Transcript Document

The Renaissance Art
Gallery
Caravaggio--The Calling of St. Matthew
Caravaggio--The Calling of St. Matthew
Caravaggio is famous for his innovative use of light and dark.
He uses light in the painting to highlight and direct you to
exactly what he wants you to look at. Take from the Gospel of
Saint Matthew, this scene shows Christ inviting Matthew, a tax
collector, to join him as one of his disciples. If you look at this
painting, you se the light centered on the face of the future
apostle of Christ. Some of the men at the table see not to
notice what is happening, which may be a commentary on how
some people refuse to see Christ. Art depicting bible scenes is
very common during the Renaissance as Christianity was still a
powerful part of most Europeans lives. Caravaggio’s use of
light and dark will be copied by artists for centuries to come. It
is a powerful technique he invented and it is known as
Chiaroscuro.
Caravaggio--The Medusa
Caravaggio--The Medusa
Caravaggio is famous for his innovative use of light and dark.
He uses light in the painting to highlight and direct you to
exactly what he wants you to look at. This use of light and dark
will be copied by artists for centuries to come. It is known as
Chiaroscuro. In this painting he depicts the head of the
frightening mythological creature, Medusa. In Greek
mythology, Perseus used the severed snake-haired head of the
Gorgon Medusa as a shield with which to turn his enemies to
stone. Artists of his day were amazed by how the head is
suspended in space, and the blood seems to fall to the floor.
Leonardo Da Vinci--The Mona Lisa
Leonardo Da Vinci--The Mona Lisa
When DaVinci painted the Mona Lisa, he had no idea that it
would become perhaps one of the most well-known paintings
in the world. But why? Most art historians would agree that
she is famous, simply because she is famous. There has been
much speculation about her mysterious smile--a smile that is a
constant source of debate and discussion. Does she have a
secret? National Geographic studies suggest that perhaps her
secret was that she was pregnant. A thin gauze around her
head and clothes was the typical addiction for a pregnant
woman. She currently resides in the Louvre Museum in Paris,
behind a bullet-proof, glass casing. She is not much bigger
than the one you are looking at today--but her fame continues
to make this painting one of the “must sees” in the world of art.
Leonardo Da Vinci--The Last Supper
Leonardo Da Vinci--The Last Supper
The Last Supper is considered one of Da Vinci’s masterpieces. It is a
“Fresco” which means it is painted on a wall instead of canvas. Jesus is
pictured in the center of the painting surrounded by his apostles and even
the infamous Judas who betrayed Jesus. A common rumor surrounding the
painting is that the same model was used for both Judas and Jesus. The
story often goes that the innocent-looking young man, a baker, posed at
nineteen for Jesus. Some years later, Leonardo discovered a hard-bitten
criminal as the model for Judas, not realizing he was the same man. There
is no evidence that Leonardo used the same model for both figures and the
story usually overestimates the time it took Leonardo to finish the mural.
Some believe the person to Jesus’ right is Mary Magdalene. This theory
plays a central role in Dan Brown’s novel, The Da Vinci Code. But once
again, historical evidence suggests this theory is also false. The poor
condition of the painting is due to years of weather and wear.
Sandro Botticelli--The Annuciation
Sandro Botticelli--The Annunciation
Most of Botticelli’s paintings depict scenes from the Bible or
scenes of Greek Mythology. In this painting, the angel Gabriel
is announcing to Mary that she is going to give birth to Christ.
Botticelli, lets us look through a room out, onto a landscape-both full of symbolism. The lively movement of the figures of
Mary and Gabriel contrasts with the very orderly lines and
angles of the floor and walls of the room. The angel Gabriel
bows to Mary as his robes, which are billowing in great folds,
show that he has just made a sweeping landing. In his hand he
holds a lily, the symbol for purity and innocence. The tree in
the background symbolizes new life.
#2 Arcimboldo
#3 Arcimboldo
#1 Arcimboldo
#4 Arcimboldo
#5 Arcimboldo
#6 Arcimboldo
Summer, Winter, Spring, Autumn, Fire, Vertumnus
Giuseppe Arcimboldo was an Italian painter best known for
creating imaginative portrait heads made entirely of such
objects as fruits, vegetables, flowers, fish, and books--that is to
say, he painted representations of these objects, arranged in
such a way that the whole collection of objects formed a
recognizable likeness of a person. These portraits of human
heads made up of vegetables, fruit, and tree roots, were greatly
admired by his fellow artists and remain a source of
fascination today. Art critics debate whether these paintings
were whimsical fun or the product of a crazy, deranged mind.
Most people believe that because riddles, puzzles, and the
bizarre were very popular during the Renaissance;
Arcimboldo, far from being mentally imbalanced, was just
following the trends of his time.
Arcimboldo
Raphael--Sistine Madonna
Raphael--The Sistine Madonna
This painting was originally part of the tomb of Pope Julius II.
