Italian Renaissance Essay, Research Paper

Throughout history many art movements have emerged that artists and styles are classified under. One large contributing movement over the time period from about 1450 to about 1600 was known as the Italian Renaissance. However, what a large portion of people do not realize is that the Italian Renaissance was actually two main movements during that period of time. Each movement had key artists and a variation in style from the other movements. These two movements in the Italian Renaissance have been named the Early and High Renaissance.

The Early Renaissance which took place from c.1450 to c.1495. During this period three key artist emerged from the group these being Sandro Botticelli and Donatello. Each in there owns field painting and sculpture respectively.

Botticelli had become know for his amazing unnatural allegories and extensive elaborated history painting. This was key in the time period because the success of an artist was related to how well the artist could combine the present with the past. One of Botticelli s work that pushed him to the for front of his time was the Punishment of Corah , which depicted Corah and the other rebels revolting against Moses and Aaron and the punishments that Corah and the other leaders of the rebel group receive from Yahweh (the Hebrew name for G-d).

Donatello is another great artist during this time even though his genre was different from Botticelli, however in his field he was the best during this period. Donatello would sculpt thing in his own vivid and revolutionary way. Donatello was one that didn t care about lines or proportion he was one that worked directly with the material at hand. One of Donatello s first known sculpture is called David . However, he is better known for St. George and the Dragon . All of the details in Donatello s work come to climax in the relief. This effect brings out the object and how light and point of view controls the detail one sees.

The next stage if the Italian Renaissance came to be known as the High Renaissance. During this period three artists came to the forefront. Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael each of these artists had there own style however each where considered now to be some of the best artists ever known to man.

Leonardo da Vinci a man that rings a bell in almost any person s head when said is best known for the Mona Lisa . The version that we know however is one that Leonardo changed from a portrait from an icon of status to the known representation of a person fully engaged with the viewer. Leonardo uses a sfumato style, which blends both light and dark to create a uniform distribution. Leonardo is also known for his interpretation of The Last Supper . He takes the approach of choosing the moment after Christ announces that one of his disciples has betrayed him. Leonardo put in his painting how he feels the disciples will react. Leonardo took a new approach to almost everything he did and that is why he was one of the three for runners of the High Renaissance period.

Michelangelo was a man with great talent that did not stick to a given genre. Michelangelo did painting, architecture and sculpture. The painting, which he is best known for, is Last Judgement ; created displeasure because it was considered lewd and unseemly in a religious setting. This was because of the portrayal of nudes and sensuality in the church. Which is something one must agree with that there is no need for private scenes to be show in a place of G-d. This painting however did not change the way people viewed his talents so he continued to do his work one of his greatest architectural designs was the Laurentain Library located in San Lorenzo, Florence. Michelangelo considered while building this the need for serious study , a grand entrance , and light-filled study space , he then joined them to form the ideal building. Thus he was considered a remarkable architect; furthermore he was a spectacular sculpture best known for his sculpture the Tomb of Julius II . This was a rendition of a male nude, which was commissioned by Julius II in 1505. Biographer, Ascanio Condivi, maintained in 1553 that they represented the arts, expiring at the death of Julius II, their greatest patron. These two pieces of art are just examples of Michelangelo s exemplary skills.

Raphael is the third key artist of the High Renaissance period. His works such as The Madonnas and Entombment are just two of the many works he did during his years. The Madonnas where the main group of painting that won lasting popularity for Raphael. Motherly love and childish gaiety with supernatural qualities characterize these painting. Entombment on the other hand is a group of followers of Christ trying to move his dead body, instead of still morning over Christ body portrayed in Perugino s The Lamentation over Christ . This painting did not draw as much attention as The Madonnas . These paintings made Raphael one of the three key artists of the High Renaissance period.

In conclusion, the Italian Renaissance considered by most to be a single movement that was in fact two periods during the Renaissance known as the early and high periods. Each period had there own key artists that contributed to the movement. Thus, if there was only a Renaissance period then it is very possible that the artists that we know as some of the greats may not have been at the forefront of the time period and their skills and talents would have passed us by.

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