The world of artistic culture of the revival retelling. Renaissance Painting and Science

Renaissance art in Italy (XIII-XVI centuries).

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Features of Renaissance art in Italy.

The art of the Renaissance arose on the basis of humanism (from the Latin humanus - “humane”) - a movement of social thought that originated in the 14th century. in Italy, and then during the second half of the 15th and 16th centuries. spread to other European countries. Humanism proclaimed man and his good as the highest value. Followers of this movement believed that every person has the right to freely develop as an individual, realizing their abilities. The ideas of humanism are most fully and vividly embodied in art, main theme who became a wonderful, harmoniously developed person with unlimited spiritual and creative possibilities. Humanists were inspired by antiquity, which served for them as a source of knowledge and a model of artistic creativity. The great past of Italy, constantly reminding itself, was perceived at that time as the highest perfection, while the art of the Middle Ages seemed inept and barbaric. The term "renaissance", which arose in the 16th century, meant the birth of a new art that revived classical ancient culture. However, the art of the Renaissance owes much to the artistic tradition of the Middle Ages. The old and the new were in indissoluble connection and confrontation. With all the contradictory diversity of its origins, the art of the Renaissance is marked by deep and fundamental novelty. It laid the foundations of European culture of the New Age. All major types of art - painting and graphics, sculpture, architecture - have changed enormously.
In architecture, creatively reworked principles of ancient architecture were established. order system , new types of public buildings emerged. Painting was enriched with linear and aerial perspective, knowledge of anatomy and proportions human body. Earthly content penetrated into the traditional religious themes of works of art. Interest in ancient mythology, history, everyday scenes, landscapes, and portraits increased. Along with the monumental wall paintings that decorated architectural structures, a painting appeared; Oil painting arose.
Art has not yet ceased to be a craft, but the creative individuality of the artist, whose activity at that time was very diverse, has already come to the fore. The universal talent of the Renaissance masters is amazing - they often worked simultaneously in the fields of architecture, sculpture and painting, combining their passion for literature, poetry and philosophy with the study of the exact sciences. The concept of a creatively rich, or “Renaissance” personality subsequently became a household word.
In the art of the Renaissance, the paths of scientific and artistic comprehension of the world and man were closely intertwined. Its cognitive meaning was inextricably linked with sublime poetic beauty; in its desire for naturalness, it did not stoop to petty everyday life. Art has become a universal spiritual need.
The formation of Renaissance culture in Italy took place in economically independent cities. In the rise and flowering of Renaissance art, a large role was played by the Church and the magnificent courts of the uncrowned sovereigns - the ruling wealthy families who were the largest patrons and customers of works of painting, sculpture and architecture. The main centers of Renaissance culture were first the cities of Florence, Siena, Pisa, then Padua, Ferrara, Genoa, Milan and, last of all, in the second half of the 15th century, wealthy merchant Venice. In the 16th century Rome became the capital of the Italian Renaissance. From this time on, all other cultural centers, except Venice, lost their former importance.
In the era of the Italian Renaissance, it is customary to distinguish several periods:

Proto-Renaissance (second half of the XIII-XIV centuries),

Early Renaissance (XV century),

High Renaissance (end of the 15th - first third of the 16th century)

Late Renaissance (last two thirds of the 16th century).

Proto-Renaissance

In Italian culture of the XIII-XIV centuries. Against the backdrop of the still strong Byzantine and Gothic traditions, features of a new art began to appear, which would later be called the art of the Renaissance. Therefore, this period of its history was called Proto-Renaissance(from the Greek “protos” - “first”, i.e. prepared the offensive of the Renaissance). There was no similar transition period in any of the European countries. In Italy itself, proto-Renaissance art arose and developed only in Tuscany and Rome.
Italian culture intertwined features of old and new. The last poet of the Middle Ages and the first poet new era Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) created the Italian literary language. What Dante started was continued by other great Florentines of the 14th century - Francesco Petrarca (1304-1374), the founder of European lyric poetry, and Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375), the founder of the novella (short story) genre in world literature. The pride of the era are the architects and sculptors Niccolo and Giovanni Pisano, Arnolfo di Cambio and the painter Giotto di Bondone .
Architecture
Italian architecture for a long time followed medieval traditions, which was expressed mainly in the use of a large number of Gothic motifs. At the same time, Italian Gothic itself was very different from the Gothic architecture of northern Europe: it gravitated toward calm large forms, even light, horizontal divisions, wide wall surfaces. In 1296, construction began in Florence Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. Arnolfo di Cambio wanted to crown the altar part of the cathedral with a huge dome. However, after the death of the architect in 1310, construction was delayed; it was completed already during the Early Renaissance. In 1334, according to Giotto's design, construction began on the cathedral's bell tower, the so-called campanile - a slender rectangular tower with floor-by-floor horizontal divisions and graceful Gothic windows, the pointed arched shape of which remained in Italian architecture for a long time.
Among the most famous city palaces is the Palazzo Vecchio (Palazzo della Signoria) in Florence. It is believed to have been built by Arnolfo di Cambio. It is a heavy cube with a high tower, lined with rusticated hard stone. The three-story facade is decorated with paired windows set in semicircular arches, which gives the entire building an impression of restrained severity. The building defines the appearance of the old city center, encroaching on the square with its stern bulk.
Sculpture
Earlier than in architecture and painting, artistic quests emerged in sculpture, and above all in the Pisan school, the founder of which was Niccolò Pisano (around 1220 - between 1278 and 1284). Niccolò Pisano was born in Puglia, southern Italy. It is believed that he studied sculpting in the southern schools, where the spirit of revival of the classical traditions of antiquity flourished. Without a doubt, Niccolo studied the sculptural design of late Roman and early Christian sarcophagi. The earliest one now famous works sculptor - hexagonal marble pulpit, made by him for the baptistery in Pisa (1260), became an outstanding work of Renaissance sculpture and had a huge influence on its further development. The main achievement of the sculptor is that he was able to give volume and expressiveness to the forms, and each image has bodily power.
From the workshop of Niccolò Pisano came remarkable masters of Proto-Renaissance sculpture - his son Giovanni Pisano and Arnolfo di Cambio, also known as an architect. Arnolfo di Cambio (circa 1245 - after 1310) gravitated towards monumental sculpture, in which he used his life observations. One of best works, made by him together with father and son Pisano, - fountain in Piazza Perugia(1278). Fonte Maggiore, decorated with numerous statues and reliefs, has become the pride of the city. It was forbidden to give water to animals from it, to take water into wine barrels or into unwashed dishes. The city museum preserves fragments of reclining figures made by Arnolfo di Cambio for the fountain. In these figures, the sculptor was able to convey all the richness of the movements of the human body.
Painting
In the art of the Italian Renaissance, wall painting occupied a dominant place. It was made using fresco technique. Using paints prepared in water, they painted either on wet plaster (fresco itself) or on dry plaster - this technique is called “a secco” (translated from Italian as “on dry”). The main binder of plaster is lime. Because It took a little time for the lime to dry; fresco painting had to be done quickly, often in parts, between which connecting seams remained. From the second half of the 15th century. the fresco technique began to be supplemented with a secco painting; the latter allowed for slower work and allowed for finishing of parts. Work on the paintings was preceded by the production of synopias - auxiliary drawings applied under the fresco on the first layer of plaster. These drawings were made with red ocher, which was extracted from clay near the city of Sinop, located on the Black Sea coast. Based on the name of the city, the paint was called Sinope, or sinopia, and later the drawings themselves began to be called the same. Sinopia was used in Italian painting from the 13th to the mid-15th century. However, not all painters resorted to synopia - for example, Giotto di Bondone, the most prominent representative of the Proto-Renaissance era, did without them. Gradually, synopia was abandoned. From the middle of the 15th century. widespread in painting they received cardboards - preparatory drawings made on paper or fabric in the size of future works. The contours of the design were transferred to wet plaster using coal dust. It was blown through holes pierced in the contour and pressed into the plaster with some sharp instrument. Sometimes synopias from a sketch turned into a finished monumental drawing, and cardboards acquired the significance of independent works of painting.

Cimabue (actually Cenni di Pepo, c. 1240 - c. 1302) is considered the founder of the new Italian style of painting. Cimabue was famous in Florence as a master of solemn altar paintings and icons. His images are characterized by abstraction and staticity. And although Cimabue followed Byzantine traditions in his work, in his works he tried to express earthly feelings and soften the rigidity of the Byzantine canon.
Piero Cavallini (between 1240 and 1250 - around 1330) lived and worked in Rome. He is the author of the mosaics of the church of Santa Maria in Trastevere (1291), as well as the frescoes of the church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere (circa 1293). In his works, Cavallini gave shapes volume and tangibility.
Cavallini’s achievements were adopted and continued Giotto di Bondone(1266 or 1267 - 1337), greatest artist Proto-Renaissance. The name of Giotto is associated with a turn in the development of Italian painting, its break with medieval artistic canons and traditions of Italo-Byzantine art of the 13th century. Most famous works Giotto - paintings of the Arena Chapel in Padua (1304-06). The frescoes are distinguished by their clarity, uncomplicated storytelling, and the presence of everyday details that add vitality and naturalness to the scenes depicted. Rejecting the church canon that dominated the art of that time, Giotto depicts his characters as similar to real people: with proportional, squat bodies, round (rather than elongated) faces, regular eye shape, etc. His saints do not hover above the ground, but stand firmly on it with both feet. They think more about earthly things than about heavenly things, experiencing completely human feelings and emotions. For the first time in the history of Italian painting state of mind The characters of a painting are conveyed by facial expressions, gestures, and posture. Instead of the traditional golden background, Giotto's frescoes depict a landscape, an interior, or sculptural groups on the facades of basilicas.
In the second half of the 14th century. The pictorial school of Siena comes first. The largest and most refined master of Siena painting of the 14th century. was Simone Martini (c. 1284-1344). Simone Martini's brush is the first in the history of art to depict a concrete historical event with a portrait of a contemporary. This image " Condotiera Guidoriccio da Fogliano"in the Hall of Mappamondo (Map of the World) in the Palazzo Publico (Siena), which became the prototype for numerous future equestrian portraits. The altarpiece “The Annunciation” by Simone Martini, now kept in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, enjoys well-deserved fame.

Features of the Renaissance. Proto-Renaissance

Features of the Renaissance

Early Renaissance

In the 15th century Italian art took a dominant position in the artistic life of Europe. The foundations of humanistic secular (i.e., non-ecclesiastical) culture were laid in Florence, which pushed Siena and Pisa into the background. Political power here belonged to merchants and artisans; several wealthy families, constantly competing with each other, had the strongest influence on city affairs. This struggle ended at the end of the 14th century. victory of the Medici banking house. Its head, Cosimo de' Medici, became the unofficial ruler of Florence. Writers, poets, scientists, architects, and artists flocked to the court of Cosimo de' Medici. The Renaissance culture of Florence reached its peak under Lorenzo de' Medici, nicknamed the Magnificent. Lorenzo was a great patron of the arts and sciences, the creator of Plato's Academy, where the outstanding minds of Italy, poets and philosophers gathered, where refined debates were held, elevating the spirit and mind.

Architecture

Under Cosimo and Lorenzo de' Medici, a real revolution took place in the architecture of Florence: extensive construction took place here, significantly changing the appearance of the city. The founder of Renaissance architecture in Italy was Filippo Brunelleschi(1377-1446) - architect, sculptor and scientist, one of the creators of the scientific theory of perspective. Brunelleschi's greatest engineering achievement was the construction of the dome Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence. Thanks to his mathematical and technical genius, Brunelleschi managed to solve the most difficult problem for his time. The main difficulty that faced the master was caused by the gigantic size of the span of the middle cross (42 m), which required special efforts to facilitate the expansion. Brunelleschi solved the problem by using an ingenious design: a light hollow dome consisting of two shells, a frame system of eight load-bearing ribs connected by encircling rings, a skylight that closes and loads the vault. The dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore became the predecessor of numerous domed churches in Italy and other European countries.

