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Lauren Bayne
Interim 2006—Italian Renaissance Cities
Final Essay I. 1.
Renaissance Humanism
Renaissance humanism refers to several different, but related things. Generally, it
was a return to the classics and an increased emphasis on humanity. This intellectual
movement manifested itself in many different ways in art. For one, it led to an increased
influence of ancient artistic works on Renaissance sculptors and along with this, an
increased emphasis on the human form and the accurate depiction of it. Renaissance
artists strove towards perfection, which is manifested not only in their depiction of
people, but also in the way they approached architecture.
The intense study of the human body and the detailed, realistic depiction of it is
one manifestation of Renaissance humanism. Excellent exampled of this can be found in
the works of Michelangelo and others who studied cadavers as well as ancient Roman
sculptures such as Spinario, housed in the Capitoline Museum, to master musculature and
form. The ignudis on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, especially, display his command
of the human body and ability to twist it. His sculptures, most notably Moses in St. Peter
of the Chains and David, are also good examples of the emphasis on the human form.
Works like Paolo Uccello’s Battle of San Romano, which is criticized for not being
realistic, were not typical for this time. Such works stand in stark contrast to earlier
works, in which figures were depicted in flat and unrealistic ways. In most altarpieces,
such as those depicting the Virgin and Christ with angels in the Uffizi by Cimabue and
Duccio di Buoninsegna, little attention is paid to the form of the human body and the
images appear very unrealistic and flat. The gradual development of Renaissance
humanism in paintings can be seen by comparing the Cimabue and Duccio di
Buoninsegna altarpieces to Giotto’s altarpiece housed in the same room in the Uffizi.
The differences are subtle, but in the Giotto altarpiece, you can see the development of
some form in the knee of the Virgin Mary in addition to the angels being depicted as
existing in real space. It can also be contrasted to later Mannerist works, such as
Parmigianino's Madonna of the Long Neck in the Uffizi, in which the form is “perfected”
to the point that it is no longer realistic, but overly elegant.
Not only were humans’ bodies portrayed more realistically, but so, too, were their
faces and emotions. Figures were portrayed showing real emotion and interacting with
each other in realistic ways. Many good examples of this can be found in looking at
portrayals of the Madonna and child. In earlier works, such as Simone Martini’s
Madonna with Angels and Saints in the Palazzo Publico in Siena, Jesus is depicted as a
miniature adult, and Mary, accordingly, holds him very stiffly. However in
Michelangelo’s Holy Family and Da Vinci’s Adoration of the Magi in the Uffizi, Jesus
looks and behaves as a real child. This can also be seen in Giotto’s chapel in Santa Croce
in Florence, where the friars mourn the death of St. Francis. Other good examples can be
seen in depositions, such as Caravaggio’s in the Vatican Museums.
Perfection was not just sought after in painting and sculpture, but architecture as
well. Palladio, in his Villa Rotunda in Vicenza based the interior on perfect proportions
that work to create harmony in music, but proved to be impractical in architecture. In the
basilica’s of Santo Spirito and San Lorenzo Brunelleschi based his design on the
mathetical proportions provided by a module.
The revival of Classical themes and architectural forms was also part of
Renaissance humanism. This included works of art, such as Rafael’s School of Athens,
which is an example of the use of Classical realism, the depiction of a Classical subject,
and the revival of interest in Classical education based on the liberal arts of which
philosophy is one. The influence of Classical architecture is perhaps the easiest to spot.
Many Renaissance themes use columns and pilasters typical of Classical architecture and
well as other temple features such as triangular pediments. The windows on the Palazzo
Farnese in Rome, for example, are framed by pilasters and topped (for the most part),
with triangular pediments.