Chapter 22: Renaissance in Cinquecento Italy
Exercises for Study:
1. Select one of the following pair of artworks and describe the differences you observe between them. Each pair consists of art of the Early Renaissance (Chapter 21) and that of the High and Late Renaissance (Chapter 22). Examine the composition, technique, position of the figures, and facial expressions, as well as any relevant elements of art and principals of design (see handout from September or Google “art elements and design principals”).
ANDREA DEL VERROCCHIO, David 1465 – 1470 or DONATELLO, David, 1440–1460 VS. MICHELANGELO BUONARROTI, David, 1501 – 1504
Interest in humanism and the rebirth of Classical, spur an interest in authentic Roman and Greek sculptures. The revival of nudity in life-size sculpture was initiated by Donatello’s David, and continued through the Renaissance. Nudity led to an increase study of human anatomy. Sculptors competed with the glory of ancient artists by creating monumental figures that revived Roman and Greek sculpture, along with the Classical’s interest in nudity and correct human proportion.
Donatello’s David, 1420s-1460s, was the first bronze nude life-size statue since antiquity. David is in an exaggerated contrapposto position, and is viewed as an androgynous figure. Nudity was used to portray David as a biblical hero, and has a positive connotation. While nudity during the Middle Ages was regarded as indecent and censorious. Nudity had only previously appeared in “moralizing contexts, i.e. Adam and Eve or depictions of sinners in hell” (Kleiner 567). The life-size work was probably not meant for public viewing, but rather housed in the Medici Palace.
Verrocchio exemplified the meaning of a Renaissance man. Not o...
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...’s family crest. Creating indentifying features that Titian was the artist. The forms that farm the central figure are both enormous and powerful; on the left is Moses and on the right is a pagan who holds the cross. These figures are from the Old Testament, therefore are illustrated as statues. Being an oil painting, Titian is allowed to be expressive with his brushworks, creating individuality. The figures form out of the darkness, creating interest in spiritual light.
Works Cited
Kleiner, Fred S., and Helen Gardner. Gardner's Art through the Ages: A
Global History. Boston, MA: Thomson Higher Education, 2009. Print.
Nici, John B. Barron's AP Art History. Hauppauge, NY: Barron's Educational
Series, 2008. Print.
Sorabella, Jean. "Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History." Venetian Color and Florentine Design. The
Metropolitan Muesum of Art, n.d. Web. 31 Jan. 2014.
As time kept passing, more and more magnificent sculptures were made by numerous artists. One of the most memorable sculpture was Aphrodite of Knidos, goddess of love and beauty. Back in the Late Classical Period, the civilians were only used to seeing ideal male nude bodies, but Praxiteles decided to make a different approach and sculpted the first female nude. Because he obviously had never seen a goddess before, he used his imagination and sculpted bathing Aphrodite as humanlike possible. He did not make it look idealistic, but instead made it beautiful with flaws.
A little over 6 feet of marble, Donatello’s first version of David was one of his earliest known commisions that mark the beginning of his artistic career. He was commissioned by the Operai of the cathedral of Florence to create a David statue to decorate one of the buttresses. The statue ended up looking too small when placed high up, so it was taken down and later requested to be displayed in Palazzo Vecchio, the town hall. Many historians dismiss his first version of David, calling this piece unoriginal and nothing to praise.
Anticipated similarities exist between the Roman copy of Doryphorus and Donatello’s David, for the former replicates a product of Classical Greece while the latter is reminiscent of this artistic epoch (The Renaissance was a “re-birth” of this classical form). However, though formal qualities of Classical Greece may be present in David, they are uncharacteristically fashioned; therefore, major degrees of difference are established in terms of characterization. While Doryphorus is a typical example of reconciling idealism and naturalism, Polykleitos does not provide a depth of narrative subtext to this figure. On the other hand, Donatello overtly characterizes David through his effeminate if not androgynous form to deliver a powerful narrative (Duro). From the stance and posture of each sculpture to the use of nudity, Polykleitos’s Doryphorus and Donatello’s David present similarities accountable for in a historical context; however, the obvious structural differences must be
The statue of David best describes the ongoing influence of Protestant and catholic controversy on the visual arts. Michaelangelo uses David, a character from the Old Testament as his subject matter. The story goes that David, a mer man throws a stone with a slingshot at the mighty giant Goliath and kills him. (Your basic good vs. Evil.) Michaelangelo uses Clericism in this piece by incorporating a story from the bible, and on the other hand also incorporates his humanism influence into the work of art by placing himself as the character David; Giving us the impression that even the mer man can overcome his problems with knowledge of how to defeat them, instead of continually relying on the almighty to solve your problems for you. David shows the 2 conflicting views in a magnificent statue form.
A good deal is known about Donatello's life and career, but little is known about his character. Donatello was born in Florence, Italy in 1386 and died in 1466; he was never married and had no children. He was a master of sculpture in bronze and marble and is considered to be one of the greatest Italian Renaissance artists of his time. The first sculpture is of Donatello?s David, 1425-1430. Its material is bronze and stands 5? 2 ¼? and is currently located at Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Florence. The sculpture is a nude and is contrapposto. The scene being depicted is after the clash with Goliath. Donatello?s statue of David was the first large scale, free-standing nude statue of the Renaissance. The sculpture helps to strike a balance between classicism and the realism by presenting a very real image of a boy in the form of a classical nude figure. Although Donatello was inspir...
