Tretyakov lessons: Renaissance painting. Early Renaissance Artists Russian Renaissance Artists

August 7th, 2014

Art students and people interested in the history of art know that at the turn of the 14th-15th centuries a sharp change took place in painting - the Renaissance. Around the 1420s, everyone suddenly became much better at drawing. Why did the images suddenly become so realistic and detailed, and in the paintings there was light and volume? Nobody thought about this for a long time. Until David Hockney picked up a magnifying glass.

Let's find out what he found ...

Once he was looking at drawings by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, the leader of the 19th century French academic school. Hockney became interested in seeing his small drawings on a larger scale, and he enlarged them on a photocopier. This is how he stumbled upon a secret side in the history of painting since the Renaissance.

Having made photocopies of Ingres' small (about 30 centimeters) drawings, Hockney was amazed at how realistic they were. And it also seemed to him that the lines of Ingres were something to him
remind. It turned out that they remind him of Warhol's work. And Warhol did this - he projected a photo onto a canvas and outlined it.

Left: Detail of a drawing by Ingres. Right: Drawing by Mao Zedong Warhol

Interesting cases, Hockney says. Apparently Ingres used the Camera Lucida - a device that is a structure with a prism that is attached, for example, on a stand to a tablet. Thus, the artist, looking at his drawing with one eye, sees the real image, and with the other - the drawing itself and his hand. It turns out an optical illusion that allows you to accurately transfer real-life proportions to paper. And this is precisely the "guarantee" of the realism of the image.

Drawing a portrait with a camera lucida, 1807

Then Hockney became seriously interested in this "optical" kind of drawings and paintings. In his studio, he and his team have hung hundreds of reproductions of paintings created over the centuries on the walls. Works that looked "real" and those that didn't. Arranging by the time of creation, and by regions - north at the top, south at the bottom, Hockney and his team saw a sharp change in painting at the turn of the 14-15 centuries. In general, everyone who knows at least a little about the history of art knows - the Renaissance.

Maybe they used the same lucid camera? It was patented in 1807 by William Hyde Wollaston. Although, in fact, such a device is described by Johannes Kepler back in 1611 in his work Dioptrice. Then, maybe they used another optical device - a camera obscura? After all, it has been known since the time of Aristotle and is a dark room into which light enters through a small hole and thus in a dark room a projection of what is in front of the hole, but inverted, is obtained. Everything would be fine, but the image that is obtained when projected by a pinhole camera without a lens, to put it mildly, is not of high quality, it is not clear, it requires a lot of bright light, not to mention the size of the projection. But quality lenses were nearly impossible to make until the 16th century, as there was no way to obtain such quality glass at the time. Things to do, thought Hockney, by that time already struggling with the problem with the physicist Charles Falco.

However, there is a painting by Jan Van Eyck, a Bruges-based painter and Flemish painter of the early Renaissance, in which a clue is hidden. The painting is called "Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple".

Jan Van Eyck "Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple" 1434

The picture simply shines with a huge amount of details, which is quite interesting, because it was painted only in 1434. And the mirror serves as a hint of how the author managed to take such a big step forward in the realism of the image. And also the candlestick is incredibly intricate and realistic.

Hockney was bursting with curiosity. He got hold of a copy of such a chandelier and tried to draw it. The artist was faced with the fact that such a complex thing is difficult to draw in perspective. Another important point was the materiality of the image of this metal object. When depicting a steel object, it is very important to position the highlights as realistically as possible, as this gives a huge amount of realism. But the problem with these highlights is that they move when the viewer's or artist's gaze moves, which means it's not easy to capture them at all. And the realistic image of metal and glare is also a distinctive feature of the Renaissance paintings, before that the artists did not even try to do this.

By recreating an accurate three-dimensional model of the chandelier, the Hockney team ensured that the chandelier in The Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple was drawn accurately in perspective with a single vanishing point. But the problem was that such precise optical instruments as a camera obscura with a lens did not exist for about a century after the painting was created.

Fragment of the painting by Jan Van Eyck "Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple" 1434

The enlarged fragment shows that the mirror in the painting "Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple" is convex. So there were mirrors on the contrary - concave. Moreover, in those days, such mirrors were made in this way - a glass sphere was taken, and its bottom was covered with silver, then everything except the bottom was cut off. The back side of the mirror was not darkened. This means that Jan Van Eyck's concave mirror could be the same mirror that is shown in the picture, just from the back side. And any physicist knows what a mirror, when reflected, projects a picture of the reflected one. It was here that his friend physicist Charles Falco helped David Hockney with calculations and research.

A concave mirror projects an image of a tower outside the window onto the canvas.

The clear, focused portion of the projection is roughly 30 square centimeters, which is exactly the size of the heads in many Renaissance portraits.

Hockney outlines the projection of a person on canvas

This is the size for example of the portrait of "Doge Leonardo Loredana" by Giovanni Bellini (1501), a portrait of a man by Robert Campen (1430), Jan Van Eyck's own portrait "a man in a red turban" and many more early Dutch portraits.

Renaissance portraits

Painting was a highly paid job, and naturally, all business secrets were kept in the strictest confidence. It was beneficial for the artist that all uninitiated people believed that the secrets were in the hands of the master and they could not be stolen. The business was closed to outsiders - the artists were in the guild, and the most varied craftsmen were in it - from those who made saddles to those who made mirrors. And in the Guild of Saint Luke, founded in Antwerp and first mentioned in 1382 (then similar guilds were opened in many northern cities, and one of the largest was the guild in Bruges - the city where Van Eyck lived) also had masters, making mirrors.

So Hockney recreated how you can draw a complex chandelier from a painting by Van Eyck. It is not at all surprising that the size of the chandelier projected by Hockney exactly matches the size of the chandelier in the painting "Portrait of the Arnolfini Couple". And, of course, glare on metal - on the projection, they stand still and do not change when the artist changes position.

But the problem is still not completely solved, because before the appearance of high-quality optics, which is needed to use a pinhole camera, there were 100 years left, and the size of the projection obtained with the help of a mirror is very small. How to paint pictures larger than 30 square centimeters? They were created like a collage - from a variety of points of view, it turned out a kind of spherical vision with many vanishing points. Hockney realized this, because he himself was engaged in such pictures - he made many photo collages in which exactly the same effect is achieved.

Almost a century later, in the 1500s, it finally became possible to obtain and process glass well - large lenses appeared. And they could finally be inserted into the camera obscura, the principle of which has been known since ancient times. The lens camera obscura was an incredible revolution in the visual arts, as the projection could now be of any size. And one more thing, now the image was not "wide-angle", but approximately the normal aspect - that is, approximately the same as it is today when photographing with a lens with a focal length of 35-50mm.

