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What is Renaissance Art?
Known as the Renaissance, the period immediately following the Middle Ages in Europe saw
a great revival of interest in the classical learning and values of ancient Greece and Rome.
Against a backdrop of political stability and growing prosperity, the development of new
technologiesincluding the printing press, a new system of astronomy and the discovery
and exploration of new continentswas accompanied by a flowering of philosophy, literature
and especially art. The style of painting, sculpture and decorative arts identified with the
Renaissance emerged in Italy in the late 14th century; it reached its zenith in the late 15th
and early 16th centuries, in the work of Italian masters such as Leonardo da Vinci,
Michelangelo and Raphael. In addition to its expression of classical Greco-Roman traditions,
Renaissance art sought to capture the experience of the individual and the beauty and
mystery of the natural world.

ORIGINS OF RENAISSANCE ART

The origins of Renaissance art can be traced to Italy in the late 13th and early 14th
centuries. 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 such as Petrarch (1304-1374) and Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375)
looked back to ancient Greece and Rome and sought to revive the languages, values and
intellectual traditions of those cultures after the long period of stagnation that had followed
the fall of the Roman Empire in the sixth century. The Florentine painter Giotto (1267?1337), the most famous artist of the proto-Renaissance, made enormous advances in the
technique of representing the human body realistically. His frescoes were said to have
decorated cathedrals at Assisi, Rome, Padua, Florence and Naples, though there has been
difficulty attributing such works with certainty.

EARLY RENAISSANCE ART (1401-1490S)

In the later 14th century, the proto-Renaissance was stifled by plague and war, and its
influences did not emerge again until the first years of the next century. In 1401, the
sculptor Lorenzo Ghiberti (c. 1378-1455) won a major competition to design a new set of
bronze doors for the Baptistery of the cathedral of Florence, beating out contemporaries

such as the architect Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446) and the young Donatello (c. 13861466), who would later emerge as the master of early Renaissance sculpture.

The other major artist working during this period was the painter Masaccio (1401-1428),
known for his frescoes of the Trinity in the Church of Santa Maria Novella (c. 1426) and in
the Brancacci Chapel of the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine (c. 1427), both in Florence.
Masaccio painted for less than six years but was highly influential in the early Renaissance
for the intellectual nature of his work, as well as its degree of naturalism.

FLORENCE IN THE RENAISSANCE

Though the Catholic Church remained a major patron of the arts during the Renaissance
from popes and other prelates to convents, monasteries and other religious organizations
works of art were increasingly commissioned by civil government, courts and wealthy
individuals. Much of the art produced during the early Renaissance was commissioned by
the wealthy merchant families of Florence, most notably the Medici. From 1434 until 1492,
when Lorenzo de Mediciknown as the Magnificent for his strong leadership as well as his
support of the artsdied, the powerful family presided over a golden age for the city of
Florence. Pushed from power by a republican coalition in 1494, the Medici family spent
years in exile but returned in 1512 to preside over another flowering of Florentine art,
including the array of sculptures that now decorates the citys Piazza della Signoria.

HIGH RENAISSANCE ART (1490S-1527)

By the end of the 15th century, Rome had displaced Florence as the principal center of
Renaissance art, reaching a high point under the powerful and ambitious Pope Leo X (a son
of Lorenzo de Medici). Three great mastersLeonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael
dominated the period known as the High Renaissance, which lasted roughly from the early
1490s until the sack of Rome by the troops of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V of Spain in
1527. Leonardo (1452-1519) was the ultimate Renaissance man for the breadth of his
intellect, interest and talent and his expression of humanist and classical values. Leonardos
best-known works, including the Mona Lisa (1503-05), The Virgin of the Rocks (1485)
and the fresco The Last Supper (1495-98), showcase his unparalleled ability to portray
light and shadow, as well as the physical relationship between figureshumans, animals and
objects alikeand the landscape around them.
Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564) drew on the human body for inspiration and created

works on a vast scale. He was the dominant sculptor of the High Renaissance, producing
pieces such as the Piet in St. Peters Cathedral (1499) and the David in his native Florence
(1501-04). He carved the latter by hand from an enormous marble block; the famous statue
measures five meters high including its base. Though Michelangelo considered himself a
sculptor first and foremost, he achieved greatness as a painter as well, notably with his
giant fresco covering the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, completed over four years (1508-12)
and depicting various scenes from Genesis.

Raphael Sanzio, the youngest of the three great High Renaissance masters, learned from
both da Vinci and Michelangelo. His paintingsmost notably The School of Athens (150811), painted in the Vatican at the same time that Michelangelo was working on the Sistine
Chapelskillfully expressed the classical ideals of beauty, serenity and harmony. Among the
other great Italian artists working during this period were Bramante, Giorgione, Titian and
Correggio.

