HIGH RENAISSANCE AND CLASSICISM
According to the Oxford dictionary of Art, the art historical category of Renaissance embodies the concept of rebirth applied to an intellectual and artistic movement that begun in Italy in the 14th century and culminated there in the 16th century influencing meanwhile other parts of Europe in various ways. The term High Renaissance is instead applied to the brief period between 1500 and 1520 in which we can see the fulfillment of all the ideals the painters had pursued since Giotto .
Given the variety of opinions and publications on the subject, to avoid a prolix and generic reflection on High Renaissance, I would like to focus my analysis on the idea of High Renaissance as classic style and verify if this …show more content…
During his life, in fact, Michelangelo studied several classical works deeply; he did not only try to analyze classicism as a historical data, but he tried to conquer classicism and then transcend it . For example his Battle of the Centaurus reflected the current fashion of reproducing ancient items, but also Michelangelo’s way of carving his twisting figures dynamically. Moreover Michelangelo’s artworks, unlike Raphael’s ones, are animated by a constant tension: in the Holy Family, known as Tondo Doni (1506), for example he played with the contrast between the lack of moral tension of the pagan gods in the background opposed to twisting of the Virgin, who forms with St. Joseph and baby Jesus a kind of pyramidal sculpture. The relationship between Michelangelo and the antiquity may be also seen from another point of view: his contemporaries found his masterpieces as important, as a source of inspiration, as the ones of the ancients. This can be noticed for example in Nicholas Batrizet’s engraving La Pietà by Michelangelo, which was set among ancient ruins as if it was an archeological discovery . (1547, Rome, Gabinetto nazionale delle …show more content…
He approached the classics in a more erudite and detached way: he quoted Virgil in his paintings and he had a good knowledge of ancient mythology. In particular, the relationship between Raphael and the antiquity must have been related to the political aims of Julius II who used classical literature, from Virgil to Cicero, to justify and legitimize the expansionist ambitions of the papacy. Raphael quoted Virgil in particular because the Aeneid aspired to harmony after discord, a program as suited to the needs of Julian Rome as it was to that of
According to the Oxford dictionary of Art, the art historical category of Renaissance embodies the concept of rebirth applied to an intellectual and artistic movement that begun in Italy in the 14th century and culminated there in the 16th century influencing meanwhile other parts of Europe in various ways. The term High Renaissance is instead applied to the brief period between 1500 and 1520 in which we can see the fulfillment of all the ideals the painters had pursued since Giotto .
Given the variety of opinions and publications on the subject, to avoid a prolix and generic reflection on High Renaissance, I would like to focus my analysis on the idea of High Renaissance as classic style and verify if this …show more content…
During his life, in fact, Michelangelo studied several classical works deeply; he did not only try to analyze classicism as a historical data, but he tried to conquer classicism and then transcend it . For example his Battle of the Centaurus reflected the current fashion of reproducing ancient items, but also Michelangelo’s way of carving his twisting figures dynamically. Moreover Michelangelo’s artworks, unlike Raphael’s ones, are animated by a constant tension: in the Holy Family, known as Tondo Doni (1506), for example he played with the contrast between the lack of moral tension of the pagan gods in the background opposed to twisting of the Virgin, who forms with St. Joseph and baby Jesus a kind of pyramidal sculpture. The relationship between Michelangelo and the antiquity may be also seen from another point of view: his contemporaries found his masterpieces as important, as a source of inspiration, as the ones of the ancients. This can be noticed for example in Nicholas Batrizet’s engraving La Pietà by Michelangelo, which was set among ancient ruins as if it was an archeological discovery . (1547, Rome, Gabinetto nazionale delle …show more content…
He approached the classics in a more erudite and detached way: he quoted Virgil in his paintings and he had a good knowledge of ancient mythology. In particular, the relationship between Raphael and the antiquity must have been related to the political aims of Julius II who used classical literature, from Virgil to Cicero, to justify and legitimize the expansionist ambitions of the papacy. Raphael quoted Virgil in particular because the Aeneid aspired to harmony after discord, a program as suited to the needs of Julian Rome as it was to that of