Post 2 - Sarah Stiehler

       Renaissance is a French word for “rebirth”, which is an impeccable term to describe Europe during the fifteenth century to the seventeenth century. The Renaissance was a period of European history that signified many major changes in politics, culture, and science; that lead up to new techniques and changes in art. Many artworks were commissioned by the upper class such as kings, merchants, and popes. Linear perspective, landscape, light, anatomy, altar pieces, and figure composition were notorious for shaping Renaissance art. Artists began to draw, paint and sculpt art how they saw it rather than how they recalled it. Michelangelo, Donatello, Leonardo da Vinci, and Raphael were four artists who created the epitome of Renaissance art.

David 1501-1504

Michelangelo was an essential artist during the Renaissance due to his detailed sculptures and paintings. In 1501, Michelangelo Buonarotti accepted a Florentine commission for a statue of the biblical hero, David, which is his most famous sculpture (Stokstad 658). Michelangelo created this sculpture from an 18-foot tall marble block. David was initially intended to be placed on a buttress of the cathedral, but when David was completed, it was so admired that the city council decided to place it in the city square next to the Palazzo della Signoria (Stokstad 658). In this portrayal of David, he has more adult-like features. Unlike Donatello’s David, Michelangelo's David has not yet defeated Goliath. He has a rock resting in his fingertips of his right hand and a sling rested on his left shoulder, as he gazes towards Goliath. He seems as if he is preparing himself for the dangerous battle. This David symbolizes “supremacy of right over might” which was perfect for the people of Florence who recently fought the forces of Milan, Siena, and Pisa and were continuing to face political and military pressure (Stokstad 659) . People looked at David as more than just a statue, but as a symbol of hope. In the past, statues looked rigid and stiff, but Michelangelo's David looks so realistic, as if it could step right off of the block it rests on. Although Michelangelo had a contractual agreement to the Florence Cathedral to create more statues, Pope Julius II ordered Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. Michelangelo considered himself to be a sculptor, so he complained about having to paint (Stokstad 660). Michelangelo used fresco paint with plaster along with foreshortening and linear perspective to demonstrate the realism of the human form. 

Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
1508-1512

Donatello was one of the most successful sculptors during the Italian Renaissance because he extensively studied human emotion and expression. His most famous sculpture was the bronze David (c. 1446-1460?). This was the first “life-size, free standing nude” (Stokstad 618). For this sculpture, Donatello represents a very young, heroic David, with his foot resting on Goliath’s head. Donatello carefully sculpted all of David’s features to show him posing triumphantly after defeating Goliath. He carved the muscles to show the true anatomy of a human, and the child-like features of David. David was also a political statue in Florence. It symbolized the citizens ideas to oppose tyrants, no matter their superiority (Stokstad 618). Donatello’s David is different than many other sculptures at the time because of how the body is resting comfortably rather than stiff. Donatello’s sculpture is well ahead of its time regarding the anatomy, the detail in body structure, balance, and the expression and emotion of David.

Bronze David
c. 1446-1460?

Leonardo da Vinci was very ahead of his time in terms of science, anatomy and art. One of Leonardo da Vinci’s most famous artworks is the Mona Lisa, which he painted between 1503-1506 while he was living in Florence. Many people believe that this painting portrays Lisa di Antonio Maria Gherardini, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo who was a Florentine merchant. Da Vinci never delivered this piece and kept it until his death in 1519. After his death, King Louis XIV bought the painting, moved it to Versailles, and Napoleon hung it on his bedroom wall in the Tuileries Palace (Stokstad, 645). This portrait was very different from other portraits for many different reasons; during the early 1500s, it was common for artists to paint women with expensive clothing and jewelry to portray their husband’s wealth. In the Mona Lisa, her expression does not reveal much emotion, her body and hands are relaxed, and her eyes gaze towards the viewers. It was also uncommon for an artist to paint a portrait with landscape in the background. Leonardo used idealism, a natural description of her features, and a balanced perspective to truly portray her in a human form. Another technique that da Vinci used was “sfumato”, a hallmark to his all of his artworks. Sfumato is a technique where there are very subtle transitions between light and dark (Stokstad 650). In the painting The Last Supper, da Vinci also uses this technique. Duke Ludovico Sforza requested that da Vinci paint The Last Supper in the dining hall at the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan between 1495 and 1498 (Stokstad, 650). In this painting, Jesus is seated at a table with his disciples at The Last Supper. Da Vinci uses a vanishing point at the top of Jesus’s head to show depth between the front of the table and the back three windows. The foreground of the painting contains Jesus telling his disciples that one of them will betray him and their reactions to that news. His artwork captures very human-like responses to what Jesus tells them. This includes Judas, the man who eventually betrays Jesus, holding his money bags slightly in the darkness. Symbolically, The Last Supper shows how Jesus sacrificed himself for the salvation of mankind. Leonardo used geometry, perspective linearity along with a vanishing point to achieve the balanced look of this painting (Stokstad 650). It is evident that Leonardo da Vinci used linearity, perspective, and science to make his artwork look life-like and more unique than pre-Renaissance art.

Mona Lisa
 1503-1506

The Last Supper
1495-1498

Another artist whose art illustrates changes during this time period is Raphael. Raphael was commissioned by Pope Julius II to paint the Pope’s private library and study in the papal apartments between 1509-1511. His “most influential achievement” in the papal rooms was The School of Athens (Stokstad, 652). In this artwork, Raphael arranged the ideals of the Renaissance papacy in a rational space and clearly displayed each figure in this piece. Greek philosophers, Plato and Aristotle, are in the center and the vanishing point is directly in between them. Around these philosophers are mathematicians, astronomers, other philosophers, naturalists, and geographers who seem to be debating and discussing their theories with one another. Raphael grouped these figures to harmonize philosophy and art. The School of Athens also includes a high ceiling with openings to allow light to hit each figure differently. In the front of the painting, you can see Heraclitus, a portrait of Michelangelo (Stokstad 655), in a thinking position on his own in ashy-toned clothing, while others are in bright clothing and conversing with others. Raphael does this mimic Michelangelo's belief that he is just sculptor. During this time, Michelangelo was commissioned by the pope to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel but relentlessly complained that he was just a sculptor and not a painter (Stolkstad, 655). Raphael creates this artwork to look almost three dimensional by using a vanishing point. He challenges himself by having so many figures in his painting and adding detail to each person accordingly so the audience will know who each figure is. By using these different techniques, Raphael is the perfect example of a Renaissance artist.

The School of Athens    1509-1511

Throughout the Renaissance era, artists used realism to bring their paintings to life. This created new styles and techniques that have been praised throughout history, that are still relevant and seen today. The Renaissance provided a rebirth of art, technique, and European culture. Techniques that used anatomy, linear perspective, figure composition, and an abundance of styles shaped the era. Artists began to paint what was real to the eye and created their own perspectives that are still celebrated.


Works Cited:
Stokstad, Marilyn, and Michael Watt Cothren. Art History. Sixth ed., II, Pearson, 2018.

Links:
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/high-ren-florence-rome/leonardo-da-vinci/a/leonardo-mona-lisa

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/renaissance-art-europe-ap/a/donatello-david

http://scihi.org/marble-michelangelos-david/

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/renaissance-art-europe-ap/a/raphael-school-of-athens

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/renaissance-art-europe-ap/a/leonardo-last-supper

https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/ap-art-history/early-europe-and-colonial-americas/renaissance-art-europe-ap/a/michelangelo-ceiling-of-the-sistine-chapel