RENAISSANCE ART IN PRACTICE

Many works of Renaissance art depicted religious images, including subjects such as the
Virgin Mary, or Madonna, and were encountered by contemporary audiences of the period in
the context of religious rituals. Today, they are viewed as great works of art, but at the time
they were seen and used mostly as devotional objects. Many Renaissance works were
painted as altarpieces for incorporation into rituals associated with Catholic Mass and
donated by patrons who sponsored the Mass itself.
Renaissance artists came from all strata of society; they usually studied as apprentices
before being admitted to a professional guild and working under the tutelage of an older
master. Far from being starving bohemians, these artists worked on commission and were
hired by patrons of the arts because they were steady and reliable. Italys rising middle
class sought to imitate the aristocracy and elevate their own status by purchasing art for
their homes. In addition to sacred images, many of these works portrayed domestic themes
such as marriage, birth and the everyday life of the family.
EXPANSION AND DECLINE
Over the course of the 15th and 16th centuries, the spirit of the Renaissance spread
throughout Italy and into France, northern Europe and Spain. In Venice, artists such as
Giorgione (1477/78-1510) and Titian (1488/90-1576) further developed a method of
painting in oil directly on canvas; this technique of oil painting allowed the artist to rework

an imageas fresco painting (on plaster) did notand it would dominate Western art to the
present day. Oil painting during the Renaissance can be traced back even further, however,
to the Flemish painter Jan van Eyck (died 1441), who painted a masterful altarpiece in the
cathedral at Ghent (c. 1432). Van Eyck was one of the most important artists of the
Northern Renaissance; later masters included the German painters Albrecht Durer (14711528) and Hans Holbein the Younger (1497/98-1543).
By the later 1500s, the Mannerist style, with its emphasis on artificiality, had developed in
opposition to the idealized naturalism of High Renaissance art, and Mannerism spread from
Florence and Rome to become the dominant style in Europe. Renaissance art continued to
be celebrated, however: The 16th-century Florentine artist and art historian Giorgio Vasari,
author of the famous work Lives of the Most Eminent Painters, Sculptors and Architects
(1550), would write of the High Renaissance as the culmination of all Italian art, a process
that began with Giotto in the late 13th century.
What is Baroque Art?
In fine art, the term Baroque (derived from the Portuguese 'barocco' meaning, 'irregular
pearl or stone') describes a fairly complex idiom, originating in Rome, which flowered during
the period c.1590-1720, and which embraced painting, and sculpture as well
as architecture. After the idealism of the Renaissance (c.1400-1530), and the slightly
'forced' nature of Mannerism (c.1530-1600), Baroque art above all reflected the religious
tensions of the age - notably the desire of the Catholic Church in Rome (as annunciated at
the Council of Trent, 1545-63) to reassert itself in the wake of the Protestant Reformation.
Thus it is almost synonymous with Catholic Counter-Reformation Art of the period.
Many Catholic Emperors and monarchs across Europe had an important stake in the
Catholic Church's success, hence a large number of architectural designs, paintings and
sculptures were commissioned by the Royal Courts of Spain, France, and elsewhere - in
parallel to the overall campaign of CatholicChristian art, pursued by the Vatican - in order to
glorify their own divine grandeur, and in the process strengthen their political position. By
comparison, Baroque art in Protestant areas like Holland had far less religious content, and
instead was designed essentially to appeal to the growing aspirations of the merchant and
middle classes.
Styles/Types of Baroque Art
In order to fulfill its propagandist role, Catholic-inspired Baroque art tended to be large-scale
works of public art, such as monumental wall-paintings and huge frescoes for the ceilings
and vaults of palaces and churches. Baroque painting illustrated key elements of Catholic
dogma, either directly in Biblical works or indirectly in mythological or allegorical
compositions. Along with this monumental, high-minded approach, painters typically

