Brunelleschi: The Genius Behind the Dome By Ania Milligan

The Beginning Filippo Brunelleschi was born on an unknown date in He lived to be 69 and died on the 15 of April, 1446, in Florence Italy, the place of his birth. He was Buried in the Santa Maria del Fiore. In 1972, his tomb was discovered to have been missing for the past couple hundred years.

Achievements: Baptistery Competition Brunelleschi was a very successful man during the renaissance, and his achievements are showcased all over Florence. His first large achievement happened in 1401, when he entered a competition set by the Lord of Florence. The criteria was to design a set of bronze doors to welcome people into the Florence Baptistery. Rivalled by six other artists, he began his master piece. When he finished, the doors portrayed a biblical scene when Abraham is prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac to God. Also in the picture is a servant, pulling a thorn from his foot, and a donkey calmly grazing. Unfortunately for Brunelleschi, his artistic equal, Lorenzo Ghiberti won the contest, and Brunelleschi was offered the role of Lorenzo’s assistant. His pride prevented him from doing so, and his disappointment at failing caused him to give up his artistic career at the Arte della Seta.

Door Entries Brunelleschi Lorenzo

Achievements: Math Brunelleschi’s most esteemed mathematical achievement happened in 1415 when he redefined the term “linear perspective”. Previously, only a few highly respected artists understood and were able to create the illusion of depth within painting. Brunelleschi was able to use his mathematical knowledge to discover that every line on a plain vanishes at the same point, and he was able to show this using a mirror. He saw that to truly give the illusion of depth, objects had to become increasingly large at the front of the painting, and mush smaller in comparison in the back. Using his new found knowledge, he began to observe the architecture in Florence, in a way that captured the true shape and size of everything.

Brunelleschi’s Mirror Technique

Achievement: Duomo In 1409, the roofless Cathedral in Florence captured Brunelleschi’s attention. The octagonal walls were far too large to build a self supporting dome on, and no one could come up with a solution. Both Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Ghiberti had applied with ideas of their own, and the competition was tense. In 1420, Brunelleschi won with his design. He based his design upon a cracked egg. It would be tall and rather narrow at the top, but it would stand on its own. He proposed they would lay the bricks out in a herring bone fashion, having the bricks lean on each other for support. To avoid the use of scaffolding, he invented his own machines that would help him hoist heavy objects up into their place by using a singly ox. He was very hands-on and liked to mix the cement himself as well as actually laying down the bricks. After 26 years of working on it, he died, leaving the dome almost completely finished. The only thing left to build was the massive lantern to be placed at the top of the dome. The lanterns purpose was actually structural support, not just decoration. The Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore was Brunelleschi’s most renowned piece, and today one of the biggest tourist attractions in Florence.

Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore

Brunelleschi’s Renaissance Values Brunelleschi was a very open-minded man, who believed strongly in development of technology, something that was frowned upon during the Middle Ages. In his art work, he used many renaissance techniques. Brunelleschi reinvented linear perspective, which he used constantly in his paintings, to show depth and distance, something that was inexistent previously. Also, instead of primitively using the strength of multiple oxen, he invented a more efficient way of lifting thing, which required only one ox because of it’s design. He believed that life should not stay the way it is forever, which is one of the biggest renaissance values.

Brunelleschi’s Passion of Technological Progress:

Influences After being apprenticed as a goldsmith/sculptor in 1392, one of his biggest inspirations was Paolo dal PozzaToscanelli, who was a merchant and a doctor. His admiration of science and math really provoked Brunelleschi, and it was Paolo who introduced him to the basic properties of geometry. Also, he initiated a love of technology in Brunelleschi, who prospered from this when he began on the dome. His next influence was a close friend of Brunelleschi, Donatello. Donatello was a fantastic artist, and is renowned for his sculpting and painting. Donatello helped Brunelleschi grow as an artist by critiquing his work, while he helped Donatello by returning the favor. They both flourished from the constructive criticism given.

Brunelleschi and Donatello

Brunelleschi’s Challenge I think that a challenge Brunelleschi had to face was defying his father as a child. His father was a respected lawyer, Brunellescho di Lippo, who wished for his son to follow in his footsteps. Brunelleschi had no passion for such a career, and thought it a waste to throw away his talent. He sponsored for an apprenticeship at a goldsmith, where he would learn to paint. His father’s disappointment was strong, and he felt that Brunelleschi had betrayed him. From then on he was distant from his family and made friends, who later replaced the ones who had once loved him. Like most other children, I enjoy receiving praise and pleasing my parents, so to disobey them would sit heavy in my heart and be extremely difficult.

Brunelleschi’s Influence I believe that if Brunelleschi had followed his fathers dreams instead of his own, we would not be where we are today, in terms of technological progress. He was one of the founding fathers of the practical pulley and cog systems still used today. He found efficient ways of using less resources, and was very strong minded when it came to sharing and teaching his ideas. Also, many of the structures you see today, would not be standing if it was not for Brunelleschi. He discovered ways of holding up a lot of weight in, that would save room and supplies, as well as enhance it’s physical appearance. And aside from his physical contributions, he also taught us how to draw in perspective which helped in a number of ways like drawing to scale, helping with dimensions and just making art look more realistic. I think that without Brunelleschi’s influence, that world would be a different place.

The End