However, the problem with using a pinhole camera with a lens is that the forward projection from the lens is mirrored. This led to a large number of left-handers in painting in the early stages of the use of optics. As in this painting from the 1600s from the Frans Hals museum, where a pair of left-handers are dancing, a left-handed old man is threatening them with a finger, and a left-handed monkey peers under the woman's dress.

In this picture, everyone is left-handed.

The problem is solved by installing a mirror into which the lens is directed, thus obtaining the correct projection. But apparently, a good, flat and large mirror cost a lot of money, so not everyone had it.

Focus was another problem. The fact is that some parts of the picture at one position of the canvas under the projection rays were out of focus, not clear. In Jan Vermeer's work, where the use of optics is clearly visible, his work generally looks like photographs, you can also notice places out of focus. You can even see the drawing that the lens gives - the notorious "bokeh". As for example here, in the painting "The Milkmaid" (1658), the basket, the bread in it and the blue vase are out of focus. But the human eye cannot see "out of focus".

Some details of the painting are out of focus.

And in light of all this, it is not at all surprising that a good friend of Jan Vermeer was Anthony Phillips van Leeuwenhoek, a scientist and microbiologist, as well as a unique master who created his own microscopes and lenses. The scientist became the artist's posthumous manager. And this allows us to assume that Vermeer depicted precisely his friend on two canvases - "Geographer" and "Astronomer".

In order to see any part in focus, you need to change the position of the canvas under the projection rays. But in this case, errors in proportions appeared. As can be seen here: the huge shoulder of "Anthea" Parmigianino (about 1537), the small head of "Lady Genovese" Anthony Van Dyck (1626), the huge feet of a peasant in the painting by Georges de La Tour.

Aspect ratio errors

Of course, all artists have used lenses differently. Someone for sketches, someone made up of different parts - after all, now it was possible to make a portrait, and finish the rest with another model or with a dummy in general.

Velazquez also has almost no drawings. However, his masterpiece remained - a portrait of Pope Innocent the 10th (1650). On the daddy's robes - obviously silk - there is a beautiful play of light. Blikov. And to write all this from one point of view, you had to try very hard. But if you make a projection, then all this beauty will not run away - the glare no longer moves, you can write with exactly those wide and fast strokes like Velazquez's.

Hockney reproduces a painting by Velazquez

Subsequently, many artists were able to afford a camera obscura, and this has ceased to be a big secret. Canaletto actively used the camera to create his views of Venice and did not hide it. These pictures, due to their accuracy, make it possible to speak of Canaletto as a documentary filmmaker. Thanks to Canaletto, you can see not only a beautiful picture, but also the history itself. You can see what the first Westminster Bridge was in London in 1746.

Canaletto "Westminster Bridge" 1746

British artist Sir Joshua Reynolds owned a camera obscura and apparently did not tell anyone about it, because his camera folds and looks like a book. Today it is housed in the London Science Museum.

Camera obscura disguised as a book

Finally, at the beginning of the 19th century, William Henry Fox Talbot, using a camera-lucide - the one into which you need to look with one eye and draw with your hands, cursed, deciding that such an inconvenience had to be done away with once and for all, and became one of the inventors of chemical photography, and later a popularizer who made it massive.

With the invention of photography, the monopoly of painting on the realism of the picture disappeared, now the photo has become a monopoly. And here, finally, painting freed itself from the lens, continuing the path from which it turned in the 1400s, and Van Gogh became the forerunner of all art of the 20th century.

Left: 12th century Byzantine mosaics. Right: Vincent Van Gogh, Portrait of M. Trabuc, 1889

The invention of photography is the best thing that has happened to painting in its entire history. It was no longer necessary to create exclusively real images, the artist became free. Of course, it took the public a century to catch up with artists in understanding visual music and stop considering people like Van Gogh to be "crazy." At the same time, artists began to actively use photographs as a "reference material". Then such people as Wassily Kandinsky, the Russian avant-garde, Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock appeared. Following painting, architecture, sculpture and music were liberated. True, the Russian academic school of painting is stuck in time, and today it is still a shame in academies and schools to use photography to help, and the highest feat is considered a purely technical ability to draw as realistically as possible with bare hands.

Thanks to an article by journalist Lawrence Weschler, who was present at the research of David Hockney and Falco, another interesting fact is revealed: the portrait of the Arnolfini couple by Van Eyck is a portrait of an Italian merchant in Bruges. Mr. Arnolfini is a Florentine and moreover, he is a representative of the Medici bank (practically the owners of Florence during the Renaissance, are considered patrons of art of that time in Italy). And this says what? The fact that he could easily take the secret of the guild of St. Luke - the mirror - with him, to Florence, where, according to traditional history, the Renaissance began, and artists from Bruges (and, accordingly, other masters) are considered “primitivists”.

There is a lot of controversy around the Hockney-Falco theory. But there is certainly a grain of truth in it. As for art historians, critics and historians, it is even difficult to imagine how many scientific works on history and art actually turned out to be complete nonsense, this also changes the entire history of art, all their theories and texts.

The fact of using optics in no way diminishes the talents of artists - after all, technique is a means of conveying what the artist wants. And vice versa, the fact that there is a real reality in these paintings only adds weight to them - after all, this is how people of that time, things, premises, cities looked like. These are real documents.

During the Renaissance, many changes and discoveries take place. New continents are being explored, trade is developing, important things are invented, such as paper, nautical compass, gunpowder and many others. The changes in painting were also of great importance. Renaissance paintings gained immense popularity.

The main styles and trends in the works of masters

The period was one of the most fruitful in the history of art. The masterpieces of a huge number of outstanding masters can be found today in various art centers. In Florence, innovators appeared in the first half of the fifteenth century. Their Renaissance paintings marked the beginning of a new era in art history.

At this time, science and art become very closely related. Artists scientists strove to master the physical world. Painters tried to take advantage of more accurate representations of the human body. Many artists strove for realism. The style begins with Leonardo da Vinci's painting "The Last Supper", which he painted for almost four years.

One of the most famous works

It was painted in the 1490s for the refectory of the Santa Maria delle Grazie monastery in Milan. The canvas depicts Jesus' last meal with his disciples before he was captured and killed. Contemporaries observing the artist's work during this period noted how he could paint from morning to evening, without even stopping to eat. And then he could abandon his painting for several days and never approach it at all.

