Renaissance Art Is the Expression

Renaissance Art

Art is the expression of artistic vision but it also carries the sign of the period of time when it was created. The period of the Renaissance designates a cultural movement that spanned between the fourteenth and the seventeenth century. Its roots can be found in Italy, in the middle Ages from where it spread across Europe. This period of time was marked by a return to classical models both in artistic pursuit and in learning, in the sense that both artists and scholars appealed to classical sources. Also, the Renaissance was synonymous to significant advances as far as science and painting techniques where a new perspective was developed with the overwhelming contribution of Leonardo da Vinci. Humanism which stood at the roots of the Renaissance, brought a new vision of the world according to which man was God's masterpiece, and the measure of all things. This new vision was best illustrated by art. This paper argues that the Renaissance put forth not only new techniques, but also a new creed as far as artistic expression. In support of this thesis, this paper turns to 12 works of art executed during the Renaissance. These are: The Slaughter of the Innocents, Tintoretto (1587), the Rape of Persephone, Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1621-22), David, Michelangelo (1501-04), the Three Ages of Man, Titian (1513-14), Primavera, Boticelli (1478), Death of the Virgin, Caravaggio (1606), the School of Athens, Raphael (1509-10), the Agony in the Garden, Bellini (1465), the Last Supper, Da Vinci (1495-98), Pieta, Michelangelo (1499), Allegoric Figure of a Boy, Donatello (1430s), and Madonna with Child and Angels, Masaccio (1426).

Renaissance sculpture brought back the ancient Greek and Roman ideals of beauty of the human body. Statues are imposing, usually considerable in size and aim at transmitting the greatness of a particular character that the statue depicts. Renaissance focused on a single figure which was placed on its own on a pedestal - the accent was placed on posture and grace.

David and the Rape of Persephone are pictorial sculptures with an abundance of details as far as the human anatomy and posture. One of the most important traits of Renaissance spirituality was a combination of both mimesis and lyricism which can be explained by the fact that this combination of artistic ways of expression dissolved the tensions between the individuality of the artist and the demands of the patron who expected a certain manner of execution.

Michelangelo brought Renaissance to its highest point and showed the road to be followed by his successors and pupils. Without a doubt, David (1501-1504) is his masterpiece, the embodiment of all civic virtues and a true expression of the titanic unfinished manner of the sculptor. Michelangelo's technique largely relied on sketches which in turn, were based on a profound knowledge of male anatomy. This artistic discipline was called 'disegno' and is deeply characteristic of the Renaissance when both artists and scientists believed that the study of the male form was a study of God and thus interpreted the sculpture of the male body as the supreme form of art due to its connection with God. Moreover, according to this artistic credo, the sculpture becomes a replica of the divine process of creation.

Bernini's statuary group is a combination of lyric and mimetic representation depicting both a mythical episode and vital energy which is best felt when looking at Persephone's hand pushing against Pluto's face. In fact, even this apparently simple detail is dual in the sense that on one hand, it is meant to give the impression of despair and struggle, and on the other, this gesture results in creases in Pluto's skin. Bernini's sculpture incorporates the twisting pose belonging to Mannerism, a reaction to the perfection of forms that can be identified during the Renaissance in the works of its greatest exponents, such as Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael.

The middle ages were marked by strictness imposed by the Catholic Church which exerted control over society. Artistic expression was reduced to a minimum because the doctrine of the church encouraged religious meditation, and austerity. The end of the middle ages brought about a drastic change in mentalities. The decline of traditional values, along with the rise of the market economy, and the implied development of certain city-states such as the Italian ones, created a very favorable climate for the birth of the Renaissance, with its emphasis on art and science.

Renaissance painting approached a wide variety of themes; however, most paintings depicted biblical events, as well as episodes in the life of saints. Historical paintings were also very popular; the rebirth of classical Antiquity also generated a revival in mythological paintings.