Download Northern Renaissance

Northern Renaissance
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The Italian renaissance eventually spread throughout Europe, emerging in a movement known as
the northern renaissnance
Although the orthern European artists were inspired by the Italian renaissance artists, they didn’t
base their new developments on the rediscovery of Greco-Roman ideals
Instead, they broke away from the gothic style by looking at nature and painting it as it appeared. In
a very detailed VERY realistic.
Lacking classical sculpture to teach them idealistic proportions, the northern European artists
painted such as faithful likenesses of their subjects, that Charles VI of France, it’s said,, sent one of
these artists to 3 differnet coursts to paint portraits of prospective brides, and based on the slection
of his new wife solely on the portraits.
Slide the Annunciation from the merode alterapiece Robert Campin the Master of female
It was the artists from the Netherlands, painting in the Flemish mstyle who were considered the
best painters of the Northern Renaissance
This panel, painted by Robert Campin, exemplifies the styl and technique of those revered
Northern Renaissance artists
While Italian artists experimented with painting oil on canvas, th northern Renaissance artists
preferred to work on wood panels, creating works ranging from small portraits to large alterpieces
Sometimes, they would actually glue fine linen over gessoed wood panels as a ground fot their
paintings
The Merode aLAterpeice is a little over 2 feet tall and 4 feeet long when the wings are open. Rather
than beign true to life according to the biblical description in his depiction of this scene, campin
painted the Virgin Mary in a contemporary Flemish home, and incorporated common religious
symbols as elements of the Annunicaiton imagery.
For example, the lilies on the table symbolize Mary’s virginity, while hangthe hanging water pot and
white towel symbolize her purity and her role as the vessel for the incarnation of Christ.
Most of the paintings of the ANnuniciation portray the angel Gabriel telling Mary that she will be the
mother of Christ.
This one, however, shows Mary in the moment immediately following her acceptance of her
destiny.
Some art historiansinterpret the rush of wind in this painting, which is ruffling the pages of the
books snuffing the candel, as the impregnation of Mary by the Holy Spirit.
In this interpretation, God assumes human form and is represented by the tiny figure in the upper
left, descending on a ray of light, and carrying a cross.
For a time, it was considered that thisnext apinting was done by Robert Campin, AKA the Master of
Femalle
Slide: St Luke Drawing the Virgin by Roggier van der Weyden 1440
It is fascinating that Rogier van der Weyden is one of themost mysterious figures from the Northern
Renaissance.
We’ve pieced together a biography of this artist from various sources, but we have never foundan
existing work that actually bears the name of Rogier van der Weyden.
For a time, when Robert Camoin was called the Master of Femalle, it was thought that he and
Rogier van der Weyden ewre oneand the same.
More recently though, it is believed that van der Weyden studied under Campin, which explains the
similarity of the painting styles.
Another great altarpiece from the Northern Renaissance is the Isenheim Altarpiece by Matthias
Grunewald.
Isenheim Altar piece by Matthias Grunevald 1510-1515
Scholars and critics consider this sublime work by Grunevald on a par with the Mona Lisa and the
frescoes of the Sistine Chapel.
Grunwald painted the panels of this altarpiece in the chapel of a hospital and monastery.
The hospital was set up to treat those with St. Anthony’s Fire, or ergotism, a disease caused by the
poison of a fungus that clung to rye, and was inadvertently ground into flour used to make rye
bread.
Ergotism causes painful eruptions accompanied by nervous spasms and convulsions.
Victims often had to have limbs amputated and many who suffered from this disease died.
This altrpiec played a psychological and mystical role in the treatment program at the hospital by
glorifying Christ’s suffering in a trerrifying crucificxion scene, the painting offered comfort to those
afflicted with the horrible, painful disease.
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Wedding Dance- Pieter Bruegel 1566
Pieter Bruegel is another famous Northern Renaissance artist.
But unlike most others of the time, Bruegel chose peasant life life as his primarysubject matter
His paintings, while insightful portraits of peasants, always had a sataric edge, often visible in the
eating and drinking scenes in which peasants indulge with gluttonous absorption.
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Bruegel’s work is known as genre painting, which refers to the painting of scenes of everyday life.
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The following chart, compiles by Carol Strickland, summarizes the differences between Italian and
Northern Renaissance art.
Italian Renaissance
Northern Renaissance
Specialty
Ideal Beauty
Intense realism
Style
Simplified forms, measured
Lifelike features, unflatering
proportions
honesty
Subject
Religious an mythological scenes
Religious and domestic scenes
Figures
Heroic male nudes
Prosperous citizens, peasants
Portraits
Formal, reserved
Reveal individual personality
Technique
Fresco, tempera, and oil painintgs Oil paintings on wood panels
Emphasis
Underlying anatomical structure
Visible appearance
Basis of Art
Theory
Observation
Composition
Static, balanced
Complex, irregular