Download Matt Beavin

Matt Beavin
31 January 2006
Pride – A Renaissance Accelerator
While much art of the Renaissance is a testament to the faith and values of patrons and
artists, it is also a display of civic, family, and personal pride. Every work commissioned was a
symbol of the wealth of the aristocracy, or merchants, and the power they wielded in their cities
and societies. Patrons had the artists put them in their works. Most of these works were centered
on Christianity: the Annunciation, the Crucifixion, the Ascension, the Assumption, and so on.
By having themselves placed in these Christian works, the patrons directly show themselves as
being closer to Christ, or Mary (there are just as many works of the Virgin as there are of Christ).
Artists are guilty of this as well. Most of them put themselves in their paintings. Raphael’s
School of Athens and Michelangelo’s The Last Judgment are examples of this, with each of the
artists portraying themselves and other artists in their works. Raphael displays his pride by
placing artists on the same level as the greatest thinkers in history, while Michelangelo positions
himself in heaven with Christ and several saints. In this manner, artists and patrons presented
themselves to society as being on a higher, almost divine level. This level was not accessible to
the lower-class members of society, for they could not afford to commission works for chapels in
the churches. These shrines were accessible only to the few, the proud, that could afford them.
Personal and family pride is also apparent in the palazzos seen in the Renaissance cities
of Rome and Florence. These massive residences reflect the wealth and prestige of the families
that built them. The Palazzo Pitti is a perfect illustration. The Pitti family wished to exceed the
splendor and grandeur of the Medici palace, and succeeded with this palazzo. Its rusticated
exterior, consistent in all three levels of the building, is characteristic of Renaissance
architecture. Its arched windows and doorways display the style of the sixteenth century. The
pride of the Pitti family took it all the way into bankruptcy, when expenses for their palace could
no longer be covered. The Medici purchased the palazzo and it stands today as a symbol of the
Renaissance – an enormous piece of architecture that reflects class and sophistication.
Civic pride drove the Renaissance as did personal and family pride. Each town and city
wanted to be at the forefront of the movement. In no city is civic pride more apparent than in
Florence. This is the “Dome” capital of Italy. Its citizens wished to have the greatest cathedral
of the Renaissance. They took great pride in the architecture of their city and they were
extremely critical of what was built. Their Duomo and baptistry would be renown across the
land. The baptistry displayed the “Gate of Paradise”, a large set of bronze doors adorned in gold
and sculpted by Ghiberti. The interior is elaborately adorned in mosaics, a style typical of
Venice, but nonetheless satisfactory for Florentines. It wasn’t enough to satisfy the city, though.
It had to outdo everything, including St. Peter’s in Rome. This was achieved in 1463 when
Brunelleschi completed the dome of the Santa Maria del Fiore. This dome was a masterpiece of
the Renaissance, the largest of its time to be built without scaffolding. The dome, along with the
Campanile (designed by Giotto), offered a cathedral that won the hearts of Florentines. They
could take pride in the dome, a distinguishing feature of the emerging Renaissance.
Personal, family, and civic pride truly drove the Renaissance. It was a time of humanistic
rebirth, a time to honor and celebrate the classic Greek and Roman cultures. Every work of the
Renaissance was commissioned to be the best of its kind, be it painting, sculpture, or
architecture. Artists took pride in their uncommon ability to create beauty with their own hands.
Each work inspired others to achieve more. Patrons vied to have the best painters, sculptors, and
architects work for them. The true Renaissance man was an embodiment of classicism, with the
education, art, and sophistication to back it up. His pride and devotion to innovation fueled the
era.