaissance art sought to capture the experience of the individual and the beauty and the mystery of the natural world” (“Renaissance Art.”). Artists used a combination of accurate and believable proportions and spaces to create a realistic, three-dimensional representation of the world. Some paintings have a geometric pattern that gives an illusion of deep space, also referred to as the reference point. Renaissance artists reinvented the way paintings were created through new techniques, such as linear perspective. According to Encyclopedia Britannica, “linear perspective is a system of creating an illusion of depth on a flat surface”. The subject matter of Renaissance art, normally religious and a continuous narrative, displayed multiple events at different movement from the same story within a single canvas. Renaissance art and literature flourished during this time and brought new beginning through their origins and the invention of new technology, techniques, and ideas.
The origins of Renaissance art can be traced back to the late thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries in Italy. History.com states that “During this so-called “proto-Renaissance” period (1280-1400), Italian scholars and artists saw themselves as reawakening to the ideals and achievements of classical Roman culture”. Writers of this time, specifically the thirteenth century, reflected upon ancient Greece and Rome and strived to restore the languages, values, and intellectual traditions after the lack of development that occurred after the fall of the Roman Empire during the sixth century. The most famous proto-Renaissance artist, Florentine painter Giotto di Bondone, worked to improve and further develop the techniques of realistically representing the human body. He focused heavily on emotion and the natural representations of the human body. Best known for the frescos he painted in the Arena Chapel, he was often referred to as the “Father of the Renaissance”. TRANSITION SENTENCE
A few ideas concerning the dominant ideology, fueled the Renaissance movement. The change from the Age of Faith to the Age of Reason served as a hallmark of the Renaissance. During the middle ages the issue of faith vs. reason set the direction for much of philosophy. Theologians believed that reason offered nothing and that religious truth was discovered through faith and faith alone. St. Thomas Aquinas, the greatest medieval philosopher, sought to show the harmony between faith and reason. He believed “Reason covers what we can know by experience and logic alone” and “Faith covers what we can know by God’s special revelation to us.” (http://www.harryhiker.com/re/r-a4–00.htm )These revelations would come from what we were taught through Bible scriptures. Aquinas believed that both faith and reason bring us to the truth and are in harmony with each other. Starting in the fifteenth century, many Italians thought that if they could revive the ideas, art, and architecture from the past, it could bring about a “rebirth” of distinction in their own cities. The result was the Renaissance. The Renaissance is named for its revival of classical civilization and learning. Most consider it to have started in Italy and it eventually spread across to Europe over the next two centuries. In a philosophical understanding, the Renaissance signifies a movement away from Christianity and a movement towards Humanism (ADD CITATION). The idea of focusing more on personal power rather than viewing the world as a gateway to the Christian afterlife began with the Humanism movement. CLOSING SENTENCE
Although best known for its cultural and artistic advancements, the Italian Renaissance offered a period of significant scientific progress also. Galileo Galilei received credit for the invention of the telescope. After he heard about the Dutch lens that allowed further magnification of objects, he began his construction on the telescope. He used it to detect heavenly objects. Evangelista Torricelli, known for inventing the working barometer, recognized the effects of changes in air pressure on water levels. Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci drew up designs for a parachute two-hundred-years prior to Louis-Sébastien Leonardo’s first practical parachute. The magnetic compass, another important invention, helped spur the growth of civilization. Although it was originally invented by the Chinese, it was improved upon during the early Renaissance era. Galileo Galilei invented the telescope to observe heavenly objects. He felt amazed and astonished that this was even possible. Johannes Guttenberg developed the first printing press and completed his invention in AD 1440. The invention of the printing press led to a spread of knowledge and culture across the world. The Renaissance movement signified cultural innovation and the exploration of new creations and ideas.
The endless examples of representative writers and artists within this movement began in the late fourteenth century. Representative authors include Elizabeth Carey, Desiderius Erasmus, William Shakespeare, Dante Alighieri, Geoffrey Chaucer, John Milton, John Donne, and Christopher Marlowe. Elizabeth Carey is remembered as the first women to write a play in the English language. Desiderius Erasmus wrote completely in Latin. Erasmus’s most known work was The Praise of Folly, which influenced many Humanist writers. Shakespeare wrote over thirty plays, including Hamlet, Macbeth, and Julius Caesar. Dante Alighieri wrote The Divine Comedy and Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Falls. “The Renaissance (from the French word for "rebirth") refers to the emergence and new interest in classical Greek and Roman texts and culture that took place between the Middle Ages and the modern period” (Literary Movements for Students: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Literary Movements). While ignored during the Middle Ages, the classical style of learning returned in the literature of the Renaissance era.
Renaissance art in Europe combined influences of “an increased awareness of nature, a revival of classical learning, and a more individualistic view of man” (“Renaissance Art”). Representative artists of the Renaissance movement include Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donato Bramante, and Donatello. Leonardo da Vinci, referred to as the “Renaissance man” (“Renaissance Art”), worked to practice all the visual arts and studied an extensive variety of topics. Leonardo da Vinci, known for the paintings he completed includes the Mona Lisa, The Virgin of the Rocks, and The Last Supper (a deteriorated fresco). Michelangelo is best known for his giant ceiling fresco of the Sistine Chapel. Some of his sculptures include the Pietà (a representation of the Virgin Mary mourning over the dead body of Christ) and the David. Raphael’s greatest work is the School of Athen, a large fresco that brings together Aristotelian and Platonic schools. Donato Bramante, the creator of High Renaissance architecture, created his first masterpiece, the Tempietto. This masterpiece exemplified a centralized dome structure that recalls classical temple architecture. Donatello is known for his Saint Mark statue. During the Renaissance movement, there were several influential artists that contributed and reflected the focus of this prominent movement.