The full power of Donatello first appeared in two marble statues, “St. Mark” and “St. George” which were completed in 1415. “St. George” has been replaced and is now in the Bargello. For the first time the human body is rendered as a functional organism. The same qualities came in the series of five prophet statues that Donatello did beginning in 1416. The statues were of beardless and bearded prophets as well as a group of Abraham and Isaac in 1416-1421 and also the “Zuccone” and “Jeremiah”. “Zuccone” is famous as the finest of the campanile statues and one of the artist’s masterpieces. Donatello invented his own bold new mode of relief in his marble panel “St. George Killi...
Influenced by individualist principles, early Renaissance sculpture was marked by a greater and more meticulous understanding of the human body. Donatello’s David brought to Italian culture a revival of the free-standing nude, prompting an appreciation for perfected human anatomy that is palpable throughout the remainder of the Renaissance and still noticeable in the artistic context of Western culture that follows. The peculiarity of the bronze statue from those of the preceding Middle Ages is archetypically Renaissance in nature; David's pose is nonchalant and his expression pensive, neither of which seems to coincide with the narrative chapter; the Biblical hero's soft body and lack of pronounced muscular development is often interpreted as uncharacteristically effeminate. While the statue’s nudity can be explain in terms of Biblical anthology, as David was said to have refused to wear armor to his battle with Goliath, the accessories in which he is clad seem nonsensical contextually—a laurel on his hat indicates that David was a poet, and the hat on his head is of a foppish Renaissance design. Perhaps most controversially, the statue’s presence has been interpreted as homosexual in nature; while homosexuality was usual in classical antiquity, during the time of the Renaissance such “sodomy” was illicit and believed to be heathen in nature. Donatello show's here, truly, a coalescence of Christian narrative with both the glory of ancient artists and the contemp...
Bernini’s “David” is 5 foot, 7 inches tall and was made in the year 1623. It is from the Baroque period, a time of discovery, exploration and increased trade. Bernini’s “David” is a three-dimensional sculpture that gives the viewer the ability to relate the image with one’s body and not only in one’s mind. Bernini wanted to show the intensity and dramatic tension in the hero David as he prepares to cast the stone from the sling. In contrast to the intensity of Bernini’s David, Michelangelo’s “David” looks much more contemplative, statuesque and less “life-like” than Bernini’s. This marble sculpture, unlike Michelang...
Michelangelo’s David does not react with the surroundings but it stands alone with the little movements disguised behind it. The sculpture brings out David as a soldier preparing for war and not a person engaged in a battle (Miller, Vandome, & McBrewster, 2010). The hands are larger than normal and the arms are longer than his body. This is meant to illustrate the renaissance period. In contrast, the Bernini’s David has aspects of motion, showing that he was already engaged in the battle with Goliath. The idea of movement is enhanced by the loosely flowing robes. In addition, the sculpture demonstrates that unlike Michelangelo’s David that has longer hands, Bernini’s David has contracted muscles. The Michelangelo’s sculpture was created during Renascence period while the Bernini’s sculpture was done during the Baroque period.
...ver surpass its extraordinary success. The vast collection of the antique nude arose from this age and enriched the world today with its remarkable work. It seems that as Michelangelo explains God sparked divine gifts into their intellect, gifts designed to be shared and enjoyed with the whole world.
Although religion in Europe drastically changed from polytheistic to monotheistic, there were gods still in existence in Florence. Michelangelo and Donatello were two of the many artists who took advantage of the rise of the Italian Renaissance. Both were working as sculptors during the time of the Renaissance, but there was gap between them. Donatello (c. 1386-1466) was known as the greatest sculptor of his time, because of his unique sculpting technique and attention to the human anatomy. Donatello was widely known around Florence for his essentially Goth...
The masculine and idealized form of the human body is an ever-present characteristic of Michelangelo’s sculpture. Many people over the years have speculated why this may be, but there has never been a definitive answer, and probably never will be. Through all of his sculpture there is a distinct classical influence, with both his subject matter and his inclination to artistically create something beautiful. In most cases, for Michelangelo, this means the idealized human figure, seeping with contraposto. This revival of classical influences is common for a Renaissance artisan, but the new, exaggerated form of the human body is new and unique to Michelangelo’s artistic style.
The David’s that we are going to compare are all within the Renaissance time period and by comparing them you can see the shifts in thought and viewpoint within that period. The three statues of David by Donatello, Verrocchio, and Michelangelo all are great depictions of this story while portraying values of the Italian Renaissance period. They have many things in common while also having their own
The Italian Renaissance and the Baroque era are two major periods in art history, some of the types of art in those periods were painting, sculpting, and architecture. During these periods, many artist gained enormous fame from creating wonderful pieces of work that represented their beliefs and artistic thinking. This essay will analyze and evaluate two pieces from those major art periods. Rembrandt 's painting The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp and the sculpture David, by Michelangelo. These two masterpieces shed light of their significance in art history. David represents the Italian Renaissance for it being a strong symbol of the new republic, The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp depicts the focus on human progression.
This idea of the primary importance of the human form as a measure of all proportions is basic to the Renaissance. Much of these classical features remained popular in the period to follow, the Baroque period; however, the difference between the two periods has a lot to do...