Renaissance Time Research Paper

Art, architecture, and literature are solid representations of the values and ideals during a time period because they all allow for the designer to give their views and their representation of what they see and believe. There are so many possible ways to express yourself and show what and how you see life and the world around you. It has been said that art is the gateway to the mind and this statement remains true. During the Renaissance times, many were seeing the world with a new light and their perspectives and beliefs were greatly changed. The people changed how they wanted to live their lives and this was a widespread trend. The art became more realistic and symbolic, the architecture more personable and comfortable, and the literature …show more content…
Artists could now utilize different shading techniques to make certain objects look more realistic and give the painting depth. Artists also found and used new oils that reflected the light better than the previously used supplies giving even more realism to their work. Renaissance painters started to stray from the style of the medieval times and brought back the classical style of the Greeks and Romans in their works. For example, Leonardo da Vinci’s “The Mona Lisa” shows shading techniques to give a representation of where she is in relation to the backgrounds and different shading techniques were used to show the realism and her beauty through portrait. Many who see “The Mona Lisa” are drawn in by this style and I believe this was the goal of da Vinci. I believe he wanted to show her innocence and her beauty by giving a more natural look and showing her looking directly at you in the painting, which was more unconventional at the time. Da Vinci’s painting is a great depiction of the realism and natural look that was being sought out and changed during this time of new ideals. The Renaissance was a time full of reinforcement of human experiences, enlightenment of the mind and soul, and the new ideal of humanism and the art reflects that by putting more emphasis on the relations between man and God and by showing the more natural side of …show more content…
Architects of this time began making their works more symmetrical and adding more features such as columns and arches which was more in relation to the Greek and Roman’s designs. T. Roger Smith wrote in Architecture: Gothic and Roman, “It will be understood therefore that symmetry, strict uniformity, not mere similarity, in features intended to correspond, and constant repetition, are leading principles in Renaissance architecture. These qualities tend to breadth rather than picturesqueness of effect, and to similarity rather than contrast. Simplicity and elaboration are both compatible with Renaissance design; the former distinguishes the earlier and purer examples of the style, the latter those more recent and more grandiose”(Smith, 164). Proportion in the building was brought to be an important key in the structure of the new buildings and the symmetrical features of these buildings became a constant. Smith also stated in his book, Architecture: Gothic and Renaissance, that, “Renaissance architecture is so familiar in its general features, and these have been so constantly repeated, that we may not easily recognise the great need for skill and taste which exists if they are to be designed so as to produce the most refined effect possible. Many of the successful buildings of the style owe their excellence to