Brunelleschi was one of the first in Italian architecture to creatively comprehend and originally interpret the ancient order system ( Ospedale degli Innocenti (foundling shelter), 1421-44), laid the foundation for the creation of domed churches based on the ancient order ( Church of San Lorenzo ). A true pearl of the Early Renaissance was created by Brunelleschi at the request of a wealthy Florentine family. Pazzi Chapel(started in 1429). The humanism and poetry of Brunelleschi's creativity, the harmonious proportionality, lightness and grace of his buildings, which retain connections with the Gothic traditions, the creative freedom and scientific validity of his plans determined Brunelleschi's great influence on the subsequent development of Renaissance architecture.

One of the main achievements of Italian architecture of the 15th century. was the creation of a new type of city palaces-palazzos, which served as a model for public buildings of later times. Features of the 15th century palazzo are a clear division of the enclosed volume of the building into three floors, an open courtyard with summer floor-by-floor arcades, the use of rustication (stone with a roughly rounded or convex front surface) for facing the facade, as well as a strongly extended decorative cornice. A striking example of this style is the capital construction of Brunelleschi’s student Michelozzo di Bartolommeo (1396-1472), court architect of the Medici family, - Palazzo Medici - Riccardi (1444-60), which served as a model for the construction of many Florentine palaces. Close to Michelozzo's creation Palazzo Strozzi(founded in 1481), which is associated with the name of the architect and sculptor Benedetto da Maiano (1442-97).

A special place in the history of Italian architecture occupies Leon Battista Alberti(1404-72). A comprehensively gifted and widely educated man, he was one of the most brilliant humanists of his time. His range of interests was unusually diverse. He covered morality and law, mathematics, mechanics, economics, philosophy, poetry, music, painting, sculpture, and architecture. A brilliant stylist, Alberti left numerous works in Latin and Italian. In Italy and abroad, Alberti gained fame as an outstanding art theorist. The famous treatises “Ten Books on Architecture” (1449-52), “On Painting”, “On the Statue” (1435-36) belong to his pen. But Alberti's main vocation was architecture. In his architectural work, Alberti gravitated towards bold, experimental solutions, innovatively using the ancient artistic heritage. Alberti created a new type of city palace ( Palazzo Rucellai ). In religious architecture, striving for grandeur and simplicity, Alberti used motifs of Roman triumphal arches and arcades in the design of facades ( Church of Sant'Andrea in Mantua, 1472-94). The name Alberti is rightfully considered one of the first among the great cultural creators of the Italian Renaissance.

Sculpture

In the 15th century Italian sculpture, which acquired an independent meaning independent of architecture, is flourishing. The practice of artistic life begins to include orders for the decoration of public buildings; art competitions are held. One of these competitions - for the manufacture of bronze of the second northern doors of the Florentine Baptistery (1401) - is considered a significant event that opened a new page in the history of Italian Renaissance sculpture. The victory was won by Lorenzo Ghiberti (1381-1455).

One of the most educated people of his time, the first historian of Italian art, a brilliant draftsman, Ghiberti devoted his life to one type of sculpture - relief. Ghiberti considered the main principle of his art to be balance and harmony of all elements of the image. The pinnacle of Ghiberti's creativity was eastern doors of the Florentine Baptistery (1425-52), immortalizing the name of the master. The decoration of the doors includes ten square compositions made of gilded bronze (“ Creation of Adam and Eve"), with their extraordinary expressiveness reminiscent of paintings. The artist managed to convey the depth of space, saturated with pictures of nature, human figures, and architectural structures. With the light hand of Michelangelo, the eastern doors of the Florentine Baptistery began to be called "The Gates of Heaven"

Ghiberti's workshop became a school for a whole generation of artists, in particular, the famous Donatello, the great reformer of Italian sculpture, worked there. The work of Donatello (c. 1386-1466), which absorbed the democratic traditions of the culture of Florence in the 14th century, represents one of the peaks of the development of the art of the Early Renaissance. It embodied the search for new, realistic means of depicting reality, characteristic of Renaissance art, and close attention to man and his spiritual world. The influence of Donatello's work on the development of Italian Renaissance art was enormous.

The second generation of Florentine sculptors gravitated towards a more lyrical, peaceful, secular art. The leading role in it belonged to the della Robbia family of sculptors. The head of the family, Lucca della Robbia (1399/1400 - 1482), became famous for his use of glaze techniques in circular sculpture and relief. The technique of glaze (majolica), known since ancient times to the peoples of Western Asia, was brought to the Iberian Peninsula and the island of Majorca (where its name came from) in the Middle Ages, and then widely spread in Italy. Lucca della Robbia created medallions with reliefs on a deep blue background for buildings and altars, garlands of flowers and fruits, majolica busts of the Madonna, Christ and saints. The cheerful, elegant, kind art of this master received well-deserved recognition from his contemporaries. His nephew Andrea della Robbia (1435-1525) also achieved great perfection in the majolica technique ( reliefs on the façade of the Ospedale degli Innocenti).

Painting

The huge role that Brunelleschi played in Early Renaissance architecture, and Donatello in sculpture, belonged to Masaccio (1401-1428) in painting. Masaccio died young, not reaching the age of 27, and nevertheless managed to do a lot in painting. The famous art historian Whipper said: “Masaccio is one of the most independent and consistent geniuses in the history of European painting, the founder of new realism...” Continuing the search for Giotto, Masaccio boldly breaks with medieval artistic traditions. In fresco "Trinity"(1426-27), created for the church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence, Masaccio used full perspective for the first time in wall painting. In the paintings of the Brancacci Chapel of the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence (1425-28) - the main creation of his short life - Masaccio gives the images unprecedented life-like persuasiveness, emphasizes the physicality and monumentality of his characters, masterfully conveys the emotional state and psychological depth of the images. In fresco "Expulsion from Paradise" the artist solves the most difficult task for his time of depicting a naked human figure. The stern and courageous art of Masaccio had a huge impact on the artistic culture of the Renaissance.

The development of Early Renaissance painting was ambiguous: artists followed their own, sometimes different, paths. The secular principle, the desire for a fascinating narrative, and a lyrical earthly feeling found vivid expression in the works of Fra Filippo Lippi (1406-69), a monk of the Carmelite Order. A charming master, the author of many altar compositions, among which the painting is considered the best « Adoration of the Child » , created for the chapel in Palazzo Medici - Riccardi, Filippo Lippi managed to convey in them human warmth and poetic love for nature.

In the middle of the 15th century. painting in Central Italy experienced a rapid flourishing, a striking example of which is creativity Piero della Francesca(1420-92), the greatest artist and art theorist of the Renaissance. The most wonderful creation of Piero della Francesca - cycle of frescoes in the Church of San Francesco in Arezzo, which are based on the legend of the Life-Giving Tree of the Cross. The frescoes, arranged in three tiers, trace the history of the life-giving cross from the very beginning, when the sacred tree grows from the seed of the tree of paradise of the knowledge of good and evil on the grave of Adam ("Death of Adam") and until the end, when the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius solemnly returns the Christian relic to Jerusalem (« Battle between Heraclius and Khosroes » ). The work of Piero della Francesca went beyond the local painting schools and determined the development of Italian art as a whole.

In the second half of the 15th century, many talented craftsmen worked in Northern Italy in the cities of Verona, Ferrara, and Venice. Among the painters of this time, the most famous is Andrea Mantegna (1431-1506), a master of easel and monumental painting, draftsman and engraver, sculptor and architect. The artist’s pictorial style is distinguished by the chasing of forms and designs, the rigor and truthfulness of generalized images. Thanks to the spatial depth and sculptural nature of the figures, Mantegna achieves the impression of a real scene frozen for a moment - his characters look so three-dimensional and natural. Mantegna lived most of his life in Mantua, where he created his most famous work - "Camera degli Sposi" painting in the country castle of the Marquis L. Gonzaga. Using only the means of painting, he created here a luxurious Renaissance interior, a place for ceremonial receptions and holidays. Mantegna's art, which was extremely famous, influenced all of Northern Italian painting.

A special place in the painting of the Early Renaissance belongs to Sandro Botticelli(actually Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi), who was born in 1445 in Florence in the family of a wealthy leather tanner. In 1459-64. the young man studies painting from the famous Florentine master Filippo Lippi. In 1470 he opened his own workshop in Florence, and in 1472 he became a member of the Guild of St. Luke.

Botticelli's first creation was the composition "Force", which he completed for the commercial court of Florence. The young artist quickly gained the trust of customers and gained fame, which attracted the attention of Lorenzo the Magnificent, the new ruler of Florence, and became his court master and favorite. Botticelli completed most of his paintings for the houses of the Duke and other noble Florentine families, as well as for churches, monasteries and public buildings in Florence.

Second half of the 1470s and 1480s. became a period for Botticelli creative flourishing. For the main façade of the Church of Santa Maria Novella he writes the composition “ Adoration of the Magi" - a kind of mythologized group portrait of the Medici family. A few years later, the artist creates his famous mythological allegory “Spring”.

In 1481, Pope Sixtus IV ordered a group of painters, among whom was Botticelli, to decorate his chapel with frescoes, which later received the name “Sistine.” Botticelli painted frescoes in the Sistine Chapel " Temptation of Christ », « Scenes from the Life of Moses », « Punishment of Korah, Dathan and Abiron" Over the next few years, Botticelli completed a series of 4 frescoes based on short stories from Boccaccio’s Decameron, and created his most famous mythological works (“Birth of Venus”, “ Pallas and Centaur"), as well as several altar compositions for Florentine churches (" Coronation of the Virgin Mary », « Altar of San Barnaba"). Many times he turned to the image of the Madonna (“ Madonna del Magnificat », « Madonna with pomegranate », « Madonna with a book"), also worked in the portrait genre (" Portrait of Giuliano Medici", "Portrait of a young woman", "Portrait of a young man").

In the 1490s, during the period of social movements and mystical sermons of the monk Savonarola that shook Florence, moralizing notes and drama appeared in Botticelli’s art (“Slander”, “ Lamentation of Christ », « Mystical Christmas"). Under the influence of Savonarola, in a fit of religious exaltation, the artist even destroyed some of his works. In the mid-1490s, with the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent and the expulsion of his son Pietro from Florence, Botticelli lost his fame as a great artist. Forgotten, he quietly lives out his life in the house of his brother Simon. In 1510 the artist died.

Botticelli's exquisite art with elements of stylization (i.e. generalization of images using conventional techniques - simplification of color, shape and volume) is considered one of the pinnacles of the development of painting. Botticelli's art, unlike most of the Early Renaissance masters, was based on personal experience. Exceptionally sensitive and sincere, Botticelli went through a difficult and tragic path of creative quest - from a poetic perception of the world in his youth to mysticism and religious exaltation in adulthood.

EARLY RENAISSANCE

EARLY RENAISSANCE

High Renaissance

The High Renaissance, which gave humanity such great masters as Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Michelangelo, Giorgione, Titian, Bramante, covers a relatively short period of time - the end of the 15th and the first third of the 16th centuries. Only in Venice did the flowering of art continue until the middle of the century.

Fundamental changes associated with the decisive events of world history and the successes of advanced scientific thought have endlessly expanded people's ideas about the world - not only about the earth, but also about space. The perception of the world and the human personality seems to have become larger; in artistic creativity this was reflected not only in the majestic scale of architectural structures, monuments, solemn fresco cycles and paintings, but also in their content and expressiveness of images. The art of the High Renaissance is a living and complex artistic process with dazzlingly bright ups and subsequent crises.

Donato Bramante.

Center for Architecture High Renaissance became Rome, where, on the basis of previous discoveries and successes, a single classical style emerged. The masters creatively used the ancient order system, creating structures whose majestic monumentality was in tune with the era. The largest representative of High Renaissance architecture was Donato Bramante (1444-1514). Bramante's buildings are distinguished by their monumentality and grandeur, harmonious perfection of proportions, integrity and clarity of compositional and spatial solutions, and free, creative use of classical forms. Bramante's highest creative achievement is the reconstruction of the Vatican (the architect actually created a new building, organically incorporating scattered old buildings into it). Bramante is also the author of the design of St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome. With his work, Bramante determined the development of architecture in the 16th century.

