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Renaissance Art Research Paper

Renaissance Art Ghirlandaio's "Old Man with his Grandson"

Ghirlandiao's Old Man with his Grandson

The Renaissance marked a dramatic shift in artistic values and ideals as represented by Domenico Ghirlandaio's painting "Old Man with his Grandson." While the subject of Medieval art was strictly religious and lacked true perspective, Renaissance artists sought to recapture the artistic Humanism of the Classical World by incorporating reality through perspective. The Renaissance also saw a transition from the strictly religious topics to a more human-centered focus. Ghirlandaio's "Old Man with his Grandson" exemplifies these values and ideals in a physical form.

In the tradition of the Classical World, Renaissance artists sought to capture realistic human forms and Domenico Ghirlandaio's "Old Man with his Grandson," portrays just such a realistic scene in which an old man...

Both the old man and the child are wearing clothing appropriate to the time and the artists has made certain to capture every aspect of their appearance. The old man's nose is even slightly disfigured and he has a large mole on his forehead, demonstrating the importance of reality in Renaissance art. Seated on the old man's lap is a young, golden haired, child looking into the face of his grandfather with his hand gently placed on his chest. There is a real tenderness displayed in the scene, the love between a grandfather and his grandson on display for the world to see.
The reality of the painting is due to the perspective in which the figures are displayed. For instance, the grandfather's head is much larger than the child's, as would be appropriate, and the child's hand is also of a correct proportion, as are both of the bodies of the two subjects. The…

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Ghirlandaio, Domenico. (1490). Old Man with his Grandson [Painting]. Retrieved from http://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/g / ghirland/domenico/7panel/08oldman.html
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