Fifteenth-century European art embodies the values and world-view of a new intellectual and social order. The kind of logical discourses formerly reserved for theology was now applied to the material world.  Individuals gained importance, not only as inquiring minds but as the subject of inquiry.  Choose an artwork from chapter 12 that demonstrates this philosophy and discuss the characteristics of the piece that best support this philosophy.

Early Renaissance Art

1400-1500

Renaissance scholars and artists tried to understand, describe and reproduce the natural world in a rational and scientific way.
In Italy, the achievements of the ancient Greeks and Romans were rediscovered.
In Flanders, artists developed an intense interest in the natural world, developing art with breathtaking accuracy.

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Renaissance scholars and artists tried to understand, describe and reproduce the natural world in a rational and scientific way.
In Italy, the achievements of the ancient Greeks and Romans were rediscovered.
In Flanders, artists developed an intense interest in the natural world, developing art with breathtaking accuracy.

The subjects alternated between peasants labors and aristocratic pleasures.
In the February page, farm people relax before a fire.
Although many people at this time lived in hovels, this farm looks comfortable and well maintained.
This painting clearly shows some Gothic conventions including:
The missing front wall of the house
Attention to detail
High placement of the horizon line.
February, Tres Riches Heures of Jean
1411-1416 colors and ink on parchment
11 3/8 x 8 ¼

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The subjects alternated between peasants labors and aristocratic pleasures.
In the February page, farm people relax before a fire.
Although many people at this time lived in hovels, this farm looks comfortable and well maintained.
This painting clearly shows some Gothic conventions including:
The missing front wall of the house
Attention to detail
High placement of the horizon line.

Throughout the 15th century, the artists of Flanders were considered to be the best in Europe. The art produced there is called Flemish.
The major seaport and commercial center of Bruges was the commercial power of Northern Europe, rivaling the Italian city-states of Florence and Venice.

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Throughout the 15th century, the artists of Flanders were considered to be the best in Europe. The art produced there is called Flemish.
The major seaport and commercial center of Bruges was the commercial power of Northern Europe, rivaling the Italian city-states of Florence and Venice.

Annunciation Triptich (Merode Altarpiece)
c. 1427-1432 oil on oak

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The artists who most closely followed the Flemish style were Robert Campin, Jan van Eyck, and Rogier van der Weyden.
About 1425-1428, Campin painted an altapiece now known as the Mérode Altarpiece after the name of the former owners. Because of its small size, it is believed it was painted for a private chapel.

Double Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and His Wife Jan van Eyck
Oil on wood panel 33 x 22 ½
Van Eyck’s best-known painting today is an elaborate double portrait of a couple, traditionally identified as Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife, Giovanna Cenami.
The true meaning of the painting remains a mystery
Early interpretations suggested that this was a wedding or a betrothal. Above the mirror on the back wall the artist signed the work with the words “Jan van Eyck was here” as if he were a witness.

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Van Eyck’s best known painting today is an elaborate double portrait of a couple, traditionally identified as Giovanni Arnolfini and his wife, Giovanna Cenami.
The true meaning of the painting remains a mystery
Early interpretations suggested that this was a wedding or a betrothal. Above the mirror on the back wall the artist signed the work with the words “Jan van Eyck was here” as if he were a witness.

Ghent Alterpiece: As found by the Allied Art Experts (the Monuments Men)
oil on panel
Jan and Hubert van Eyck

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The artists who most closely followed the Flemish style were Robert Campin, Jan van Eyck, and Rogier van der Weyden.
About 1425-1428, Campin painted an altapiece now known as the Mérode Altarpiece after the name of the former owners. Because of its small size, it is believed it was painted for a private chapel.

Ghent Alterpiece: Annunication with Donors (closed)
oil on panel
Jan and Hubert van Eyck

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The artists who most closely followed the Flemish style were Robert Campin, Jan van Eyck, and Rogier van der Weyden.
About 1425-1428, Campin painted an altapiece now known as the Mérode Altarpiece after the name of the former owners. Because of its small size, it is believed it was painted for a private chapel.

Ghent Altarpiece: Annunication with Donors (open)
1432 oil on panel 11’5” x 15’1”

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The artists who most closely followed the Flemish style were Robert Campin, Jan van Eyck, and Rogier van der Weyden.
About 1425-1428, Campin painted an altapiece now known as the Mérode Altarpiece after the name of the former owners. Because of its small size, it is believed it was painted for a private chapel.

