Unit 3: Early Modern Age; Renaissance & Reformations

Cimabue

Late medieval Italian painter whose work showed early signs of naturalism.

Giotto

Early Renaissance artist known for realistic figures and emotional expression.

Chiaroscuro

Technique using light and shadow to create depth and volume.

Lamentation

A scene of mourning over Christ's body; famously painted by Giotto.

Grisaille

Painting technique using shades of gray to mimic sculpture.

Patron

Wealthy individual or group who commissioned and supported artists.

Florence

Italian city-state considered the birthplace of the Renaissance.

The Medici

Influential Florentine banking family and major art patrons.

Humanists

Renaissance scholars focused on classical texts and human potential.

Petrarch

Early humanist who revived interest in classical Latin literature.

Civic Humanism

Belief in using classical learning to promote public service and civic virtue.

Women in the Renaissance

Generally had limited roles; some gained influence through writing or noble birth.

Caterina Sforza

Noblewoman and military leader known for her defiance and leadership.

Christine de Pizan

Early feminist writer who defended women's education and intellect.

Lucretia Marinella

Italian writer who challenged male views on women's nature and abilities.

Sfumato

Blending of colors and tones to create soft, hazy transitions (used by da Vinci).

Jakob Burckhardt

19th-century historian who popularized the idea of the Renaissance as a distinct era.

Titian

Leading Venetian painter known for vivid color and dynamic compositions.

Mona Lisa

Leonardo da Vinci - noted for sfumato and enigmatic expression.

The Last Supper

Leonardo da Vinci - mural depicting Christ's final meal with his disciples.

Birth of Venus

Botticelli - Mythological painting showing Venus emerging from the sea.

La Primavera

Botticelli - Allegorical painting celebrating spring and classical mythology.

School of Athens

Raphael - fresco showing ancient philosophers, symbolizing humanist ideals.

David by Donatello

Donatello - First free-standing nude statue since antiquity; early Renaissance bronze.

David by Michelangelo

Michelangelo - Monumental marble sculpture symbolizing strength and civic pride.

Pieta

Michelangelo - sculpture of Mary holding the dead Christ, noted for emotion and detail.

Sistine Chapel

Michelangelo - Ceiling and altar frescoes depicting Biblical scenes.

Florentine Il Duomo

Brunelleschi - Cathedral dome designed by Brunelleschi; engineering marvel of the era.

Baptistry Doors

Ghiberti - Bronze doors by Ghiberti in Florence, known for detailed reliefs.

The Prince

Political treatise by Machiavelli promoting pragmatic and sometimes ruthless leadership.

Niccolò Machiavelli

Political theorist who emphasized power, realism, and statecraft over morality.

Differences between Italian & Northern Renaissance

Northern art emphasized detail and domestic settings; more religious focus.

Jan van Eyck

Flemish painter known for oil painting techniques and realism.

Double Arnolfini Portrait

Jan van Eyck - Detailed portrait with symbolic objects, attributed to van Eyck.

Hieronymus Bosch

Dutch painter known for fantastical and moralizing imagery.

Garden of Earthly Delights

Hieronymus Bosch - Triptych by Bosch depicting paradise, sin, and damnation.

Memento mori

Artistic symbol reminding viewers of death and the afterlife.

Woodcut

Printmaking technique using carved wood blocks.

Engraving

Printmaking using incised metal plates for fine detail.

Albrecht Dürer

German artist skilled in woodcuts, engravings, and self-portraiture.

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Dürer - woodcut depicting biblical end-times.

Self-Portrait at the Age of Twenty Eight

Dürer - introspective painting echoing Christ-like imagery.

Grünewald

German painter known for expressive religious works.

Isenheim Altarpiece

Gruenewald - altarpiece featuring vivid imagery of Christ's suffering and healing.

Hans Holbein the Younger

Portraitist of the Tudor court, known for realism.

Portrait of Henry VIII

Holbein - famous image symbolizing royal authority.

Pieter Bruegel the Elder

Dutch painter of peasant life and landscapes.

Peasant Wedding

Bruegel - painting capturing rustic festivity and everyday life.

Linear perspective

Artistic technique creating depth through converging lines; mastered in Italy.

Gutenberg printing press

Invention that made books affordable and helped spread Reformation ideas.

Christian humanism

Northern humanist movement focusing on reforming Christianity through education.

Desiderius Erasmus

Dutch humanist who criticized Church corruption while remaining Catholic.

Charles V

Holy Roman Emperor who opposed the Protestant Reformation.

Indulgences

Church-issued pardons for sins, a key trigger of the Reformation.

Martin Luther

German monk who sparked the Reformation by challenging Church abuses.

German peasant revolts

Uprisings inspired by Luther's ideas, though he did not support them.

Peace of Augsburg

1555 treaty allowing German princes to choose Catholicism or Lutheranism.

John Calvin

Reformer who promoted predestination and strict moral discipline.

Doctrine of Predestination

Belief that God has already determined who will be saved.

Anabaptists

Radical reformers who rejected infant baptism and promoted separation of church and state.

Henry VIII

English king who broke from the Catholic Church and created the Anglican Church.

Anglican Church

Church of England established by Henry VIII during the English Reformation.

Impact of Reformation on music

Emphasized congregational singing and use of vernacular lyrics.

Chorale

Lutheran hymn sung in German by the whole congregation.

Vernacular

Everyday language; used in Reformation texts to reach wider audiences.

Witch trials

Persecutions intensified during the Reformation due to religious and social tensions.

Council of Trent

Catholic response to the Reformation that reformed Church practices and reaffirmed doctrine.