Artists throughout history have adopted unique practices that have influenced and driven them to gain success, and further develop their characteristics within the art culture itself. Through constructing the image of the artist, traditional Renaissance artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Cennino Cennini and Leon Battista Alberti have each formulated their portrayal of the artist, revealed through books, notebooks and detailed sketches that highlighted specific characteristics needed within the individual. These masters construct this image in distinctive ways that establish the individual as an artist who is aware of themselves and the world around them. Ultimately, distinctive processes have allowed these artists to build on character, tools …show more content…
and success that transformed not only their works and practice but also revealed the different notions regarding the changing ideas behind art and the artist. Cennino Cennini was born In 1370, near Florence, where he would follow the traditions of Giotto and pioneer painting from Artisanship to the fine arts. According to Cennini, painting holds a high place among human occupations because it combines theory and imagination with the skill of the hands, similarly to Leonardo da Vinci’s method of practice. During his early years as an artist, he was a student of Agnolo Gaddi in Florence, who taught him for the next 12 years. Throughout this time, Cennini would develop his distinctive skills and go on to write his best-known work, Il Libro Dell’arte (1437; The Craftsman’s Handbook). In his book, he writes extensively on the methods, techniques and attitudes of the artist and also marks the transition between medieval and Renaissance concepts of art. On the first page of his book “II Libro Dell’arte”, Cennini attempts to describe where the creative urge comes from, “Man pursued some occupation related to the one which calls for a basis…coupled with skill of hand: and this is an occupation known as painting, which calls for imagination, and skill of hand, in order to discover things not seen, hiding themselves under the shadow of natural objects, and to fix them (give them shape) with the hand, presenting to plain sight what does not actually exist.” Cennini further goes onto say in great detail, the responsibilities required of the artist in his day, such as knowledge of how to produce the tools needed to apply in an artists profession. Comparatively, Alberti also understood that an artist needs to have a greater connection with art and his tools in order to gain success. Each chapter of his book has a title and is written as guidance and advice on how to use colours and mix them, and how to use the natural elements nature gives to make a painting and good use of colours. For example, he describes how to create parchment, paints, brushes and gessoes, again stating how important the combination of imagination, tools and the virtue of the hands are within the art practice, similarly, Alberti also agrees about the significance of having harmony between an artists hands and tools. Cennini confirms that with the union of the artist's imagination and good use of the hands, this determines a formula for being a successful artist. Significant religious influences are within his book as well as he sustains that art is a product of the sin that Adam and Eve started. An example of this spirituality is in the opening chapter of his book as he stats, “Here begins The Craftsman’s Handbook, made and composed by Cennino of Colle, in the reverence of God, and of The Virgin Mary, and of Saint Eustace, and of Saint Francis, and of Saint John Baptist, and of Saint Anthony of Padua, and, in general, of all the Saints of God; and in reverence of Giotto, of Taddeo and of Agnolo, Cennino’s master; and for the use and good profit of anyone who wants to enter this profession.”.In comparison with other Renaissance artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Cennini is similar in his appreciation for painting and the development of the artist’s practice, Leon Alberti however, distinguishes that math and architecture are the foundations of art and a successful career. Essentially, Cennini advocates that gaining any type of success or development the artist needs to have a greater knowledge of their tools and hands. While looking at other artists in comparison have revealed that artistic success or development can be attained using separate methods rather than just having an understanding of tools being used or skill of the hand. Renaissance painter Leon Battista Alberti, first attended a school in Padua at which his father would teach him mathematics, and would then go on to study at the University of Bologna and begin his artistic career. Alberti lived mainly in Rome and Florence, working within the Roman Catholic Church and by 1432 he was headed towards a literary career as a secretary, writing biographies of the saints in Latin at the Papal Chancery in Rome. However, during this time he studied the representation of 3-dimensional objects and went on to write ‘Della Pictura’ the laws of perspective in 1435. Alberti stats that “Nothing pleases me so much as mathematical investigations and demonstrations, especially when I can turn them to some useful practice drawing from mathematics the principles of painting perspective and some amazing propositions on the moving of weights…” Alberti’s primary belief is that painting is the basis of architecture and math, his theories on mathematical proportions are based on classical art, confirming this notion. This theory affected all aspects of his work, early architectural works especially. He claims that to be successful, the artist has to have the ‘Istoria’, the tale that the artist has to tell us, different to what Cennini believed. The idea behind this success is that the artist when drawing a human body should also imagine what is behind the body, he should know about anatomy as well, to be able to paint with proportions. The painting, therefore, should have a sense of harmony and rhythm together with the function of the body within the frame, suggesting that the viewer should ‘enter’ not only the space of a picture but also the experience depicted. Alberti understood that an Istoria is more than a straightforward narrative; instead, it represented an instant of idealised true reality, a reality that's connected nature with art. Similarly, Leonardo da Vinci also believed that the artist should look for more than just whats on the surface, revealing how art is not just what the viewer sees on the canvas but goes beyond that. Alberti also describes painting as a gift from God, and that nature and math is the formula for God, similar to Cennini who also believed God had a high significance within art itself. These religious beliefs carried on in lots of other artists works, revealing how god is a significant influence within an artists practice. Alberti expected the artist to be broadly knowledgeable, and that nature does not bring geniuses instead it is in our hands to make them be. Comparatively to Da Vinci, Alberti also sees that painting is something mechanical because it can be done with the hands and therefore shows how the content of their works are affected by their beliefs. In comparison with previous artists, Leonardo da Vinci constructs the image of the artist as someone who works in solitude and looks at nature as his source of inspiration rather than copying from others.
