Ideas of humanism during the Renaissance

¶ … Humanism:

The idea of humanism started in Italy in the 14th Century and thrived throughout the 15th Century. During this period, Italians placed a significant emphasis on education and increasing knowledge, particularly that of the classical ancient times. The Italians also promoted the exploration of human potential, desire to excel, and the devotion to civic responsibility and moral duty. The link between humanism and education and culture appealed to people of high status to an extent that the idea of humanism had its greatest influence on the elite and powerful individuals ("15th Century Italy," n.d.). Given its impact on the then philosophy, the ideas of humanism permeated art from the Renaissance onwards.

The ideas of humanism permeated art from the Renaissance onwards because of the greatest impact of humanism on the elite and powerful individuals who had the ability to commission art. Actually, the Renaissance was a by-product of the artistic genius that emerged in the 14th Century and the spread of the ideas of humanism and the widespread economic prosperity that resulted in a new and extended artistic culture. As the ideas of humanism became widespread, the artistic culture was characterized with an increased emphasis on the individual and a more secular stance by the people of the Renaissance.

Similar to the Italian people, artists across various regions became interested in personal achievement and focuses on life in this world. The average individual was regarded as the mixture of body, mind, and soul based on the ancient philosophies. This provided the basis for developing theories while artists started to acknowledge that the way they painted patrons had an impact on the public understanding of that individual. Art theories started to record the new ideas on visual arts as part of attempts to highlight their effect for the audience (Winter, 2013). For instance, Leon Battista Alberti, an Italian sculptor, developed treaties on painting, sculpture, and painting.

The impact of the ideas of humanism on art during the Renaissance onwards represented a different philosophy from the earlier medieval era philosophy regarding the purpose of art. The medieval era philosophy was mainly dominated by life and values that were propagated by the Church. The commencement of the Renaissance during mid-fourteenth century was an indication of a shift from medieval life and values controlled by the Church ("Italian Renaissance" n.d.). This in turn contributed to significant political, artistic, and economic changes that transformed the society.

One of the differences between the ideas of humanism and the medieval era philosophy was the emphasis on individual achievement and life in this world. The ideas of humanism made artists to become interested in individual achievement and life in this world. On the contrary, the medieval era philosophy had mainly focused on life in this world as a preparation for life in the next world, which was emphasized by religion. As a result of the difference in focus, artists started to develop treaties and paintings that demonstrated a new understanding of an individual. For instance, Luca Signorelli became a great artist who became interested in the human body and painted an artwork that involved the use of foreshortening in various poses. In addition, Giorgio Vasari brought educational reforms that developed into the humanistic concept of the Liberal Arts through the revival of biography that reflected existing humanistic practice.