Download The Renaissance in Italy

The Renaissance in Italy
Art for Understanding
Renaissance: What does it mean?
“This century, like a golden age has
restored to light the liberal arts, which
were almost extinct: grammar, poetry,
rhetoric, painting, sculpture, architecture,
and music.” ~Philosopher Marsilio Ficino.
 What does this quote mean? What time
period is he talking about? Write your
response down.

The Rebirth

The word Renaissance literally means
“rebirth.” It refers to a period of creativity
and change in which people began to view
themselves and their environment
differently. Change occurred in four
arenas: political, social, economic, and
cultural. It began in the 1300s and lasted
into the 1500s. Italy was it’s birthplace.
A New World View
The Medieval Period was marked with
disorder and disunity. Scholars were
focused on the idea of life after death.
The Renaissance established a new attitude
that focused on the richness and variety of
human experience in the HERE AND NOW.
There was a great emphasis on human
achievement.
Humanism
Intellectual movement in the heart of the
Renaissance. Focus shifted from religious
themes of Medieval world to worldly subjects.
 Education meant to stimulate creative powers
which led to a return to the study of humanities.
The humanities were subjects of the Greek and
Romans such as grammar, rhetoric, poetry, and
history. The use of these ancient studies were
used to shed light on their own experiences in
the present

Francesco Petrarch

A Florentine Humanist who assembled a
library of Greek and Roman manuscripts.
Known as the Father of Humanism. The
correspondence of Cicero was one of his
most notable discoveries. He also wrote
his own literature such as Sonnets to
Laura.
Humanism in Art

Activity: The next slides will show you
paintings. You must decide with a partner
whether it is Medieval or Renaissance Art
and explain why you think so.
Painting One:
Painting Two:
Painting Three:
Painting Four:
Results
Painting One: Title: Madonna and the Child
in Glory. From the early Renaissance, this
painting is still reminiscent of the Medieval
period with the religious theme, use of
gold to represent heaven, and the use of
halos.
Painting Two:

Miraculous Mass of St. Martin of Tours.
How does this compare to the first
painting?
 This painting shows religion but in the
realistic setting of a church. The halo is
not so pronounced.
 Would you call this a humanistic painting?
Painting Three:

Adoration of the Shepards. A painting of
the holy family of Mary. No halos are
present and it is in an earthly rather than
heavenly setting. We can begin to see a
switch to a more humanistic view of the
world.
Painting Four:

The Bean Eater. Just from the title we can
see that this painting is of a common
person. No religious theme apparent in
this work. It is simply a common person
doing a common thing. Clear example of
humanism in art.
The Two Renaissance Geniuses of
Art

Which two artists are we talking about?
– Leonardo
– Michelangelo
Michelangelo
Artistic Genius:
sculptor, engineer,
painter, architect, and
poet.
 Famous works
include: David and

the Sistine Chapel.

What does this video
say about Humanism?
Leonardo
Very talented artist
like Michelangelo.
Also, Leonardo was
famous for his
inventions.
 Best known works
include: Mona Lisa

and the Last Supper.
3 Minute Pause

Look back over your notes and write down
three things that you have learned and 1
question you still have.
Writers of the Renaissance

Baldassare Castiglione: The Book of the
Courtier. Castiglione describes in this book
the manners, skills, learning, and virtues a
courtier must have. The ideal courtier
should have mastered many fields from
poetry to sports. Is this book an example
of humanism?
Machiavelli: The Prince
“How praiseworthy it is for a prince to keep his
owrd and live with integrity rather than
craftiness, everyone understands; yet…those
princes have accomplished most who paid little
heed to keeping their promises, but who knew
how craftily to manipulate the minds of men.”
 What does this quote mean?
 How does this view of a ruler compare how we
view our leaders?

Continued…
This quote is from a handbook written by
Niccolo Machiavelli entitled The Prince in
1513.
 Stressed the idea of ruthlessness in rulers,
that they should do what they deem
necessary to get and maintain power.

Conclusion

Italy was the birthplace of the
Renaissance, a period that produced a
new worldview in people that stressed the
human experience in the here and now. It
produced the Humanist movement and
gave a home to many talented artists and
writers.