The artist was very worried about the image of Christ himself and the betrayer of Judas. When the painting was finally completed, it was rightfully recognized as a masterpiece. "The Last Supper" is still one of the most popular. Renaissance reproductions have always been in high demand, but this masterpiece has been marked by countless copies.

Recognized masterpiece, or the Mysterious smile of a woman

Among the works created by Leonardo in the sixteenth century, there is a portrait called "Mona Lisa", or "La Gioconda". In the modern era, it is perhaps the most famous painting in the world. She became popular mainly because of the elusive smile on the face of the woman depicted on the canvas. What led to this mystery? Skillful work of the master, the ability to so skillfully shade the corners of the eyes and mouth? The exact nature of this smile still cannot be determined.

Out of competition and other details of this picture. It is worth paying attention to the woman's hands and eyes: with what accuracy did the artist treat the smallest details of the canvas when writing it. Equally interesting is the dramatic landscape in the background of the painting, a world in which everything seems to be in a state of flux.

Another famous representative of painting

No less famous representative of the Renaissance is Sandro Botticelli. This is a great Italian painter. His Renaissance paintings also enjoy immense popularity among a wide range of audiences. "Adoration of the Magi", "Madonna and Child Enthroned", "Annunciation" - these works by Botticelli, dedicated to religious themes, became the artist's great achievements.

Another famous work of the master is "Madonna Magnificat". She became famous during the years of Sandro's life, as evidenced by numerous reproductions. Such canvases in the shape of a circle were quite in demand in Florence in the fifteenth century.

A new turn in the work of the painter

Beginning in 1490, Sandro changed his style. It becomes more ascetic, the combination of colors is now much more restrained, often dark tones prevail. The creator's new approach to writing his works is perfectly visible in "The Crowning of Mary", "Lamentation of Christ" and other canvases depicting the Madonna and Child.

The masterpieces painted by Sandro Botticelli at the time, such as Dante's portrait, are devoid of landscape and interior backgrounds. One of the artist's equally significant creations is "Mystical Christmas". The painting was painted under the influence of the turmoil that took place at the end of 1500 in Italy. Many paintings by Renaissance artists not only gained popularity, they became an example for the next generation of painters.

An artist whose canvases are surrounded by a halo of admiration

Rafael Santi da Urbino was not only an architect. His Renaissance paintings evoke admiration for the clarity of their form, the simplicity of their composition and the visual achievement of the ideal of human greatness. Along with Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, he is one of the traditional trinity of the greatest masters of this period.

He lived a relatively short life, only 37 years old. But during this time he created a huge number of his masterpieces. Some of his works are in the Vatican Palace in Rome. Not all viewers can see firsthand paintings by Renaissance artists. Photos of these masterpieces are available to everyone (some of them are presented in this article).

The most famous works of Raphael

From 1504 to 1507 Raphael created a whole series of "Madonnas". The paintings are distinguished by their bewitching beauty, wisdom and at the same time a kind of enlightened sadness. His most famous painting was "The Sistine Madonna". She is depicted hovering in the sky and smoothly descending towards people with a Baby in her arms. It is this movement that the artist was able to very skillfully portray.

This work was highly praised by many renowned critics, and they all came to the unanimous conclusion that it is indeed rare and unusual. All paintings by Renaissance artists have a long history. But it became the most popular thanks to its endless wanderings, since its inception. After going through numerous tests, it finally took its rightful place among the expositions of the Dresden Museum.

Renaissance paintings. Photos of famous paintings

And another famous Italian painter, sculptor, and also an architect who had a huge influence on the development of Western art is Michelangelo di Simoni. Despite the fact that he is known mainly as a sculptor, there are also excellent works of his painting. And the most significant of these is the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.

This work was carried out for four years. The space covers about five hundred square meters and contains over three hundred figures. In the very center are nine episodes from the book of Genesis, divided into several groups. Creation of the earth, creation of man and his fall. Among the most famous paintings on the ceiling are The Creation of Adam and Adam and Eve.

His no less famous work is "The Last Judgment". It was executed on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. The fresco depicts the second coming of Jesus Christ. Here Michelangelo ignores standard artistic conventions in writing Jesus. He portrayed him with a massive muscular body structure, young and beardless.

The Significance of Religion, or the Art of the Renaissance

Renaissance Italian paintings became the basis for the development of Western art. Many of the popular works of this generation of creators have had an enormous impact on artists that continues to this day. The great representatives of art of that period focused their attention on religious themes, often working for wealthy patrons, including the Pope himself.

Religion literally penetrated the everyday life of people of this era, deeply embedded in the minds of artists. Almost all religious paintings are in museums and art depositories, but reproductions of Renaissance paintings related not only to this topic can be found in many institutions and even ordinary houses. People will endlessly admire the works of famous masters of that period.

The Renaissance era caused profound changes in all areas of culture - philosophy, science and art. One of them is. that is becoming more and more independent of religion, ceases to be a "servant of theology", although it is still far from complete independence. As in other areas of culture, the teachings of ancient thinkers, primarily Plato and Aristotle, are being revived in philosophy. Marsilio Ficino founded the Platonic Academy in Florence, translated the works of the great Greek into Latin. Aristotle's ideas returned to Europe even earlier, before the Renaissance. During the Renaissance, according to Luther, it is he, not Christ, who "rules in European universities."

Together with ancient teachings, natural philosophy, or philosophy of nature. It is preached by such philosophers as B. Telesio, T. Campanella, D. Bruno. Their works develop the idea that philosophy should study not a supernatural God, but nature itself, that nature obeys its own, internal laws, that the basis of knowledge is experience and observation, and not divine revelation that man is part of nature.

The spread of natural philosophical views was facilitated by scientific discoveries. The main one was heliocentric theory N. Copernicus, who made a real revolution in the idea of ​​the world.

It should be noted, however, that the scientific and philosophical views of that time are still influenced by religion and theology. This kind of view often takes the form pantheism, in which the existence of God is not denied, but He dissolves in nature, is identified with it. To this must also be added the influence of the so-called occult sciences - astrology, alchemy, mysticism, magic, etc. All this takes place even with such a philosopher as D. Bruno.

The most significant changes the Renaissance brought about in artistic culture, art. It is in this area that the break with the Middle Ages turned out to be the deepest and most radical.

In the Middle Ages, art was largely of an applied nature, it was woven into life itself and was supposed to decorate it. In the Renaissance, art for the first time acquires an intrinsic value, it becomes an independent area of ​​beauty. At the same time, for the first time a purely artistic, aesthetic feeling is formed in the perceiving viewer, for the first time a love for art is awakened for its own sake, and not for the purpose it serves.