The figures stand on a bed of clouds, framed by heavy curtains
which open to either side. The Virgin Mary holds Christ and
actually appears to descend from a heavenly space, through the
picture plane, and out into the real space in which the picture
is hung. The two winged ‘genii (angels), that are visible at the
bottom of the painting, have been used as a “detail.” A detail is
when a small portion of the painting is taken and made into its
own independent pictures. These angels have become
contemporary and used to symbolize “love” themes. They are
used in stationary, greeting cards--and interestingly enough-funeral themes.
Rembrandt--The Night Watch
Rembrandt--The Night Watch
This painting is known for its colossal size (10ft x 14 ft) and
the use of light and shadow. With effective use of sunlight and
shade, Rembrandt leads the eye to the three most important
characters in the crowd, the two gentlemen in the center (from
whom the painting gets its original title), and the small girl in
the center-left background. Behind them the company’s colors
are carried. You see a great deal of the color yellow which is
often associated with victory. This painting was meant to
inspire revolution.
Van Eyck--The Arnolfini Wedding/The Arnolfini Portrait
Van Eyck--The Arnolfini
Wedding/The Arnolfini Portrait
This painting is believed to be a portrait of Giovanni di Nicolao Arnolfini
and his wife in a room, presumably in their home in Belgium’s city of
Bruges. It is considered one of the most original and complex paintings in
Western art history. It is complex because once again, there is a debate over
what exactly it is a painting of. Look at the back of the cozy room and you
will see a small mirror. The mirror reflects the two figures we are looking
at, and also reflects one person in the middle of the two, who may be Van
Eyck himself. Above the painting is Van Eyck’s signature on the wall. Those
who believe it is an actual wedding portrait believe that this signature acts
as some form of documentation of a wedding where he (Van Eyck) was
present. But others feel that because the woman looks pregnant, the couple
must be already married.
Bruegel--The Fall of Icarus
Bruegal--The Fall of Icarus
Bruegal specialized in landscapes populated by peasants. This
particular painting depicts a Greek myth. In ancient Greek
mythology, Icarus succeeded in flying with wings made of
feathers and secured together with wax. Foolishly, he flew too
close to the sun, melting the wax, and fell into the sea and
drowned. The painting may be intended to show humankind’s
indifference to suffering by highlighting the ordinary events
which continue to occur, despite the unobserved death of the
mythic figure, Icarus, who is drowning in the bottom right area
of the sea.
Murillo--Boys Eating Grapes and Melon
Murillo-Boys Eating Grapes and Melon
Murillo was born in the country of Spain. Living in Seville, his
native city, his life was a simple one, free of serious problems.
He is one of the first to focus his paintings on figures of rascals
and beggars and the poor souls of the world, enjoying life as
best they could. This is the spirit of the Boys Eating Grapes and
Melon. His realism and attention to detail are some of the
aspects that made him famous.
Michelangelo--The David
Michelangelo--The David
David is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture as created by
Michelangelo from 1501 to 1504. The 17ft marble statue
portrays the biblical King David. Unlike previous depictions of
David, which portray the hero after his victory over Goliath,
Michelangelo chose to represent David before the fight
contemplating the battle yet to come. One of the reasons this
sculpture is so renowned is because it shows knowledge of the
male human form. In the Renaissance, sculpture is considered
to be the finest form of art because it mimics divine creation.
Michelangelo worked under the premise that the image of
David was already a block of stone he was working on--in
much the same way as the human soul is found within the
physical body.
Holbein--The Ambassadors
Holbein--The Ambassadors
This painting is full of symbolism, meant to represent the discoveries,
inventions and changes of the Renaissance period. The most notable and
famous of Holbein’s symbols in the work, however, is the skewed skull,
which is placed in the bottom center of the painting. The skull, rendered in
“anamorphic perspective,” another invention of the early Renaissance, is
meant to be a visual rendereing of the human soul. It is unclear why
Holbein gave it such prominence in this painting. One possibility is that this
painting represent the three levels: the heavens (as portrayed by the
astrolabe and other objects on the upper shelf); the living world (as
evidenced by books and a musical instrument on the lower shelf); and
death (signified by the skull). It has also been hypothesized that the
painting is meant to hang in a stairwell, so that a person walking up the
stairs from the painting’s left would startled by the appearance of the skull.
A further possibility is that Holbein simply wished to show off his ability
with the technique in order to secure future commissions. Artists often
incorporated skulls as a reminder that we would all die some day.
Modern Renaissance
Art
Used as an example for interpreting art.
Christensen--Outside the Box
This hunchback ‘Everyman’ of James C. Christensen’s symbology is not only thinking Outside the Box, he is outside of his
box. He’s arrived and if he had any trouble getting here, it’s behind him now. It’s like getting up very early in the morning,
before everyone else, to take quiet time to reflect. It’s a perfect moment, sitting on the checkered gameboard of life and
contemplating a cloudless future. In a couple of hours he may be joined by others, or maybe not, but for now the sky’s the
limit, the air smells great and the possibilities are endless.