He states that a good painter is someone who paints the man and also his mentality. Art historians studied his notebooks and found a spirit of scientific inquiry and inventiveness that were far ahead of his time, as well as Cennini; Da Vinci sees that drawing is something mechanical because it can be done with the hands. Da Vinci, never attended a public school as he was raised by his single father and would continue to work in Florence, Milan and France. From the age of 13 to 20, Leonardo was a pupil at the Bottega Veneta in Florence, where he would study under Andrea del Verrocchio, again similar to both Cennini and Alberti whom all agreed a master is necessary to begin one's artistic career. During this time Leonardo examined all different notions of art and science, through looking at animals like frogs and even later dissecting the human brain, allowing him to grasp that the brain was part of the nervous system. Leading him to believe people had a soul, and so he would try to locate it. Da Vinci used his outstanding intellect and mastery of art and science to study nature itself, allowing him to excel in both these facets of his life. He believed his quest for knowledge and the artist himself should go beyond the surface features and instead go deep inside to the very nature of their subject. In contrast to Cennini, Da Vinci sought for more than just the materialistic nature of art and wanted to gain a greater understanding of the world around him. Revealing how art is not just about making work for someone to view but instead is something with a deeper meaning that revolves around the artist and his/her
world. Furthermore, through looking at separate artists interpretations of success and development, it is clear that artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Cennini Cennino and Alberti have been influenced by the world around them that has also lead to their practices being determined. Their differences in developing practices or success have uncovered changing ideas regarding the way art is viewed by the viewer and the way the artist interprets and constructs his work in relation to the world around them. Ultimately, this has lead to challenging notions regarding traditional ideas behind the artist and art itself.
In the Florence and the early renaissance, we have the greatest master of art like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Sandro Botticelli and others. In this period of time the painters almost never show their emotions or feelings, they were more focused on indulging the churches and the wealthy people. In The renaissance period the art provides the work of art with ideal, intangible qualities, giving it a beauty and significance greater and more permanent than that actually found in the modern art. Florence and the early renaissance, the art become very valued where every artist was trying to create art forms consistent with the appearance of the beauty or elegance in a natural perspective. However, Renaissance art seems to focus more on the human as an individual, while Wayne White art takes a broader picture with no humans whatsoever; Wayne, modern three dimensional arts often utilizes a style of painting more abstract than Renaissance art. At this point in the semester these two aspects of abstract painting and the early renaissance artwork have significant roles in the paintings. Wayne White brings unrealistic concepts that provoke a new theme of art, but nevertheless the artistic creations of the piece of art during early renaissance still represent the highest of attainment in the history of
Ultimately, it can be seen that all artists are influenced or incorporate issues and events of their time in their works, whether this is from the desire to portray Greek perfection to that of religious beliefs and the creation of the camera. To become renowned like Polykleitos, Michelangelo and Pablo Picasso, this statement must be followed.
Leonardo da Vinci was a man of art, science and innovation during the Renaissance Era. Although many of Leonardo’s paintings were unfinished or lost, we could see his influence in perspective, light and shadows, and primary colors in his paintings. To paint more realistic paintings, he first learned as an apprentice to Andrea del Verrocchio, a leading Florentine painter and sculptor. After 6 years he became an independent master and developed his own style of painting.
The Italian Renaissance was full of brilliant and gifted artists, scientists and inventors but Leonardo da Vinci was the most omniscient of them all. For someone who was able to obtain the amount of knowledge that he knew and to associate all of his works with each other is beyond extraordinary and he is considered one of the smartest people of all time.
The term “renaissance man” describes an individual who excels in numerous areas and can do many things extremely well. Today, this description lends itself to both men and women who are both scholars and athletes, creative and industrious, and generally highly successful in all they do. While many modern “renaissance individuals” go quietly about their lives being exceptional yet unnoticed, the first renaissance man, Leonardo Da Vinci, made quite a stir and caught the attention and imagination of the fifteenth century world. In his own time, Da Vinci was a renowned artist, scientist and inventor who was celebrated by thinkers, artists and kings alike. And although he lived and worked more than six-hundred years ago, Da Vinci’s artistic and scientific genius continue to inspire and amaze.
