European Renaissance & Reformation

Renaissance Art & Writing

Classical & Worldly values

• Humanism: movement which focuses on human potential & achievements

• Secular: worldly rather than spiritual; concerned with the here & now

• Patrons of the arts financially supported artists

Renaissance writers change literature

• Writing in the vernacular: native language instead of Latin– Influential writers in Italy

include Dante, Petrarch– Niccolo Machiavelli writes

The Prince: examines how a ruler can gain & keep power

Everyone thinks

I’m a jerk! But I’m not!

The Northern Renaissance• Northern writers try

to reform society– Desiderius Erasmus &

Thomas More = Christian humanists

– Thomas More writes Utopia: tries to show a better model of society

Printing Press spreads ideas

• Johann Gutenberg develops a printing press with new technologies– Printing press makes it possible to

produce books quickly & cheaplyI have two

beards in one!

• Changes in Society–Printing made information available &

inexpensive for society at large– Availability of books prompted increased desire

for learning & a rise in literacy throughout Europe

– Published accounts of maps, discoveries, & charts led to further discoveries

– Published legal proceedings made laws clear so people could understand their rights

– Christian humanists’ attempts to reform society changed views about how life should be lived

– People began to question political structures & religious practices

The Legacy of the Renaissance

• Changes in the Arts– Art drew on techniques & styles of

classical Greece & Rome– Paintings & sculptures portrayed

individuals & nature in more lifelike ways– Artists created works that were secular

as well as works that were religious– Writers began to use vernacular

languages to express their ideas– The arts praised individual achievement

Characteristics: 1. Realism & Expression

� Expulsion fromthe Garden

� Masaccio� 1427

� First nudes sinceclassical times.

2. Perspective

First use of linear

perspective!

�The Trinity�Masaccio�1427

3. Classicism� Greco-Roman

influence.� Secularism.� Humanism.� Individualism free

standing figures.� Symmetry/Balance

The “Classical Pose”Medici “Venus”

4. Selfies

� Batista Sforza & Federico de Montefeltre: The Duke & Dutchess of Urbino

� Piero della Francesca, 1465-1466.

5. Geometrical Arrangement of Figures

� The Dreyfus Madonna with the Pomegranate

� Leonardo da Vinci� 1469

� The figure as architecture!

How do you know if an artwork is good?

• Use the 4 steps in art criticism.– Description– Analysis– Interpretation– Evaluation

While viewing artwork ask yourself….

1.What do I see? (Description)2.How is the work organized?

(Analysis)3.What is the artist saying?

(Interpretation)4.In this a successful work of art?

(Judgment)

1.) Description (What do I See?)

• Make a list of all the things you see in the work.

• You must be objective, list only the facts.

• Include the size of the work and medium used, color, line, shading, focal point etc.

American Gothic, 1930; Oil on beaverboard; 74.3 x 62.4 cm; Friends of American Art Collection, 1930.934

2.) Analysis (How is the work organized?)

• You are still collecting facts, however, attention is paid to the elements and principles.

• You discover how the work is organized.

3.) Interpretation(What is the artist saying?)

• You will explain or tell the meaning or mood of the work. It is in this step that you can make guesses.

4.) Judgment(Is this a successful work of art?)

• You determine the degree of artistic merit.

• This is the time to give your opinions.

HOMEWORK…..Yes It Will Be Checked & Graded

Part 1: Go to Biography.comList 4 facts about each painter on the back of your chart

Part 2 Go to http://www.artcyclopedia.com/Pick ONE of the famous paintings/sculptures today & give the history behind it!