Photography Through The Ages: The Renaissance

The Renaissance period was 1500 - 1800 AD and it was originally born in Florence, it also spread to Venice, which was its trading port for Renaissance art. Along with the port came valuable treasures, which brought corruption, such as the Borgia family, who would portray their dominance, wealth and power through art. Some of the mediums that the Renaissance artists focused on are architecture, music, philosophy, science, technology, warfare, sculpture and painting. Although it was born in Italy, there were also English 'Renaissance' artists, however they are more commonly called Elizabethan writers, such as William Shakespeare, Christopher Marlowe, John Milton, Sir Thomas More and Francis Bacon. Other parts of Europe adopted the Renaissance style and so the human race developed even more. Some of the mediums that the Renaissance men focused on are architecture, science, technology, sculpture and painting. Below is the Horrible Histories, Renaissance Report.

Architecture

Renaissance architecture is most thought of and best seen in the home of Renaissance. Italy. More commonly it is best seen in the churches of Italy. the main focus of the Renaissance architecture was symmetry and order, such as a order to the columns being evenly spaced and designed the same. Domes and niches (shelf carved into the wall) are also key features for Renaissance architecture. The domes were used as great canvases for painters, such as the Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo. The idea of painting angels on these domes could be to make the church-goers feel closer to God. The niches were used to frame a statue, normally religious, and possible to protect it. Some niches were on the exterior and some on the exterior of churches. Modern houses also use niches as a way to present and protect items. William Shakespeare's Globe was based on a Greek amphitheatre, this was only one example of the Greek architecture theme that was present in the Renaissance era. The globe also brought royalty and peasants together in one building for the first time.

Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel

Science

Renaissance science furthered the development of medicine, alchemy and astronomy. Along with the development of these sciences, came famous names that practically everyone in the modern era knows, such as Galileo, Newton and Kepler. Leonardo da Vinci is also a name in science, however he is a famous name in all aspects of Renaissance. The aim of alchemy was to find a way turn lead into gold, which brought the philosopher stone legend into history. The development of astronomy was to explore space. Galileo famously was put under house arrest for proving that the Sun was the centre of the universe, not earth. Newton discovered gravity with the falling of an apple and Kepler discovered and studied the planetary movement.

Technology

Renaissance technology was most famous for the Guttenburg printing press and the musket. However, other things were invented during the Renaissance period, such as the newspaper (through the printing press), clocks, spectacles, telescopes, the submarine and gunpowder (which brought artillery). These inventions further warfare, such as the muskets and gunpowder, but also furthered crime, such as the Gunpowder Plot in 1605. Along with gunpowder, the submarine made in 1624, was created by Cornelius van Drebbel, however it is also said that Da Vinci drew the concept first, was also used to further warfare. Drebbel also took James I, the monarch at the time, on a test dive, which could last up to three hours. The first book the be printed from the Guttenburg Printing Press was the bible, due to the control of the church.

Fine Arts

Renaissance art is very focused on religion and the bible, almost all work was focused on a scene from the bible, such as Michelangelo's The Creation of Adam. However, the artists were not bound to produce religious work. Another theme that was largely popular in the Renaissance period was mythology, such as the Greek myths. The paintings of the renaissance brought perspective,depth, proportion, realism and light into work, which gave the paintings more life-like appearances. Leonardo da Vinci is obviously the most famous artists for Renaissance, however for painters he invented a new technique Sfumato which was a way of adding perspective and dimension to a piece of work, most clearly seen on the Mona Lisa. Below is some paintings from the Renaissance era and a short video from the TV series Horrible Histories about Leonardo da Vinci.