Leonardo Da Vinci was an artist as well as a scientist. He devoted his time to gaining knowledge through his studies of the natural world. For Leonardo, understanding the world meant experimenting and observing in a cause-and-effect manner. He believed that nature followed a set of laws and they could be uncovered by intensive studies. This eagerness to understand the natural world through examination set him aside from his contemporaries. Through these observations he created a vast number of scientific manuscripts that helped him understand the natural world he celebrated in his paintings.
Although da Vinci is known for only a few finished works, this is not an accurate portrayal of his great skill. The story is in his exquisitely detailed notebooks, a large volume of which show the time and effort he put into each piece and tell the story of a genius at work. Leonardo's most well-known and admired paintings are: The Last Supper, Mona Lisa, Vitruvian man, Head of Christ, and the Virgin of the Rocks. In Leonardo’s masterpiece, The Last Supper, he was able to vividly portray each person’s gestures, body language, and personality traits. For instance in this piece, da Vinci displayed Peter’s hasty spirit, John's gentle attributes, and Juda’s mean disposition (Brauner, 372). This was quite an advancement from the primitive ways of art that the Medieval age produced. Leonardo also was one of the first artists that had the ability to demonstrate human expression in his pieces of artwork (Shlain, 71). This set him apart from the artists around him who still struggled to create a sense of gesture in their characters. Leonardo had great interest in human expression. He would always have his sketchbook with him. Then, as his curiosity piqued, he would follow people
Leonardo art work, invention, and thirst for knowledge show it an overwhelming desire wanting to learn more. His head was spinning with ideas to create something better, making something beautiful, and about how the human body works. His curiosity was so impressive that he would stay awake for hours on end hoping to change his theory and prove that there is more to changing to something magnificent. Studying in 14th century and 15th century in secret of the church’s power and belief.
Artists such as, Michelangelo, Raphael, & Leonardo Da Vinci integrated new methods and techniques of naturalistic representations, with the much appreciated principals of classical art, In addition, The Sistine...
Ever since the arrival of the Renaissance, new ways of approaching art physically and emotionally have been introduced by some of the most prominent men of the rebirth and by many lesser known people. The innovators of the Renaissance have brought into the art world many new characteristics and techniques to paintings and sculptures. From experimentation, to observation, to getting in touch with the human body and mind, artists of the time period were able to learn and build upon that knowledge. The information and innovations they contributed sculpted the modern world of creativity for us to learn, use, and develop our own styles for future generations in the light of artistic encouragement.
“All our knowledge has its origins in our perceptions,” a famous quote by Leonardo Da Vinci, serves to comment on how we perceive what is around us, how we base our knowledge off of that, and how art can play a major role in influencing our knowledge. When the name Da Vinci is heard, most probably associate the term with the famous Mona Lisa or perhaps the words “greatest artist to ever live”. Although these two statements are quite accurate to an extent, Da Vinci was a man way beyond his time, he accomplished numerous feats during his lifetime and has influenced society and history in countless ways.
It is said that the academics of Leonardo’s time did not take into consideration his work in any other field than painting, because he did not have a formal education. Instead he had developed an important attitude at a young age towards his critics, where he wrote “I cannot quote from eminent authors as they can, these trumpeters and reciters of the works of others. I know that all knowledge is vain and full of error when it is not born of experience, and so experience will be my mistress”. Leonardo da Vinci was a mysterious man who most definitely left his impact on the world, his time and modern time. A lot of people say Leonardo was a genius others say he was a complete mastermind who was ahead of his time, one thing for sure is that he was very talented.
Galileo Galilei was born on February 15, 1564, in Pisa, Italy. He was a mathematics professor who made pioneering observations of nature with long-lasting implications for the study of physics. Galileo constructed a machine that changed everything in astronomy, the telescope, and this supported the Copernican theory. In 1600, Galileo met Marina Gamba, a Venetian woman, who gave him three children. The daughters were Virginia and Livia, and son Vincenzo. But He never married Marina because he feared his illegitimate children would threaten his social standing. He died in Arcetri, Italy, on January 8, 1642.
Michelangelo was born on March 6, 1475 to a wealthy family. Michelangelo was always interested in art, but his father was not accepting of his decisions stating, “Artists are manual workers, hardly better than cobblers,”(Cook 2). Michelangelo tried to convince his father in every way, but won him over when he said, “If I enter Domenico Ghirlandaio’s studio, he will pay me,”(Cook 2). Michelangelo was thirteen years old when his father allowed him to become Domenico Ghirlandaio apprentice on April 1, 1488. This was the start of Michelangelo’s art career, which was prosperous until his death in 1564.
Leonardo da Vinci is one of the most well-known geniuses in human history. This man masters knowledge of all kind: painting, architecture, music, geology, philosophy, biology, math, physics, chemistry, etc. His probably most famous painting, Mona Lisa, fascinated millions of people around the world and the amazing and mysterious details in the painting attracted a number of scientists and scholars to devote their whole career in studying them. Born and lived in Italian Renaissance age, which is a period of time when arts flourished and knowledge was valued, Leonardo was surrounded by many great contemporary artists and a perfect creative environment. These favorable factors supported him to fully exercise his talents.