The High Renaissance Art Movement Study Guide
Rome
 Historical period/ Event Leaders/ Science/ Church
o High renaissance began in 1503 when nephew of Sixtus IV, Julius II, ascended to
the papacy.
o In 1508 Julius entered alliances w/ the kings of France and Aragon and the Holy
Roman emperor to fight the Republic of Venice.
o Charles V, the Holy Roman emperor, sacked Rome in 1527
o Music was first printed in 1516
o Roman Catholic was predominant in Italy

Significant Artist
o Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519)
 Concern with mathematics, deep respect for natural world and humanity,
love for beauty.
 Orthogonal and chiaroscuro
 “Four-square man”
 Da Vinci’s most famous works of arts in Rome:
 Madonna of the Rocks (1483)
 The Last Supper (1495-1498)
 Mona Lisa (1503-1505)
o Raphael Sanzio (1483-1520)
 More concerned with subtle shading, harmony, grace, and sweetness.
 Pyramidal configuration, rationally ordered, modeling of human forms
 Portray depth:
 Vanishing point, horizontal line
 Raphael’s most famous works of arts in Rome:
 Madonna of the Meadow (1508)
 Philosophy (The School of Athens) (1509-1511)
o Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564)
 Integrated chiaroscuro with Botticelli’s extensive use of line
 Combine physical bulk with linear grace and a powerful display of
emotion.
 Masculine anatomy, musculature
 Physical bulk, linear grace, emotionality
 Michelangelo’s most famous works of arts in Rome:
 Moses (1513-1515) Pieta (1498-1499)
 The Creation of Adam (1508-1512)
 The Last Judgment (1534-1541)
 Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel (1508-1511)
Florence

Historical period/ Event Leaders/ Science/ Church
o Medici family of Florence become the de facto rulers of Florence and became the
Grand Duchy of Tuscany in 1569
o Roman Catholic was predominant

Significant Artists
o Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564)
 Michelangelo’s most famous works of arts in Florence:
 David (1501-1504)
 Medici Chapel (1519-1534)
 Night (1519-1531)
Venice

Historical period/ Event Leaders/ Science/ Church
o Tradition of easel painting, use of oil paints
o Brilliance of color, subtlety of light, eye for close detail, love of landscape
o 1513 Venice had allied with France

Significant Artists
o Tiziano Vecillio (ca. 1488/1490-1576)
 Called Titian
 Granted noble rank by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V
 Constructed his compositions by means of colors and strokes of paint and
layers of varnish rather than by line and chiaroscuro.
 Vibrant, intense hues and more subtle, semi transparent glazes.
 Titian’s most famous works of arts in Venice:
 Venus of Urbino (1538)
 Assumption of the Virgin (1516-1518)
o Tintoretto (1518-1594)
 Pupil of Titian
 Love of color combined with a more linear approach o constructing forms.
 Asymmetry and overpowering emotion
 Tintoretto’s most famous works of arts in Venice:
 The Last Supper (1592-1594)
Mannerism

Historical period/ Event Leaders/ Science/ Church
o Became “secondhand” views of nature
o Distortion and elongation, flattened, two-dimensional space
o Lack of a defined focal point, discordant pastel hues
o Roman Catholic was predominant

Significant Artists
o Jacopo Carucci da Pontormo (1494-1557)
 Stylistic principles
 Use of twining poses, coupled with ambiguous perspective; his figures
often seem to float in an uncertain environment, unhampered by the forces
of gravity.
 Jacopo Pontormo’s most famous work of arts:
 Entombment (1525-1528)
o Cosimo di Mariano Tori (1503-1572)
 Called Bronzino
 Iconography
 Appreciate the composition and the subject matter for their own sake, but
awareness of the symbolism enriches the viewing experience.
 Bronzino’s most famous work of arts:
 Venus, Cupid, Folly, and Time (The Exposure of Luxury) (1546)
o Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614)
 Daughter of Bolognese painter
 Portrait painter (Rome, Bologna)
 Adopted the Carracciesque style, with strong quasi-Venetian coloring,
exaggerated angles,
 Fontana’s most famous work of arts:
 Noli Me Tangere (Do Not Touch Me) (1581)
o Sofonisba Anguissola (1532-1624)
 Renaissance and Baroque masters
 Pictorial representations, contrasts of dark and light
 Animated gestures and facial expressions combine to create a work that is
less a formal portrait than absolutely natural and believable scene.
 Served as court portraitist for King Philip II
 Anguissola’s most famous work of arts:
 A Game of Chess (1555)
o El Greco (1541-1614)
 Mystical and realistic
 Venetian influence and distortion of his figures and use on ambiguous
space.
 Dramatic and theatrical flair
 El Greco’s most famous works of arts:
 The Burial of the Count of Orgaz (1586)
o Giovanni Da Bologna (1529-1608)
 Less emphasis on emotion and more emphasis on refined surfaces, cool
elegance and beauty.
 Concerned about solving artistic problems related to the movement of
intertwined bodies in space than illustrating an episode in ancient Roman
history
 Bologna’s most famous works of Art in Florence:
 Abduction of the Sabine Women (ca. 1581-1583)