Leonardo da Vinci.

In the history of mankind it is not easy to find another person as brilliant as the founder of the art of the High Renaissance Leonardo da Vinci(1452-1519). The comprehensive nature of the activities of this great artist, sculptor, architect, scientist and engineer became clear only when the scattered manuscripts from his legacy were examined, numbering over seven thousand sheets containing scientific and architectural projects, inventions and sketches. It is difficult to name an area of ​​knowledge that his genius would not touch. Leonardo's universalism is so incomprehensible that the famous biographer of Renaissance figures Giorgio Vasari could not explain this phenomenon except by heavenly intervention: “Whatever this man turned to, his every action bore the stamp of divinity.”

In his famous “Treatise on Painting” (1498) and other notes, Leonardo paid great attention to the study of the human body, information on anatomy, proportions, the relationship between movements, facial expressions and the emotional state of a person. Leonardo was also interested in the problems of chiaroscuro, volumetric modeling, linear and aerial perspective. Leonardo paid tribute not only to the theory of art. He created a number of magnificent altar images and portraits. Leonardo's brush belongs to one of the most famous works of world painting - “Mona Lisa” (“La Gioconda”). Leonardo created monumental sculptural images, designed and built architectural structures. Leonardo remains to this day one of the most charismatic personalities of the Renaissance. A huge number of books have been dedicated to him, his life has been studied in detail. And yet, much in his work remains a mystery and continues to excite people’s minds.

Rafael Santi.

The art of Raphael Santi (1483-1520) also belongs to the peaks of the Italian Renaissance. In the history of world art, the work of Raphael is associated with the idea of ​​sublime beauty and harmony. It is generally accepted that in the constellation brilliant masters High Renaissance, it was Raphael who was the main bearer of harmony. The tireless striving for a bright, perfect beginning permeates all of Raphael’s work and constitutes its inner meaning. His works are unusually attractive in their natural grace (“ Sistine Madonna"). Perhaps this is why the master gained such extraordinary popularity among the public and had many followers among artists at all times. Raphael was not only an amazing painter and portrait painter, but also a monumentalist who worked in fresco techniques, an architect, and a master of decor. All these talents manifested themselves with particular force in his paintings of the apartments of Pope Julius II in the Vatican (“School of Athens”). In art genius artist a new image of the Renaissance man was born - beautiful, harmonious, perfect physically and spiritually.

Michelangelo Buonarotti.

Contemporary Leonardo da Vinci and Raphael was their eternal rival - Michelangelo Buonarroti, the greatest master of the High Renaissance - sculptor, painter, architect and poet. This titan of the Renaissance began his creative path with sculpture. His colossal statues became a symbol of a new man - a hero and fighter (“David”). The master erected many architectural and sculptural structures, the most famous of which is the Medici Chapel in Florence. The splendor of these works is built on the colossal tension of the characters’ feelings ( Sarcophagus of Giuliano Medici). But Michelangelo’s paintings in the Vatican, in the Sistine Chapel, are especially famous, in which he proved himself to be a brilliant painter. Perhaps no one in world art, neither before nor after Michelangelo, has created characters so strong in body and spirit (“ Creation of Adam"). The huge, incredibly complex fresco on the ceiling was painted by the artist alone, without assistants; it remains to this day an unsurpassed monumental work of Italian painting. But in addition to painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, the master, already in old age, created the fiercely inspired “Last Judgment” - a symbol of the collapse of the ideals of his great era.

Michelangelo worked a lot and fruitfully in architecture, in particular, he supervised the construction of St. Peter's Cathedral and the ensemble Capitol Square in Rome. The work of the great Michelangelo constituted an entire era and was far ahead of its time; it played a colossal role in world art, in particular, it influenced the formation of the principles of the Baroque.

Giorgione and Titian.

Venice, where painting flourished, added a bright page to the history of High Renaissance art. Giorgione is considered the first master of the High Renaissance in Venice. His art is completely special. The spirit of clear harmony and some special intimate contemplation and dreaminess reigns in it. He often painted delightful beauties, real goddesses. Usually this is a poetic fiction - the embodiment of an unrealizable dream, admiration for a romantic feeling and a beautiful woman. His paintings contain a hint of sensual passion, sweet pleasure, unearthly happiness. With the art of Giorgione, Venetian painting acquired pan-Italian significance, establishing its artistic characteristics.

Titian in went down in the history of Italian art as a titan and the head of the Venetian school, as a symbol of its heyday. The breath of a new era - stormy, tragic, sensual - was manifested with particular force in the work of this artist. Titian's work is distinguished by its exceptionally wide and varied coverage of types and genres of painting. Titian was one of the founders of the monumental altar painting, landscape as an independent genre, various types portraits, including ceremonial ones. In his work ideal images coexist with bright characters, tragic conflicts- with scenes of jubilant joy, religious compositions - with mythological and historical paintings.

Titian developed a new painting technique, which had an exceptional influence on the further, up to the 20th century, development of the world fine arts. Titian belongs to the greatest colorists of world painting. His paintings shine with gold and a complex range of vibrating, luminous undertones of color. Titian, who lived for almost a century, experienced the collapse of Renaissance ideals; the master's work half belongs to the era of the Late Renaissance. His hero, entering the fight against hostile forces, dies, but retains his greatness. The influence of Titian's great workshop affected all Venetian art.

HIGH RENAISSANCE

HIGH RENAISSANCE

Late Renaissance

In the second half of the 16th century. in Italy, the decline of the economy and trade was increasing, Catholicism entered into the fight against humanistic culture, art was experiencing a deep crisis. It strengthened anti-Renaissance tendencies, embodied in mannerism. However, Mannerism almost did not affect Venice, which in the second half of the 16th century became the main center of Late Renaissance art. In line with the high humanistic Renaissance tradition, in new historical conditions, the work of the great masters of the Late Renaissance, enriched with new forms, developed in Venice - Palladio, Veronese, Tintoretto.

Andrea Palladio

The work of the northern Italian architect Andrea Palladio (1508-80), based on a deep study of ancient and Renaissance architecture, represents one of the peaks in the art of the Late Renaissance. Palladio developed the principles of architecture, which were developed in the architecture of European classicism of the 17th-18th centuries. and received the name Palladianism. The architect outlined his ideas in the theoretical work “Four Books on Architecture” (1570). Palladio's buildings (mainly city palaces and villas) are full of graceful beauty and naturalness, harmonious completeness and strict orderliness, are distinguished by clarity and expediency of planning and organic connection with the environment ( Palazzo Chiericati). The ability to harmoniously connect architecture with the surrounding landscape was demonstrated with particular force in Palladio’s villas, imbued with an elegiacally enlightened sense of nature and marked by classical clarity and simplicity of form and composition ( Villa Capra (Rotunda)). Palladio created the first monumental theater building in Italy, the Teatro Olimpico. Palladio's influence on the development of architecture in subsequent centuries was enormous.

Veronese and Tintoretto...

The festive, life-affirming character of the Venetian Renaissance was most clearly manifested in the work of Paolo Veronese. A muralist, he created magnificent decorative ensembles of wall and ceiling paintings with many characters and interesting details. Veronese created his own style: his spectacular, spectacular paintings are full of emotion, passion and life, and the heroes, the Venetian nobility, are usually located in patrician palaces or against the backdrop of luxurious nature. They are carried away by grandiose feasts or enchanting celebrations (“Marriage at Cana”). Veronese was the master of merry Venice, its triumphs, the poet of its golden splendor. Veronese had an exceptional gift as a colorist. His colors are permeated with light, intense and not only give objects color, but themselves transform into an object, turning into clouds, fabric, a human body. Because of this, the real beauty of figures and objects is multiplied by the beauty of color and texture, which produces a strong emotional impact on the viewer.

The complete opposite of Veronese was his contemporary Tintoretto (1518-94), the last major master of the Italian Renaissance. The abundance of external artistic influences dissolved in the unique creative individuality of Tintoretto. In his work he was a gigantic figure, the creator of a volcanic temperament, violent passions and heroic intensity. His work was a great success among his contemporaries and subsequent generations. Tintoretto was distinguished by a truly inhuman capacity for work and tireless quest. He felt the tragedy of his time more acutely and deeply than most of his contemporaries. The master rebelled against established traditions in the fine arts - adherence to symmetry, strict balance, staticity; expanded the boundaries of space, filled it with dynamics, dramatic action, and began to express human feelings more clearly. 1590 g . The art of mannerism departs from the Renaissance ideals of a harmonious perception of the world. A person finds himself at the mercy of supernatural forces. The world appears unstable, shaky, in a state of decay. Mannerist images are full of anxiety, restlessness, and tension. The artist moves away from nature, strives to surpass it, following in his work a subjective “inner idea”, the basis of which is not the real world, but the creative imagination; the means of execution is “beautiful manner” as the sum of certain techniques. Among them are the arbitrary elongation of figures, a complex serpentine rhythm, the unreality of fantastic space and light, and sometimes cold, piercing colors.

The largest and most gifted master of mannerism, a painter of complex creative fate, was Jacopo Pontormo (1494-1556). In his famous painting « Descent from the Cross“The composition is unstable, the figures are pretentiously broken, the light colors are harsh. Francesco Mazzola, nicknamed Parmigianino (1503-40), loved to amaze the viewer: for example, he wrote his “ Self-portrait in a convex mirror" Deliberate deliberateness distinguishes his famous painting “ Madonna with a long neck ».

The Medici court painter Agnolo Bronzino (1503-72) is famous for his ceremonial portraits. They echoed the era of bloody atrocities and moral decline that engulfed the highest circles of Italian society. Bronzino’s noble customers seem to be separated from the viewer by an invisible distance; the rigidity of their poses, the impassivity of their faces, the richness of their clothes, the gestures of their beautiful ceremonial hands - all this is like an outer shell hiding an inner flawed life. In the portrait of Eleanor of Toledo with her son (c. 1545), the inaccessibility of the cold, aloof image is enhanced by the fact that the viewer's attention is completely absorbed by the flat large pattern of the duchess's magnificent brocade clothing. The type of court portrait created by the Mannerists influenced the portrait art of the 16th-17th centuries. in many other European countries.

The art of mannerism was transitional: the Renaissance was passing away, the time was coming for a new pan-European artistic style- baroque.

Art of the Northern Renaissance.

The countries of Northern Europe did not have their own ancient past, but the Renaissance period stands out in their history: from the turnXV – XVIthrough the second halfXVIIcentury. This time is distinguished by the penetration of Renaissance ideals into various spheres of culture and the gradual change in its style. As in the birthplace of the Renaissance, in the art of the Northern Renaissance, interest in the real world changed the forms of artistic creativity. However, the art of the northern countries was not characterized by the pathos of Italian painting, glorifying the power of the titanic man. The burghers (the so-called wealthy townspeople) more valued integrity, loyalty to duty and word, and the sanctity of the marital vow and home. In burgher circles, their own ideal of a person was formed - clear, sober, pious and businesslike. The art of the burghers poetizes the ordinary average person and his world - the world of everyday life and simple things.

Masters of the Renaissance in the Netherlands.

New features of Renaissance art appeared primarily in the Netherlands, which was one of the richest and most industrialized countries in Europe. Because of its extensive international connections, the Netherlands absorbed new discoveries much more quickly than other Nordic countries.

The Renaissance style in the Netherlands opened Jan Van Eyck(1390-1441). His most famous work is Ghent Altarpiece, on which the artist began to work together with his brother, and continued to work independently after his death for another 6 years. The Ghent altarpiece, created for the city cathedral, is a two-tier fold, on 12 boards of which there are pictures of everyday, everyday life (on the outer boards, which were visible when the fold was closed) and festive, jubilant, transformed life (on the inner doors, which appeared in the open during church holidays). This is a monument of art glorifying the beauty of earthly life. Van Eyck's emotional feeling - "the world is like paradise", every particle of which is beautiful - is expressed clearly and clearly. The artist relied on many observations from nature. All figures and objects have three-dimensional volume and weight. The Van Eyck brothers were among the first to discover the possibilities of oil painting; from this time on, it begins to gradually replace tempera.

