Renaissance terminology

To be incorporated into your Renaissance essay

Allegory

A work in which the character represents particular ideas or qualities that relate to morals, religion or politics

Allegorical figures

Characters that stand for an abstract idea or a symbol

The guilds of Florence

Associations of master craftsmen. They were extremely powerful and virtually controlled the city’s government

Contrapposto

A pose used in sculpture. First developed by Classical Greek sculptors to create movement in the pose. The weight of the figure is on one leg, causing the shoulder line and the hips to slant in opposite directions.

Gilding

A decorative technique for applying a very thin coating of gold leaf to a solid surface like metal

Cupola

A rounded dome forming a roof or ceiling

Chiaroscuro

The treatment of light and shade in drawing and painting (Italian for light-dark)

International Gothic

A style of painting that developed across many countries in Europe during the late 14th and early 15th centuries. It was characterised by mainly elegant and delicately elongated figures and an emphasis on the decorative drapery, foliage or setting

Sfumato

A painting technique that softens outlines and blends areas of light and shade together. Also known as ‘Leonardo’s smoke’

Mannerism

An overly stylised ‘manner’ of painting that became popular in the late Italian Renaissance. The human body was portrayed in an exaggerated way and there was often a use of elaborate and artificial colour.