Chapter 11, Lesson 2 New Ideas and Art It Matters Because: Renaissance artists, scientists, and scholars helped shape the way we see our world.

Renaissance Humanism New way of thinking about the world developed, humanism Humanism – belief in worth of individual & that reason is path to knowledge Wanted to gain knowledge through reason, not just faith Based on Greek & Roman ideas Western European brought knowledge of Greek & Roman classics back from Middle East after Crusades Petrarch, considered the father of Renaissance humanism, studied Roman writers Italians began to restore damaged ruins of Roman statues, columns, etc.

Renaissance Literature Educated Renaissance authors used classical Latin language Authors also used vernacular languages Dante Alighieri, Florentine poet, wrote The Divine Comedy, describes Dante’s imagined journey through Heaven and Hell Written as political revenge; Dante placed his enemies in Hell to be punished Geoffrey Chaucer wrote The Canterbury Tales in English Stories about people making a religious journey Includes people from all classes of society Modern English comes from vernacular form used by Chaucer

Gutenberg’s Printing Press 1450s, Johannes Gutenberg invented movable type Carved letters could be set, used, reset, and reused Much quicker, cheaper than hand-writing Printing press made books available to many Europeans who were learning to read Scholars could read each others’ work and ideas spread quickly Gutenberg’s Bible printed in 1455 More books printed in next 50 years than in all of history to that point

Renaissance Art Renaissance art was very different from medieval art Tried to portray people through realism Tried to reveal emotion of the subject Florentine painter Gioto was first to use gesture and facial expression to show emotion Most important technique was perspective Perspective – showing people and objects as they appear at different distances Perfected by da Vinci Gave paintings 3-dimensional look Artists like da Vinci studied human anatomy to represent it accurately

Leading Artists considered golden age of Italian painting Leonardo da Vinci is considered the greatest mind of the Renaissance Pioneered artistic techniques and made many discoveries in science and engineering Michelangelo began as a sculptor in Florence Hired by Pope to work at the Vatican Painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel with scenes from the Bible

Michelangelo’s La Pietà Carved from marble, shows Mary cradling the crucified body of Jesus Revered for its intimate depiction of Mary and Jesus Blends Renaissance ideal of natural beauty with naturalism “Pietà” means “compassion” or “mercy”

Leading Artists Raphael also worked for the Vatican Painted frescoes (murals) in the Pope’s palace Known for his painting School of Athens In School of Athens, the philosophers Plato and Aristotle are shown in the center Raphael used Leonardo as the model for Plato because of his great respect for da Vinci Also known for his many paintings of Mary with the infant Jesus

The Northern Renaissance In late 1400s, Renaissance spread from Italy into Northern Europe Artists in Northern Europe began painting with oils, rather than water-based paints Provided richer color and greater detail Jan van Eyck (from Fleming) was a skilled oil painter The Arnolfini Portrait shows a couple in a formal setting Praised for its great detail Albrecht Dürer (Germany) blended Renaissance techniques with German traditions Known for his engravings Carved on metal or wood and transferred to paper with ink Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse is a famous woodcarving

England’s Theaters Renaissance in England reached its peak during reign of Elizabeth I, late 1500s About 1580, first theatres built in England Open air theatres attended by all classes of people William Shakespeare was greatest English playwright Wrote comedies, tragedies, histories Known for Hamlet, Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, etc.