In the second half of XVcentury, full of political and religious strife, complex, unique art stands out in the art of the Netherlands Hieronymus Bosch(1450?-1516). This is a very curious artist with an extraordinary imagination. He lived in his own and terrible world. In Bosch's paintings there is a condensation of medieval folklore ideas, grotesque montages of the living and the mechanical, the terrible and the comic. In his compositions, which had no center, there is no main character. The space in several layers is filled with numerous groups of figures and objects: monstrously exaggerated reptiles, toads, spiders, terrible creatures in which parts of different creatures and objects are combined. The purpose of Bosch's compositions is moral edification. Bosch does not find harmony and perfection in nature; his demonic images remind of the vitality and omnipresence of world evil, the cycle of life and death.

The man in Bosch's paintings is pitiful and weak. Thus, in the triptych " A cart of hay"The artist reveals the history of humanity. The left wing tells the story of the fall of Adam and Eve, the right one depicts Hell and all the horrors that await sinners here. The central part of the picture illustrates the popular proverb “The world is a haystack, everyone takes from it what he manages to grab.” Bosch shows how people fight over a piece of hay, die under the wheels of a cart, and try to climb onto it. On top of the cart, having renounced the world, lovers sing and kiss. There is an angel on one side of them, and a devil on the other: who will win? Creepy creatures are dragging the cart into the underworld. God looks at all the actions of people with bewilderment. The painting is imbued with an even more gloomy mood. Carrying the cross": Christ carries his heavy cross surrounded by disgusting people with bulging eyes and gaping mouths. For their sake, the Lord sacrifices himself, but his death on the cross will leave them indifferent.

Bosch had already died when another famous Dutch artist was born - Pieter Bruegel the Elder(1525-1569), nicknamed Muzhitsky for his many paintings depicting the life of peasants. Bruegel took folk proverbs and the everyday concerns of ordinary people as the basis for many of his subjects. The completeness of the images of the paintings " Peasant wedding" And " Peasant dance"carries the power of the folk element. Even Bruegel’s paintings of biblical scenes are populated by the Netherlands, and the events of distant Judea take place against the backdrop of snow-covered streets under the dim sky of his native country (“ Sermon of John the Baptist"). Showing the seemingly unimportant, secondary, the artist speaks about the main thing in people's lives, recreates the spirit of his time.

Small canvas " Hunters in the snow"(January) from the series "Seasons" is considered one of the unsurpassed masterpieces of world painting. Tired hunters with dogs return home. Together with them, the viewer enters the hill, from which a panorama of a small town opens. Snow-covered banks of the river, thorny trees frozen in the clear frosty air, birds fly, sit on tree branches and roofs of houses, people are busy with their daily affairs. All these seemingly little things, together with the blue sky, black trees, and white snow, create in the picture a panorama of the world that the artist passionately loves.

Bruegel's most tragic painting " Parable of the Blind"Written by the artist shortly before his death. It illustrates the gospel story “if a blind man leads a blind man, they will both fall into a pit.” Perhaps this is an image of humanity, blinded by its desires, moving towards its destruction. However, Bruegel does not judge, but, by comprehending the laws of relationships between people with each other, with the environment, penetrating into the essence of human nature, he reveals to people themselves, their place in the world.

Painting of Germany during the Renaissance.

The features of the Renaissance in the art of Germany appear later than in the Netherlands. The flowering of German humanism, secular sciences and culture falls in the early yearsXVIV. This was a short period during which German culture gave the world the highest artistic values. These include, first of all, the work Albrecht Durer(1471-1528) - the most important artist of the German Renaissance.

Dürer is a typical representative of the Renaissance; he was a painter, an engraver, a mathematician, and an engineer, and wrote treatises on fortification and art theory. On self-portraits he appears intelligent, noble, focused, full of deep philosophical thoughts. In his paintings, Dürer is not content with formal beauty, but strives to give a symbolic expression of abstract thoughts.

A special place in Dürer’s creative heritage belongs to the “Apocalypse” series, which includes 15 large woodcuts. Dürer illustrates the predictions from the “Revelation of John the Evangelist”, for example, the leaf “ Four Horsemen“symbolizes terrible disasters - war, pestilence, famine, unjust judgment. The premonition of change, difficult trials and disasters expressed in the engravings turned out to be prophetic (the Reformation and the Peasant and Religious Wars that followed it soon began).

Another remarkable artist of that time was Lucas Cranach the Elder(1472-1553). His paintings are kept in the Hermitage " Madonna and Child under the Apple Tree" And " Portrait of a woman" In them we see a woman’s face, depicted in many of the master’s paintings (it is even called “Cranach’s”): a small chin, narrow eyes, golden hair. The artist carefully designs jewelry and clothing, his paintings are a feast for the eyes. The purity and naivety of the images once again make you look at these paintings. Cranach was a wonderful portrait painter; he created images of many famous contemporaries - Martin Luther (who was his friend), Duke Henry of Saxony and many others.

But the most famous portrait painter of the Northern Renaissance, without a doubt, can be recognized as another German painter Hans Holbein the Younger(1497-1543). For a long time he was the court artist of the English king HenryVIII. In his portrait, Holbein perfectly conveys the imperious nature of the king, who is unfamiliar with doubt. Small, intelligent eyes on a fleshy face reveal him as a tyrant. Portrait of Henry VIII was so reliable that it frightened people who knew the king. Holbein painted portraits of many famous people of that time, in particular the statesman and writer Thomas More, the philosopher Erasmus of Rotterdam and many others.

The development of Renaissance culture in Germany, the Netherlands, and some other European countries was interrupted by the Reformation and the religious wars that followed it. Following this, the time came for the formation of new principles in art, which entered the next stage of its development.

In the development of artistic culture of the Renaissance period, two stages, unequal in time, are traditionally distinguished: Early(XV century) and High Renaissance(end of the 15th century to the 30s of the 16th century for Central Italy and almost the entire 16th century for Venice). But the stage of the Early Renaissance was preceded Pre-Renaissance(late XIII - XIV centuries) lasting more than a century, during which the accumulation and testing of new elements in art took place.

During the Renaissance, the status of the artist changed. Medieval art was anonymous; the artist was not the author, but the translator of the divine plan. Now the artist is independent in his creative searches, he becomes the author of his creation. His social status and prestige increases. He becomes a person recognized and respected in society. The increased demand for works of artistic culture makes his work in demand, which helps to improve his material well-being. The Renaissance artist strives to become a “universal” person, to try his hand at different types art. Thus, Michelangelo Buonarotti was a painter, sculptor, architect and poet.

Universality led to the blurring of boundaries between various areas of human knowledge. A striking example of this is the personality of Leonardo da Vinci, who devoted his life to the search for truth and beauty in equal measure. He achieved the highest results both in art, becoming the author of the famous works “La Gioconda”, “The Last Supper”, etc., and in science, making many discoveries in mathematics and mechanics.

One of the main characteristics of Renaissance art is the imitation of nature. But imitation is not superficial, but precise, possible only with the help of scientific knowledge. In order to fully and accurately reflect natural forms, the artist must know the laws of nature. He is required to convey the features of man and (to a lesser extent) nature in their natural (realistic) form. To achieve the effect of naturalness, artists arm themselves with a compass, ruler, magnifying glass, and study geometry, optics, and anatomy. A mathematical substantiation of the proportions of the image becomes a mandatory element of the initial work of an artist, sculptor, or architect.

Source

Leon Battista Alberti(“Three books about painting.” Book three):

“I assert that the task of the painter is the following: on any board or wall given to him, to outline with a line and paint with colors the similarities of the visible surfaces of any body, so that at a certain distance and at a certain position of the center they appear convex and in every way similar to these bodies. The purpose of painting is to win the artist gratitude, favor and fame much more than wealth. And painters will achieve this when their painting delights the eyes and soul of everyone who looks at it, and how this is done, we said above, when we discussed composition and lighting. But I would like the painter to be a good person and trained in useful sciences; otherwise he will not be able to properly grasp all this. After all, everyone knows how the kindness of a person is much more capable of attracting the favor of citizens than any skill or art, and no one doubts that the favor of many greatly contributes to the fame, as well as the earnings of the artist.”

The goal of the Renaissance artist was to imitate not just nature, but ideal nature, which is the highest example of beauty. The human body becomes the embodiment of this ideal. The desire to combine the real and the ideal, material and spiritual beauty is another feature of Renaissance art.

For the first time, new methods of artistic reflection of the world appeared in the work of the Pre-Renaissance artist Giotto. He was the first to decide to break with Byzantine iconographic traditions. In his work, he proceeded from the principles of optical law. I tried to convey the depth of space using various techniques: compositional design in the form of a viewer-oriented scene, the introduction of architectural elements, the depiction of figures that are emphasized in volume, the correlation of their proportions with the real human body. His main achievement was the introduction into the practice of painting of the technique chiaroscuro.

Early Renaissance represented by the works of Brunelleschi, Masaccio, Donatello. The sculptor and architect Brunelleschi rehabilitated secular architecture. Elements of the ancient order were reinterpreted by him as decoration. Thanks to him, the use of loggias with semicircular arches and thin columns in the architecture of internal Renaissance palaces - palazzos - became widespread. Masaccio was the first to use the technique direct (linear) perspective, creating in his paintings the illusion of space receding into the distance. The sculptor Donatello is responsible for the revival of the genre round statue, not related to architecture.

High Renaissance Art most fully expressed in the works of Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael and Michelangelo, who personified intelligence, harmony, and power. Leonardo da Vinci's discovery was sfumato- a gentle haze of chiaroscuro, creating the illusion of air trembling over a human body heated by the sun. His landscape is often called lunar because of the apparent contradiction between the extreme realism of the human body in its smallest details and the schematic emptiness of the rocky spaces. The work of Raphael Santi is the maximum expression of the skills of walkers of the 16th century. in conveying human psychology, his mood and feelings. In Michelangelo's work one can already notice the tragic destruction of harmony (primarily due to the “diagonal” composition he used). It is Michelangelo who is considered the forerunner of new styles that appeared in the 16th and 17th centuries - mannerism And baroque.

In their artistic experiments, the Mannerists tried to create a new aesthetics that would destroy the normativity and uniformity of the Renaissance. The rejection of harmony, rigor and monumentality in favor of disharmony, showiness, and exaltation (the contrapposto was replaced by a serpentine figure, as if writhing in continuous movement around its axis) was an attempt of incommensurate importance and influence to oppose oneself to the “titans of the Renaissance.”

The development of theatrical art of the Renaissance was greatly influenced by ancient drama with its main theme of the confrontation between man and fate, and the folk laughter culture of the Middle Ages, with its interest in the life and everyday life of the common people, historicity, and attraction to the aesthetics of rough words. The most interesting searches are for the Italian theater of commedia dell'arte (16th century) and the English theater of W. Shakespeare.

The musical culture of the Renaissance was powerfully influenced by folk music. New genres appear in it: frottola, villanelle, madrigal in Italy, villancico in Spain, ballad in England. National schools emerged instrumental music(lute, organ). At the end of the Renaissance, solo singing and oratorio arose, which subsequently led to the appearance of opera.

In the art of the Northern Renaissance(Germany, the Netherlands, France) the secular component of culture associated with Antiquity was not widespread. The basis of this cultural model was a religious worldview, so the artists did not abandon medieval symbolism and conventions, but rethought them under the influence of the Italian Renaissance. One of the main elements of worldview

Northern Renaissance became christian pantheism, in which Bot and Nature are identified.

