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Renaissance And The Italian Renaissance

Decent Essays

The Italian Renaissance had two distinct periods during its lifetime. The first being the “Early Renaissance”, which took place between the late 13th and the early 14th centuries. The second period was known as the “High Renaissance”, which took place during the 15th and 16th centuries. These two periods had very distinct foundations and styles behind the art and architecture of their respective periods. The Early Renaissance revived many old themes which later became the foundations for the High Renaissance. While the High Renaissance strayed from previous traditions and had its own form of art and essentially perfected early themes and styles of art and included more scientific/mathematic components.

The Early Renaissance saw the …show more content…

Architects and designers such as Brunelleschi, Alberti, and Rossellino were absolutely obsessed with designing and engineering building with perfect symmetry, proportions, and with ample amounts of geometry. These architectural styles can be seen in the Pazzi Chapel (to the left), which was designed by the famous Filippo Brunelleschi. The Palazzo Rucellai (to the right) (designed by Alberti and architected by Rossellino) in Florence, Italy is another example of architectural uniformity during the Early Renaissance. Proportions can be clearly seen throughout the exterior of the building and reflects Roman architecture, which Alberti admired heavily.

The most complex and most high-profile masterpieces and artists to come out of the Italian Renaissance came during the 15th and 16th centuries, which was also known as the High Renaissance. The architectural and artistic styles of the Early Renaissance essentially laid the foundations for the High Renaissance period of art and architecture. These styles were mostly perfected during the High Renaissance. One such example of perfected art is the most famous portrait known as the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci. The Mona Lisa “brings figure and landscape into exquisite harmony: the pyramidal shape of the sitter is echoed in the curves of distant roads and rivers.” (“Renaissance/Baroque Humanities” 59). The

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