HISTORY: Early Renaissance Architecture

Early Renaissance Architecture

Renaissance- from M. F., rebirth, from O. F. renaistre to be born again- started 14th to 17th century in Italy and later spread to the rest of Europe“Early Modern” - it falls between the medieval period and the industrial revolutionFlorence – birthplace of Renaissance

Early Renaissance- Growing importance of the upper bourgeoisie (especially merchants, bankers)- Expansion of industry and world trade; voyages of exploration begin- Commercial and financial dominance of Flanders and Italy- Increased patronage of the arts by wealthy individuals

Culture- revival of learning based on classical sources, the rise of courtly and papal patronage, the development of perspective in painting, and advancements in science- wide-ranging consequences in all pursuits but is best known for its artistic aspects

DemographicItaly, 13,000,000Spain and Portugal, 10,000,000France, 16,000,000, in its boundaries in 1600England and Wales, 4,500,000Scotland and Ireland, 2,000,000Netherlands, 3,000,000, including the Spanish Netherlands in 1600Denmark, 600,000Sweden, Norway, and Finland: 1,400,000Poland with Prussia: 3,000,000Germany: 20,000,000

TechnologyPrinting press - most important technological innovation of the time- led to a higher literacy rate

 "Man is the measure of all things.“ - Protagoras

(Basilica of Sant'Andrea, Mantua by Alberti)

Characteristics- Plans were square, symmetrical appearance in which proportions are usually based on a module which is often the width of an aisle

(Basilica of Sant'Andrea, Mantua by Alberti)

Characteristics- Arches are often used in arcades, supported on piers or columns with capitals

Characteristics- The Roman orders of columns are used:- Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian and Composite which can be structural or decorative- architects aimed to use columns, pilasters, and entablatures as an integrated system Old Sacristy, Brunelleschi

Characteristics- Vaults do not have ribs. They are semi-circular or segmental and on a square plan, unlike the Gothic vault which is frequently rectangular(Basilica of Sant'Andrea, Alberti)

Characteristics- Dome is a very large structural feature that is visible from the exterior, and also as a means of roofing smaller spaces where they are only visible internallyFlorence Cathedral’s Dome, Brunelleschi

Characteristics- Façades are symmetrical around their vertical axis- Church façades are generally surmounted by a pediment and organized by a system of pilasters, arches and entablaturesCathedral of Pienza, Rossellino

Characteristics- Domestic buildings are often surmounted by a cornice- There is a regular repetition of openings on each floor, and the centrally placed door is marked by a feature such as a balcony, or rusticated surround Palazzo Rucellai, Alberti

Architectural Materials

- Italian Renaissance construction used materials like stone, marble, terracotta tile and stucco (a mortar mixture)- Watermills to saw timber and convert trees to planks

Filippo Brunelleschi- More interested in construction rather than the visual appearance of Roman buildings- one of the founding fathers of Renaissance- best known for his work on the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (the Duomo) in Florence

Science of Florence Cathedral's Dome - Building up the dome in a succession of horizontal courses as in the concrete dome of the Pantheon - Giving it a double shell so as to reduce the weight, a device borrowed from the baptistery of Pisa - Echoing Gothic rib construction by stretching the outer skin of the de over a frame of 24 ribs - Giving the dome a pointed profile because it exerts less side thrust

Foundling Hospital (1419) 1st in Europe to have its elegantly arcaded loggia

Pazzi Chapel

Church of Santo Spirito

Church of Santo Lorenzo

Leon Battista Alberti- provided the first theory of what we now call linear perspective in his book, Della Pittura- His book De Re Aedificatoria was the first architectural book published in moveable type (1485) and was instrumental in reviving the Classical style of architecture- architecture was not merely a means of constructing buildings; it was a way to create meaning

LINEAR PERSPECTIVE

Church of Sant’Andrea Palazzo Rucellai, Florence

 Baptistery of San Giovanni

Michelozzo di Bartolomeo- architect under

patronage of the Medici family- He was one of the first architects to work in the Renaissance style outside Italy, building a palace at Dubrovnik- has respected the Florentine liking for rusticated stone

Palazzo Medici Riccardi

Dubrovnik Palace

Donato Bramante- if a building's design is perfect, nothing could be either added to or subtracted from it without ruining the design- first great Renaissance architect in Rome, working on St. Peter's, the Vatican and the Tempietto in S. Pietro in Montorio, Rome

Santa Maria delle Grazie

Tempietto - San Pietro in Montorio

QUESTIONS

How did Brunelleschi come up with the science behind the Florence Cathedral’s dome?

Why did the Renaissance started in Florence, not in other parts of Italy?

What’s the difference between domestic buildings and churches in terms of their facade?

What’s the importance of the printing press during the Renaissance period?

What makes the Early Renaissance architecture different from Roman architecture?

Video• https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=Vufba_ZcoR0

Sourceshttp://regentsprep.org/regents/global/themes/goldenages/ren.htmhttp://libguides.lib.msu.edu/c.php?g=96083http://

www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/renaissance

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/itar/hd_itar.htm

http://www.pitt.edu/~tokerism/0040/syl/src1030.html