The Renaissance1300-1500

Terms, People, and Places to Know

• Humanism Patron

• Humanities Perspective

• Petrarch Leonardo da Vinci

• Florence Michelangelo

• Raphael Baladassare Castiglione

• Niccolo Machiavelli

A New Age

• Expression in thought

• Remarkable artist and thinkers

• Renaissance means “rebirth”

• 1300’s-1500s

Renaissance

• Time of creativity and great change

• Change in politics, social, economics and culture

• Agricultural society to urban society

• Trade is more important now

• Reawakened interest in the classical learning of Greece and Rome.

• Latin was the language of the church

• Renaissance thinkers explored the richness and variety of human experience in the here and now.

• Individual achievement

• Renaissance Man: someone who was talented in many fields.

Expressing Humanism

• Intellectual movement known as humanism.

• Studied classical culture of Greece and Rome.

• Focus more on worldly objects and not religious issues.

• Education should stimulate the individuals creative powers.

• Humanities: grammar, rhetoric, poetry and history.

• Francesco Petrarch (PEE trahrk), Florentine who lived in the 1300’s, was a humanist, poet, and scholar. He is known as the father of Humanism.

CheckPoint

• What were the main characteristics of the Renaissance?

Italy

• Renaissance began in Italy.

• Italy was the center for the Roman Empire so the reawakening took place here.

• Architectural remains, statues, and coins were all available for people to study.

• Rome was also the seat of the Roman Catholic Church-patron of the arts-and as the center of Catholicism Rome also served as an inspiration for religious themes used by artist and writers.

Location of Italy

• Encouraged Trade

• Extensive banking, manufacturing, and merchant workers developed to support trade.

City States

• Italy was divided into many small city states.

• Each city state was controlled by a powerful family and was dominated by wealthy and powerful merchant class.

Medici Family

• Medici family of Florence was the richest merchants and bankers in Europe.

• Cosimo de’ Medici gained control of the Floretine government in 1434. Lorenzo, grandson of Cosimo, is known as “the Magnificent” was a clever politician. He was also a generous patron of the arts.

• Patron of the arts: financial supporter.

• Florence came to symbolize the energy and brilliance of the Italian Renaissance.

CheckPoint

• Why was Italy a favorable setting for the Renaissance?

Renaissance Art

• Renaissance art reflected the ideas of humanism.

• Portrayed religious themes-however they often set religious figures such as Jesus and Mary against classical Greek or Roman backgrounds.

• Portraits: individual achievement

• Sculptor Donatello created a life size statue of a soldier on horse back. First time any figure like this was done.

Techniques

• Realism

• Perspective: allowed artist to create realistic art

• 3 Dimensional

• Shading

• New oil paints to reflect light

• Studied human anatomy

• Drew while observing live models

Social Art

• Architecture

• Meant to blend beauty with utility and improvement of society.

• Columns, arches, domes

Leonardo Da Vinci

• Curious

• Sketches of nature and models

• Dissected corpses to learn how bones and muscles work.

• Mona Lisa

• The Last Supper (experimented with new paint)

• Artist

• Botany, anatomy, optics, music, architecture, and engineering

• Flying machines, undersea boats

Michelangelo

• Sculptor, engineer, painter, architect, and poet

• Melancholy Genius: b/c of his work reflecting his many life long spiritual and artistic struggle.

• David, Pieta (captures the sorrow of the Biblical Mary as she cradles her dead son Jesus on her knees).

• Sistine Chapel

Sistine Chapel

• 4 years to complete

• Partially crippled

• Depicted the biblical history of the world from the creation to the flood.

• Dome of St. Peters Cathedral in Rome.

Raphael

• Had his own style that blended Christian and classical styles.

• Madonna, Mother of Jesus

• The School of Athens ( Raphael pictured an imaginary gathering of great thinkers and scientist, including Plato, Aristotle, Socrates, and the Arab philosopher Averroes. Also included are the greatest artist of the time: Michelangelo, Leonardo, and Raphael.)

Checkpoint

• How were Renaissance ideals reflected in the arts?

Writing

• Castiglione

• Most widely read handbook was The Book of the Courtier.

• Baldassare Castiglione: describes the manners, skills, learning, and virtues that a member of the court should have.

• Was educated, well mannered and a master in many fields from poetry to music to sports.

Castiglione

Men

• Athletic but not overactive

• Good at games but not a gambler

• Plays a musical instrument

• Knows literature and history but is not arrogant.

Women

• Offers a balance to men

• She is graceful and kind

• Lively but reserved

• She is beautiful, “for outer beauty is the true sign of inner goodness.”

Machiavelli’s Prince

• Niccolo Machiavelli wrote a guide for rulers on how to gain and maintain power. He did not discuss leadership in terms of high ideals like those before him.

• The Prince looked real rulers in an age of ruthless power politics. The end justifies the means.

• Use whatever methods were necessary to achieve their goals.

• Deceit in politics is now referred to as “Machiavellian tactics.”

Checkpoint

• How did Renaissance writings express realism?

The Renaissance in the North

• Terms, People, and Places:

• Johann Gutenberg Erasmus

• Flanders Thomas More

• Albrecht Durer Utopian

• Engraving Shakespeare

• Vernacular

Printing Revolution

• 1455 Johann Gutenberg of Germany printed the 1st complete edition of the Bible using the printing press.

• Before the PP only a few 1,000 books

• By 1500 15-20 million volumes procedure

• Cheaper and easier

• More people learned to read.

• Knowledge about medicine, law, and mining

• Books exposed educated Europeans to new ideas and new places.

Checkpoint

• What was the impact of the printing press?

Northern Renaissance artists

• Began in the prosperous cities of Flanders, a region that included parts of present day northern France, Belgium, and the Netherlands.

• From here the Renaissance spread to Spain, France, Germany, and England.

Flemish Painters

• Jan Van Eyck in the 1400’s was one of the most important Flemish painters.

• Portrayed townspeople as well as religious scenes around rich, realistic detail.

• 1500’s Pieter Brugel used vibrant colors to portray lively scenes of peasant life. Nickname: Peasant Bruegel.

• Drew religious and classical themes but set them against common people back ground.

• 1600s Peter Paul Rubens blended realistic traditions with classical themes and artistic freedom of the Italian Renaissance.

• Knowledge of mythology, the bible, and classical history.

Leonardo of the North

• German painter Albrecht Durer

• Interested in many things like Leonardo which earned him the nickname Leonardo of the North.

• Engraving

• Portray religious upheaval

Checkpoint

• What themes did Northern Renaissance artist explore?

Northern Humanists and Writers

• Stressed education and classical learning to bring about religious and moral reform.

• Many wrote in Latin

• Many began writing in vernacular-everyday language of ordinary people.

Erasmus

• Dutch Priest

• Born 1466

• Important scholar of his day

• Greek addition to the bible.

• Translation of the bible.

• Open minded, show good will toward others.

• Disturbed by the corruption of the church.

Sir Thomas More

• Wanted social reform

• Utopia: ideal society in which men and women live in peace and harmony.

• All are educated

• Justice is used to end crime not to get rid of the criminal.

Shakespeare Writes for All Time

• 1590-1613: he wrote 37 plays

• Complexity of the individual and the importance of the classics.

• Common language

• 1,700 words appeared for the 1st time

CheckPoint

• What Renaissance ideas did Shakespeare’s work address?