Ghent Altarpiece: Adoration of the Mystic Lamb
Bottom center panel

Ghent Altarpiece: The Virgin Mary, God the Father/Christ, and St. John the Baptist
top center panels

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The artists who most closely followed the Flemish style were Robert Campin, Jan van Eyck, and Rogier van der Weyden.
About 1425-1428, Campin painted an altapiece now known as the Mérode Altarpiece after the name of the former owners. Because of its small size, it is believed it was painted for a private chapel.

Rogier van der Weyden, a little younger than van Eyck, had a large workshop in Brussels that attracted artist as far away as Italy.
However, not one existing art work bears his name.
Deposition
Rogier van der Weyden
c. 1435-1438
oil on wood panel
7’ 2 5/8” x 8’ 7 1/8”

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Rogier van der Weyden, a little younger than van Eyck, had a large workshop in Brussels that attracted artist as far away as Italy.
However, not one existing art work hears his name.

This Deposition was the center panel of an altarpiece commissioned by the Louvain Crossbowmen’s Guild . The altarpiece once included panels representing the Four Evangelists and Christ’s Resurrection.

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This Deposition was the center panel of an altarpiece commissioned by the Louvain Crossbowmen’s Guild . The altarpiece once included panels representing the Four Evangelists and Christ’s Resurection.

The body of Jesus is arranged in a graceful curve, framed by jarringly angular arms. The curve of the body and the arm position are echoed in the fainting Virgin.
These figures, set against a solid gilded background, allow the viewer no escape from their expressions of intense grief.
Each person has their own personal reaction to grief, reflecting the new Humanistic concern for the individual.

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The body of Jesus is arranged in a graceful curve, framed by jarringly angular arms. The curve of the body and the arm position are echoed in the fainting Virgin.
These figures, set against a solid gilded background, allow the viewer no escape from their expressions of intense grief.
Each person has their own personal reaction to grief, reflecting the new Humanistic concern for the individual.

A Goldsmith in His Shop
Petrus Christus
1449 Oil on oak panel
38 5/8 x 33 ½
This painting by Petrus Christus, of a goldsmith in his shop, provided the model for a long line of clearly secular pictures showing people doing business in their shops.
These paintings provide a wealth of information about how people lived during this time.

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This painting by Petrus Christus, of a goldsmith in his shop, provided the model for a long line of clearly secular pictures showing people doing business in their shops.
These paintings provide a wealth of information about how people lived during this time.

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The Portinari family were from Florence, but living in Bruge. Mr Portinari worked in a bank that was owned by the Medici family.
Mr. and Mrs. Portinari are shown in the side panels of the Altarpiece with their children.

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The Portinari family were from Florence, but living in Bruge. Mr Portinari worked in a bank that was owned by the Medici family.
Mr. and Mrs. Portinari are shown in the side panels of the Altarpiece with their children.

Portinari Altarpiece
Hugo van der Goes
c. 1474-1467
Tempera and oil on wood panel
8’3 ½ x 10’
Hugo van der Goes brought together the intellectual challenge of Jan van Eyck and the emotional intensity of Rogier van der Weyden in an entirely new style. Van der Goes major work was an altarpiece more than 8 feet tall.
It was commissioned by the Portnari family for the family chapel in Florence

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Hugo van der Goes brought together the intellectual challenge of Jan van Eyck and the emotional intensity of Rogier van der Weyden in an entirely new style. Van der Goes major work was an altarpiece more than 8 feet tall.

On the side panels, kneeling donors are flanked by their patron saints.

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The work of Hugo van der Goes and other Northern Renaissance painters was a startling contrast to contemporary Florentine art.
Michelangelo criticized the detailed realism of Flemish art.
But, Flemish art was so admired in the 15th century that many artists went to Flanders to study
Only at the end of the century did European patrons begin to favor the new styles of art and architecture developing in Italy.

The Unicorn is Found from Hunt of the Unicorn
c. 1495-1505 12’ 1” x 12’ 5”
wool, silk, and metal threads
The importance of textiles in the 15th century can not be over emphasized. Flemish and French artists produced outstanding tapestries that served both as wall coverings, and as a form of portable wealth.
One of the finest examples of Renaissance tapestry is a series of wall hangings called the Hunt of the Unicorn.

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The importance of textiles in the 15th century can not be over emphasized. Flemish and French artists produced outstanding tapestries that served both as wall coverings, and as a form of portable wealth.
One of the finest examples of Renaissance tapestry is a series of wall hangings called the Hunt of the Unicorn.