portrayed a strong sense of movement, using swirling spirals and upward diagonals, and
strong sumptuous colour schemes, in order to dazzle and surprise. New techniques
of tenebrism and chiaroscuro were developed to enhance atmosphere. Brushwork is creamy
and broad, often resulting in thickimpasto. However, the theatricality and melodrama of
Baroque painting was not well received by later critics, like the influential John
Ruskin (1819-1900), who considered it insincere. Baroque sculpture, typically larger-thanlife size, is marked by a similar sense of dynamic movement, along with an active use of
space.
Baroque architecture was designed to create spectacle and illusion. Thus the straight lines
of the Renaissance were replaced with flowing curves, while domes/roofs were enlarged,
and interiors carefully constructed to produce spectacular effects of light and shade. It was
an emotional style, which, wherever possible, exploited the theatrical potential of the urban
landscape - as illustrated by St Peter's Square (1656-67) in Rome, leading up to St Peter's
Basilica. Its designer, Bernini, one of the greatest Baroque architects, ringed the square with
colonnades, to convey the impression to visitors that they are being embraced by the arms
of the Catholic Church.
As is evident, although most of the architecture, painting and sculpture produced during the
17th century is known as Baroque, it is by no means a monolithic style. There are at least
three different strands of Baroque, as follows:
(1) Religious Grandeur
A triumphant, extravagant, almost theatrical (and at times) melodramatic style of religious
art, commissioned by the Catholic Counter Reformation and the courts of the absolute
monarchies of Europe. This type of Baroque art is exemplified by the bold visionary
sculpture and architecture of Bernini (1598-1680), by the trompe l'oeil illusionistic ceiling
frescoes of Pietro da Cortona(1596-1669) and by the grandiose set-piece paintings of the
Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640).
(2) Greater Realism
A new more life-like or naturalist style of figurative composition. This new approach was
championed by Carravaggio (1571-1610), Francisco Ribalta(15651628), Velazquez (15991660) and Annibale Carracci (1560-1609). The boldness and physical presence of
Caravaggio's figures, the life-like approach to religious painting adopted by Velazquez, a
new form of movement and exuberance pioneered by Annibale Carracci, and a realistic form
of rustic Biblical genre painting, complete with animals, evolved by Castiglione (1609-64) all these elements were part of the new and dynamic style known as Baroque.
(3) Easel Art
Unlike the large-scale, public, religious works of Baroque artists in Catholic countries,
Baroque art in Protestant Holland (often referred to as the Dutch Golden Age) was
exemplified by a new type of easel-art - a glossy form ofgenre-painting - aimed at the
prosperous bourgeois householder. This newDutch Realist School of genre painting also led
to enhanced realism in portrait art and landscape painting, flower pictures, animal
compositions and, in particular, to new forms of still life painting, including the Protestant-

inspired genre known as vanitas painting (flourished 1620-50). Different towns and areas
had their own 'schools' or styles, such as Utrecht, Delft, Leiden, Amsterdam, Haarlem and
Dordrecht. In addition, to complicate matters further, Rome - the very centre of the
movement - was also home to a "classical" style, as exemplified in the paintings of the
history painter Nicolas Poussin (1594-1665) and the Arcadian landscape artist Claude
Lorrain (1600-82).
History of Baroque Art
Following the pronouncements made by the Council of Trent on how art might serve
religion, together with the upsurge in confidence in the Roman Catholic Church, it became
clear that a new style of Biblical art was necessary in order to support the Catholic Counter
Reformation and fully convey the miracles and sufferings of the Saints to the congregation
of Europe. This style had to be more forceful, more emotional and imbued with a greater
realism. Strongly influenced by the views of the Jesuits (the Baroque is sometimes referred
to as 'the Jesuit Style'), architecture, painting and sculpture were to work together to create
a unified effect. The initial impetus came from the arrival in Rome during the 1590s of
Annibale Carracci and Carravaggio (1571-1610). Their presence sparked a new interest
in realismas well as antique forms, both of which were taken up and developed (in
sculpture) by Alessandro Algardi (in sculpture) and Bernini (in sculpture and architecture).
Peter Paul Rubens, who remained in Rome until 1608, was the only great Catholic painter in
the Baroque idiom, although Rembrandt and other Dutch artists were influenced by
both Caravaggism and Bernini. France had its own (more secular) relationship with the
Baroque, which was closest in architecture, notably the Palace of Versailles. The key figure
in French Baroque art of the 17th century was Charles Le Brun (1619-90) who exerted an
influence far beyond his own metier. Spain and Portugal embraced it more enthusiastically,
as did the Catholic areas of Germany, Austria, Hungary and the Spanish Netherlands. The
culmination of the movement was the High Baroque (c.1625-75), while the apogee of the
movement's grandiosity was marked by the phenomenal quadratura known as Allegory of
the Missionary Work of the Jesuits (1688-94, S. Ignazio, Rome), by the illusionist ceiling
painter Andrea Pozzo (1642-1709). Surely one of the best Baroque paintingsof the 17th
century.
Naples, in 1600 the second largest city in Europe after Paris, was an important centre of
Counter-Reformation Baroque art. The Neapolitan School was developed by Caravaggio,
Ribera, Artemesia Gentileschi, Mattia Preti (1613-99) Luca Giordano(1634-1705), Francesco
Solimena (1657-1747) and others.
Note: It took longer for the Baroque style to reach Russia. Indeed, it wasn't until the period
of Petrine art in St Petersburg under Peter the Great (1686-1725), that architects like
Rastrelli, Domenico Trezzini, Andreas Schluter, Gottfried Schadel, Leblond, Michetti, and
Matarnovi began designing in the style of Russian Baroque.
For details of the development of Baroque art outside Italy, see:Flemish Baroque (c.160080), Dutch Baroque (c.1600-80) andSpanish Baroque (1600-1700).

By the end of the 17th century the grand Baroque style was in decline, as was its principal
sponsor, Italy. The coming European power was France, where a new and contrasting style
of decorative art was beginning to emerge. This light-hearted style soon enveloped
architecture, all forms of interior decoration, furniture, paint ing, sculpture and porcelain
design. It was known as Rococo.