The Acceptance of Renaissance Ideas
16.2
The Acceptance of Renaissance Ideas
 A number of changes had taken place during the early
1400’s that influenced artists and thinkers.
 Patrons of the arts such as Florence’s Medici family
knew who the talented artists were provided them with
generous funding.
 Scholarship was encouraged and intellectual curiosity
spread in both the humanities and the arts.
Development of Renaissance Style
 The medieval search for eternal salvation
gradually changed to a humanist focus based on
the classical culture and knowledge of ancient
Greece and Rome.
 As a result of this intellectual rebirth, artists
acquired additional areas of interest from which
to draw ideas for their works and develop
techniques that brought an exciting new vitality
to their paintings and sculptures.
Paolo Uccello (1397-1475)
 Paolo Uccello (pah-oh-loh oo-chell-oh) was one of the Renaissance
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artists who eagerly accepted the new Renaissance ideas.
His concern for perspective is evident when you analyze his painting
The Battle of San Romano (next slide).
Bodies and broken spears are placed in such a way that they lead your
eye into the picture.
Notice the fallen figure in the lower left corner. Here Uccello used a
technique known as foreshortening, drawing a figures or objects
according to the rules of perspective so that they appear to recede or
protrude into 3D space.
Pays very close attention to perspective but fails to make figures seem
lifelike.
The Battle of San Romano
Paolo Uccello
Tempera on Wood
6ft x 10ft 5in.
1445
Innovations in Painting, Sculpture, and
Architecture
 A new emphasis on realism inspired by surviving models from classical Greece
and Rome revealed itself in various ways in the visual arts of the Italian
Renaissance.
Painting
 More and more artists turned their attention to creating depth and form to
replace the flat 2D surfaces that characterized medieval pictures.
 Perspective and modeling in light and shade were used to achieve astonishing,
realistic appearances.
Sculpture
 The same concern for realism was manifested in the lifelike figures of Donatello
and Michelangelo that seemed to move freely and naturally in space.
Architecture
 The Gothic style was abandoned for favor of newer styles. This new style traced
its origins back in time to the carefully proportioned, balanced, and elegant
buildings of classical times.
Donatello (1386-1486)
 One of the assistants who worked for
Ghiberti on the first set of doors for the
Baptistery of Florence.
 Would go on to become the greatest
sculptor of the Early Renaissance.
 A good friend of Brunelleschi, he also
shared Masaccio’s interest in realistic
appearances and perspective.
 Donatello used perspective in sculpture
when carving figures that were to be placed
above eye level in churches. He made the
upper part of the bodies longer so that
when viewed from below, they would seem
more naturalistic. This kept the sculpture
from looking short and awkward.
St. Mark. Donatello. Marble.
Florence Italy.
Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1446)
 You may be wondering what became of Filippo Brunelleschi. He was, as
you recall, the artist credited with discovering linear perspective.
 You may also recall that he was Ghiberti’s major rival for the right to
design the doors of the Baptistery in Florence. When he lost the contest
to Ghiberti, Brunelleschi was very disappointed. In fact, it caused him to
abandon sculptor for a career in architecture.
 16 years later, the two rivals faced each other again in another
competition. This time they were asked to submit designs for a huge
dome for the Cathedral of Florence.
Designing the Dome of Florence
Cathedral
 Work on the Cathedral had been under way for generations.
Everything had been completed except a dome that would span the
huge opening above the altar.
 No one was able to design a dome that would cover such a large
opening. They claimed that it could not be done.
 Brunelleschi was one that claimed that it was possible and
submitted a plan based on Gothic building techniques and was
awarded the opportunity to try.
 It took 16 years to build the dome, but when it was finished
Brunelleschi had the reputation of being a master architect and
engineer.
Florence Cathedral Dome
 Brunelleschi’s plan used 8 gothic
ribs that meet at the top of the
dome. The surface between the ribs
were filled with bricks.
 For extra height the dome was
placed on a drum. Circular
windows in the drum allow light to
flow in to the building.
 It soon became the symbol of the
city’s power and strength.
 It was so great that when designing
the dome for St. Peter’s in Rome,
Michelangelo borrowed ideas from
it.
Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510)
 Forgotten for centuries, the artist’s paintings are now ranked among the
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most admired of the Renaissance period.
In his Adoration of the Magi (next slide), an aisle bordered by kneeling
figures leads you to the Holy Family. They are surrounded by the Magi, the
kings or wise men who visited the Christ child, and their attendants all
dressed in garments worn during Botticelli's time.
The Magi are presenting their gifts to the Christ child., seated on Mary’s
lap.
The figures are drawn with crisp, sharp, contour lines and their garments
have folds that twist and turn in a decorative pattern.
Line is used to unify the painting and to emphasize the most important
parts. A line drawn around the main figures forms a large triangle with the
Madonna and child at the top. If you include the Magi’s attendants on both
sides, it creates a W.
The Adoration of the Magi
Sandro Botticelli
Tempera and Oil on Panel
1481