Art 2 test # 2
Facts about Venus of Urbino
-Created for the duke of Urbino for his private enjoyment. -Based on an earlier painting of Venus by Giorgione. -He establishes the compositional elements of the reclining female nude. -"Venus" is reclining on her pillowed couch with a balancing figure of sleeping lapdog. -In the background two servants searching for clothes stored in a chest. -In the distance is a window that opens to a landscape. -Each section masterfully divides space into progressively smaller units.
Facts about El Greco
-Domenikos Theotocopoulos (El Greco) was born in Crete but moved to Italy as a young man. -He studied in Venice with Tintoretto and knew Titian and his work. -He was enamored of the work of Raphael and Michelangelo. -Later moves to Toledo, Spain where he spent the rest of his life. -His Byzantine background was combined with the influences of the Venetian painting and Italian Mannerists elements. -His paintings are emotional, colorful, strong movement, and elongated distortion.
The Burial of Count Orgaz
-El Greco -1586 -Oil on canvas -16'x 12'
Resurrection
-El Greco -About 1597-1604 -Oil on canvas -9'x4'10"
The Concert
-Giorgione da Castelfranco -1508 -Oil on Canvas -41" x 53" -Shows two travelers who met on the road -The women may not even be real, but representative of the sounds of nature around them -The glow of the colors is haunting and radiating -Dull colors in the background
Abduction of the Sabine Woman
-Giovanni Bologna -1583 -Marble, 13'
What could artists do to an oil painting because of its ability to stay wet a long time?
Artists could linger over a painting to produce a glowing effect with colors because it stayed wet and workable for days
What is the difference between Doge Andrea Gritti and the Battle of San Romano
Doge Andrea Gritti- Smooth patches, loose strokes Battle of San Romano - Tight strokes
The artists had very _____ and _______ approaches to subject matter.
Individual and expressionistic
How Giorgione da Castelfranco did paint?
Inspired by the radiant surroundings in Venice, he avoided hard edges and bathed his subjects in soft, golden light
Painterly
Involves creating forms with patches of color rather than precise hard edges
What did Mannerism stress?
Mannerism stressed unique approaches, much like modern art where there is a great variety of visual expression.
According the Vasari, there was hardly a noble of high rank, scarcely a prince or lady of great name, whose portrait was not painted by _________
Titian
Everyone who was anyone had their portrait painted by ______
Titian
The Entombment
Titian The Entombment -C. 1520 -Oil on canvas -58" x 84" -Giorgione's influence -Titian's figures are active -More powerfully built and expressive -Giorgione's influence and his ability to add vitality to the figures creates a highly emotional scene
What did Byzantine influence required them to do?
Byzantine influence required them to strive for rich color
What influence did other Italian Renaissance cities have?
Greek and Roman influence
El Greco's life span
(1541-1614)
Titian
-After the death of Giorgione da Castelfranco, Titian carried on his legacy -He lived much longer, but also died of the plague -He was a noble's artist and painted the portraits of many royal and privileged individuals
Villa Capra
-Andrea Palladio -begun 1550 -Vicenza, Italy
Perseus and Medusa
-Benvenuto Cellini -1545-1554 -Bronze, 18'
Facts and symbolism in Perseus and Medusa
-Cellini was an author, as well as an excellent goldsmith and sculptor in bronze. -Perseus and Medusa stands in the Piazza della Signoria in Florence. -Perseus holds the severed head of Medusa, whose blood is turning to precious coral strands as it pours from from body and head. -The ornamental strands and highly decorated pedestal add to this Mannerist sculpture.
Facts and symbolism in Resurrection
-Christ soars effortlessly toward heaven, carrying a victory banner. -Soldiers seem to be flung apart by his explosive power of His resurrection. -Most of the space is filled with figures which draws the viewer's eyes up to the Christ figure. -His works bend the rules of Renaissance painting to create powerful and unique expressions.
Facts about The Burial of Count Orgaz
-Considered the artist's masterpiece, it was painted in 1586 for the church of San Tomé in Toledo, Spain. -The theme illustrates legend of the Count Orgaz. -The Count, who had died some two centuries before, had been so saintly that Saints Stephen and Augustine had miraculously descended from heaven to help him. -The work is divided into two sections. The lower part is sixteenth century on earth, the upper part is eternal and in heaven. - The faces in the lower half are portraits of El Greco's friends in Toledo, as well as himself and his son.
Facts and symbolism in Christ at the Sea of Galilee
-Most dramatic painter of the 16th Century. -He filled huge walls with canvases of soaring and hurtling figures. -His figures were mostly religious and sprang from a strong faith. -He would arrange small models on stages and suspend some from wires to set up the composition and see foreshortening correctly. -Scene depicts Christ's disciples on a boat in the Sea of Galilee when a storm arose. -Christ is walking toward them on the water, when Peter asks if he could walk toward Christ. -Tintoretto shows the moment of psychological tension when the viewer wonders if he will make it.
Facts and symbolism in Abduction of the Sabine Woman
-Most original sculptor between Michelangelo and Bernini. -This work was carved from a single block of marble. -The muscular central figure carries away the Sabine woman as her father crouches in defeat. -The three figures are intertwined in a spiraling composition that seems difficult to unravel like many of the Mannerist paintings. -Viewers need to move around the sculpture to see the complete work which has parts of arms, legs, and heads, which seem to flail outward at various angles creating a feeling of violent action and tension.
