Italian Renaissance in the 15th Century: Funeral Monument of John XXIII by Donatello
Italian renaissance marks a period of rebirth and renewal in the interest of culture. This period was after the dark ages and lasted from the 14th to the 15th Century (Gardener et al. 14). During this period, Donatello was one of the best skilled artists. Donatello was an Italian sculptor (1386-1466) (Gardener et al. 14). Donatello designs the funeral monument to the anti-pope John XXIII and positions it between two columns inside the baptistery. The style of the work is classical antiquity and reflects the grandest Italian tomb in the medieval times. Donatello retains considerable elements of classical antiquity. The statue uses bronze effigy and marble reliefs and is of enormous size as a magnificent structure.
The tomb stood at 7.32 meters and was the tallest monument in the Baptistery at the time (Gardener et al. 14). The tomb adapts to the conditions imposed by the Calimala in its interior. The statue has figures of Faith, Hope, and Love in the lower zone of the relief. The tomb monument design has three virtues on its embellishment. Donatello uses a gilded bronze effigy laid above a sarcophagus inscription supported on corbel brackets. Donatello designed the sculptural center of pope john XXIII that has a fine bronze effigy (Gardener et al. 14). The funeral monument has for corbels of the dead man’s sarcophagus that serves as a base for a bier. Donatello uses trecento style to design the lying position of the man. The funeral monument has canopies by a curtain raised to a peak that has an emphasis of theatrical quality of the scene.
Donatello was a master sculpture using marble and bronze and was perceived as a connoisseur of ancient art. The inscriptions and signatures of Donatello’s works are among the earliest of classical antiquity. Donatello applied more detail in his artwork due a wide range of experience as a sculpture. Donatello designed the Florence exponent of international Gothic by portraying a graceful style, softly curved lines with a strong influence by northern European art (Gardener et al. 15). Donatello applied the marble relief technique that was a new design in the early fourteenth century. Donatello adds different rays of colors to permit far distance viewing. Donatello designed the marble statues at Funeral Monument of John XXIII as the first artwork in classical antiquity that had a resemblance of medieval art. Donatello had a command of scientific, linear perspective and carried out independent commission of several works of bronze.
Artwork of 15th Century Northern Europe: The Ghent Altarpiece by Jan Van Eyck
The Northern Renaissance occurred before the Italian Renaissance and had an influence on the European countries (Franciscono 285). Most countries on the north of the alps experienced cultural exchange in art and architecture. Italy shared intellectuals with other European countries and led to the rise of people like Shakespeare (Franciscono 285). The Northern Renaissance had close links to the reformation of Protestants. The graphic arts used wood or canvas as mediums for the manuscripts as well as oil paints. The Northern Renaissance credits Jan Van Eyck for developing oil techniques. The Ghent Altarpiece is an influential painting by Jack Van Eyck that uses oil painting. This painting uses Christianity mysticism to represent the symbolic sacrifice of Christ. This artwork ranks among the best in Northern Europe. The altar has a new concept of art in the representation of humans. The artwork also referred to as Adoration of the Mystic Lamb is a large and complex painting in the 15th Century. The painting measures 134 centimeter by 237 centimeter. The artwork encompasses 12 alter panels and eight hinged shutters. Panels on the open view have two levels that have many figures. The upper level has seven panels; the central image represents Christ flanked by Mary on the left and John the Baptist on the right (Franciscono 285.
The altar has a clock mechanism that moves the shutters and can play music. The ornate of the frame has a harmonious paint tracery. Jan is an experienced miniaturist who designs the Ghent Altarpiece by dwelling on the beautiful landscape on earth. Jan uses polyptych technique to elaborate the lighting in the picture. The panels in the paintings bear complex light effects and uses transparent glazes in handling the oil paint (Franciscono 285. The Annunciation has shadows portrayed to symbolize daylight in the chapel. Jan applies a lot of innovation on the surface textures. For example, the Knights of Christ panel has a fall of light while the Fountain of Life has a ripple of water. The Ghent Altarpiece uses a long tradition of oil painting and altarpiece design of the medieval Netherlands. The altarpiece has a complex inner view to contrast to the relative austerity of other panels.
Italian Renaissance in the 16th Century: The Design of Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo
This was a period marked by high renaissance and mannerism as portrayed by the artists. The Medici and Florence return to power caused an uproar since the city stopped flourishing. The new administration banned the previous works of Renaissance. The invasion of France led to the end of Papacy that streamlined the activities of Renaissance art since the 15th Century (Kleiner and Christin 44). Michelangelo (1475-1564) was a poet, engineer, painter, and sculpture from Italy during High Renaissance (Kleiner and Christin 44). Most of the artists at this period had a large influence from the western art in their artistic design. Michelangelo works as a sculpture, and an architect ranked among the best in the world. Michelangelo introduced the concept of fine art and fresco technique as a sculptor in Medici, Roma.
The Sistine Chapel has monumental fresco over the entire wall having figures of popes, the life of Moses, and the life of Christ. The paintings of Michelangelo illustrate High Renaissance work of art (Kleiner and Christin 44). The complex design of the paintings in the Chapel has various poses of humans where some have draping while some are nude. Michelangelo uses intellect to invent the schemes and biblical knowledge to design the temple. Michelangelo draws a lot of inspiration from the Old Testament to paint the ceiling. Michelangelo creates the embellishment of fresco by designing the scenes illustrated in Genesis and The Last Judgment in Sistine Chapel.
This picture uses fresco technique, and other artistic conventions to portray Christ as a substantial figure (Kleiner and Christin 45). Michelangelo uses architectural styles to pioneer Mannerist style in the design of St Peter Basilica. This was due to grandeur personal style of imitating artists in the High Renaissance. The statue of David displays the mastery of Michelangelo that has an establishment of prominence, expertise, and symbolic imagination. Michelangelo designs the Sistine Chapel ceiling with a shallow barrel, divisions of painted architecture that alternate large and small panels appearing in the open sky. The whole ceiling has decorations of life on earth before judgment (Kleiner and Christin 45). The Sistine Chapel has the recognition of supreme work of art; some people had the sense of it as a superhuman and coined the name “divino Michelangelo.” Most of his paintings are biblical references such as the prophets, Act of Creation, the fall of man, the Flood, and God.
Works Cited
Franciscono, Marcel. "History, Textbooks, And Art: Reflections On A Half Century Of Helen Gardner's "Art Through The Ages"." Critical Inquiry 4.2 (2006): 285. Print.
Gardner, Helen, Richard G. Tansey, and Fred S. Kleiner. Gardner's art through the ages. 10th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 2010. Print.
Kleiner, Fred S., and Christin J. Mamiya. Gardner's art through the ages. 11th ed. Fort Worth, Tex.: Harcourt College, 2008. Print.