Renaissance Art
in Italy
By the end of the Middle Ages, the most important Italian cultural centers were north of Rome at Florence, Milan, Venice, and several smaller duchies.
Much of the power and art patronage was in the hands of wealthy families.

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Renaissance Art
in Italy

David Donatello
c. 1446-1460 bronze
5’ 2¼” tall
When Donatello made the statue is unknown, but it was first recorded in 1469 in the Medici courtyard.
Although the statue clearly draws on the classical tradition of heroic nudity, this adolescent boy is wavering between childish interests and adult responsibility which makes him seem all the braver for having attacked Goliath.
Donatello influenced artists both inside and outside of Florence.

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When Donatello made the statue is unknown, but it was first recorded in 1469 in the Medici courtyard.
Although the statue clearly draws on the classical tradition of heroic nudity, this adolescent boy is wavering between childish interests and adult responsibility which makes him seem all the more brave for having attacked Goliath.
Donatello influenced artists both inside and outside of Florence.

Donatello’s statue of David is the earliest known life-sized free standing bronze nude in Europe since antiquity.

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Donatello executed every commission as if it were a new experiment…almost every work broke new ground.
Donatello’s statue of David is the earliest known life-sized free standing bronze nude in Europe since antiquity.

Overall gilding unifies ten large square reliefs.
The space in each square is organized with linear perspective.
In some panels, the architecture suggests ancient Roman architecture.
Overall, the low-relief settings seem closer to painting than to sculpture.

Gates of Paradise (East Doors)
Baptistery of San Giovanni, Florence
1425-1452 gilded bronze 15’ tall

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Overall gilding unifies ten large square reliefs.
The space in each square is organized with linear perspective.
In some panels, the architecture suggests ancient Roman architecture.
Overall, the low-relief settings seem closer to painting than to sculpture.

Linear Perspective
The sculptor and architect Filippo Brunelleschi first demonstrated the system around 1420.
With a viewer standing dead center at a prescribed distance from a work of art, everything would appear to recede into the distance at the same rate, following imaginary lines called orthogonals that met at a single vanishing point on the horizon.

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The Trinity fresco was meant to give the illusion of a stone funerary monument and altar table set in a deep niche in the wall.
He accomplished this by using exacting linear perspective and having the vanishing point just at eye level of an adult viewer.

Trinity with the Virgin, St. John the Evangelist,and Donors
Masaccio
Church of Saint Maria Novella, Florence
c. 1425-1428 fresco
21’ x 10’ 5”
The Trinity fresco was meant to give the illusion of a stone funerary monument and altar table set in a deep niche in the wall.
He accomplished this by using exacting linear perspective and having the vanishing point just at eye level of an adult viewer.

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The Trinity fresco was meant to give the illusion of a stone funerary monument and altar table set in a deep niche in the wall.
He accomplished this by using exacting linear perspective and having the vanishing point just at eye level of an adult viewer.

In Masacchio’s painting, God the Father holds the cross on which Jesus hangs, the dove of the Holy Spirit is above Jesus’ head, Mary and Saint John the Evangelist stand at the foot of the cross.
The donors kneel just outside the niche

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In Masacchio’s painting, God the Father holds the cross on which Jesus hangs, the dove of the Holy Spirit is above Jesus’ head, Mary and Saint John the Evangelist stand at the foot of the cross.
The donors kneel just outside the niche

Masacchio’s brief career reached its height when he and another painter decorated the Brancacci Chapel in Florence.
The chapel was originally dedicated to Saint Peter, and the frescoes illustrate events in Peter’s life.

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Masacchio’s brief career reached it’s height when he and another painter decorated the Brancacci Chapel in Florence.
The chapel was originally dedicated to Saint Peter, and the frescoes illustrate events in Peters life.

Masacchio’s use of both linear and atmospheric perspective help the frescoes to be believable visually. The cleaning of these frescoes revealed that Tribute Money had been done in 32 sections.
Tribute Money Masaccio 1427
Fresco Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence

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Masacchio’s use of both linear and atmospheric perspective help the frescoes to be believable visually.
The cleaning of these frescoes revealed that Tribute Money had been done in 32 sections.

On the far left (scene 2), we see Peter kneeling down and retrieving the money from the mouth of a fish, and on the far right (scene 3), St. Peter pays the tax collector. In the fresco, the tax collector appears twice, and St. Peter appears three times (you can find them easily if you look for their clothing).