Never before has art enjoyed such high esteem and respect. Even in ancient Greece, the work of an artist was noticeably inferior to the activity of a politician and a citizen in its social significance. An even more modest place was occupied by the artist in ancient Rome.

Now place and role of the artist increase immeasurably in society. For the first time, he is seen as an independent and respected professional, scientist and thinker, a unique personality. In the Renaissance, art is perceived as one of the most powerful means of cognition and in this capacity is equated with science. Leonardo da Vinci views science and art as two completely equal ways of studying nature. He writes: "Painting is a science and a legitimate daughter of nature."

Art is even more highly valued as creativity. In terms of his creative abilities, the Renaissance artist is equated to God the creator. Hence it is clear why Raphael received the addition of "Divine" to his name. For the same reasons, Dante's Comedy was also called Divine.

In art itself, profound changes are taking place. It makes a decisive turn from a medieval symbol and sign to a realistic image and reliable depiction. The means of artistic expression are becoming new. They are now based on linear and aerial perspective, three-dimensionality of volume, and the doctrine of proportions. Art strives to be true to reality in everything, to achieve objectivity, reliability and vitality.

The Renaissance was primarily Italian. Therefore, it is not surprising that it was in Italy that art during this period reached its highest rise and flourishing. It is here that there are dozens of names of titans, geniuses, great and simply talented artists. Other countries also have great names, but Italy is beyond competition.

In the Italian Renaissance, several stages are usually distinguished:

• Proto-Renaissance: second half of the 13th century - XIV century.
• Early Renaissance: almost the entire 15th century.
• High Renaissance: late 15th century - the first third of the 16th century.
• Late Renaissance: the last two thirds of the 16th century.

The main figures of the Proto-Renaissance are the poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) and the painter Giotto (1266 / 67-1337).

Fate presented Dante with many trials. For his participation in the political struggle, he was persecuted, he wandered, died in a foreign land, in Ravenna. His contribution to culture goes beyond poetry. He wrote not only love lyrics, but also philosophical and political treatises. Dante is the creator of the Italian literary language. Sometimes he is called the last poet of the Middle Ages and the first poet of modern times. These two principles - old and new - are really closely intertwined in his work.

Dante's first works - "New Life" and "Feast" - are lyrical poems of love content, dedicated to his beloved Beatrice, whom he met once in Florence and who died seven years after their meeting. The poet kept his love for the rest of his life. In its genre, Dante's lyrics are in the mainstream of medieval courtly poetry, where the object of praise is the image of the "Beautiful Lady". However, the feelings expressed by the poet already belong to the Renaissance. They are caused by real meetings and events, filled with sincere warmth, marked with a unique personality.

The pinnacle of Dante's creativity was "The Divine Comedy", Which took a special place in the history of world culture. By its construction, this poem is also in the mainstream of medieval traditions. It tells about the adventures of a man who fell into the afterlife. The poem has three parts - Hell, Purgatory and Paradise, each of which has 33 songs written in three-line stanzas.

The repeated number "three" directly echoes the Christian doctrine of the Trinity. In the course of the story, Dante strictly follows many of the requirements of Christianity. In particular, he does not admit his companion through the nine circles of hell and purgatory - the Roman poet Virgil - to heaven, for a pagan is deprived of such a right. Here the poet is accompanied by his deceased beloved Beatrice.

However, in his thoughts and judgments, in his attitude to the characters depicted and their sins. Dante often and very significantly diverges from Christian teaching. So. instead of the Christian censure of sensual love as a sin, he speaks of the “law of love,” according to which sensual love is included in the nature of life itself. Dante is sympathetic to the love of Francesca and Paolo. although their love is associated with Francesca's betrayal of her husband. The spirit of Renaissance wins against Dante in other cases as well.

Among the outstanding Italian poets are also Francesco Petrarca. In world culture, he is known primarily for his sonnets. At the same time, he was a large-scale thinker, philosopher and historian. He is rightfully considered the founder of the entire Renaissance culture.

Petrarch's work is also partly within the framework of medieval courtly lyrics. Like Dante, he had a sweetheart named Laura, to whom he dedicated his "Book of Songs". At the same time, Petrarch more decisively breaks ties with medieval culture. In his works, the expressed feelings - love, pain, despair, longing - appear much more acute and naked. The personality principle sounds stronger in them.

Another outstanding representative of literature was Giovanni Boccaccio(1313-1375). author of the world famous " Decameron ". The principle of building his collection of short stories and the plot of Boccaccio borrows from the Middle Ages. Everything else is imbued with the spirit of the Renaissance.

The main characters of the short stories are ordinary and common people. They are written in surprisingly bright, lively, colloquial language. There are no boring lectures in them, on the contrary, many short stories literally sparkle with love of life and fun. The plots of some of them are of a love and erotic character. In addition to The Decameron, Boccaccio also wrote the novella Fiametta, which is considered the first psychological novel in Western literature.

Giotto di Bondone is the most prominent representative of the Italian Proto-Renaissance in the visual arts. Its main genre was fresco painting. All of them are written on biblical and mythological subjects, depict scenes from the life of the Holy Family, evangelists, saints. However, in the interpretation of these subjects, the Renaissance principle clearly prevails. In his work, Giotto abandons medieval convention and turns to realism and believability. It is for him that the merit of the revival of painting as an artistic value in itself is recognized.

In his works, the natural landscape is depicted quite realistically, on which trees, rocks, temples are clearly visible. All the characters involved, including the saints themselves, appear as living people, endowed with physical flesh, human feelings and passions. Their clothes outline the natural shapes of their bodies. Giotto's works are characterized by bright color and picturesqueness, subtle plasticity.

The main creation of Giotto is the painting of the Capella del Arena in Padua, which tells about the events in the life of the Holy Family. The strongest impression is made by the wall cycle, which includes the scenes "Flight into Egypt", "Kiss of Judas", "Lamentation of Christ".

All the characters depicted in the paintings look natural and authentic. The position of their bodies, gestures, emotional state, looks, faces - all this is shown with rare psychological convincingness. At the same time, the behavior of each strictly corresponds to the role assigned to him. Each scene has a unique atmosphere.

Thus, in the scene "Flight to Egypt", a restrained and generally calm emotional tone prevails. “Kiss of Judas” is filled with stormy dynamism, sharp and decisive actions of the characters who literally grappled with each other. And only two main participants - Judas and Christ - froze motionless and lead the duel with their eyes.

