Painting: Renaissance. Creativity of Italian artists of the Renaissance

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Renaissance - translated from French means "Renaissance". That is how they called the whole era, symbolizing the intellectual and artistic flowering of European culture. The renaissance began in Italy at the beginning of the 14th century, ushering in the decline of an era of cultural decline and stagnation (the Middle Ages), which was based on barbarism and ignorance, and, developing, reached its peak in the 16th century.

For the first time, a historiographer of Italian origin, painter and author of works about the life of famous artists, sculptors and architects Giorgio Vasari wrote about the Renaissance in the early 16th century.

Initially, the term "Renaissance" meant a certain period (beginning of the XIV century) of the formation of a new wave of art. But after a while, this concept acquired a broader interpretation and began to denote a whole era of development and formation of a culture opposite to feudalism.

The Renaissance period is closely connected with the emergence of new styles andpainting technique in Italy. There is an interest in ancient images. Secularism and anthropocentrism are integral features that fill the sculptures of that time and painting. The Renaissance replaces the asceticism that characterized the medieval era. There comes an interest in everything mundane, the boundless beauty of nature and, of course, man. Renaissance artists approach the vision of the human body from a scientific point of view, trying to work out everything to the smallest detail. Pictures become realistic. Painting is full of unique style. She established the basic canons of taste in art. A new worldview concept called "humanism" is widely spread, according to which a person is considered the highest value.

Artistic culture of the Renaissance period

The flourishing spirit has a wide expression in the paintings of that time and fills the painting with a special sensuality. The Renaissance connects culture with science. Artists began to consider art as a branch of knowledge, studying in detail the physiology of man and the world around him. This was done in order to more realistically reflect the truth of God's creation and the events taking place on their canvases. Much attention was paid to the depiction of religious subjects, which acquired an earthly content thanks to the skill of geniuses such as Leonardo da Vinci.

There are five stages in the development of Italian Renaissance art.

International (court) Gothic

Court Gothic (ducento), which originated at the beginning of the 13th century, is characterizedexcessive colorfulness, pomposity and pretentiousness. The main type of paintings is a miniature depicting altar scenes. Artists use tempera paints to create their paintings. The Renaissance is rich in famous representatives of this period, such as the Italian painters Vittore Carpaccio and Sandro Botticelli.

Pre-Renaissance Period (Proto-Renaissance)

The next stage, which is considered to have anticipated the Renaissance, is called the Proto-Renaissance (trecento) and falls on the end of the 13th - beginning of the 14th century. In connection with the rapid development of the humanistic worldview, the painting of this historical period reveals the inner world of a person, his soul, has a deep psychological meaning, but at the same time has a simple and clear structure. Religious plots fade into the background, and secular ones become leading, and a person with his feelings, facial expressions and gestures acts as the main character. The first portraits of the Italian Renaissance appear, taking the place of icons. Famous artists of this period - Giotto, Pietro Lorenzetti.

Early Renaissance

At the beginning of the XIV century, the stage of the early Renaissance (quattrocento) begins, symbolizing the flowering of painting with the absence of religious subjects. The faces on the icons take on a human form, and the landscape, as a genre in painting, occupies a separate niche. The founder of the artistic culture of the early Renaissance is Mosaccio, whose concept is based on intellectuality. His paintings are highly realistic. The great masters exploredlinear and aerial perspective, anatomy and used knowledge in their creations, on which you can see the correct three-dimensional space. Representatives of the early Renaissance are Sandro Botticelli, Piero della Francesca, Pollaiolo, Verrocchio.

High Renaissance, or "Golden Age"

From the end of the 15th century, the stage of the high Renaissance (cinquecento) began and did not last long, until the beginning of the 16th century. Venice and Rome became its center. Artists expand their ideological horizons and are interested in space. A person appears in the image of a hero, perfect both spiritually and physically. The figures of this era are Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian Vecellio, Michelangelo Buonarroti and others. The great Italian Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci was a "universal man" and was in a constant search for truth. Being engaged in sculpture, dramaturgy, various scientific experiments, he managed to find time for painting. The creation "Madonna in the Rocks" clearly reflects the style of chiaroscuro created by the painter, where the combination of light and shadow creates a three-dimensional effect, and the famous "La Gioconda" is made using the "smuffato" technique, creating the illusion of haze.

Late Renaissance

During the late Renaissance, which falls at the beginning of the 16th century, the city of Rome was captured and plundered by German troops. This event marked the beginning of the era of extinction. The Roman cultural center ceased to be the patron of the mostfamous figures, and they were forced to disperse to other cities in Europe. As a result of the growing inconsistency of views between the Christian faith and humanism at the end of the 15th century, Mannerism becomes the predominant style that characterizes painting. The Renaissance is gradually coming to an end, since the basis of this style is considered to be a beautiful manner that overshadows ideas about the harmony of the world, truth and the omnipotence of the mind. Creativity becomes complex and acquires the features of confrontation of various directions. Ingenious works belong to such famous artists as Paolo Veronese, Tinoretto, Jacopo Pontormo (Carrucci).

Italy became the cultural center of painting and gave the world brilliant artists of this period, whose paintings still evoke emotional delight.

Besides Italy, the development of art and painting had an important place in other European countries. This current was called the Northern Renaissance. Especially worth noting is the painting of Renaissance France, which grew on its own soil. The end of the Hundred Years War caused the growth of universal consciousness and the development of humanism. In French art, there is realism, a connection with scientific knowledge, a gravitation towards the images of antiquity. All of the above features bring it closer to Italian, but the presence of a tragic note in the canvases is a significant difference. Famous Renaissance artists in France - Anguerrand Charonton, Nicolas Froment, Jean Fouquet, Jean Clouet the Elder.