Artists of the Italian and Northern Renaissance understood beauty differently. If for Italians beauty is an ideal to strive for, then for Germans it is naturalness and spirituality. In the Italian Renaissance, the leading place was occupied by aesthetics, in the northern - ethics. The leading genres of the Northern Renaissance were landscape and portrait. In the works of German artists A. Dürer, L. Cranach, A. Altdorfer, landscape played an important role, emphasizing the beauty of nature. In the German portrait, the artist sought to convey the emotional expressiveness of the image. The everyday genre also developed, primarily in the Netherlands (Pieter Bruegel the Elder).

The Italian and Northern Renaissance are two sides of a single whole - a model of new European culture. Using different means, they solved common problems - the emancipation of man, the development of his creative potential and the creation of conditions for self-improvement.

Resume

In the XIV-XVI centuries. A new model is emerging in European culture. The formation of a new cultural era was facilitated by a complex of economic, political, social and spiritual prerequisites, as well as the results of geographical and scientific discoveries. The worldview of the new cultural model is based on humanism based on anthropocentrism. Italian humanism is called “civil humanism”, and in the Northern Renaissance “religious humanism” was developed. The art of the Renaissance was recognized as the main type of spiritual creative activity. The goal of the Renaissance artist was to imitate ideal nature. The masters of the Renaissance enriched artistic practice with the theory of linear perspective, the transfer of a light-air shell, achieving the effect of tactility with the help of chiaroscuro and color gradations. The search for means of artistic expression also characterized literature, theater and music. Despite the different aesthetic ideals of the Italian and Northern Renaissance, they became different practices for realizing the artistic ideal of new European culture.

Questions for self-control

• 1. Why, in your opinion, did Italy become the cradle of the Renaissance? What historical, economic, political and cultural factors contributed to this?
• 2. What was the philosophy of humanism? What points of the Renaissance humanists seem relevant to you today and why?
• 3. What are the common and special features of the Italian and Northern Renaissance?
• 4. How would you formulate the ideal type of a Renaissance man?
• 5. What are the specifics of the artistic perception of the Renaissance?
• 6. What unites and what distinguishes the sculptures “David” by Donatello and “David” M1 by Angelo?

Exercise

Check out this excerpt from the following source: Paco della MiraidolaG.(1463-1494) “A Discourse on the Dignity of Man” [Man is the free creator of himself], and answer the questions below.

“I read, dear fathers, in the writings of the Arabs, that when they asked Abdullah the Saracen what seemed to him the most amazing thing in the world, he replied that there is nothing more wonderful than man. The words of Mercury correspond to this thought: “Oh, Asclepius, man is a great miracle!” When I reflected on the meaning of these sayings, I was not satisfied with the numerous arguments in favor of the superiority of human nature that many give: man is a mediator between all creatures, close to the higher and master over the lower, the interpreter of nature due to the insight of the mind, clarity of thought and inquisitiveness intellect, the interval between unchangeable eternity and current time, the bonds of the world, as the Persians say, Hymen, standing a little lower than the angels, according to the testimony of David.

All this is significant, but it is not the main thing that deserves the greatest admiration. Why do we not admire more the angels and the beautiful heavenly choirs? In the end, it seemed to me that I understood why man is the happiest of all living creatures and worthy of universal admiration, and what lot was prepared for him among all other destinies, enviable not only for animals, but for the stars and otherworldly souls. Incredible and amazing! How could it be otherwise? After all, this is why man is rightly called and considered a great miracle, a living being truly worthy of admiration. But whatever it is, listen, fathers, and graciously forgive me this speech.

Already the Almighty Father, God the Creator, created according to the laws of wisdom the world’s abode, which seems to us the august temple of the deity. Decorated the heavenly sphere with reason, celestial bodies revived with eternal souls. He filled the dirty and clogged parts of the lower world with a heterogeneous mass of animals. But, having completed the creation, the master wished that there would be someone who would appreciate the meaning of such a large work, would love its beauty, and admire its scope. Therefore, having completed all his work, as Moses and Timaeus testify, he finally decided to create man. But there was nothing in the prototypes from which the Creator would produce new offspring, nor in the repositories that he would give as an inheritance to the new son, nor on the benches of the firmament where the Contemplator of the Universe himself sat. Everything was already completed; everything was distributed to the higher, middle and lower spheres. But it was not fitting for the father's power to be absent from the last offspring, as if exhausted, it was not fitting for his wisdom in a necessary matter to waver due to lack of advice, it was not becoming for his beneficent love that he who should have praised the divine bounty in others should be forced to condemn it in yourself. And finally, the best Creator established that for the one to whom he could not give anything of his own, everything that was inherent in individual creations would become common. Then God accepted man as a creation of an indefinite image and, placing him in the center of the world, said: “We give you, O Adam, neither a specific place, nor your own image, nor a special duty, so that the place, and the person, and the duty you had but of his own free will, according to your will and your decision. The image of other creations is determined within the limits of the laws we have established. You, not constrained by any limits, will determine your image according to your decision, into the power of which I leave you. I place you in the center of the world, so that from there it will be more convenient for you to view everything that is in the world. I did not make you heavenly, nor earthly, nor mortal, nor immortal, so that you yourself, a free and glorious master, could mold yourself into the image that you prefer. You can be reborn into lower, unreasonable beings, but you can also be reborn into higher divine beings at the behest of your soul. Oh, the highest generosity of God the Father! Oh, the highest and most delightful happiness of a person who is given the gift of owning what he wants and being what he wants! As soon as animals are born, they receive from their mother’s womb everything that they will later possess, as Lucilius says. The highest spirits either first or a little later become what they will be in eternal immortality. To the born man, the Father gave seeds and embryos of diverse life, and according to how each person cultivates them, they will grow and bear fruit in him. And if the embryos are plant, then the person will be a plant, if sensual, then he will become an animal, if rational, then he will become a heavenly being, and if intellectual, then he will become an angel and the son of God. And if he is not satisfied with the fate of any of the creatures, then let him return to the center of his uniformity and, having become one with God the spirit, let him surpass everyone in the solitary darkness of the Father who stands above everything...”

Questions:

• 1. What does Pico della Mirandola see as the main difference between man and other creations of God?
• 2. What is, according to the philosopher, the exclusive privilege of man?
• 3. Read the opinion of a modern researcher and answer the question below:

“...The more civilization became stronger, the more often the suspicion crept into the minds of individual individuals that they were doing it themselves, with minimal support from mysterious forces from the outside or without such help at all. But it was better to remain silent about this - the culture was not ready to calmly take such a heresy. With the triumph of monotheism, the word “Creator” became the title of a deity and was written with a capital letter. Since the time of Aristotle, what we now call creativity has been called “mimesis” - imitation. Neither Dante nor Petrarch dared or knew how to call themselves creators. It took a confluence of many circumstances so that in the exalted atmosphere of Reissian Florence, Pico della Mirandola could decide to - leaving the act of creation of the world and man behind the deity - in the name of the deity, transfer everything else to the person himself: “You yourself will determine your nature in accordance with your free will"" (Glazychev V.L. The evolution of creativity in architecture. M.: Stroyizdat, 1986. P. 5).

What circumstances allowed Pico della Mirandola to come to this conclusion?

Topics for Essays and Projects

• 1. The problem of man in the philosophy of Italian humanists.
• 2. The ideal ruler of Machiavelli.
• 3. The image of the Renaissance in the works of J. Burckhardt.
• 4. Critics of the Renaissance (concepts of N. Berdyaev, 11. Florensky, M. Alpatov, A. Losev).
• 5. Northern Renaissance: people and ideas.

Literature

• 1. Andreev, M.L. Culture of the Renaissance / M. L. Andreev // History of world culture: the heritage of the West: Antiquity, the Middle Ages, the Renaissance / ed. S. D. Serebryany. - M.: Publishing house of the Russian State University for the Humanities, 1998.
• 2. Burkhardt, Ya. Culture of Italy in the Renaissance / J. Burckhardt: trans. with him. and after. A. E. Makhova; scientific ed., preface and comment. K. A. Chekalova. - M.: Iptrada, 2001.
• 3. Bulletin of history, literature, art / RAS (Department of Historical and Philological Sciences). - T. 1. - M.: Nauka, 2005. - P. 84-97.
• 4. Dzhivelegov, A.K. Creators of the Italian Renaissance: in 2 books. / A.K. Dzhivelegov. - M.: Terra - Book. club; Republic, 1998.
• 5. Kustodieva, T.K. Italian art of the Renaissance of the XIII-XVI centuries / T. K. Kustodieva. - L.: Art, 1985.
• 6. Tarnoe, R. History of Western thinking: trans. from English / R. Tarnas. - M.: Kron-Press, 1995.

• Aesthetics of the Renaissance: in 2 volumes. T. 2 / comp. V. P. Shestakov. M.: Art. 1981. P. 333-
• History of aesthetics. Monuments of world aesthetic thought: in 5 volumes. T. 1. M.: Publishing House Acad. Arts of the USSR, 1962. pp. 506-514.

The Renaissance is the greatest stage in the development of human culture. The term “Renaissance” was first used by the artist and art critic Giorgio Vasari, the author of “Lives of the Most Famous Painters, Sculptors and Architects” (1500), where he defined the development of art in Italy in the 15th – 16th centuries. as a revival after many years of decline in the Middle Ages. Subsequently, this term began to be used in a broader sense, becoming a designation and characteristic of an entire era in the development of the culture of Western Europe.

The culture of the Renaissance (Rinascimento - in Italian, Renaissance - in French) began to take shape in Italy from the middle of the 14th century. The essence of this culture was the fight against feudal canons and their manifestation in religion, philosophy, and art. In an effort to create a new culture based on the principle of the free development of man, Renaissance figures turned to the humanistic principles of ancient culture. A grandiose revolution took place in the worldview of people, and above all - scientists, painters, architects, poets, who were the guides new culture, who embodied the ideal of humanity, giving birth in people great love to the beauty of the world and the persistent desire to understand this world.

Unlike the culture of the Middle Ages, the humanistic life-affirming culture of the Renaissance was secular in nature. Passionate thirst for knowledge real world and admiration for him led to the rise of science, to the reflection in art of the most diverse aspects of reality and imparted majestic pathos and deep insight to the most significant creations of artists. In art, the ideal of a titanic personality was affirmed, which was embodied in literature, sculpture, and painting, which experienced a flourishing unprecedented before that time. The ideals of humanism were expressed in architecture, in the clear harmonious appearance of buildings, in their proportions and scales related to man.

Stages of development of Renaissance art:

Pre-Renaissance, or Proto-Renaissance (XIII - XIV centuries),

Early Renaissance (XV century),

High Renaissance (90s of the 15th century - first third of the 16th centuries),

Late Renaissance (second half of the 16th century).

IN different countries The processes of the Renaissance developed differently. For example, there was no High Renaissance in the Netherlands. In Italy, painting and sculpture were most developed; in Germany and the Netherlands, along with painting, engraving, etc., became widespread.

Italy was the birthplace and classical country of the European Renaissance.

PRE-RENAISSANCE

Phenomena Proto-Renaissance and early Renaissance most clearly manifested in the advanced Italian republics, in particular in Florence. It was on Florentine soil that the work of the great poet Dante, the last poet of the Middle Ages and the first poet of modern times, and the pioneer of Renaissance painting, the artist Giotto, was formed.

Dante Alighieri(1265 – 1321) was born and raised in Florence, where he was formed under the influence of the outstanding political figure and humanist Brunetto Latini. Dante himself, participant political life city, was expelled from Florence; During the period of twenty years of exile, he wrote his brilliant creation - "Comedy", which admiring readers gave the definition of " divine ".

The plot of the poem goes back to the religious-fantastic tradition of medieval descriptions of going to the afterlife and visions of posthumous people. human destinies. But the content of the poem reflects specific, life realities associated with the personal fate of the poet and the socio-political circumstances of reality. Going to the afterlife in search of his beloved Beatrice, Dante recognizes the human right to free feeling and glorifies “the love that moves the suns and luminaries.” The meaning of the “Divine Comedy”, its universal content lies in the personality of Dante himself, the first poet who managed to rise above schemes of scholastic thought.