The scene "Lamentation of Christ" is marked by a special drama. She is filled with tragic despair, unbearable pain and suffering, inconsolable grief and sorrow.

Early Renaissance finally approved new aesthetic and artistic principles of art. At the same time, biblical stories are still very popular. However, their interpretation becomes completely different, there is already little left of the Middle Ages in it.

Homeland Early renaissance became Florence, and the architect is considered the "fathers of the Renaissance" Philippe Brunelleschi(1377-1446), sculptor Donatello(1386-1466). painter Masaccio (1401 -1428).

Brunelleschi made a huge contribution to the development of architecture. He laid the foundations of Renaissance architecture, discovered new forms that existed for centuries. He did much to develop the laws of perspective.

Brunelleschi's most significant work was the erection of a dome over the already finished structure of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence. He was faced with an extremely difficult task, since the required dome had to be huge - about 50 m in diameter. With the help of an original design, he brilliantly gets out of a difficult situation. Thanks to the solution found, not only the dome itself turned out to be surprisingly light and, as it were, hovering over the city, but the entire building of the cathedral acquired harmony and majesty.

The famous Pazzi Chapel, erected in the courtyard of the Church of Santa Croce in Florence, was no less wonderful work of Brunelleschi. It is a small, rectangular building covered in the center by a dome. Inside it is faced with white marble. Like other buildings of Brunelleschi, the chapel is distinguished by simplicity and clarity, grace and grace.

Brunelleschi's work is notable for the fact that he goes beyond religious buildings and creates magnificent buildings of secular architecture. An excellent example of such architecture is the orphanage, built in the shape of the letter "P", with a covered gallery-loggia.

The Florentine sculptor Donatello is one of the most prominent creators of the Early Renaissance. He worked in a wide variety of genres, showing genuine innovation everywhere. In his work, Donatello uses the ancient heritage, relying on a deep study of nature, boldly updating the means of artistic expression.

He participates in the development of the theory of linear perspective, revives the sculptural portrait and the depiction of the nude, casts the first bronze monument. The images he created are the embodiment of the humanistic ideal of a harmoniously developed personality. With his work, Donatello had a great influence on the subsequent development of European sculpture.

Donatello's desire to idealize the person depicted was clearly manifested in statue of young David. In this work, David appears young, beautiful, full of mental and physical strength of young men. The beauty of his naked body is accentuated by a gracefully curved torso. A young face expresses thoughtfulness and sadness. This statue was followed by a number of nude figures in Renaissance sculpture.

The heroic beginning is strong and distinct in statue of st. George, which became one of the heights of Donatello's creativity. Here he fully managed to embody the idea of ​​a strong personality. Before us is a tall, slender, courageous, calm and confident warrior. In this work, the master creatively develops the best traditions of antique sculpture.

Donatello's classic work is the bronze statue of the commander Gattamelatta - the first equestrian monument in the art of the Renaissance. Here the great sculptor reaches the ultimate level of artistic and philosophical generalization, which brings this work closer to antiquity.

At the same time, Donatello created a portrait of a concrete and unique personality. The commander appears as a real renaissance hero, a courageous, calm, self-confident person. The statue is distinguished by laconic forms, clear and precise plastic, natural pose of the rider and horse. Thanks to this, the monument has become a real masterpiece of monumental sculpture.

In the last period of creativity Donatello creates a bronze group "Judith and Holofernes". This work is filled with dynamics and drama: Judith is depicted at the moment when she raises her sword over the already wounded Holofernes. to finish it off.

Masaccio is considered to be one of the main figures of the Early Renaissance. He continues and develops the trends coming from Giotto. Masaccio lived only 27 years old and managed to do little. However, the frescoes he created became a real school of painting for subsequent Italian artists. According to Vasari, a contemporary of the High Renaissance and an authoritative critic, "no master has come so close to modern masters as Masaccio."

The main creation of Masaccio is the frescoes in the Brancacci Chapel of the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence, telling about episodes from the legends of St. Peter, as well as depicting two biblical stories - "The Fall" and "Expulsion from Paradise".

Although the frescoes tell of the miracles performed by St. Peter, there is nothing supernatural and mystical about them. The depicted Christ, Peter, the apostles and other participants in the events appear as completely earthly people. They are endowed with individual characteristics and behave in a completely natural and human way. In particular, in the scene of Baptism, a naked young man trembling from the cold is surprisingly reliably shown. Masaccio builds his composition using the means of not only linear, but also aerial perspective.

From the whole cycle, special emphasis deserves fresco "Expulsion from Paradise". She is a true masterpiece of painting. The fresco is extremely laconic, there is nothing superfluous in it. Against the background of a vague landscape, the figures of Adam and Eve, who left the gates of Paradise, are clearly visible, above which an angel with a sword hovers. All attention is focused on Mom and Eve.

Masaccio was the first in the history of painting to be able to write a nude body so convincingly and reliably, to convey its natural proportions, to give it stability and movement. The inner state of the heroes is just as convincing and vividly expressed. Walking wide, Adam lowered his head in shame and covered his face with his hands. Sobbing, Eve threw her head back in despair with her mouth open. This fresco opens a new era in art.

Made by Masaccio was continued by artists such as Andrea Mantegna(1431 -1506) and Sandro Botticelli(1455-1510). The first became famous primarily for his paintings, among which a special place is occupied by frescoes telling about the last episodes of the life of St. Jacob - the procession to the execution and the execution itself. Botticelli preferred easel painting. His most famous paintings are Spring and The Birth of Venus.

From the end of the 15th century, when Italian art reaches its highest rise, begins High Renaissance. For Italy, this period was extremely difficult. Fragmented and therefore defenseless, it was literally devastated, plundered and drained of blood by invasions from France, Spain, Germany and Turkey. However, art during this period, oddly enough, is experiencing an unprecedented flowering. It was at this time that such titans as Leonardo da Vinci are doing. Raphael. Michelangelo, Titian.

In architecture, the beginning of the High Renaissance is associated with creativity Donato Bramante(1444-1514). It was he who created the style that determined the development of architecture of this period.

One of his early works was the church of the Santa Maria della Grazie monastery in Milan, in the refectory of which Leonardo da Vinci will paint his famous fresco "The Last Supper". Its glory begins with a small chapel called Tempetto(1502), built in Rome and became a kind of "manifesto" of the High Renaissance. The chapel has the shape of a rotunda, it is distinguished by simplicity of architectural means, harmony of parts and rare expressiveness. This is a real little masterpiece.

