Renaissance Art

Renaissance Art

Rule of Art: Literature and painting in the Renaissance is written by Clark Hulse. Clark Hulse is Professor of English and Art History and Dean of the Graduate College at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He has written on approaches to teaching Renaissance culture, including multimedia and online techniques. Therefore, the author is qualified to write this book. His research in English Renaissance literature and art history has been supported by different fellowships and grants from the British Academy and College Art Association.

The time known as the Renaissance brought about many changes in the art world. Brilliant ideas and artists paved the way for some of the most famous artists of all time. For centuries, most scholars have agreed that the modern era of human history began with the Renaissance. The artist has a profound respect for art, but his goal was the expression of truth or truths. In that respect he fits into the whole tradition of Catholic art. And yet they were all powerfully isolated, which is uncharacteristic of church artists through the ages.

First, the word Renaissance. Renaissance means "a renewal of activity, interest, or enthusiasms about something, rebirth, revival." This word came from a Latin word rinascere meaning "reborn". The Renaissance was a great cultural movement or "rebirth" that began in Italy during the 14th century. It spread from Italy, to France, Germany, England and Spain. One may ask what were they being reborn from. A reason most of the European countries were "dead" was because of the "Black Death", a disease that spread throughout the land, which left many without hope or ambition ( Hulse,232). Another reason for the rise of painting and the arts was because they wanted to recapture that spirit of the Greek and Roman cultures in the own artistic, literary, and philosophic works or art. One god used most often was Venus, the goddess of love and fertility. Venus is the mother of Cupid, the little god of love.

The Renaissance era brought many new techniques to the art world. One of the most important was perspective. The art of perspective is the representation of solid objects and three-dimensional space according to your optical perception. The laws of perspective are based upon converging lines meeting at a single fixed vanishing point. It also states that objects appear smaller as they recede into the distance.

The second most noted discovery during this period was the human figure. Medieval artists painted figures that looked stiff and unrealistic. Which often-served symbolic religious purposes but they had no life to them. Artists all throughout the land started drawing pictures and figures that were nude. What once would have been frowned upon, now was respected and highly thought of as beauty.

Another technique made was Fresco painting. Fresco painting is when damp plaster is used instead of a canvas. Many of the most famous paintings ever done were frescos, though now in the 21st century many of them are in great need of repair. Two of the most famous artists ever to live used all of these methods. They were Michaelangelo Buonarotti and Leonardo DaVinci. Michaelangelo was born in 1475 in a small town. His most famous works range from the David in Florence, to the Pieta in Rome and the Sistine Chapel in Italy. Many people forget Michaelangelo as a sculptor because the Sistine Chapel was his most famous work. He believed "that painting should mimic as nearly as possible the rounded, three-dimensional forms achieved in sculpture." (Michaelangelo, World History Book). Michaelangelo was quick to become upset, so relationships with other people were hard to come by. He was also a homosexual and was always forced with guilt. As he grew older, his sins bore harder and harder on him and he fell into great despair.

Between the years 1501-1504 when making David, the biblical character, the people of Florence were facing problems from outside threats to the city. He sculpted it in remembrance of God's