TJ Aaron

HUM M10B
Professor Slattum

Development of the Renaissance

The Renaissance spread quickly throughout out Europe, but developed a little differently in
regards to art and literature Southern and Northern Europe. In Southern Europe, paintings either
featured portraits of people with light, smooth skin who wore clothes that were painted with soft lines
and bright colors to be easier on the eyes. There were also grander pieces made during this time that
were mainly religious in nature with a few exceptions. Literature in Southern Europe at this time
focused on the individual and ambition with such writings like Machiavelli's The Prince or Cellini's
The Autobiography. In Northern Europe portraits used darker colors to make their subjects seem paler
and had more realistic features like creases in the face or eyes that were sunken in. Their bigger pieces
while still containing religious works mainly focused on the peasant class and the everyday person.
Northern European literature talked mostly about the various shortcomings of humanity and its
institutions, especially the church as in Martin Luthers 95 Theses.
Beginning in Southern Europe, one of the paintings that really showed the use of soft lines and
smooth facial features was Battista Sforza by Piero della Francesca (Arts and Culture, pg. 14). This
piece uses a lot of soft, light colors in the woman's face and hair, as well as the solid black of her dress
to make her face pop and appear to be almost glowing. The artist also used a lot of light colors in the
backdrop of the painting for the sky over a darker landscape to bring even more attention to the
woman's face and match the lighting of her clothes and face. Battista Sforza is a classic example of the
style of Southern Renaissance portraits, especially those made in and around Italy where most of the art
from the Southern Renaissance was produced.

One of the most famous paintings to come out of the Renaissance as a whole was
Michelangelo's The Last Judgment ( Art and Culture, pg. 25). This work also captured the art style and
theme of the larger paintings of the Southern Renaissance, epic depictions of religious stories and
events. The work depicts God casting his final judgment on humanity while humans are either
scrambling to ascend to his side or are being dragged to Earth either by demons or other humans.
Where as Michelangelo's paintings are usually positive, this one in particular is quite negative and
reflects the attitude of the church at the time as it was somewhat fixated on judgment and punishment
of sinners. This work really encompasses all of the technical and thematic elements seen in the
Southern Renaissance.
In Machiavelli's The Prince there is a much different theme on display, personal ambition.
While the writing itself isn't focused on Machiavelli it was written in an attempt to gain favor with the
then ruler of Florence, Lorenzo de Medici. The writing details all the tenants and ideals a prince or
ruler should follow in order to rule effectively. The Prince also details Italy outside of the realm of art
where rulers and other nobles were constantly in conflict with one another for power, prestige, and
favor with the church. Really this kind of literature was typical of the Southern Renaissance as many
authors tried to leave their marks alongside artists.
Northern Europe's Renaissance had a few differences when it came to art and literature
compared to Southern Europe. Portrait of a Lady by Caterina van Hemessen (Arts and Culture, pg. 66)
is a good example of the art style of Northern European portraits. The color palette of the piece is very
dark overall with a few very pale light colors used in the woman's face to make her appear even paler
than she would normally. There are also more details in her face that make her look more realistically
human, however this combined with the colors used make the entire piece look cold. That sense of
coldness is further amplified by the entirely black background which leaves a feeling of a void behind
the woman, like she's the only thing left in the world. This kind of portrait is typical of the Northern
European Renaissance as it shows the subject in a more human portrayal using dark colors.

Regarding the larger scale paintings of the Northern Renaissance, the work Harvesters by Pieter
Bruegel (Art and Culture, pg. 67) captures a common theme presented during this time in the working
class person. The piece itself features some peasants harvesting wheat in a large field, the people's faces
show little detail but still maintain a degree of individualism through their actions and clothes in the
painting. One of the main parts of this piece is the fantastic use of depth to show just how large the
fields and town are and to really give the viewer a feel for what the landscape was like in the painting.
This work is also one of the more human paintings of the Renaissance as it shows regular people going
about a mundane and routine task without including anything grandiose or religious outside of a church
on one of the hills.
Next, the Northern Renaissance also had its fair share of important literary works during this
time, one of the most influential being 95 Theses by Martin Luther. This work is extremely important
as it signaled the real beginning of the Protestant movement against the Catholic church which has
continued to influence the growth of Christianity even today. The piece itself is a kind of outline about
all of the problems with the Catholic church and in particular, indulgences. This was also one of the
most controversial works of literature of its time as it went against what the church was preaching at
the time, and to go against the church in that time period was something no one did.
As has been shown, despite the Renaissance taking place and affecting all of Europe, however
the way it progressed in Northern and Southern Europe was quite different. In Southern Europe, art
featured people with few imperfections and very smooth, light skin, while the usual theme in these
pieces were biblical events and scenes. Literature in Southern Europe by contrast was largely about the
individual and personal ambition and gain. Meanwhile in Northern Europe, art was focused more on
plain people and the working class, and had darker, more human looking portraits. Northern literature
was somber and had an overarching theme of the follies of mankind, this time period also produced
works that directly questioned the teachings of the Catholic church. The Renaissance in both parts of
Europe produced many great and important works despite the differences in style.

Works Cited

Benton, Janetta Rebold, and Robert DiYanni. Arts and Culture: An Introduction to
the

Humanities. 4th ed. Vol. 2. Boston: Prentice Hall, 2012. Print.