PORTRAIT OF GIOVANNI AND GIOVANNA

(ARNOLFINI WEDDING PORTRAIT)

-1434

-Jan Van Eyck

This piece's significance highlights an overall theme of the Renaissance, its extreme focus on skill over the full composition. Though Van Eyck was criticized for it, his incredible detail was extrodinary for its time.

TRINITY

-1428-1425

-Massacchio

(Big Clumsy Tom)

Massacchio is known for his obsession with mathematics, exemplified here where his use of perspective is optimized by using illusions of architectural features to appear as a continuous hall from a single niche as well as to achieve a perfectly balanced pyramidal composition, his work criticsized as being too much about the math and not enough about the subject.

TRIBUTE MONEY

-1427

-Massacchio

Introduction of the idea of gold leaf halos instead of floating disks of flat circles as well as the sight analyzation and story telling. There is no use of linear registers but instead a flow of passing time to tell different parts of a  story in the same image.

BIRTH OF VENUS

-1484-1486

-Botticelli

This piece is one of the first seen already throwing back to classical ideas, a classical story and style, even featuring a classical nude. But still present is the now combined complicated nature of the Renaissance in that everything has meaning, so as Botticelli is portraying Venus, as much as he is portraying the Virgin Mary.

DAVID

-1420

-Donatello

This piece dives into the Renaissance way of thought more so than any in its time. It explores a new way to view a story that has been told time and ime again, the hero David not portrayed as a masculine fighting in the prime of his life but instead as a feminine boyishly shaped youth wearing a hat of flowers, never seen as before.  

THE LAST SUPPER

-1495-1498

-Leonardo

This piece was created during the bridge into the high Renaissance as shown by its formal qualities. A perfectly harmonious and unified composition, consisting of ideal human forms, and excellent manipulation of the perspective of the picture plane to focus all attention on the importance of divinity, every orthonganal points to christ's head, a perfect balance between math and content.

MONA LISA

-1503-1506

-Leonardo

Not only is this piece significant for being a symbol in our very own time, but it also holds importance as the first physcological portrait, the Mona Lisa holding something to be discovered in her mysterious and new expression.

SCHOOL OF ATHENS

-1510-1511

-Raphael

If there is one piece to completely some up the High Renaissace, it would be this, because of its inclusion of idealistic human form, mathematics, perspective, unity and balance throughtout the composition, throw back to classical philosophy and stories, and even more...

SISTINE CHAPEL CEILING

-1508-1512

-Michaelangelo

Not only does this gigantic feat include ideal male forms, but on a greater level, Michaelangelo's use of perspective to create trome l'oeil architectural features to be viewed from farm away intentionally was ground breaking

DAVID

-1501-1504

-Michaelangelo

Unlike any David before he is not carrying sword or sheild or in momment of battle, he is portrayed as young with slingshot and looking pensively into the distance at a foe soon come, he is portraye as the underdog, mostly to mirror the Florentines.

PIETA

-1500

-Michaelangelo

In thisMadonna and son, Mary is given a heroic stature unlike her normal presentation. In fact, the sculpure was created for one to look down on Christ, or the Maddonna's face, to gain a greater sense of the grief and emotion from the situation than ever gained before.

THE VIRGIN AND CHILD ENTHRONED

-1505

-Bellini

Whilt this piece does exemplify Reaissance tastes with its harmonious pyramidal composition and use of color, it also shows a more surreal and mystical quality, the light source being opposite of the church it exists in, its whimsical musicians, and holy conversation.

SCROVEGNI CHAPEL-THE LAMENATION

-1305-1306

-Giotto

This piece is known for its beginnings as a proto-renaissance piece in realistic study of the human form. The expressions are those of real people, Giotto being known for using HUMAN MODELS.

DEPOSITION

-1442

-Rogier van der Weyden

This piece is highly engaged in evoking sympathy through the pain of the inidividual, from the graceful curve of Christ's dead body, juxtaposed by his angularly set arms, to the Virgin's ashen complexion, the work is meant to oerwelm with new ways of sorrow. This is forced onto the viewer, figures squeezing nto every inch of the frame so that everywhere your eyes are conflicted by greiving faces. The first forms of individual humanism to the viewer.