1. Art & Northern Renaissance Medieval Art
Artists depicted subjects in an unrealistic two-dimensional style
Indicated the importance of the soul over the body.
Disproportionate
Flat/Dull
Religious themes

2. Renaissance Art Use of oil paints 3-D and realism Lifelike
Influenced by Greco-Roman culture
Depth, shadows
Bright colors (oil paints)
Emotion,
Religion, myth, everyday life

3. Leonardo da Vinci Leonardo da Vinci was a:
Painter
Sculptor
Inventor
Scientist
A true “renaissance man”, he was interested in how things worked
He studied how a muscle moved and how the veins are arranged on a leaf
He filled notebooks with observations & new inventions
One of his best known paintings is the portrait of Mona Lisa
Leonardo also produced a famous religious painting, The Last Supper

4. Michelangelo Like da Vinci, Michelangelo was a true renaissance man
He excelled at almost every area of study
He was a painter, sculptor, architect & poet
Michelangelo is most famous for the way he portrayed the human body
He explored the Renaissance theme of human potential (humanism) by creating figures with power & grandeur
Michelangelo designed the dome on St. Peter’s Basilica, working on it until his death in 1564
His most famous sculpture is David, an 18 foot tall tribute to the biblical hero
He also painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome
Many of his panels combine Christian themes with Greek values

5. Raphael Raphael was younger than Michelangelo & da Vinci
He learned from studying their works
One of Raphael’s favorite subjects was Madonna (Mary) & child (Jesus)
His greatest achievement was the School of Athens
It was painted on the walls of Pope Julius II’s library
It shows classical & Renaissance figures listening to Greek philosophers
Keep in mind Renaissance artists didn’t ignore religious themes
Many of the times, popes were artists biggest patrons
However, Renaissance artists incorporated realism & classical ideas when they did cover religious themes

6. Renaissance Spreads North
By the late 1400s, Renaissance ideas spread to northern Europe-especially England, France, Flanders & Germany
Visitors to Italy were impressed by the ideas of Renaissance writers & artists
Merchants carried the ideas with them as they traveled
By 1450 the population of northern Europe, which had been shattered by Plague, was recovering
In addition, the destructive Hundred Years’ War between England & France ended in 1453
Many cities grew rapidly--Merchants & kings/queens sponsored the arts
Northern Europe had monarchies, not city-states
When a French king took over the throne in Naples (S. Italy) he launched an attack on N. Italy
Many artists moved to other countries in Europe

7. Northern Renaissance Uniqueness
As Renaissance ideas spread out of Italy, they mingled with northern traditions
As a result, the Northern Renaissance developed its own character
Many of the humanists there were more concerned with religious ideals, than secular themes popular in Italy
The Renaissance ideal of human dignity inspired some northern humanists
They developed plans for social reform (change) based on Christian values

8. Albrecht Duerer
Albrecht Duerer was without doubt the greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance.
Found inspiration in the work of painters of both major European artistic centers of his time.
Rather than simply imitating what others were doing,
Duerer was very much an innovator.
First artist who is known to have painted a self-portrait
And to have done a landscape painting of a specific scene.

9. Albrecht Duerer
The range and versatility of Duerer's work is astonishing.
His woodcuts and engravings made him famous
Still considered to be the greatest printmaker of all time.
As an oil painter, Duerer was equally successful at religious and secular subjects
Producing magnificent altarpieces and powerful portraits.
His drawings and watercolors are impressive for their diversity of subject-matter

10. Hans Holbein
Born in Augsburg, a rich merchant city with close trading relations with Italy
The knowledge which Durer strove for so passionately throughout his life…
came more naturally to Holbein.
Coming from a painter's family he absorbed the achievements of both the northern and the Italian artists.
He was hardly over thirty when he painted the wonderful painting of the Virgin with the family of the burgomaster of Basle as donors.

11. Hans Holbein
Holbein had careful attention to detail and a certain indifference to conventional beauty
These were characteristics that show Holbein had learned his trade in the North.
He was on his way to becoming the leading master of the German-speaking countries
However the turmoil of the Reformation put an end to all such hopes.

12. Jan van Eyck
Jan van Eyck was the greatest artist of the early Netherlands school.
Held high positions in his career, including court painter and diplomat.
So outstanding was his skill as an oil painter that its invention is often attributed to him.
Exploited the qualities of oil, building up layers of transparent glazes
Thus giving him a surface on which to capture objects in the minutest detail and allowing for the preservation of his colors.