The 14-16th Century - Forence, Padua, and Siena (Italy)

Why was the Palazzo della Signoria constructed?

This building was constructed in Florence and was the result from a major economic boom. There was a ton of international trade and financial innovations.

What was the purpose of Palazzo della Signoria in Florence?

This building helped to define the relationship between individuals and the array of civic, professional, and religious institutions that made up the Florentine society.

What kinds of individuals were decorating the insides of the buildings that were created in Florence?

Tons of individuals contributed like professional guilds, groups of priests, nuns, and confraternities (people who acted as groups of charity).

Why were many paintings in this time period created? Hint: it was not about the public display of wealth!

Many people began painting because these images displayed an important role towards Christ, Mary, and the saints. They helped to portray sacred figures.

What style of art most heavily influenced the people of Florence?

Byzantine Art (founded the Italo-Byzantine Style)

What did the Byzantine style of art include? (also the Italo-Byzantine Style)

This type of style included emulating figures against gold backgrounds.

When was the Italo-Byzantine style most popular?

During the 13th Century

What style came after the Italo-Byzantine one? Hint: for the answer, it’s not a specific name you need to describe it!

After the Italo-Byzantine style, the one that emerged started to depict figures with gradations of light and shade. It became more naturalistic.

What kind of style did Giotto use?

He used a style that combined the Italo-Byzantine one and the new, naturalistic one, to create paintings that captured people’s attention by representing holy figures and stories in a majestic but earthy realm.

Why was Giotto so influential?

It is because he started combining the use of realism with lavish golden bakgrounds. He was also phenomenal at visual storytelling.

In terms of art, what happened after Giotto’s influence?

Many people began to drift away from Giotto’s style and instead, started experimenting with visually crowded compositions or with complex subjects represented through tricky symbols/schemes. It largely mimiced the Italo-Byzantine Style!

What is Late-Medieval Italian Art (also name the time period)

This involved styles and movements in Italy after the Gothic Period and included a more naturalistic respresentation which paved the way for the Renaissance.

Time Period: 1300-1438

What influenced Late-Medieval Italian Art?

The Grecko-Roman model and Giotto’s influence!

What were some of the Contributios of Cimabue? (when did he work, where did he work, what did he create)

He was an artist that worked in the 1280s in Italy. He created a Maesta, which is an image of the virgin Mary and a child of Jesus. It was meant to display a majesty.

What did Cimabue focus on when he created paintings?

He focused on being abstract and symbolic while also aiming for realism.

EX: When we drew the virgin Mary, he aimed to portray her as both divine and human, emphasizing her emotional expression and significance in the artwork.

How was Giotto different than Cimabue?

Giotto put more emphasis on 3D rather than Cimabue. His paintings were also more realistic rather than unrealistic or stressed. He made the paintings much more believable. He brought the idea of Humanism

What is Humanism? What kind of Era did this idea come from?

It is the Renaissance Era idea that there is still importance in humanity and what their capable of. It states that they don’t need to always turn to their Christian faith.

What is a frescoes? Can they be moved?

These are types of paintings created around walls on a wet plaster which allows for colors to bond with the wall to become part of the surface. They cannot be moved!

Who commissioned Giotto’s Arena Chapel?

Enrico Scrovegni.

Who was Enrico Scrovegni?

He was a wealthy banker in Padua who commissioned the Arena Chapel to atone for his family's sins. He bargained his way to be accepted!

What is the purpose of a frescoes, besides just the visual appeal?

It’s to convey religious stories and messages and enhance people’s emotions and make them behave in a certain way.

What does chiaroscuro mean?

It’s a technique used in paintings to create an illusion of depth through the use of strong contrasts between light and dark.

What does grisaille mean?

It is a painting technique that uses shades of gray to create a depth effect, often used to mimic sculptures.

Why did the Renaissance begin in Florence?

It was mainly because of economic reasons which promoted the desire to use it to enjoy the pleasures of life. It was also a place of republicanism, where individualism was high.

What was the Renaissance (rebirth) about? AKA, what was the rebirth about? Also, what does this period emphasize?

It was the rebirth of nature and the classical past. This period emphasized humanism, art, and science.

What is the intuitive perspective used by artists?

It is a technique that presents objects as they appear to the human eye, emphasizing spatial relationships and depth.

What is the one-point linear perspective?

It’s a mathematical system of art that creates the illusion by having all lines onverging at a single point.

What is the horizon line?

It’s a horizontal line that separates the sky from the ground in a painting or drawing, helping to establish perspective.

What is the vanishing point?

The point on the horizon line where parallel lines appear to converge, creating depth and perspective in artwork.

What are orthogonals?

They’re lines that lead to the vanishing point in a one-point perspective drawing, creating the illusion of depth and space.

Why was bronze used to skulpt statues?

It is because it was very expensive and showed a form of wealth.

Why was Federico da Montefeltro so popular?

It is because the place he ruled was very popular for training troops for war. It led to peopel coming all the way from England to learn basic war tactics.

In the 15th century, why were portrait paintings becoming more popular?

It was because of the time period (Renaissance). People began thinking more humanistically.

Why was Battista Sforza’s portrait pale-er than usual? Note: she was the wife of Frederico da Montefeltro and their wealth became even greater after they married

It was paler because the portrait was based on a death-mask (a ceramic image taken of her face after she died) and because women were expected to be pale (especially wealthy ones)

Why did Venice turn to oil painting much faster than the rest of Italy?

It was because of their expansive trade routes with the middle east and North Africa.

Who is Giovanni Bellini (like what kind of paint did he use, where did he come from family wise)?

He was an oil painter in Venice who came from a family of painters.

Don’t need to know: His father was Jacopo Bellini, and his brother was gentile Bellini, known for their contributions to Venetian painting.

What does high renaissance mean?

It involves all of the past renaissance but this period is where the renaissance really reaches its peak. This is the highest form of art.

What were some of the achievements of the High Renaissance in Italy?

There is now a new sense of artistic models established like the imitation of realism, the observation of nature, balance, symmetry, stability.

In terms of geography, what did the Italian High Renaissance bring to Rome?

In Rome, this impact was so powerful that the city became the center of artistic renewal and innovation under powerful Popes.

What two artistic styles emerged as a result of the Italian High Renaissance?

Central Italian - Which was a style that emphasized lines, designs, drawings (think Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo)

Venetian - Which was a style that emphasized color and light (think Titian, Giorgione)

Besides just being a painter, what did Leonardo view himself as?

He looked at himself as an innovator, inventor, more into science (anatomical).

What is the technique called sfumato?

This is a drawing technique that uses the idea of blurriness. It’s very subtle and allows for soft transitions between colors and tones, creating a smoky effect. It is often associated with Leonardo da Vinci's works.

What did Raphael do in the Papal apartments?

He was asked to paint frescoes, which are large mural-style paintings on plaster within the Papal apartments like the “School of Athens” frescoes.

What did Raphael use to preserve the frescoes like the “School of Athens?”

cartoons

What are cartoons?

They are full sized drawings (like a sketch) to make sure that you knew where everything was before painting your final draft.

What is profile?

This is a side view representation of a human head. It was used a lot during the Renaissance like in Piero della Francesca’s Portrait of Battista Sforza in 1474

What is a three-quarters view?

It shows a human head that shows a view between the profile and the frontal view, capturing more of the face's features.

Think Mona Lisa by Leonardo and Raphael’s Portrait of Maddalena Doni