Renaissance Paintings
Renaissance refers to the ’re-birth’ or ‘new beginning’ that gave rise to a new world order. The renaissance age was marked by the spirit of classical antiquity, acceptance of knowledge and education, especially mathematics, humanism, scientific progress, and the return of experimentalism. With the upsurge of knowledge and vision, new techniques bringing a radical change in the creation of all the art forms including poetry, fine arts, and architecture was noted. The emergence of the Italian Renaissance is often addressed as the ‘modern epoch’. The period represented the advancement of Europe from a long period of ignorance and uncertainty, thus reflecting its influence on all the social and cultural aspects including arts and painting.
One of the major characteristics of renaissance paintings is eclecticism reflecting the synthesis of a number of different trends. The Gothic characteristics of the earlier periods were eventually diluted, by a tendency of naturalistic representation of objects using oil as the medium of painting. Attracted by the fame and reputation of the Italian schools Spanish artists flocked to Italy. The entire form of paintings thus, went through an aesthetic transformation, contributing to the growth of the Renaissance spirit. Great masters of Arts such as Leonardo, Michelangelo, and Raphael were some of the famous Renaissance artists, who represented the typical spirit of the new age of reasoning and knowledge.
The essential characteristic that distinguishes renaissance paintings of Italy, Germany, and France is the primary focus on the topic or subject matter rather than the style. A departure from the mythological themes and the cult of nude painting relates typically to the Renaissance genre of painting. An ascetic mysticism, and sensuality derived from the pagan themes, and the aesthetic belief of art for art’s sake marked this class of paintings.
While the first half of the Renaissance paintings depicted religious themes, the second half produced portraits depicting figurative themes. Artists dealing with humanism emerged whose spirit of humanity was reflected in the representation of materials and tactile qualities. Artists such as Pantoja also created paintings with dark and light combinations. The last half of Renaissance painting produced artists such as Pablo de Cespedes who ushered in a new concept of painting.