The pinnacle of Bramante's creativity is the reconstruction of the Vatican and the transformation of its buildings into a single ensemble. He also owns the development of the project for the Cathedral of St. Peter, in which Michelangelo will make changes and begin to implement.

See also:, Michelangelo Buonarroti

In the art of the Italian Renaissance, a special place is occupied by Venice. The school that developed here was significantly different from the schools of Florence, Rome, Milan or Bologna. The latter gravitated towards stable traditions and continuity; they were not inclined towards radical renewal. It was on these schools that classicism of the 17th century was based. and neoclassicism of subsequent centuries.

The Venetian school acted as their kind of counterbalance and antipode. The spirit of innovation and radical, revolutionary renewal reigned here. Of the representatives of other Italian schools, Leonardo was the closest to Venice. Perhaps it was here that his passion for searching and experimenting could find proper understanding and recognition. In the famous dispute between "old and new" artists, the latter relied on the example of Venice. This is where the tendencies that led to the Baroque and Romanticism began. And although the romantics honored Raphael, Titian and Veronese were their real gods. In Venice, El Greco received his creative charge, which allowed him to shake Spanish painting. Velasques passed through Venice. The same can be said for the Flemish painters Rubens and Van Dyck.

As a port city, Venice found itself at the crossroads of economic and trade routes. She was influenced by Northern Germany, Byzantium and the East. Venice has become a place of pilgrimage for many artists. A. Durer was here twice - at the end of the 15th century. and the beginning of the XVI century. It was visited by Goethe (1790). Here Wagner listened to the singing of the gondoliers (1857), under whose inspiration he wrote the second act of Tristan and Isolde. Nietzsche also listened to the singing of the gondoliers, calling it the singing of the soul.

The proximity of the sea evoked fluid and mobile shapes, rather than clear geometric structures. Venice gravitated not so much to reason with its strict rules, as to feelings, from which the amazing poetry of Venetian art was born. The focus of this poetry was nature - its visible and felt materiality, woman - the exciting beauty of her flesh, music - born from the play of colors and light and from the enchanting sounds of a spiritualized nature.

The artists of the Venetian school did not give preference to form and drawing, but to color, the play of light and shadow. Depicting nature, they tried to convey its impulses and movement, variability and fluidity. They saw the beauty of the female body not so much in the harmony of forms and proportions as in the most living and feeling flesh.

Realistic plausibility and reliability were not enough for them. They strove to reveal the riches inherent in painting itself. It is Venice that deserves the credit for the discovery of a pure pictorial beginning, or picturesqueness in its purest form. Venetian artists were the first to show the possibility of separating the picturesque from objects and forms, the possibility of solving the problems of painting with the help of one color, purely pictorial means, the possibility of considering the picturesque as an end in itself. All subsequent painting, based on expression and expressiveness, will follow this path. According to some experts, one can go from Titian to Rubens and Rembrandt, then to Delacroix, and from him to Gauguin, Van Gogh, Cezanne, etc.

The founder of the Venetian school is Giorgione(1476-1510). In his work, he acted as a real innovator. The secular principle finally wins with him, and instead of biblical subjects, he prefers to write on mythological and literary themes. In his work, the easel painting is affirmed, which no longer resembles an icon or an altar image.

Giorgione opens a new era in painting, being the first to paint from nature. Depicting nature, for the first time, he shifts the emphasis to mobility, variability and fluidity. An excellent example of this is his painting "The Thunderstorm". It was Giorgione who began to look for the secret of painting in light and its transitions, in the play of light and shadow, acting as the predecessor of Caravaggio and caravaggism.

Giorgione created works of different genres and themes - "Rural Concert" and "Judith". His most famous work was Sleeping Venus". This picture is devoid of any plot. She praises the beauty and charm of the naked female body, representing "nakedness for the sake of nakedness."

The head of the Venetian school is Titian(c. 1489-1576). His work - along with the work of Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo - is the pinnacle of Renaissance art. Much of his long life falls on the Late Renaissance.

In the work of Titian, the art of the Renaissance reaches its highest rise and flowering. His works combine the creative search and innovation of Leonardo, the beauty and perfection of Raphael, the spiritual depth, drama and tragedy of Michelangelo. They have an extraordinary sensibility, thanks to which they have a powerful effect on the viewer. Titian's works are surprisingly musical and melodic.

As Rubens notes, together with Titian, painting acquired its own flavor, and according to Delacroix and Van Gogh - music. His canvases are painted with an open stroke, which is light, free and transparent at the same time. It is in his works that color, as it were, dissolves and absorbs form, and the pictorial principle for the first time acquires autonomy, appears in its pure form. Realism in his creations turns into enchanting and subtle lyricism.

In the works of the first period, Titian glorifies the careless joy of life, the enjoyment of earthly goods. He glorifies the sensual principle, the human flesh bursting with health, the eternal beauty of the body, the physical perfection of man. His canvases such as "Earthly and Heavenly Love", "The Feast of Venus", "Bacchus and Ariadne", "Danae", "Venus and Adonis" are dedicated to this.

The sensual principle prevails in the picture. "Penitent Magdalene”, Although it is dedicated to a dramatic situation. But here, too, the penitent sinner has sensual flesh, a captivating body that radiates light, full and sensual lips, ruddy cheeks and golden hair. The painting "Boy with Dogs" is filled with soulful lyricism.

In the works of the second period, the sensory principle is preserved, but it is complemented by growing psychologism and drama. In general, Titian makes a gradual transition from the physical and sensual to the spiritual and dramatic. The changes taking place in Titian's work are clearly visible in the embodiment of themes and plots to which the great artist turned twice. A typical example in this regard is the painting "Saint Sebastian". In the first version, the fate of a lonely, abandoned sufferer does not seem too sad. On the contrary, the depicted saint is endowed with vitality and physical beauty. In a later version of the painting, which is in the Hermitage, the same image takes on tragic features.

An even more striking example is the version of the painting "The Crowning of Thorns", dedicated to an episode from the life of Christ. In the first of them, kept in the Louvre. Christ appears as a physically beautiful and strong athlete, capable of repelling his rapists. In the Munich version, created twenty years later, the same episode is conveyed much deeper, more complex and more meaningful. Christ is depicted in a white cloak, his eyes are closed, he calmly endures beating and humiliation. Now the main thing is not crowning and beating, not a physical phenomenon, but psychological and spiritual. The picture is filled with deep tragedy, it expresses the triumph of spirit, spiritual nobility over physical strength.