The ideology of the Renaissance movement can be connected through technique, subject matter, and artistic vision. As for technique, typically the artists would work from a top corner of the painting and gradually apply the paint from top to bottom, working a new stage each day until completion. The egg tempera painting technique was the main method of applying paint to a canvas throughout the early Renaissance. The oil painting technique, becaming dominant in the 15th and 16th centuries as well, remains as an artist favorite use of medium. Some artists say that “perhaps it is the medium of oil that has created the most significant impact on the development of painting as visual art form” (“Oil Paint”). It is believed that oil paints were first used as far back as the thirteenth century. During the fifteenth century Jan van Eyck, a Belgian painter, developed it for modern use. He developed a way to create vibrant oil colors through mixing pigments with linseed and nut oils. The Renaissance era, referred to as the “Golden Age of painting” (“Oil Paint”), represented a time when artists further developed and established technique that provided the medium of oil to emerge. This offered them the ability to create realistic images by presenting the intensity of human emotions. Oil paints have continued to develop with time and new discoveries, but Renaissance artists began an era of using oil paints to inspire, intrigue, and expressions visions and goals. TRANSITION SENTENCE
As for subject matter, the focus of the Renaissance, a time of great works of art and literature, served as the beginning of a new idea called Humanism. While several changes in art, architecture, politics, science, and literature took place during this era, the two main themes of Renaissance art remained individual expression and worldly experience. For artistic vision, writers and artists worked to express the mankind of nature and in terms of visual arts, humanism symbolized the emergence of the individual being. Renaissance artists came from all ranks of society, “they usually studied as apprentices before being admitted to a professional guild and working under the tutelage of an old master” (“Renaissance Art”). A large amount of Renaissance art depicted religious images. Viewed as devotional subjects during this time, but today are viewed as great works of art.
“The Renaissance focuses on art as a highly individualized experience that inheres within specific, intense moments” (“The Renaissance: Studies in Art and History”). The Tower of Babel is a painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder. Pieter Bruegel accomplished and completed an extraordinary amount of artwork. His painting, The Tower of Babel is the second of three versions of the biblical Tower of Babel as told in the book of Genesis in the Bible. The three different versions reflect the 16th century Renaissance architecture. This painting could be about one man’s success and the dangers that come along with it. It gives off a prolonged look. Not sure what this means. All things created and the power of wealth that we have is nothing without God. The lower left corner of the painting may represent a king possibly controlling the building of this tower while the workers, carving stone and at the same time bowing down to this king. Pieter Bruegel’s work of the Tower of Babel became the most famous and recognized depictions of the Tower of Babel. The painting exemplifies many forms of importance, such as themes of humanism, which refers to the Renaissance movement. From studying the painting, I notice that the tower isn’t completely centered and looks as if it is leaning to one side, alluding to even a possible collapse. This painting uses a variety of warm colors, from the top of the tower being a bold dark red color to contrasting with the soft light blue sky in the background. The tower appears to be so massive and solid but leaning slightly to the left. I wonder if this massive tower was even completely finished because at the center there appears uncut rock, some areas look complete, and on other areas there appears scaffolding. In the piece you can see small figures, presumably men, working everywhere and a sense of trading on the ships. Everyone in this painting is doing something, whether carving or trading, there appears an idea of complete futility of human endeavor.
Followers of the Renaissance movement focused on themes of nature, love and beauty, time, and death. Sonnet 18, Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?, by William Shakespeare was published in 1609. Shakespeare demonstrates his humanist nature in the sonnet. It relates back to the human body, referring to the idea of humanism and nature. He compares her beauty to the buds of a blossoming tree, as well as her complexion to a cloud, but acknowledges that beauty fades. Shakespeare talks of a fast fleeting summer and the hot sun, which refers back to the theme of nature. Nature acts as a prominent theme in Renaissance literature and his choice of diction reflects that. I believe that he points out how humanity is the source of the living universe with particular objects that serve as a need to humanity. Shakespeare places value on nonliving objects and strengthens the greatness of mankind. The respect and importance of the Renaissance movement is conveyed through the lines and diction of the sonnet. The structure of this Shakespearean sonnet consists of fourteen lines in iambic pentameter. Each and every line is stops, rather than flowing into the next line. There are three quatrains in which the third quatrain experiences a shift in tone and sets up a couplet, eventually wrapping up the sonnet. The first two quatrains present the idea of the eventual decay of beauty. The last quatrain and couplet address the conflict by presenting the idea of immorality through literature. From the very beginning of the poem, the author sets up a contrast between his beloved in relation to a summer’s day. Shakespeare incorporated two expressive metaphors within this sonnet. “Sometime too hot the eye of the heaven shines,” (ln. 5) describes an imperfection of a summer day, with it being too hot, and the woman is superior too. “And often is his gold complexion dimm’d” (ln. 6), which implies the suns imperfection if it isn’t hot enough. William Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18 strongly emphasizes and correlates with the ideas of the Renaissance movement.
The Renaissance movement/period was very influential in the development of art and literature. It served as a groundbreaking period of new explorations that greatly influenced that day and age and has continued to prosper and flourish throughout time. The Renaissance, which started in Italy and spread to other countries of Europe, had a deep impact on art, architecture, science, and above all, human thinking. Renaissance art and architecture continues to dominate our visual word with great works of art. Art principles were thoroughly explored and allowed for new creation and more realistic illusions. The Renaissance truly connected the past, the present, and the future together and showed the importance of continual innovation. The Renaissance movement provided a diverse and influential impact on the era and for centuries thereafter.