Friends , Having posted Part one & two of the Story of the Italian Renaissance earlier , I finally Conclude with Renaissance Art and Architecture , mentioning its famous painters as well . I tried to keep it simple for easy reading using only a third of my collected materials ! Kindly read on ......
RENAISSANCE ART AND ARCHITECTURE : CONCLUDING PART-III .
RENAIASSANCE ART, SCULPTOR AND
ARCHITECTURE
In the domain of Renaissance Art, we notice the
enduring influence of the Classical touch !
Ancient Greek statues and Roman architectures ,
Inspired the Renaissance artists in their innovative
adventures !
With the pervasive spirit of Humanism they depicted
life-like human forms ,
Adding facial expressions, and deviating from earlier
Medieval religious norms !
Early Renaissance Art and Humanism :
During the mid-thirteenth century we find Giotto
the Florentine ,
Painting human figures in its beauty and form for
the first time !
While Giotto is said to have igniting the flames of
Western Art ,
Up north in Flanders, Van Eyck the painter had made
an innovative start !
Van Eyck painted his ‘Adam and Eve’ displaying their
nudity ,
Thereby creating the first nude in Art History !
Such uncovered figures greatly annoyed the Church ,
Since nude figures formed a part of non-religious and
pagan art !
These Northern artists to pacify the church and pass
its censorship ,
Cleverly made their work appear moralistic !
Van Eyck was also the innovator of oil-based paints,
Which later replaced the medieval tempera , used to
paint angles and saints !
Oil paints got introduced into Italy by Da Vinci a
few decades later ;
For painting his portraits , including his famous
‘Mona Lisa’!
And half a century later after Van Eyck came
Botticelli’s painting the “Birth of Venus”,
Which became an icon in the History of Art , -
making him famous !
This painting depicts goddess Venus rising out of
the sea on a conch shell ,
And the glorious path of female nude painting got
launched in Italy, casting a spell !
This full scale nude Venus shattered the chains of
Medieval taboo on nudity,
With a subject shift from religious art to classical
mythology ;
Removing the 'fig-leaf cover' over Art permanently !
Botticelli’s later illustrations from Dante’s ‘Divine
Comedy',
Are magnificent examples of visual poetry !
In the same period architects like Brunellechi , and
sculptors like Gilberti and Donatello ,
Created masterpieces for Italy to exhibit and show !
Fillipo Brunelleschi has been mentioned in Part-II
of my Renaissance Story ,
His 114 meter high dome of the Cathedral at Florence -
created history !
This dome is larger than the domes of St Paul’s in
London , Capitol Building of Washington DC, and
St Peter’s in the Vatican City !
Constructed without any supporting buttresses with
its double egg shaped structure ,
Stands out as an unique feat of Florentine architecture !
Lorenzo Gilberti the famous sculptor and metal
worker of the early period ,
Created massive 15 feet bronze doors for the Bapistry
of Florence .
These gilded doors contain twenty carved panels with
themes from the Old Testament ,
And it took a quarter century to complete , working at
his own convenience !
His exquisite naturalistic figures in the true spirit of
the Renaissance won him a prize ,
And was renamed by Michael Angelo as the ‘Gates of
Paradise’ !
Finally I come to Donatello , the famous sculptor of
the Early Renaissance Era ,
His full size bronze David requires a special mention
here !
The statue was commissioned by the famous art patron
Cosimo de’ Medici ,
Is the first known free standing nude statue, created
since the days of ancient history !
The Old Testament tells us of the shepherd boy David ,
Who killed the giant Goliath with a single slingshot ,
And cut off his head with Goliath’s own sword ;
Thus saving the Israelites from the Philistine’s sword !
This statue is a supreme example of the spirit of the
early period ,
Which later inspired others to strive for similar artistic
excellence !
Art During High Renaissance Era :
The Early Renaissance period evolved from the
Medieval Era ,
Reached its zenith of achievement during the High
Renaissance Era !
Though this period got cut short to less than a half
century ,
It gifted to the world great masterpieces, creating
artistic history !
Now to cut a long story short, its salient feature I shall
highlight and tell ;
About those three greatest painters of this era , -
Da Vinci, Michel Angelo, and Raphael !
LEONARDO DA VINCI was born in 1452 in the town
of Vinci near the city of Florence ,
Was deprived of a formal education having being born
illegitimate !
He was left-handed , and also wrote from write to left !
At the age of 21 years excelled his teacher Verrocchio ,
With his innovative use of translucent oil paint he put
up an impressive show !
He was an artist, a sculptor, an engineer, an anatomist,
with a scientific bent of mind ;
A multi-faceted genius who was born before his time !
His Sketch Book had drawings of a battle tank, a robot,
a flying machine, amongst many other designs ;
Making him a true visionary of future times !
But his diverse interests with a curious probing mind ,
Resulted in many incomplete works during his life time !
‘The Vitruvian Man’, ‘The Last Supper’ and his
‘Mona Lisa’,
Are his most enduring works, no less wondrous than
the Leaning Tower of Pisa !
His sketch of the ‘Vitruvian Man’ shows the various
body proportions of a Man ,
Who’s height corresponds to the length of his out-
stretched hands !
The great MICHAEL ANGELO was born twenty-
two years later ,
A painter, a sculptor, an architect, a poet, a versatile
man ,
Worthy to be called the archetype of the ‘Renaissance
Man’ !
At the age of twelve he was placed under the famous
painter Ghirlandio,
When his interest for sculpting had began to show !
Under the patronage of Lorenzo the Magnificent he
developed his talents as a sculptor ;
When he was struck on the nose with a mallet ,
By his rival Torregiano inside the Medici Palace ;
Disfiguring permanently his otherwise handsome face !