In the later works of Titian, the tragic sounding becomes more and more intensified. This is evidenced by the painting "Lamentation of Christ".

The Renaissance or Renaissance has given us many great works of art. This was a favorable period for the development of creativity. The names of many great artists are associated with the Renaissance. Botticelli, Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo Da Vinci, Giotto, Titian, Correggio are just a few of the names of the creators of that time.

The emergence of new styles and painting is associated with this period. The approach to depicting the human body has become almost scientific. Artists strive for reality - they work through every detail. People and events in the paintings of that time look extremely realistic.

Historians distinguish several periods in the development of painting during the Renaissance.

Gothic - 1200s... Popular style at court. It was distinguished by pomp, pretentiousness, excessive color. Used as paints. The paintings were of altar subjects. The most famous representatives of this trend are Italian artists Vittore Carpaccio, Sandro Botticelli.

Sandro Botticelli

Proto-Renaissance - 1300s... At this time, a restructuring of mores in painting takes place. Religious topics recede into the background, and secular ones are gaining more and more popularity. The painting takes the place of the icon. People are portrayed more realistically, facial expressions and gestures become important for artists. A new genre of fine art appears -. Representatives of this time are Giotto, Pietro Lorenzetti, Pietro Cavallini.

Early Renaissance - 1400s... The flowering of non-religious painting. Even the faces on the icons become more alive - they acquire human features. Artists of earlier periods tried to paint landscapes, but they served only as a complement, a background to the main image. During the Early Renaissance period becomes an independent genre. The portrait continues to develop. Scientists discover the law of linear perspective, and artists build their paintings on this basis. The correct three-dimensional space can be seen on their canvases. The prominent representatives of this period are Masaccio, Piero Della Francesco, Giovanni Bellini, Andrea Mantegna.

High Renaissance - Golden Age... The artists' outlook becomes even wider - their interests extend into the space of the Cosmos, they regard man as the center of the universe.

At this time, the "titans" of the Renaissance appeared - Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Titian, Raphael Santi and others. These are people whose interests were not limited to painting. Their knowledge extended much further. The most prominent representative was Leonardo Da Vinci, who was not only a great painter, but also a scientist, sculptor, playwright. He created fantastic techniques in painting, such as the "smooth" - the illusion of haze, which was used to create the famous "La Gioconda".

Leonardo Da Vinci

Late Renaissance- the extinction of the Renaissance (mid-1500s, late 1600s). This time is associated with changes, religious crisis. The flowering ends, the lines on the canvases become more nervous, individualism goes away. The crowd is increasingly becoming the image of the paintings. Talented works of that time belong to the pen of Paolo Veronese, Jacopo Tinoretto.

Paolo Veronese

Italy gave the world the most talented artists of the Renaissance, they are most mentioned in the history of painting. Meanwhile, in other countries during this period, painting also developed, and influenced the development of this art. Painting of other countries during this period is called the Northern Renaissance.

Renaissance (Renaissance). Italy. XV-XVI centuries. Early capitalism. The country is ruled by wealthy bankers. They are interested in art and science.

The rich and influential gather around them the talented and wise. Poets, philosophers, painters and sculptors have daily conversations with their patrons. For a moment it seemed that people were ruled by sages, as Plato wanted.

They remembered the ancient Romans and Greeks. Who also built a society of free citizens. Where the main value is a person (not counting slaves, of course).

Renaissance is not just about copying the art of ancient civilizations. This is confusion. Mythology and Christianity. Realism of nature and soulfulness of images. Physical beauty and spiritual beauty.

It was just a flash. The High Renaissance is about 30 years old! From the 1490s to 1527 Since the beginning of the heyday of Leonardo's creativity. Before the sack of Rome.

The mirage of an ideal world quickly faded. Italy turned out to be too fragile. She was soon enslaved by another dictator.

However, these 30 years have determined the main features of European painting for 500 years ahead! Up to .

Realism of the image. Anthropocentrism (when a person is the main character and hero). Linear perspective. Oil paints. Portrait. Landscape…

Incredibly, in these 30 years several brilliant masters worked at once. Which at other times are born one in 1000 years.

Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and Titian are titans of the Renaissance. But one cannot fail to mention their two predecessors. Giotto and Masaccio. Without which there would be no Renaissance.

1. Giotto (1267-1337)

Paolo Uccello. Giotto da Bondogni. Fragment of the painting "Five Masters of the Florentine Renaissance". The beginning of the 16th century. ...

XIV century. Proto-Renaissance. Its main character is Giotto. This is a master who single-handedly revolutionized art. 200 years before the High Renaissance. If it were not for him, the era that mankind is so proud of would hardly have come.

Before Giotto, there were icons and frescoes. They were created according to the Byzantine canons. Faces instead of faces. Flat figures. Non-observance of proportions. Instead of a landscape - a gold background. As, for example, in this icon.

Guido da Siena. Adoration of the Magi. 1275-1280 Altenburg, Lindenau Museum, Germany.

And suddenly Giotto's frescoes appear. They have three-dimensional figures. The faces of noble people. Sad. Sorrowful. Surprised. Old and young. Various.

Frescoes by Giotto in the Church of Scrovegni in Padua (1302-1305). Left: Lamentation over Christ. Middle: Kiss of Judas (detail). Right: Annunciation to St. Anne (Mother Mary), detail.

Giotto's main creation is a cycle of his frescoes in the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua. When this church opened to parishioners, crowds of people flooded into it. Because they have never seen anything like this.

After all, Giotto did something unheard of. He kind of translated the biblical stories into simple, understandable language. And they have become much more accessible to ordinary people.

Giotto. Adoration of the Magi. 1303-1305 Fresco in the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, Italy.

This is what will be characteristic of many Renaissance masters. Laconic images. Lively emotions of the characters. Realism.

Read more about the frescoes of the master in the article.

Giotto was admired. But they did not develop further his innovations. The fashion for international gothic came to Italy.

Only 100 years later, a master will appear, a worthy successor to Giotto.

2. Masaccio (1401-1428)

Masaccio. Self-portrait (fragment of the fresco "St. Peter in the pulpit"). 1425-1427 Brancacci Chapel in the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy.

The beginning of the 15th century. The so-called Early Renaissance. Another innovator enters the scene.

Masaccio was the first artist to use linear perspective. It was designed by his friend, the architect Brunelleschi. Now the depicted world has become similar to the real one. Toy architecture is a thing of the past.

Masaccio. Saint Peter heals with his shadow. 1425-1427 Brancacci Chapel in the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy.

