Anatolys Art History: The Renaissance and Humanism

Anatoly's Art History

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

RENAISSANCEAND

HUMANISM

Renaissance & HumanismBackground

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

It is impossible to write about the length of theRenaissance period while neglecting to mention therise of humanism.Though not strictly an art­basedrevelation, the rise of humanism certainly had an

impact on the art and culture of the period.

Renaissance & HumanismBackground

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

Placing a strong focus on humankind, scientificreasoning, man’s image, and how our intellect

reflects on us as a species, humanism’s rise can beattributed in part to the invention of movable printand a surge in the popularity of older philosophical

texts.

HumanismWhat Is It?

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

"An outlook or system of thought attaching primeimportance to human rather than divine or

supernatural matters. Humanist beliefs stress thepotential value and goodness of human beings,

emphasize common human needs, and seek solelyrational ways of solving human problems."

–Dictionary.com

HumanismIn Simpler Terms

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

In simple terms, the embrace and rebirth ofhumanism represented a step towards science and

away from religion. This was reflected in the art,culture and people of the time.

Humanism& Art

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

The spread of this scientific approach had tangibleimpacts on the art and artists of the time–take for

example, da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man (see background).

There was a heightened concentration on proportionsand on realism in the art that dominated the

period–something that has remained a mainstay insome art today.

Re-Birthof Humanism

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

While the Renaissance period represented a rise inhumanism, it certainly did not represent the birth ofthe movement. The texts of the past that were dug upand meticulously studied at the time– classical texts

that had been lost for years.

These texts, which lead to a rise in humanism andintellectualism lead to enormous changes not only in

the style of the art, as mentioned above, but thesubjects as well.

A ShiftFrom Religion

Anatoly "Tony" Vanetik

Most art prior to the High Renaissance was inspired byreligion, a central piece in art for almost as long as art

has existed.

But these rediscovered texts helped lead to a scientificrevolution, pushing some artists away from painting

religion and into the arms of scientific reasoning, studyand deeply­rooted intellectualism.

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