4 facts about Giorgione da Castelfranco
-One of the first great Venetian masters -Died of the plague in his early thirties -We only have a handful of paintings that we know he painted -Among the first to emphasize the landscape
Christ in the House of Levi
-Paolo Veronese -1573 -Oil on canvas -18'2" x 42'
The Madonna with the Long Neck
-Parmigianino -C. 1535 -Oil on panel -85" x 52"
The Descent from the Cross
-Rosso Fiorentino -1521 -Oil on panel -11'x 6' 5 1/2"
Facts and symbolism about The Descent from the Cross
-Shocked artists by rejecting Renaissance ideas by crowding figures into a tight composition with open space in the center. -Spidery forms spread out against a dark sky was unexpected for contemporary Italians. -The figures are agitated, yet frozen in time. -The acid colors and lighting produce an unreal scenario. -Rosso's work went against the Classical tradition of Renaissance painting, which emphasized balance and harmony.
Self-Portrait at the Easel
-Sofonisba Anguissola -1556 -Oil on canvas -2'2" x 1'11"
Facts and symbolism in The Madonna with the Long Neck
-The Madonna is seated on a pedestal and clothed in beautiful robes with the baby Jesus on her lap. -To the left are four angels crowded around the Madonna, looking admiringly on the baby. -St. Jerome is on the lower right (the saint is connected to the worship of the Virgin Mary.) -The Madonna's proportions are elongated to make her appear more elegant and graceful. -An oversized Christ child is on the Madonna's lap. -The child's arm is dangling freely almost suggestive of death.
Symbolism in The Burial of Count Orgaz
-The angel bearing Orgaz's soul to heaven looks like a small doll and unites the upper portion with the lower portion. -The upward gaze of the priest to the left also makes the viewer look up. -The figures on earth are painted realistically, while the heavenly figures are elongated, with fluttering draperies, and giant swirls of clouds.
Facts and symbolism in the Villa Capra
-This villa is sometimes called the Villa Rotunda because of its dome and central plan. -Classical forms such as the dome, Ionic columns, pediments, and arches are used. -The central cube has porches on all four sides that enlarge the form to a more horizontal feeling of grace and stability. -The building has a quiet elegance of Mannerism rather than the severe discipline of Renaissance architecture. -Palladio has had an influence on world architecture and the emergence of a style that bears his name-Palladian. -(Thomas Jefferson was influenced by him when he built Monticello.)
Crucifixion
-Tintoretto -1565 -Oil on canvas -17 ½' x 40'
Christ at the Sea of Galilee
-Tintoretto -About 1580 -Oil on canvas -46" x 66 ½"
Facts and symbolism in Crucifixion
-Tintoretto's masterpiece is the series of over fifty canvases in the School of San Rocco in Venice, which he spent 23 years creating. -The largest canvas is the Crucifixion which is overpowering in its visual effect. -The foreground figures are over-life-size. -The upward thrust of the cross seems to crush Christ against the top border. -There are groups of soldiers, horses, disciples, and Mary which are flooded by dramatic light that seems to emanate from the head of Christ. This unreal light counteracted the natural light used by Renaissance painters.
Venus of Urbino
-Titian -1538 -Oil on canvas -4' x 5' 6"
Doge Andrea Gritti
-Titian -C. 1546-48 -Oil on Canvas -52" x 40" -Titian's greatest fame was a painter of portraits -He was able to capture the essence of a man -What type of man is this?
Facts an symbols in Christ in the House of Levi
-Veronese emphasized the material beauty of marble, gold, textiles, and other materials of great value. -Symmetrically balanced like Renaissance paintings. -The figures are placed in a Classical architectural setting. -Christ is seated in the center and surrounded by men of high station and their servants. -The work was originally called The Last Supper, however, the Inquisition charged him with impiety for including drunkards and dwarfs in such a solemn occasion. As a result, he changed the title, rather than changing the painting.
What left its mark on Venice?
A history of close contact with the East (Byzantine Empire) left its mark on Venice
What did Giorgione use landscape for?
Before him, artists had used the landscape to fill the space around the figures. Giorgione used the landscape to set the stage and create a mood in his paintings.
What was Byzantine art interested in doing?
Byzantine art was interested in offering a glimpse of the next world rather than perfectly portraying this one
What happened in the new Venice painting school?
Emphasis was placed on color and painting technique
What does Mannerism feature?
Features crisp and frozen shapes, elongated bodies, distorted forms, and peculiar perspective views.
What did Giorgione do?
He was one of the first artists to place importance on the landscape.
What was the wealth condition of Titian.
He was rich and famous! His fame was comparable to Michelangelo
What were more suitable than fresco?
Oil paints were more suitable than the frescos that dominated other Italian Renaissance paintings
Facts and symbolism in Self-Portrait at the Easel
Sofonisba shows herself in the act of painting, applying mixed pigments to a canvas that depicts the Virgin and Christ Child tenderly kissing. -She gazes outward—as if we have just interrupted her in mid-stroke. Her expression is calm and reserved. -A maulstick (a common device used to support the artist's hand) held in her left hand supports her right hand as she touches the brush to the canvas. -The artist wears a simple black dress—possibly to connote modesty and virtue. Her simple fashion embodies the woman of court. -She is credited with introducing a genre, or everyday activity, into formal portraiture.
Mannerism styles
There was not a single dominant style, but a mix of styles that were extensions of the Renaissance.
What did the people of Venice continue to show in their art?
They continued to show a love of color, light, and texture
What did Venetian artists do with their Byzantine art influence?
Venetian artists adapted this to their taste and knowledge gained from the Renaissance