He adopted the realism of Giotto. However, unlike his predecessor, he already knew anatomy well.

Instead of Giotto's lumpy characters, they are beautifully built people. Just like the ancient Greeks.

Masaccio. Baptism of the neophytes. 1426-1427 Brancacci Chapel, Church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence, Italy.
Masaccio. Expulsion from Paradise. 1426-1427 Fresco in Brancacci Chapel, Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, Florence, Italy.

Masaccio lived a short life. He died, like his father, unexpectedly. At the age of 27.

However, he had many followers. Masters of the next generations went to the Brancacci Chapel to learn from his frescoes.

So Masaccio's innovations were taken up by all the great titans of the High Renaissance.

3. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

Leonardo da Vinci. Self-portrait. 1512 Royal Library in Turin, Italy.

Leonardo da Vinci is one of the titans of the Renaissance. Which influenced the development of painting in a colossal way.

It was he who raised the status of the artist himself. Thanks to him, representatives of this profession are no longer just artisans. These are the creators and aristocrats of the spirit.

Leonardo made a breakthrough primarily in portraiture.

He believed that nothing should distract from the main image. The eye should not wander from one detail to another. This is how his famous portraits appeared. Laconic. Harmonious.

Leonardo da Vinci. Lady with an ermine. 1489-1490 Chertoryski Museum, Krakow.

The main innovation of Leonardo is that he found a way to make the images ... alive.

Before him, the characters in the portraits looked like mannequins. The lines were crisp. All details are carefully traced. The painted drawing could not be alive in any way.

But then Leonardo invented the sfumato method. He shaded the lines. Made the transition from light to shadow very soft. His characters seem to be covered with a barely perceptible haze. The characters came to life.

... 1503-1519 Louvre, Paris.

Since then, sfumato will enter the active vocabulary of all the great artists of the future.

It is often believed that Leonardo is, of course, a genius. But he didn’t know how to finish anything. And he often did not finish painting. And many of his projects have remained on paper (by the way, in 24 volumes). And in general, he was thrown into medicine, then into music. And even at one time he was fond of the art of serving.

However, think for yourself. 19 paintings. And he is the greatest artist of all times and peoples. And someone is not even close to greatness. At the same time, he wrote 6,000 canvases in his life. It is obvious who has higher efficiency.

Read about the most famous painting of the master in the article.

4. Michelangelo (1475-1564)

Daniele da Volterra. Michelangelo (detail). 1544 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

Michelangelo considered himself a sculptor. But he was a versatile master. Like his other colleagues from the Renaissance. Therefore, his pictorial heritage is no less grandiose.

He is recognizable primarily by his physically developed characters. Because he portrayed a perfect person. In which physical beauty means spiritual beauty.

Therefore, all of his heroes are so muscular and resilient. Even women and old people.

Michelangelo. Fragments of the Last Judgment fresco in the Sistine Chapel, Vatican.

Michelangelo often painted the character naked. And then I would finish painting on top of the clothes. So that the body is as prominent as possible.

He painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel himself. Although these are several hundred figures! He didn't even let anyone rub the paint. Yes, he was a loner. Possessing a cool and quarrelsome character. But most of all he was dissatisfied with ... himself.

Michelangelo. Fragment of the fresco "The Creation of Adam". 1511 Sistine Chapel, Vatican.

Michelangelo lived a long life. Having survived the extinction of the Renaissance. It was a personal tragedy for him. His later works are full of sorrow and sorrow.

In general, Michelangelo's creative path is unique. His earliest work is an eulogy of a human hero. Free and courageous. In the best traditions of ancient Greece. Like his David.

In the last years of his life, these are tragic images. A deliberately rough hewn stone. As if before us are monuments to the victims of fascism of the 20th century. Look at his Pieta.

Sculptures by Michelangelo at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. Left: David. 1504 Right: Pieta of Palestrina. 1555 g.

How is this possible? One artist in one of his life went through all the stages of art from the Renaissance to the 20th century. What should the next generations do? Well, go your own way. Realizing that the bar has been set very high.

5. Raphael (1483-1520)

... 1506 Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy.

Raphael was never forgotten. His genius has always been recognized. And during life. And after death.

His characters are endowed with sensual, lyrical beauty. It is he who is rightfully considered the most beautiful female images ever created. Their external beauty also reflects the spiritual beauty of the heroines. Their meekness. Their sacrifice.

Raphael. ... 1513 Old Masters Gallery, Dresden, Germany.

Fyodor Dostoevsky said the famous words “Beauty will save the world” by Fr. This was his favorite painting.

Sensual imagery is not Raphael's only strength, however. He thought over the composition of his paintings very carefully. He was the consummate architect in painting. Moreover, he always found the simplest and most harmonious solution in the organization of space. It seems that it cannot be otherwise.

Raphael. School of Athens. 1509-1511 Fresco in the stanzas of the Apostolic Palace, Vatican.

Raphael lived only 37 years old. He died suddenly. From caught cold and medical error. But his legacy is hard to overestimate. Many artists idolized this master. Multiplying his sensual images in thousands of his paintings ..

Titian was a consummate colorist. He also experimented a lot with composition. In general, he was a daring and flamboyant innovator.

For such a brightness of talent, everyone loved him. Calling it “The King of Painters and Painter of Kings”.

Speaking of Titian, I want to put an exclamation mark after each sentence. After all, it was he who brought dynamics to painting. Pathos. Enthusiasm. Bright coloring. Radiance of colors.

Titian. Ascension of Mary. 1515-1518 Church of Santa Maria Gloriosi dei Frari, Venice.

Towards the end of his life, he developed an unusual writing technique. Fast, thick strokes. He applied the paint with a brush, then with his fingers. From this - the images are even more alive, breathing. And the plots are even more dynamic and dramatic.

Titian. Tarquinius and Lucretia. 1571 Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge, England.

Does this remind you of anything? Of course, this is a technique. And the technique of artists of the XIX century: Barbizonians and. Titian, like Michelangelo, will go through 500 years of painting in one of his life. That's why he is a genius.

Read about the famous masterpiece of the master in the article.

Renaissance artists are artists of great knowledge. To leave such a legacy, one had to know a lot. In the field of history, astrology, physics, and so on.

Therefore, each of their images makes us think. What is it depicted for? What is the encrypted message here?

Therefore, they were almost never wrong. Because they thoroughly thought out their future work. Using all the baggage of their knowledge.

They were more than artists. They were philosophers. Explaining the world to us through painting.

That is why we will always be deeply interested in them.