Giotto di Bondone(1266/67 – 1337) was distinguished by her versatility of interests (architect, sculptor, poet, artist), which was a personal characteristic of the Renaissance figures. He made his most significant contribution to the development of painting.

Giotto's art affirms the value of a real person and is distinguished by its enormous power of emotional impact, moral and ethical depth, drama and epicness. His most significant creation is a cycle of frescoes on the theme of the life of Mary and Christ in Capelle del Arena V Padua.

The artist interprets the religious legend as real event. With unprecedented strength, Giotto conveys the characters’ characters, revealed in their actions, in slow movements, in gestures. The scene is perceived as a dramatic story about betrayal, as a clash of two contrasting characters." Kiss of Judas", epic grandeur and drama distinguish the fresco "Mourning of Christ". Discarding minor details, generalizing, Giotto creates images of great depth. Light, cold colors - yellow, pink, blue, green - make up a sonorous, easily perceived harmony of the paintings.

Giotto's art, with its sincerity and simplicity, light in thought, full of faith in man, marked the beginning of Renaissance painting.

EARLY RENAISSANCE

At the end of the 14th century, power in Florence was concentrated in the hands of the Medici banking house. In 1434, Cosimo de' Medici became the unofficial ruler of Florence. He strives to gain the status of patron of the arts and sciences.

During this period, the Platonic Academy was established in Florence and the Laurentian Library was founded. Scientists, writers, and architects work at the Medici court. The city is undergoing extensive construction and developing architecture(the central bathing temple building and the city palace of the wealthy bourgeoisie and aristocracy).

The founder of Renaissance architecture was Philippe Brunelleschi(1377 – 1446), a native of Florence (the octagonal dome over the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Orphanage in Piazza Annunziata, the Pizzi Chapel and others). An outstanding practitioner and theorist was Leon Battista Alberti(1404 – 1472), author of the treatise “Ten Books on Architecture”.

The early Renaissance was marked by the development literature, associated with the names of Petrarch and Boccaccio.

Francesco Petrarca(1304 - 1374), whose father was a friend of Dante and also knew the bitterness of exile, was favored by the government, won the fame of a great poet and was crowned with a laurel wreath. Petrarch is the founder of the sonnet genre in European poetry. Two books of his sonnets are dedicated to Laura, whose love is embodied in poetry as a real, earthly feeling. Petrarch freed poetry from mysticism and abstraction. His lyrics were the embodiment of the author’s humanistic aspirations.

Giovanni Boccaccio(1313 – 1375) – writer, artist and scientist – philologist. He developed the genre short stories, turning to the folk roots of Italian art.

Boccaccio's great work is " Decameron" is a book that dealt a crushing blow to the religious-ascetic worldview of the Middle Ages. Boccaccio's short stories are written in bright, colorful language, full of folk proverbs, sayings, and puns.

Italian writers of the XIV – XVI centuries. - G. Florentino, F. Sacchetti, M. Guardi, M. Bandello and others - developed the traditions of Boccaccio. Italian short stories influenced subsequent European literature.

During the Early Renaissance, it acquired its own independent meaning. sculpture, which was subordinate to architecture in the Middle Ages.

A real reformer of Italian sculpture was Donatello(about 1386 – 1466, full name– Donato di Niccolo di Betto Bardi). He creates images of saints and prophets (Florence Cathedral and others), distinguished by individual characteristics. The pinnacle of his creativity is sculpture " David"(1430 – 1440s), marking the triumph of the ideals of the Renaissance. The skill of depicting the naked body is based on ancient traditions. The image of a young shepherd, the winner of Goliath, was a hymn to feat in the name of the people. First equestrian statue During the Renaissance, Donatello also created an image of the condottiere Gattamelata.

In the last third of the 15th century, during the reign Lorenzo Medici, nicknamed the Magnificent, a sophisticated culture was formed, distinguished by its interest in ancient mythology and knightly Gothic. Painting reaches a high level.

Traits of sublime poetry, sophistication, sophistication are embodied in creativity Sandro Botticelli(1445 – 1510). The most mature works of the artist are the famous paintings " Spring" (circa 1485) and "The Birth of Venus" (circa 1484). Their subjects are inspired by poetry A. Poliziano, are drawn to ancient myths, but are inspired by the artist’s personal poetic worldview. Many of Botticelli's paintings are dedicated to the image Madonnas, he created frescoes on biblical subjects. His paintings are distinguished by the most complex linear rhythms; in the harmony of lines one can hear the harmony of music.

Botticelli was the first illustrator of Dante's "Divine Comedy" (1492 - 1497), his drawings are full of deep drama and subtle lyricism.

Along with Botticelli, the exponent of the ideas of the Renaissance in Florentine culture was the sculptor and painter Verrocchio, in Central and Northern Italy - Piero della Francesca, Mantegna, in Venice - G. Bellini and others.

HIGH RENAISSANCE

At the end of the 15th - mid-16th centuries. Along with Florence, Rome and Venice become centers of art.

A new architectural style is being formed in Rome, the exponent of which is Donato d'Angelo Bramante(1444 – 1514), who gave his buildings a majestic and monumental appearance. Bramante's main creation is the design of the Cathedral of St. Peter's in Rome (1506), embodying the idea of ​​an ideal central domed building with a symmetrical composition.

The true founder of the High Renaissance style was Leonardo da Vinci(1452 – 1519). His activities were comprehensive; He has brilliant insights in various fields of science and technology.

Already Leonardo's early paintings are distinguished by naturalness and plasticity, the internal regularity of the composition ("Madonna with a Flower", 1478).

The most significant of Leonardo's monumental paintings - " last supper", performed in 1495 - 1497 for the monastery of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan.

One of the most famous works of Leonardo da Vinci is a portrait Mona Lisa ("Gioconda", around 1503). The artist was an innovator in the development of Renaissance portraiture. The majestic figure of a young woman is shown against the background of a complex semi-fantastic landscape, which subtly harmonizes with the character of the model. The artist’s pictorial skill is amazing. The finest haze of chiaroscuro (the so-called sfumato) envelops the figure, there is not a single sharp stroke or angular contour in the picture.

Leonardo's graphic achievements include cardboard for frescoes" Battle of Anghiari". IN recent years Throughout his life, the artist was mainly engaged in scientific research, in which he was also ahead of his time.

Leonardo's younger contemporary was Rafael Santi(1483 - 1520), who embodied in his appearance, character, and in his works the idea of ​​the brightest and most sublime ideals of Renaissance humanism. He created his ideal of a beautiful, harmoniously developed person.

His works dedicated to the image of the Madonna are distinguished by their spiritual lyricism ("Madonna Connestabile" - 1502, "Madonna in Greenery" - 1505, "Madonna with the Goldfinch" - 1507, "The Beautiful Gardener" - 1507 and others).

In the period from 1509 to 1517. Raphael creates paintings of the state rooms (the so-called stanzas) of the Vatican Palace. The content of the frescoes was determined by Pope Julius II himself. Raphael introduced portraits of his contemporaries and famous people of the past into biblical scenes. Four themes are developed in the frescoes: " Athens school", "Parnassus", "Dispute", "Justice".

The Roman period of Raphael's work is marked by the creation of " Sistine Madonna"(1515 – 1519), intended for the Church of St. Sixtus in Piacenza. The artist created an image that shocks us today with its depth and power.

The culmination of the High Renaissance was creativity Michelangelo Buonarroti(1475 – 1564). In each area of ​​artistic creativity, he left outstanding works of sculpture, painting, graphics, architecture, and poetry. Michelangelo's whole life is a struggle to assert the human right to free creativity.

The first original sculptural work is the marble group "Pieta", which embodied the humanistic ideals of the Renaissance.

The master's greatest creation was the statue David(1501 – 1504), installed in the center of Florence in front of the building of the Palazzo Vecchio and expressing the idea of ​​​​civic feat, a call for the defense of the fatherland.

The artist’s powerful talent was revealed in the painting of the ceiling Sistine Chapel(1508 – 1512), where nine compositions on biblical subjects are placed, and a fresco on the altar wall " Last Judgment".

Michelangelo owns such sculptures as the image of the prophet Moses, the Medici tombstones in the chapel at the Church of San Lorenzo (allegorical figures “Morning”, “Evening”, “Day” and “Night”). High humanistic principles triumph in the architecture of St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome. And during the years of public reaction, the offensive of the Catholic Church, Michelangelo did not lose faith in man, in the triumph of reason.

In the 1520-1530s. In Italy, phenomena alien to Renaissance culture were spreading, which later received the name “Mannerism.” This phenomenon reflected the internal discord and feeling of powerlessness of artists in the face of the insoluble contradictions of life. The ideals of a harmonious personality were replaced by pessimism, brokenness, and emptiness. Deformation, elongated proportions of figures, and bizarre lines characterize the works of the artists Pontormo (1494 - 1557), Parmigianino (1503 - 1540) and others.

During the same period, in the north of Italy, in Venice, wonderful works of art of the High Renaissance were created. This creative creatures architect Jacopo Sansovino (Library of San Marco and others), this is a painting by Giorgione (George Barbarelli da Castelfranco).

One of the peaks of the High Renaissance was creativity Titian(1485/90 – 1576), in which humanistic tendencies and the originality of the realism of the Venetian school were clearly manifested.

The author’s desire for the psychological characteristics of the heroes was manifested in the paintings “Heavenly and Earthly Love”, “ Caesar's denarius"(the image of Christ and the Pharisee), "The Ascension of Mary", in numerous portraits. The ideal of full-blooded human beauty is embodied in such creations as "Venus in front of the mirror", " Danae", in "Self-Portrait" the artist appears as a thinker, marking the triumph of the human mind.

LATE RENAISSANCE

By the end of the 16th century. Renaissance culture is decomposing under the pressure of the feudal-Catholic trend, which begins a cruel rejection of humanistic freethinking, science and culture. In 1600, the great humanist ascended to the fire of the Inquisition Giordano Bruno, astronomer, natural philosopher, writer, who did not change his convictions even in the face of death. Two years earlier, at the stake, the Jesuits declared the great utopian philosopher insane and sentenced him to life imprisonment. Tommaso Campanella, creator of the satirical novel "City of the Sun", written under the influence of Plato's "The Republic" and echoing Thomas More's "Utopia". Brilliant physicist, mechanic and astronomer, outstanding writer Galileo Galilei was subjected to severe persecution, the Inquisition forced him to renounce the teachings of Copernicus.

It was in this environment that the activity of the last great poet of the Italian Renaissance developed. Torquato Tasso(1544 – 1595), whose work reflected the collapse of humanism in the historical conditions of that era. Tasso's central work is the poem " Liberated Jerusalem"(1575), the theme of which is the siege and capture of Jerusalem by the crusaders. The poet shows the power of the Christian faith through the clash of two cultures - pagan and Christian.

The ideals of the Late Renaissance were also reflected in art Veronese(painter Paolo Cagliari, 1528 – 1588), Tintoretto(artist Jacopo Robusti, 1518 – 1594) and others.

NORTHERN REVIVAL

This term is usually used to designate the culture of the 15th – 16th centuries. in European countries lying north of Italy: the Netherlands, Germany, France, England, the art of these countries developed as a direct continuation of Gothic, as its evolution in the direction of secular art. The commonality with the Italian Renaissance is manifested in the tendencies of the sociocultural process: the growth and formation of bourgeois humanism, the weakening of the feudal worldview, the growing self-awareness of the individual.

NETHERLANDS

In the 15th century The Netherlands became the brightest center of European art after Italy, which here acquired a more democratic character. During this period, humanist scientists turned to antiquity, the works of ancient authors were translated, scientific poetry in Latin and Latin school drama appeared.

The largest humanist scientist of the early 16th century. was Erasmus of Rotterdam(1466 - 1536), famous for his translations of Greek tragedy, works in Latin, both scientific and artistic, for example, satire" Praise for stupidity"Vices are ridiculed and criticized modern society, represented as various types human stupidity.