His statue of ‘Bacchus’ in 1497 and the very beauty of
the figure ,
Earned him the commission for the ‘Pieta’ in St Peter’s
Basilica !
Where from a single marble block he carved out two
excellent iconic figures , -
Of Virgin Mary grieving over the body of Christ ,
An enduring piece of sculpting which cannot be denied !
Next came the famous sculpture which weighed 6.4 tons,
and stood around 17 feet ,
Michel’s Statue of David as one of Art History’s greatest
masterpiece ;
Which took him nearly three years to complete !
Yet even after 500 years this statue has a timeless and
an universal appeal !
The Renaissance being the rebirth of man’s life on earth ;
Freed from the shackles of religious authority,
Man was no longer a part of ignorant humanity !
Man’s mind was capable of understanding the universe
around him ,
And Man was visualised as a powerful being !
The nude David symbolizes this ‘Renaissance Man’ at
at his best ;
A vigorously healthy shepherd lad, - beautiful , rational
and competent ;
Capable of facing all odds, and defeat superman Goliath
with a single sling shot !
David’s facial expression depicts Man as an efficacious
and a noble being ;
And the projection of this attitude the world still finds
appealing !
Finally we come to the Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel
of Rome ,
Where Pope Julius the Second’s persistence , resulted in
the creation of world’s greatest single 5000 square feet
of fresco ,
Which Michel completed within five years or so !
The ceiling was 20 meters above the floor, around forty
meters in length and thirteen meters wide , -
Special scaffoldings had to be made to reach this height !
The central portion of the ceiling contained nine scenes
from the Book of Genesis ;
Where the ‘Creation of Adam’ has an iconic standing ,
Equaled only to Da Vinci's ‘Mona Lisa’ painting!
Like Da Vinci , Michel too died a bachelor, pursuing
his profession with devotion ;
A man with caustic wit, proud reserve, and sublimity
of imagination !
Next we come to RAPHAEL , the last of the great High
Renaissance Trio ,
Known as Raffaello Sanzio , born in 1483 in Urbino ;
Some eight years after Michelangelo .
Though inspired by his seniors both Da Vinci and
Michelangelo,
Gradually developed his own style as time did show !
Amongst his many paintings his Madonna series ,
and the decorative frescos , -
To glorify the library of Pope Julius II of Vatican City,
are most conspicuous ;
Admired for their clarity of form and visual excellence
of Neo-platonic ideal of human grandeur!
His fresco ‘The School of Athens’ impressed Pope
Julius II greatly ,
And he commissioned Raphael to decorate his entire
study at Vatican City !
Raphael painted this large fresco between 1510 and
1511,
Was initially named as the ‘Knowledge of Causes’,
But in the 17th century Guide Books got referred
to as - ‘The School of Athens’!
Here Plato and Aristotle are the central figures ,
Surrounded by a host of wise men and ancient
Greek philosophers .
The bare footed Plato is seen pointing skywards ,
And in his left hand holding his book ‘Timaeus’.
Plato’s gestures indicate his ‘World of Forms’ and
the transcendental Ideas ;
While Aristotle indicates the physical world of
natural sciences by pointing downwards !
In his left hand he holds his book on Ethics ;
His blue dress symbolizing water and earth ,
with an earthly fix !
Art critics have tried to identify the ancient Greek
philosophers on the left and right of this painting ,
But Raphael has not left behind any clues or noting !
The painting illustrates the historic continuance
of Platonic thoughts ,
In keeping with the spirit of the entire Renaissance !
Raphael’s last masterpiece ‘Transfiguration’ depicts
the resurrected Christ ,
Flanked by prophets Moses and Elijah on his sides ;
And the crowded groups displaying agitated gestures-
with contrasting light and shade ,
In the History of Art acquires a special significance !
For within lies the seeds of 'Mannerism' and the 'Baroque'
styles of Art ,
Which was to follow the Renaissance Art !
Unfortunately Raphael too died a bachelor at an early
age of 37 years ,
Remembered for his calmer and extroverted style ,
And easy visual communication with his viewers !
CONCLUSION :
During the period of Italian Renaissance the two-
dimensional art acquired a new 3-D form !
Introduction of oil paints by Da Vinci in art ,
And new techniques of depicting light and shade
and linear perspectives,
Made portraits and landscapes appear more
realistic !
With this narration I conclude Part –III of my
Renaissance Story,
Concentrating on Italian Renaissance mainly;
Had to leave out many other well known artists
intentionally, to curb the length of this Story !
Thanks for reading patiently ; - Raj Nandy .
** All Copy Rights are Reserved by the Author **
wonderful sweep of events and thoughts, Raj Nandy...All my heroes are here...and I'm very glad that you have given the Arab-Muslim contribution some space too in the series...thank you very much for an informative series...
yes... thanks for sharing the knowledge again... thank you very much...
wonderful knowledge shared on the masters of art...it shows your interest and effort in various subjects
raj....completely taken in with this beautiful piece of poem dedicated to the renaissance artists.loved the way you have expressed all in a consise manner and making it so expressive and informative.congratulations for this wonderful work......ritty
Like those great Italian artist you found the way to clearly describe the beauty of arts through your poignant and excellent poetry, my friend! I honestly congratulate you for your great effort! You are one of the kind! God Bless you for your great effort in revealing history in a poetic framework! Keep it up! Love and Peace...Romeo
i have read your work with great pleasure, you are the teacher I never had. do you mind if i print this for future reference
Interesting history of art and some of the famous artists. While the human body, like so much of the creation seems to classify readily as "pleasant to the eyes" yet man having sinned, nudity became a shame to man; therefore it seems rather a shame the famous artists succeeded glorifying nakedness. Fascinating.