Renaissance and Baroque an Analysis of Two

Renaissance and Baroque

An Analysis of Two Davids

The humanism, nobility, and power of the Renaissance are reflected in Michelangelo's David (1504). The emphasis on drama, movement, and action is demonstrated in Bernini's David (1624). Both emphasize the heroic and favorite themes of the High Renaissance, but it is Vasari who gives the greatest compliment to Michelangelo's David, calling it more excellent than all sculpture of ancient Greece and Rome and even contemporary works (Vasari, 1998, p. 424). This paper will analyze the two works and the eras of art that produced them.

Differences between Renaissance and Baroque

The most important thing to remember about the difference between the Renaissance and the Baroque is that the former rose to glory prior to the feverish pitch of Protestantism, which to some extent put out its flame; the latter was a kind of rejuvenation of the themes posed by the Renaissance -- only now they were being undertaken in a vastly altered world -- one which (at the time of Bernini's work on David) was embroiled in the Thirty Years' War, a war that ultimately yielded to the idea of religious liberty as established by the Peace of Westphalia in 1648. The Baroque period of art, therefore, was both Catholic and modern: it was excessive, sweeping, visceral, concerned with scale and scope, action and heroism. Michelangelo -- the humanist Renaissance artist -- was completely "man-centered" (Johnson, 2003, p. 281).

Bernini's David and Michelangelo's

In the case with Bernini's David, which features a much more dynamic and swirling figure than the composition created by the great sculptor Michelangelo a century prior, one can see the influence of the fighting charisma of the Church as it opposed the Protestant position in both physical and theological warfare. The counter-Reformation had gotten underway with the Council of Trent in the mid-16th century and the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) had already become famous throughout Europe (and the world) for their missionary activity. The full-on force of Catholic strategy was in position to put down the Protestant rebellions in northern Germany (even if Richelieu in France was conniving against the Church in favor of dynastic politics). Bernini's David reflects the activity and resurgence of Catholic fervor that had been stifled somewhat by the humanism of the High Renaissance: the figure is frozen in mid-strike, his sling about to unleash the death-blow on the Gentile Giant. The face of the future King of the Jews is concentrated, focused, with all of his energy consumed in overcoming the threat against the kingdom. Bernini's David is a replica of counter-Reformation sentiment, poised to strike and root out the heresy that was dividing Christendom, just as Goliath once threatened to divide and conquer the Jews.

Michelangelo's David, on the other hand, is poised for a different reason. His poise is introverted: his hip is thrust one way and his shoulders in the opposite direction. He is thoughtful, brooding, full of ability, calm, and confidence: he is self-possessed but evocatively drawing attention to the greatness of his own human physique. Michelangelo's David is an homage to what the artist considered to be the greatest of God's creations: man (Johnson, p. 281)

Other artists of the High Renaissance veered more toward creating stunning settings for portraits (such as Leonardo) and Raphael crafted works that incorporated landscape and design into his paintings. Michelangelo, however, had no interest in landscape paintings. The Sistine Chapel reveals the artist's taste: he was interested in the human figure and its relation to the divine. For Michelangelo, the human person was made in the image and likeness of God Himself -- thus, portraying the human person in its highest degree of perfection and glory was what he attempted to do.

This attempt is best seen in his towering David, a masterpiece in marble of grace, elegance, poise, confidence, ease, stature, and idealism. The Renaissance was filled with ideals -- humanistic ideals that, in a way, helped spread Protestant ideals.