1. Renaissance

2. What was it?
A rebirth
the time when people began to get interested in ancient art and ideas from the past
especially in ancient Rome
led to many new works of art
time when people began to think for themselves
time when people began to question beliefs that had been taken for granted

3. Huge changes in...
Art
Science
Architecture
Medicine
Literature

4. Starts in Italy – why?
Buildings and objects from Ancient Rome were still in italy - Italy had been the centre of the Roman empire
many greek manuscripts had been brought to italy for safekeeping by greek scholars in 1453 after the fall of Constantinople
Italian merchants were richer than elsewhere in europe - they had money to spend on art
competition between diff italian cities to outdo each other in making their city beautiful - patrons were will to spend money to get artists and architects to do this

5. Differences between medieval and renaissance
1. In middle ages only religious figures could read and write - they studied the bible
in renaissance, many people learned how to read and write - they studied the writings of Ancient Rome, as well as bible
2. In middle ages people accepted the teaching of the Catholic Church, even in geography and science - they didn’t think for themselves
in renaissance, people started to think for themselves - started to question the teachings of the Church

6. Humanism renaissance idea
belief that humans are at the centre of everything

7. Patrons rich merchants, and popes and bishops were patrons
they paid an artist to produce a work of art
famous patrons - Medicis - Lorenzo de Medici

9. always religious topics
no sense of humanity in the faces
2 dimensional - no perspective
haloes around head
no sense of anatomy - ie bodies were not realistic
the main person in the picture would be the biggest
humans not important to the picture - often v small

11. Renaissance paintings
new techniques used
perspective - 3D - things further away look smaller
anatomy - artists studied human body - often dissected dead bodies to understand
nature - nature scenes and animals began to become more realistic

13. Renaissance Painting technique - sfumato
real skin has different shades
sfumato - blurring to create different shades
artists rubbed the paint
blurring the edges

14. Oils in middle ages, egg white used to mix paints
dried quickly so artists had to work quickly
now in renaissance, oil was used
dried slowly
artists had more time to be accurate

15. New humanism artists still painted religious paintings
but now the characters were more human, more like us
also, pictures of just normal people started to be painted
in middle ages, this would not have been considered worthwhile
these were called portraits
wealthy patrons would get themselves painted
or their wives
example, Mona Lisa is a portrait of a merchant’s wife

17. Frescos a picture painted directly onto a wall
in ancient rome there had been many frescos
now renaissances artists started using them again
De Vinci’s ‘The Lat Supper’ is an example

19. Da Vinci Born in Vinci in 1452 near Florence
Apprenticed to Florentine artist
he would often paint the smaller objects in a painting by his master
soon became famous
his dove in * showed people his skill

20. often didn’t finish his paintings
‘Adoration of the Magi’ is unfinished
lost interest in them

21. used the new renaissance techniques
sfumato
portraits
perspective
anatomy - he dissected many bodies
often included animals in his paintings

22. Mona Lisa one of his most famous works now hangs in the Louvre museum
portrait of his patron’s wife
sfumato used in her face and hands
we can see the diff shading in her face
the creases in her dress are v lifelike

24. mysterious expression in her smile...
...shows how he perfectly captured her human qualities
shows his knowledge of anatomy
nature in background
also perspective in background
road twists and turns; a river flows

25. leaves Florence for Milan
New patron, Sforza, Duke of Milan
Paints ‘The Last Supper’ on wall of a Church
Fresco
Paint has peeled and colors faded
but still famous
although it’s religious, we still see the human qualities of the apostles
we can see fear, confusion
perspective in background
jesus, even though he is the main focus in the middle...
...is not bigger than the others

27. Notebook (1) Kept his ideas in a notebook carried it with him
used mirror writing to protect it
perhaps afraid people might steal his ideas
also afraid the Catholic Church would not like his theories

28. Notebook (2) contained diagrams for machines
inventions of submarine and helicopter
contains the shocking line, ‘the sun does not revolve around the earth’
invented weapons for Zforza, duke of milan
also studied biology and made many drawings of plants and animals in them

29. France
his popularity dwindled because of younger artists such as Michelangelo
so he moved to france
died there in 1519
that’s why ‘Mona Lisa’ is in the Louvre

30. Importance of Da Vinci a Polymath - the typical renaissance man
tried his hand at everything
sculpture, painting, inventions
used the new techniques
his paintings still admired today