For Dutch art of the 15th – 16th centuries. characterized by a new, realistic vision of the world, an affirmation artistic value reality, an expression of the organic connection between man and environment. This manifested itself in painting and graphics, in the everyday genre, portraits, interiors, and landscapes.

Architecture and sculpture up to the 16th century. developed within gothic style. A turning point occurred in painting in connection with the emergence of easel painting.

Hubert and Jan van Eyck- the founders of realism in the Netherlands. There is little information about Hubert, Jan van Eyck (about 1390 - 1441) is a brave innovator, an artist of a philosophical understanding of life, who turned to the study of nature. A new, cheerful perception of life manifested itself in Ghent Altarpiece, performed for the Wade Chapel (1426 - 1432, Ghent, Church of St. Bavo). In the works “Madonna of Chancellor Rolin” (c. 1434), “Madonna of Canon van der Paele” (1436) the formation of a portrait genre is taking place, the features of which are embodied in the portraits of Cardinal Albergati (c. 1431), the Arnolfini couple (1434) and others

A new concept of the world and man is reflected in creativity Rogier van der Weyden(about 1400 – 1464), Hugo van der Goes(1440 – 1482). The desire for social satire, clothed in an allegorical, religious or dark fantastic form, was embodied in the work Hieronymus Bosch(c. 1450 – 1516), who castigated the vices of weak-willed humanity mired in the sins (“Ship of Fools” and others).

In the 16th century - a new rise in painting in the Netherlands. Artists turned to studying the discoveries of the Italian Renaissance (the “Romanism” movement). Among the “novelists”, Luke of Leyden (Van Leyden, 1489/94 – 1533) stands out. By the middle of the 16th century. The monumental everyday genre, still life (P. Artsen, I. Beikelar), individual and group portraits, is developing.

The last stage in the evolution of Dutch art, its tragic humanism determined Pieter Bruegel the Elder(c. 1525/30 – 1569), nicknamed Muzhitsky (“The Fall of Icarus”). National holidays depicted in the paintings "The Battle of Maslenitsa and Lent" (1559), "Children's Games" (1560), the life of peasants and nature - in the pictorial cycle "The Months" ("Hunters in the Snow" and others), in the work "Peasant Dance". The painting has a deep social and philosophical meaning. Blind"(1568) - the gospel parable is used to personify the blindness of short-sighted humanity, which does not know its fate.

GERMANY

The artistic culture of Germany reflected the peculiarities of its historical development (Reformation, Peasant War and others). The ideas of humanism and the teachings of Luther are spreading. Münzer preaches active work among the people. The principles of realism are affirmed in art. The great artist-thinker was Albrecht Durer(1471 –1528). His activities were multifaceted: he painted portraits, landscapes, traditional biblical and evangelical scenes, studied mathematics, anatomy, and perspective. Dürer was especially attracted engraving, first a woodcut and then a copper engraving. The highest achievement is a series of woodcuts on the theme Apocalypse(1498). The artist depicted terrible scenes of death and punishment, correlating them with modern events ("The Four Horsemen", "The Battle of the Archangel Michael with the Dragon" and others). Dürer's achievements in copper engravings were also remarkable ("Knight, Death and the Devil", "St. Jerome", "Melancholy").

Simultaneously with Dürer and after him, a galaxy of major artists appeared: Lucas Cranach the Elder, Matthias Grünwald, Holbein.

France

The formation of the French Renaissance was significantly influenced by the processes of the Italian Renaissance. In France, Leonardo da Vinci, Andrea del Sarto, Benvenuto Cellini create works, the works of Dante, Petrarch, Boccaccio are translated, and antiquity is studied. The secular university, the Collège de France, becomes the center of humanistic knowledge. But from the mid-1530s. There is a sharp turn in the policy of Francis I. The executions of Protestants and free-thinking humanists begin. All this is reflected in art. The most prominent representative of the French Renaissance was Francois Rabelais(1494 – 1553) – doctor, naturalist, archaeologist, lawyer, poet, philologist and brilliant satirist. His novel "Gargantua and Pantagruel" is a wonderful example of humanistic Renaissance culture. Based on the folk book, Rabelais creates several works about the good giant Gargantua and his son Pantagruel. Using the scheme of chivalric novels, the author satirically parodies and ridicules the scholastic education system, the speeches of medieval pundits, feudal wars, the life and customs of the royal court and the kings themselves. In the image of the monk Jean Rabelais asserts the people's principles, common sense, indomitable courage and love of life.

Poets made remarkable contributions to Renaissance literature Pierre de Ronsard, one of greatest singers love, Michel de Montaigne, author of the book “Experiments,” who affirmed man’s ability for unlimited development and at the same time the possibility of delusion and a low fall. The basis of knowledge and the criterion of truth for Montaigne was experience, the highest moral standard was moderation and closeness to nature.

SPAIN

IN Spanish Renaissance social issues were transferred mainly to an abstract moral plane. Humanistic tendencies were embodied not in philosophical theories, but almost exclusively in poetic images. Religious ideology is widely reflected in literature. Great playwrights: Lope de Vega, Calderon– along with secular plays, they created religious ones, and adapted legends and lives of saints for the stage.

The genre of the novel, which revived such concepts as knightly honor and military valor, became especially widespread. At the end of the 16th century, when Spain's policy of conquest began to fail, there was disappointment in the naive optimism of chivalric romances. The decline of their authority was facilitated by the brilliant satire of Cervantes, in which the humanistic ideas of the era were expressed.

Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra(1547 – 1616) conceived his novel “The Cunning Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha” primarily as a parody of chivalric novels. The author, through the image of the Knight of the Sorrowful Image and his “exploits,” removes the veil from the very idea of ​​chivalry and shows his negative attitude towards the spirit of expansion and adventurism of contemporary Spain. But the image of Don Quixote is ambiguous. The author sees in him high moral qualities: selflessness, generosity, honesty, a sincere desire to benefit people. The character of the hero contains a very important contradiction: he is a madman and at the same time a sage. He is an exponent of the spirit of the Renaissance, the idea of ​​humanism, and faith in man.

Creating his novel during the crisis of humanism, Cervantes reflected in it the clash of the ideal aspirations of the human mind with the world of self-interest, mercantilism, the ideal with “base reality.”

ENGLAND

The 14th century in England is the period of formation of a single national culture, a national language. English writers are directly influenced by the Italian Renaissance,

Was a contemporary of Petrarch and Boccaccio Geoffrey Chaucer(1340 – 1400), who expressed a life-affirming worldview, a humane view of human life. His main work is The Canterbury Tales.

The great exponent of the ideas of his time and at the same time the universal humanistic content of art was William Shakespeare(1564 – 1616). The great playwright's entire life was devoted to the theater. But his talent manifested itself in various areas. Shakespeare was a significant poet. He owns the poems “Venus and Adonis” and “Lucretia”. The most profound and significant poetic works appeared sonnets(total 154).

Throughout my entire creative path Shakespeare turned to drama. These are the comedies “A Midsummer Night's Dream”, “The Merchant of Venice”, “The Taming of the Shrew”, “Much Ado About Nothing”, “Twelfth Night”, historical chronicles “Richard II”, Richard III”, Henry IV” and others. But his main achievement is tragedies: “Romeo and Juliet”, “Othello”, “King Lear”, “Macbeth”, “Antony and Cleopatra”, etc.

The most deeply humanistic content of Shakespeare's work was embodied in tragedy." Hamlet"Throughout the entire tragedy, Hamlet is a passionate, indignant accuser. Hamlet's strength is not that he resolved, but raised the question of the injustice of the world around him, which he calls a prison.

Describing the events that took place in Denmark in the 11th century, Shakespeare thought about his time, about its contradictions. Already in the time of Shakespeare, the tragedy "Hamlet" went far beyond the walls professional theaters. In 1604, Shakespeare's contemporary Anthony Skoloker wrote that Shakespeare's tragedies "touch the hearts of the common people."

Thus, later Renaissance in Spain, France, England, it gave birth to the richest and most mature fruits in literature - in them realism, filled with internal tragedy, flourished.

Related information.

The history of the Renaissance begins in This period is also called the Renaissance. The Renaissance changed into culture and became the forerunner of the culture of the New Age. And the Renaissance ended in the 16th-17th centuries, since in each state it has its own start and end date.

Some general information

Representatives of the Renaissance are Francesco Petrarca and Giovanni Boccaccio. They became the first poets who began to express sublime images and thoughts in frank, common language. This innovation was received with great enthusiasm and spread to other countries.

Renaissance and art

The peculiarity of the Renaissance is that the human body became the main source of inspiration and subject of study for artists of this time. Thus, emphasis was placed on the similarity of sculpture and painting with reality. The main features of the art of the Renaissance period include radiance, refined use of the brush, the play of shadow and light, care in the work process and complex compositions. For Renaissance artists, the main images were from the Bible and myths.

The resemblance of a real person to his image on this or that canvas was so close that fictional character seemed alive. This cannot be said about the art of the twentieth century.

The Renaissance (its main trends are briefly outlined above) perceived the human body as an endless beginning. Scientists and artists regularly improved their skills and knowledge by studying the bodies of individuals. The prevailing view then was that man was created in the likeness and image of God. This statement reflected physical perfection. The main and important objects of Renaissance art were the gods.

Nature and beauty of the human body

Renaissance art paid great attention to nature. A characteristic element of the landscapes was varied and lush vegetation. The blue-hued skies, pierced by the sun's rays that penetrated the white clouds, provided a magnificent backdrop for the floating creatures. Renaissance art revered the beauty of the human body. This feature was manifested in the refined elements of the muscles and body. Difficult poses, facial expressions and gestures, a harmonious and clear color palette are characteristic of the work of sculptors and sculptors of the Renaissance period. These include Titian, Leonardo da Vinci, Rembrandt and others.

The world of artistic culture of the Renaissance

Goals: characterize the trends in the development of European art in the 16th-17th centuries; determine the similarities and differences in the creative method of the creators of High Renaissance art; form and develop the ability to work with various historical sources, use them in preparing messages and presentations.

Planned results: get acquainted with the cultural achievements of the Renaissance; form an idea of ​​the works of art of the era being studied; evaluate the influence of humanist ideas on the work of cultural figures of the Renaissance; give detailed characteristics of historical personalities; learn to justify your judgments; work with additional sources of information, create presentations; develop interdisciplinary connections with the course of literature and world artistic culture.

Relationship , values , internal settings: evaluate the activities of Renaissance art creators, moral values, which they were guided by; express your attitude towards works of art of the Renaissance.

Equipment: map “Europe in the 16th-17th centuries”, multimedia equipment, portraits of cultural figures of the Renaissance, reproductions of paintings, a package with test tasks.

Lesson type: lesson of general methodological orientation.

Lesson progress

Organizational moment

Updating of reference knowledge

Messages from students about the life and views of modern humanists.

(Collective discussion of messages. Completing test tasks.)

Erasmus of Rotterdam wrote the following essay:

“Praise of Wisdom” 3) “Praise of Fools”

"In Praise of Stupidity" 4) "Praise of Fools"

F. Rabelais 3) M. Montaigne

T. More 4) G. Morelli

The novel "Gargantua and Pantagruel" wrote:

M. Cervantes 3) T. More

M. Montaigne 4) F. Rabelais

Literal translation of the word “utopia”:

best place 3) land of the future

new place 4) a place that doesn't exist

The painting of the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican was commissioned by:

Michelangelo

Leonardo da Vinci

Rafael

Hans Holbein the Younger

The Lord Chancellor of the Kingdom of England was:

Erasmus of Rotterdam 3) F. Rabelais

T. More 4) M. Montaigne

The term "utopia" was introduced by:

T. More 3) F. Campanella

F. Rabelais 4) N. Machiavelli

Thomas More lived in:

Germany 3) The Netherlands

France 4) England

(Checking the completion of tasks.)