The head of Jesus is placed where the vanishing point is in the linear perspective. The trees get smaller as they recede and Peter by the lake is smaller than Peter at the front of the painting. (continuous narrative)
Atmospheric perspective is used on the mountains and in the sky. The colors are darker the closer they are to us (or earth) and fade as they recede into the distance.

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The head of Jesus is placed where the vanishing point is in the linear perspective. The trees get smaller as they recede and Peter by the lake is smaller than Peter at the front of the painting. (continuous narrative)
Atmospheric perspective is used on the mountains and in the sky.

Masaccio understands how a light source works. All the figures cast dark shadows on the ground to the left, suggesting that the light source is the window in the chapel.
He also used a sophisticated shading technique, using contrasting colors for shading. For example, Andrew’s green robe is shaded with red instead of darker green.

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Masaccio understands how a light source works. All of the figures cast dark shadows on the ground to the left, suggesting that the light source is the window in the chapel.
He also used a sophisticated shading technique, using contrasting colors for shading. For example, Andrew’s green robe is shaded with red instead of darker green.

At the top of the stairs in the monastery, Fra Angelico painted a scene of the Annunciation. Here, the monks were to pause for prayer before going to their individual cells.
Annunciation Father Angelico
North corridor, monastery of San Marco, Florence
c. 1438-1445 fresco 7’1” x 10’ 6”

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At the top of the stairs in the monastery, Fra Angelico painted a scene of the Annunciation. Here, the monks were to pause for prayer before going to their individual cells.

Careful linear perspective gives the illusion of space and seems to extend the monks stairway into Mary’s home and garden. The natural light comes from the left, and models their forms, casting an almost supernatural glow over their faces and hands.

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Careful linear perspective gives the illusion of space, and seems to extend the monks stairway into Mary’s home and garden. The natural light comes from the left, and models their forms, casting an almost supernatural glow over their faces and hands.

Renaissance in Urbino, Mantua, Venice, and Rome
In the second half of the fifteenth century, the ideals of Florentine Renaissance artists like Brunelleschi, Donatello, and Masaccio began to spread from Florence to the rest of Italy as artists who had trained or worked in Florence traveled to other cities to work, carrying the Renaissance style with them. Northern Italy embraced the new Classical ideas swiftly, especially in the ducal courts at Urbino and Mantua, and Venice and Rome also emerged as innovative art centers.

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While Fra Angelico was working away, a new generation of artists emerged.
Fluid, linear grace was the characteristic of the work of Sandro Botticelli. His best known works are of mythological subjects, among them, the Birth of Venus.

Fluid, linear grace was the main characteristic of the work of Sandro Botticelli. His best-known works are of mythological subjects, among them, the Birth of Venus.
Birth of Venus Sandro Botticello
c. 148-1486 tempera and gold on canvas
5’ 8 7/8” x 9’ 1 7/8”

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While Fra Angelico was working away, a new generation of artists emerged.
Fluid, linear grace was the characteristic of the work of Sandro Botticelli. His best known works are of mythological subjects, among them, the Birth of Venus.

This painting was probably done for the private collection of Lorenzo de Medici who had become ruler of Florence in 1469. The central image is a type known as the modest Venus, based on the antique statue in the Medici collection.

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This painting was probably done for the private collection of Lorenzo de Medici who had become ruler of Florence in 1469. The central image is a type known as the modest Venus, based on the antique statue in the Medici collection.

Battista Sforza (left) and Federico Da Montefel (right)
Piero della Francesca c. 1474
Oil on wood panel

Mantegna’s mature style is demonstrated in the frescoes of the Camera Picta (Painted Room) in the Duke’s palace in Mantua.
The room appears to be open to a cloud filled sky through an oculus. This style began a long tradition of illusionistic ceiling painting.

Camera Picta Andrea Mantegna
Ducal palace, Mantua 1465-1474 fresco

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Mantegna’s mature style is demonstrated in the frescoes of the Camera Picta (Painted Room) in the Duke’s palace in Mantua.
The room appears to be open to a cloud filled sky through an oculus. This style began a long tradition of illusionistic ceiling painting.

Looking up at the oculus is a viewpoint called di sotto in sù (seen directly from below).
On each side of a precariously balanced planter, three young women and an exotically turbaned African man peer over a railing. A fourth woman looks dreamily upward.

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Looking up at the oculus is a viewpoint called di sotto in sù (seen directly from below) On each side of a precariously balanced planter, three young women and and an exotically turbaned African man peer over a railing. A fourth woman looks dreamily upward.