The Italian Renaissance
What does it mean?
“Rebirth”
Originated in Europe in the 1300s and
reached its peak around 1500.
“A time of creativity and change in many
areas – political, social, economic, and
cultural.”
People changed the way they viewed
themselves and the world.
How Did Their Views
Change?
Middle Ages
• Focused on
life after
death.
renaissance
• Focused on human
experience in the
here and now
• Emphasis on
individual
achievement (A
Renaissance Man was
one who had talent
in many fields)
• Desire for adventure
and exploration
Where did the renaissance Begin
and Why?
The Renaissance began in Italy
and later spread to the rest
of Europe, because:
1. During this time there was
a renewed interest in the
classical learning of
Greece and Rome
2. Italy was the center of the
great Roman Empire
3. Its cities survived the
Middle Ages
4. It had a wealthy and
powerful merchant class
who supported the arts
Where in Italy did it
begin?
In Rome?
No! Rome was too
close to the very
conservative Pope.
It began in cities like
Florence, Milan, and
Venice that had
wealthy patrons –
or financial
supporters of the
arts.
But I thought Florence was a
girl’s name…
No, Florence is a city that came to symbolize
the renaissance. It had many talented
artists, thinkers, and patrons, such as the
Medici family.
Brunelleschi’s
Duomo
Each door panel shows a biblical scene
Ghiberti’s
famous
bronze
doors on the
cathedral in
Florence
How was renaissance art
and learning different
from before?
Art and literature began to focus on
worldly subjects rather than on
religious issues, this movement was
called humanism.
If religious figures, such as Jesus, were
drawn they would be set against
modern Greek and Roman backgrounds.
Francesco Petrarch
 Early humanist
 Wrote Sonnets to
Laura about a
woman he saw at a
distance and never
met
 Differed from
previous works as
it did not focus on
religion.
How else was renaissance art and
learning different from before?
Renaissance artists learned perspective – a
technique for representing both humans
and landscapes in a realistic, 3-D way.
Paintings went from
looking inaccurate…
to looking quite real!
Who were some of the
famous Italian artists
during this time?
Why the Teenage
Mutant Ninja
Turtles of
Course:
Leonardo,
Michelangelo,
Raphael, and
Donatello.
Leonardo da Vinci was
regarded as the ideal
renaissance Man because
he had expertise in so
many fields…
Da Vinci
Leonardo painted
such masterpieces
as the Mona Lisa and
The Last Supper…
The Last Supper utilizes perspective.
(by da Vinci)
and he sketched all sorts of
inventions and human corpses to
learn about the human anatomy!
Michelangelo was a genius
sculptor, engineer, and
painter …
Michelangelo
He painted the ceiling of the Sistine
Chapel in Rome…
The Sistine
Chapel by
Michelangelo…
…it took him 4 years
to complete this!
The Last Judgement
-added onto Sistine Chapel
-took Michelangelo 7 years
to complete
-Michelangelo’s face is in St.
Bartholomew’s skin
-later Pope said painting
was indecent
-ordered Michelangelo’s
apprentice to cover the
figures
and he sculpted
the famous
statue of David.
Also by Michelangelo…
The Pieta
Raphael painted the famous
School of Athens, about an
imaginary gathering of great
scientists and thinkers.
Who are these great
thinkers?
None other than
Plato and
Aristotle
And who did Raphael
paint just off center?
That would be
Michelangelo in
a sculptor’s
outfit.
But how did these ideas
spread?
The spread of renaissance
ideas can be attributed mainly
to the invention of the…
Printing Press!
The Printing Press
When Johann
Gutenberg invented
the Printing Press,
it put an end to all
those many years
of hand copying
books.
It could make books
quicker and
cheaper than ever
before.
What was the first book ever
made with the printing press?
The Bible!
This printed version
was later known
as the Gutenberg
Bible.
Who were some of the famous
writers of this time?
Niccolo Machiavelli
wrote The Prince as a
guide to rulers on how
to gain and maintain
power.
He declared, “the ends
justify the means.”
Basically urging
rulers to be as
ruthless as they need
to be to achieve their
goals.
One other writer from
Italy…
Baldassare
Castiglione
wrote The Book
of the Courtier
that describes
the manners,
learning, and
virtues that a
man should have.
The ideal man, he said, is
athletic but not
overactive, good at
games but not a
gambler, plays an
instrument, and knows
history and literature,
but is not arrogant.
The Northern
renaissance
Over time, the ideas of the Italian renaissance
will spread to Northern Europe, which will
have a rebirth of its own!
A Few Northern
Renaissance Writers…
William Shakespeare
– From England
– Famous playwright
– The Bard’s plays
include Hamlet,
Romeo and Juliet,
Macbeth, and
Henry V
More Northern
Renaissance Writers…
Sir Thomas More
– From England
– Famous author
– Wrote Utopia about the
perfect society.
– Was convicted of
treason and beheaded
by Henry VIII
More Northern
Renaissance Writers…
Erasmus
– From the Netherlands
– Famous priest and
humanist
– Wrote In Praise of
Folly to expose
church corruption
– Called for Bible to be
translated into the
vernacular
More Northern
Renaissance Writers…
Cervantes
– From Spain
– Famous author
– Wrote Don Quixote
about the
adventures of a
“foolish but
idealistic knight”
Finally…We’re
Done!