¶ … Renaissance:
A Comparison between the Italian and Northern European Renaissance
World history is a fascinating subject, especially when one takes into account the multi-dimensional, often heavy impact changes that are constantly taking place, and that often change the course of history in a way in which it could have never been imagined. After the Dark Ages, for instance, the Renaissance or "rebirth," a period of artistic-related growth across Europe, was one such change that literally pulled Europe out of the deterioration in which it found itself after the fall of the Roman Empire, and put it on a path of regrowth that was so replete with creativity that many scholars are still talking about it today. In order to better understand these historical changes, this paper will examine the Renaissance, for it was a very complex movement, in order to understand it better, and will do so by comparing the Italian and North-European Renaissance by addressing similarities and differences in the two fields.
In Italy, the Renaissance came toward the end of the 14th century, with a number of Italian intellectuals and artists beginning to think about this period as a "new age." This "rebirth" they stated, was in learning, literature, art and culture. During this period, Italy was very different from other European places that existed during the age that, as one can see below, had their own Renaissance movements. Yet in the divided, city-state based Italy, Florence led the way. Due to the wealth of this city, men of power became patrons of artists and intellectual, leading their independent republic to become a leading city in helping the movement grow.
Due to the patronage of these wealthy individuals, Italian painters, writers and scientists...
Renaissance current can be dated, in Europe, as starting around 1480-1490. Renaissance started in Italy and moved towards Hungary, Germany and England, on one hand, and to France, after the French invasions of the Italian Peninsula, on the other. A similar trend occurred in the fashion industry, but the exchanges were continuous and influences from Northern Europe to Italy were not unprecedented. The general characteristics of the initial period of Renaissance
Renaissance Art Within the broad gamut of Renaissance art throughout Europe, two sculptures remain outstanding and worthy of mutual comparison. Those two works of art are Michelangelo's statue of David and Donatello's same. The latter is the predecessor; Donatello's David predates Michelangelo's by about fifty years. Donatello's sculpture of David is considered to be of the Early Renaissance period, and was completed by about 1430 (Hudelson, n.d.). Michelangelo's David, on the
The compositional structure here is actually quite daring. Even though a viewer tends to "read" a painting left-to-right, as with a book, here the left side of the canvas seems to fade away into nothingness. It is not just the empty seascape on the left as compared with the dark richness of the forest on the right. The left half of the painting contains the subject of the painting after
The landscape diffuses in colors to give optical illusion of perspective and farness. The first figures, of the two children are softly modeled in lights and shades. The light is bright and clear and it seems to have no specific direction. Although Renaissance had great preoccupation with the study of light and the use of it to give volume, there will pass a longer time before artists would really use the
Italian Renaissance Renaissance ("Rebirth") refers to the period after the Middle Ages when a series of dynamic intellectual, cultural and artistic movements from the 14th to 16th century catapulted Europe towards rapid development leading to the Age of Enlightenment, the industrial revolution and the modern time. During this rich period of exciting developments in arts, sciences and politics, Italy was the major catalyst and became the cultural leader of Europe. It
Italian Renaissance brought humanity into a golden age of artistic expression and the rejuvenation of humanism as a philosophy and a way of looking at the world. (Italian Renaissance, 1) The re-discovery of many ancient Greek and Roman texts allowed architects, artists, historians, and scientists to build upon the greatest achievements of man from the ancient world. After centuries of feudalism and a strong Catholic Church, wealthy elites began to
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