RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE
Renaissance 1400‐1600 C.E.
Division of renaissance into
Proto;
Early;
High;
Late;
Mannerism;
HIGH RENAISSANCE
(MATURE)
High Renaissance art, which flourished for about 35 years, from the
early 1490s to 1527,
High Renaissance art was the dominant style in Italy during the 16th
century.
Mannerism also developed during this period.
The High Renaissance period is traditionally taken to begin in the 1490s,
with Leonardo’s fresco of The Last Supper in Milan, and to end in 1527,
with the Sack of Rome by the troops of Charles V.
High Renaissance art is deemed as “High” because it is seen as the
period in which the artistic aims and goals of the Renaissance reached
their greatest application.
High Renaissance art is characterized by references to classical art and
delicate application of developments from the Early Renaissance (such
as on-point perspective).
.
HIGH RENAISSANCE
Overall, works from the High Renaissance display restrained
beauty where all of the parts are subordinate to the cohesive
composition of the whole
when Rome was sacked by imperial troops, revolved around three
towering figures:
LEONARDO DA VINCI (1452–1519),
MICHELANGELO (1475–1564),
AND RAPHAEL (1483–1520).
Each of the three embodied an important aspect of the period
LEONARDO DA VINCI
Leonardo was the ultimate
Renaissance man, a solitary
genius to whom no branch of
study was [Link] two
of the most well known works
of Renaissance art: The Last
Supper and the Mona Lisa.
Leonardo da Vinci was a
generation older than
Michelangelo and Raphael, yet
his work is stylistically
consistent with the High
Renaissance
MICHELANGELO
Michelangelo emanated creative
power, conceiving vast projects
that drew for inspiration on the
human body as the ultimate
vehicle for emotional
expression; excelled as a
painter, architect, and sculptor
and demonstrated a mastery of
portraying the human figure.
His frescoes rank among the
greatest works of Renaissance
art.
RAPHAEL
Raphael created works that
perfectly expressed the
Classical spirit—
harmonious, beautiful, and
serene. skilled in creating
perspective and in the
delicate use of color.
DONATO BRAMANTE
DONATO BRAMANTE
The creator of High Renaissance architecture was Donato
Bramante (1444–1514),
who came to Rome in 1499, when he was 55.
His greatest completed work is the Tempietto, a Doric shrine which
is held to mark the place of St Peter's martyrdom.
His first Roman masterpiece, the Tempietto (1502) at San Pietro in
Montorio, is a centralized dome structure that recalls Classical
temple architecture.
Despite its small size, the Tempietto is often considered the
crowning jewel of High Renaissance architecture; it is certainly the
most famous religious structure of the period.
DONATO BRAMANTE
Pope Julius II (reigned 1503–13) chose Bramante to be papal architect,
and together they devised a plan to replace the 4th-century Old St.
Peter’s with a new church of gigantic dimensions.
Bramante's greatest unrealized work is a cross-in-square plan for St.
Peter's Basilica (the foremost church of Roman Catholicism, located in
Vatican City).
Following Bramante's death early in its construction, persistent delays
led to a string of architects (including Michelangelo) taking over the
project and completely transforming the original design.
The project was not completed, however, until long after Bramante’s
death.
KEY IDEAS & ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Although many artists vied for status and commissions during the High
Renaissance,
Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, and architect Donato
Bramante are undoubtedly the period's most notable legends who
exemplify the term "Renaissance" man in their proficiency and mastery
of multiple subjects and interests.
During this period, a cultural movement toward Humanism arose,
compelling artists to return to Classical Roman and Greek philosophies
concerning universal man and his place in the world.
This was a departure from the medieval era's idealized religious
iconography
and resulted in fresh depictions of divine subjects infused with a more
resonant and human emotionality and expression.
KEY IDEAS &
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
High Renaissance artists utilized and perfected a bevy of techniques
borrowed from Early Renaissance artists.
This included the use of
linear perspective to create extreme depth,
highly accurate and scientifically correct depictions of human
anatomy,
the foreshortening of figures and subjects within elevated paintings,
and sculptures to provide an authentic viewing experience from
below,
and trompe l'oeil effects to seamlessly incorporate architectural
elements into a work of art.
KEY IDEAS &
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
A rise of new styles arose that were groundbreaking for the time.
Leonardo created sfumato, a glazing effect that revolutionized the
blending of tone and color, and quadratura, or ceiling paintings,
were born, meant to rapturously draw the gaze of viewers up into a
heavenly visage.
The period is noted for infusing ideals of beauty back into art.
Whether depicting religious figures or everyday citizens, in
architecture and in art, the High Renaissance artists' key concerns
were to present pieces of visual, symmetrical, and compositional
perfection.
The High Renaissance represents the pinnacle of classical restraint
and simplicity in Renaissance art and architecture.
A sense of massive stability was sought, for which the Doric order
was considered ideal.
TEMPIETTO (1502) -
BRAMANTE
TEMPIETTO (1502)
Artist: Donato Bramante
This image depicts the innovative Tempietto in the courtyard
of the Church of San Pietro,
cross-aligned with the spot where St. Peter was crucified.
The round temple consists of a single chamber, inspired by
Bramante's knowledge of classical buildings such as the
Pantheon (113-125) and the Temple of Vesta (3rd century).
It smoothly incorporates references from both Greek and
Roman architecture into one unified effect.
The sixteen columns that ring the building are a variation of
the Doric column,
TEMPIETTO (1502)
which came to be called the Tuscanic column as it used a simpler round base
and in its proportions followed the ratios of the Ionic column.
The entablature above the columns depicts the keys of St. Peter and
elements of the Catholic Mass.
Above the columns a balustrade encircles the hemispheric dome, meant to
symbolize the heavenly vault and the universe.
Bramante's original design placed the Tempietto within a circular courtyard,
its columns and niches proportionally designed to radiate from the temple,
making the building seem larger than it was.
The plan was never completed, and subsequent building boxed in the
temple, creating a cramped effect.
Bramante wanted to create a building that was a perfect fusion of Humanist
beliefs, derived from the classical world and Christian faith,
TEMPIETTO (1502)
as shown in the circular building's resemblance of both a Greek
temple and the circular form traditionally used in tombs for
Christian martyrs.
The symmetrical design follows mathematical proportions
derived from Leonardo's study of the Roman architect Vitruvius.
This building was considered to be an exemplary High
Renaissance building, as reflected by architect Andrea Palladio
in his treatise on ancient temples.
Called a "jewel" of the Renaissance, the building also
prefigured Bramante's design, though not carried out, for St.
Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.
