Download Unit 5: Renaissance Notes

A New Birth
Italy- The Birthplace
• The Middle Ages brought
about war and the plague
to Europe
– Millions of people were
killed because of this
• Those that survived
wanted to celebrate human
life
– They began to question
institutions that were
unable to prevent war and
death
– This included government
and the church
• The birthplace of the Renaissance was
Northern Italy, especially Florence
• Lasted from about 1300-1600 AD
• It is referred to as the Renaissance - rebirth
of civilization and refinement of art and
learning
• The educated people in Italy wanted to bring
back the learning and culture of Greece and
Rome called Classical
Art/Learning/Culture
• Led to Humanism – an intellectual
movement that focused on human potential
and achievement
• Even though most people remained devout
Catholics, the Renaissance society was
secular or worldly/not religious rather than
spiritual
• Patrons or financial supporters of the arts
become very popular
• Church leaders
– Became the most popular patrons
– Paid for scuptures, paintings and extravagant
buildings to be built
– Art was built in the classical style
Change in Art
• Many artists worked in northern Italy, especially in
Florence, thanks to the support of wealthy patrons
• As the Renaissance advanced, the art changed
– Artists portrayed religious subjects but with a realistic
style taken from classical works
– Artists used perspective which shows three dimensions
on a flat surface
• Leonardo da Vinci was a painter,
sculptor, inventor, and scientist
• As a Renaissance Man, he was curious
how things worked
• He studied the human body and plants
and incorporated this into his art
Mona Lisa
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•
•
•
Painted by da Vinci
Finished around 1517
Oil painting
Located in Louvre, Paris
Last Supper
• Finished 1498
• Painted by da Vinci
• Michelangelo, like Leonardo, was a true
Renaissance Man
• He excelled as a painter, sculptor, architect, and poet
• He is most famous for how he portrayed the human
body in painting and sculpting
Sistine Chapel
Ceiling
• Finished 1512
• Painted by Michelangelo
• Water based paint
David
• Sculpture completed in 1504
• Sculpted by Micheangleo
• Made out of marble
Pieta
• Sculpted by Michelangelo
• Completed 1499
• Raphael , artist who
studied the works of
Michelangelo and
Leonardo
• He was famous for his
use of perspective
School of Athens
• Finished 1509
• Painted by Raphael
Writers Change Literature
• The works produced by Renaissance writers are
still used and studied today
• Many wrote in their vernacular or every day,
native language instead of Latin
• They also wrote for self-expression or to portray
the individuality of their subjects
• One such writer was the
rich Machiavelli – Rich
writer who had new
ideas about government
and power
• Wrote a book called The
Prince that (1532)
explained how a ruler
has to be strong yet
smart/crafty
• First time authors were
writing non-religious
books read by the public