Chapter 20 Review Mr. Klein
The Renaissance & Italy Between 1350 and 1650 people had a renewed interest in learning and the arts. This renewed interest and the changes it inspired is known as the Renaissance. Renaissance is French for “rebirth.” People had a renewed interest in ancient Greeks and Romans and many Europeans adopted some Greek and Roman ideas. People became more secular and interests changed to the world around them and the use of reason instead of religion. Italy is the birthplace of the Renaissance. Italian city states became very wealthy making it possible to hire artists for their work in painting, sculpting, architecture, etc.
Italy Italy’s population grew and became more urban which led to the development of a different society. Strong economies developed around trade and banking. Italy was a collection of powerful city states. Italian city states used wealth to build fleets of ships, hire mercenaries to fight in armies. Italy’s central location in Europe helped make the city- states trade powers. Their trade with goods from the east made them wealthy and powerful.
Florence & Venice Florence was the first major center of the Renaissance. It’s wealth and location attracting many artists. Florence made its wealth from making wool cloth and banking. The banking family, the Medici, were the wealthiest family in Florence helped rule the city for many years. Lorenzo de Medici governed Florence from and used his wealth to support artists. Came to be known as “the Magnificent.” Venice was built on the coast and has canals and waterways as streets. Venice was an important shipbuilding center and trade link between Europe and Asia. Politics was complex and Italians developed diplomacy to deal with their neighboring states.
Ideas Europeans developed a new way of understanding the world called humanism that was based on ancient Greek and Roman ideas. Humanists want to gain knowledge through reason and gave importance to the individual and human society. One famous humanist is Petrarch who traveled around monasteries to find ancient Roman manuscripts and wrote sonnets. Humanists also made important contributions to literature and writing in the vernacular. Dante Alighieri wrote “The Divine Comedy” and Chaucer wrote “The Canterbury Tales” A German printer named Johannes Gutenberg developed a printing press using movable type. The printing press made books available to many more people. Ideas developed and spread more quickly then ever before.
Art Artistic works of the Renaissance tried to show what people really looked like. Renaissance used new methods like use of perspective to show people and objects as they appear from different distances. Renaissance artists studied the human body and experimented with the use of light, shade and color. Many painted frescoes. Leonardo da Vinci was born in Florence. Was a great painter, scientist and inventor. Famous works include the painting, Mona Lisa, and fresco of The Last Supper. Michelangelo began his career as a sculptor in Florence. Famous art works include the sculpture of David and the paintings on the ceiling of the Sistine chapel. Raphael also worked at the Vatican and painted the fresco, the School of Athens.”
Art from Non-Italians The “Northern Renaissance” refers to the cultural changes that took place in northern Europe. Northern artists began painting in oils which provided richer colors and allowed changes to be made on the canvas. Flemish painter Jan van Eyck was skilled using oils. One of his famous works is The Arnolfini Portrait. Albrecht Durer was a German artist skilled in showing perspective and fine detail best known for his engravings. The people of England were fond of plays and the greatest English playwright was William Shakespeare. Shakespeare wrote all kinds of plays on all kinds of topics including the great tragedies Hamlet, Romeo & Juliet and Macbeth.