Motivational-target stage

XVI-XVII centuries were the era of humanism. The ideals of humanistic scientists were also reflected in the works of artistic culture of the Renaissance. This period was called the era of the titans. What contribution did the creators of the Renaissance make to world artistic culture? We will find out this during our lesson. Lesson topic: “The world of artistic culture of the Renaissance.” Lesson Plan

Age of Titans.

Northern Renaissance. "The Peasant Painter"

Leonardo da Vinci from Germany.

On the path to immortality Work on the topic of the lesson

“What a miracle of nature man!”

Presentation by students about cultural figures of the Renaissance (W. Shakespeare and M. Cervantes).

Working with § 8-9 of the textbook (pp. 75-77), fill out the table.

Country

Works

Content of creativity

William

Shakespeare

(1564-1616)

England

“Romeo and Juliet”, “Hamlet”, “Othello”, “King Lear”, etc.

Shakespeare's comedies amaze with their liveliness and sparkling wit. There are many beautiful, wise and proud people in his tragedies. Heroes love and suffer, make mistakes, get disappointed, fight for their happiness and most often lose in this fight

Miguel

Cervantes

(1547-1616)

Ispa

nia

"Don Quixote"

Behind the outwardly funny actions of the mad Don Quixote there is wisdom, nobility and humanity; the last knight of good in a world of injustice helps people become a little better

Age of Titans

Leonardo da Vinci

The real monument to what Leonardo represented as an artist, as a scientist, as an inventor, as an engineer are his notes. These records contain a huge number of sketches, drawings, and sketches; they contain an inexhaustible supply of scientific ideas and technical concepts.

It can be said without exaggeration that there is not a single branch of science in which Leonardo would not have outlined new paths. His searching mind penetrated everywhere. In all branches of science he made attempts to turn what had been done before him onto a new path. But humanity has benefited from a minimal share of what Leonardo thought, for everything he wrote remained buried in his notes.

His literary legacy, in the form of a huge number of codices and folios, passed after his death to his student Francesco Melzi, who selected from what Leonardo wrote part of what related to painting and made from them the book that is now known under the title “ Treatises on painting." After Francesco's death, Leonardo's precious tomes lay abandoned for a long time in the attic of the very Villa Vaprio, where Leonardo spent so many happy days in 1506-1512. Then they were plundered. For centuries, these manuscripts, whole codices and individual sheets, circulated around the world. Now they are concentrated in different European storage facilities. Some of them have already been published, and all of them are being carefully studied. But while they lay hidden, scientific thought continued to work, and most of Leonardo’s discoveries and inventions glorified other scientists.

The direct contribution to science was only a small share of his inheritance, which accidentally fell into the hands of knowledgeable people in the years immediately following his death. Vesalius knew Leonardo's anatomical records, if not all, then some of them. Likewise, the famous mathematician Girolamo Cardano was able to take advantage of some of Leonardo's mathematical ideas.

Leonardo rejected all kinds of authorities. He completely rejected the religious criteria that at that time still dominated the scientific field. He insisted that every scientific position must be verified by experience, and this was his main methodological thesis. Experience in his eyes was the only decisive test of scientific truth. Therefore, science rightfully honors in Leonardo not only one of the greatest painters, but also one of the first pioneers of true scientific methods.

(Dzhivelegov A. "Leonardo da Vinci")

About Michelangelo Buonarotti's David

Michelangelo sculpted a wax model, planning to depict in it as a palace emblem the young David with a sling in his hand, so that, just as David would protect his people and rule them fairly, the rulers of this city [of Florence! they defended it courageously and managed it fairly... The marble was already damaged and mutilated by Master Simone, and in some places there was not enough of it for Michelangelo to do what he intended. He had to leave the first cuts of Master Simone on the surface of the marble, so that even now some of them are visible, and, of course, Michelangelo performed a real miracle, reviving what was dead.

Meanwhile, it so happened that Pier Soderini, looking up at the statue, which he liked very much, said to Michelangelo, who at that time was finishing it here and there, that, in his opinion, it had a large nose: Michelangelo, noticing that the gonfaloniere was standing under the very giant and his point of view deceived him, climbed, to please him, onto the scaffolding at the shoulders of the statue and, using the chisel he held in his left hand, picked up some marble dust from the platform of the scaffolding, he began to gradually sprinkle the dust down, working as if with other chisels, but without touching your nose. Then, bending over to the gonfaloniere, who was watching him, he said: “Come on, look at him now.” “Now I like it better,” said the Gonfaloniere, “you have revived it.” Michelangelo then descended from the bridge, silently laughing at him and feeling sorry for people who, wanting to show themselves as experts, say things that they themselves do not understand. When the statue was finally installed, he opened it, and truly a creation, it eclipsed all known statues, new and ancient, be it Greek or Roman... with such proportionality and beauty, with such quality, Michelangelo finished it.

About the painting of the Sistine Chapel

When the work was half completed, Pope [Julius II], who had climbed ladders more than once with the help of Michelangelo to look at it, demanded that it be opened, since he was by nature hasty and impatient and could not wait. when it is completed, that is, as they say, the last stroke of the brush.

And as soon as it was revealed, all of Rome gathered to look at it, and first of all the pope, who could not wait for the dust to settle after the removal of the scaffolding. Seeing her, Raphael of Urbino, who imitated very admirably, immediately changed his manner and immediately wrote, in order to show what he was capable of, the prophets and sibyls in Santa Maria della Pace; then Bramante tried to ensure that the second half the pope handed over the chapels to Raphael... But the pope, becoming more and more convinced of Michelangelo’s abilities every day, wished him to continue the work; for, having seen the work revealed, he judged that the second half could have come out even better from Michelangelo: and indeed, he completed the work to perfection within twenty months alone, even without the help of those who would rub his paints. Still, Michelangelo sometimes had to complain about how his dad rushed him with annoying requests for when he would finish, not allowing him to finish in his own way, as he wanted. And to one of his many requests, he once answered that the end would be when he himself was satisfied with his art. [Michelangelo] had to write with his head thrown up, and he spoiled his eyesight so much that for several months he could not read what was written or look at the drawings... After all, burning with every day more and more with the desire to create, accumulating and improving what he had created, he did not notice fatigue and did not care about amenities.

(Vasari G. "Biographies of the most famous painters, sculptors, and architects")

"Sistine Madonna" by Raphael

The Sistine Madonna was commissioned from Raphael as an altarpiece for the chapel of the monastery of St. Sixtus in Piacenza. This is Raphael's most famous painting. The artist created it in 1515-1519. It seems that the curtain has just parted and a heavenly vision has been revealed to the eyes of believers - the Virgin Mary lightly walking on a cloud with the baby Jesus in her arms. Measure reigns in the picture. Balance and harmony. It is distinguished by smooth and rounded lines, soft and melodic patterns, richness and richness of color. Madonna herself radiates energy and movement. With this work, Raphael created the most sublime and poetic image of the Madonna in Renaissance art. She goes to people, young and majestic, hiding something alarming in her soul; the wind shakes the child’s hair, and his eyes look at us, at the world with such great power and with such illumination, as if he sees his fate and the fate of the entire human race. Her gaze, directed through the viewer, is full of alarming foresight tragic fate son. The Madonna's face is the embodiment of the ancient ideal of beauty combined with the spirituality of the Christian ideal. This is not reality, but a spectacle. It is not for nothing that the artist himself pulled apart the heavy curtain in front of the audience in the picture. A spectacle that transforms reality in the grandeur of things, wisdom and beauty, a spectacle that elevates the soul with its absolute harmony, conquering and ennobling us.

Enthusiastic lines from such different writers and critics as V.A. are dedicated to this picture. Zhukovsky, V.G. Belinsky, N.P. Ogarev. Two great Russian writers, L.N. Tolstoy and F.M. Dostoevsky, had reproductions of the “Sistine Madonna” in their offices. “I wanted to be forever a spectator of one picture...” - Pushkin said about it. Dostoevsky saw in the Sistine Madonna the highest measure of human nobility, the highest manifestation of human genius.

Country

Works

Content of creativity

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

Italy

“Madonna Litta”, “La Gioconda”, “Last Supper”, etc.

Leonardo was a brilliant painter and insightful researcher. Long-term experiments taught him to depict volume with the finest shades and play of light. He was able to show a world inaccessible to the imagination of a mere mortal

Actor

Country

Works

Content of creativity

Mikel

angelo

Buonarroti

(1475-1564)

Italy

“David”, “Moses”, “Pieta”, painting of the Sistine Chapel, dome of St. Peter’s Church in Rome IT. d.

He considered sculpture “the first of the arts,” which best glorifies man and his beauty. “David” was supposed to remind the authorities of fair governance and courageous defense of the city. The painting on the dome of the Sistine Chapel represents several scenes from the Book of Genesis

Raphael

Santi

(1483-1520)

Italy

"Madonna Co.

unstable",

"Sistine

Madonna",

"Athensian

school”, etc.

The world in Raphael's paintings looks perfect and beautiful, harmonious and calm

Northern Renaissance. "Peasant Painter"

Student presentation about cultural figures of the Renaissance (Pieter Bruegel the Elder).

Country

Works

Content of creativity

Pieter Bruegel the Elder (Muzhitsky) (between 1525 and 1530-1569)

Nieder

lands

“Peasant Dance”, series “Seasons” (“Harvest”, “Return of the Hunters”)

Nicknamed Muzhitsky for his love of depicting commoners and folk scenes. In the awkward movements and clumsy figures of Bruegel the Elder’s characters, their rustic faces, one can guess the strength and power of the people

4. Leonardo da Vinci from Germany

Student presentation about cultural figures of the Renaissance (Albrecht Durer).

- Working with§ 8-9 of the textbook (pp. 83-85), fill out the table.

Actor

Country

Works

Content of creativity

Albrecht

Durer

(1471-1528)

Germa

nia

Self-portrait, “Apocalypse” series

He affirmed a humanistic understanding of personality, self-esteem, and the desire to see artists not as artisans, but as thinkers

Working with § 8-9 of the textbook (pp. 81-83), fill out the table On the path to immortality

Approximate content of the answer

As in painting and sculpture, works in music began to appeal to human feelings. Secular works are widely developed and disseminated. The rules of good manners required young people from wealthy families to be able to play musical instruments.

Painters of truth

Presentation by students about cultural figures of the Renaissance (Hans Holbein the Younger, Rembrant, Velazquez).

Working with § 8-9 of the textbook (pp. 87-90), fill out the table.

Country

Works

Content of creativity

Hans

Holbein

Younger

(1497-1543)

Germa

nia

Portraits of HenryVIII, Erasmus of Rotterdam, illustrations for “In Praise of Folly”

Behind the impenetrability and balance of images of people, the individuality, complexity and inconsistency of human nature clearly emerges.

Rembrandt Harmens van Rijn (1606-1669)

Nieder

lands

“The Return of the Prodigal Son”, “Portrait of an Old Man in Red”, etc.

Rembrandt tried to convey on canvas a person’s state of mind, skillfully noticing features, characteristic gestures and poses

Diego

Velasquez

(1599-1660)

Ispa

nia

Portraits

Spanish

aristocracy,

"Breakfast",

"Spinners"

The artist accurately reproduces the details of clothing, the poses of the court nobility, and the character of his characters. Paintings dedicated to the common people reflect the nobility of workers

Reinforcing the material learned

Let's check how well you have learned the new material.

Name literary works early modern period.(“Romeo and Juliet”, “Hamlet”, “Othello”, “King Lear”, “Don Quixote” » etc.)

Why is the Renaissance called the Age of the Titans? ( Nature generously endowed many creators of art of this period with universal talents.)

What was Lorenzo the Magnificent famous for? (Lorenzo the Magnificent composed cheerful dance melodies for folk festivals. Why did Pieter Bruegel the Elder receive the nickname “The Peasant Painter”? (For his love of depicting commoners and folk scenes.)

Summing up the lesson

The Renaissance made a huge contribution to world artistic culture. The works of the great masters of literature, painting, sculpture and music have become role models and a source for the creativity of subsequent generations. They constitute the treasury of humanity.