WHAT IS THE RENAISSANCE, WHY DOES IT MATTER?
Michelagelo’s David, is widely considered the Renaissance’s most representative piece of art. On display in the Accademia Gallery in Florence)
Why does it matter?
Simply put, the world would not exist as you and I know it without the Renaissance. We might still be living in a world dominated by the church, thinking that the sun revolves around the Earth. There might have been no printing press, no banking, no scientific method, no republican-democracies, basically the foundations of our modern world may not exist or would have happened much later.
What was it?
The term is the English translation of “Rinascita” meaning rebirth, and was first coined by Giorgio Vasari in the 16th century who is considered the first art historian. It was meant to describe a period in which classical (ancient Greek and Roman) art, architecture, mythology and philosophy was reborn after the so-called Dark Ages. A new method of understanding and learning about and the world took hold, Humanism, this new philosophy put man at the center of the natural world and looked to improve civic life through knowledge, science, reason and the re-discovery of ancient culture. During this period, artists rediscovered perspective, light, mythological themes, their works were no longer limited to Christian themes and stories; architects brought back classical proportions, roman arches, columns and domes to their buildings; classic literature and philosophy texts were no longer confined to monasteries and churches which had housed them since the fall of the Roman Empire.
When did it happen?
“When?” is a tricky question when talking about historical periods. In history class we are usually forced to memorize dates and events, then graded based on that. While this may be a good way to learn about wars, their timing and their consequences, it is a totally wrong way to think about historical and cultural periods. People did not wake up on Jan 1st 1400 and say “Well I guess we are in the Renaissance now”,The transition from the Medieval age to the Renaissance was slow and gradual, you could say that the two periods overlapped for nearly a century. Most historians would agree that the first Renaissance works were those of painter Giotto di Bondoni, and writer/poet and father of the Italian language Dante Allighieri; both lived between the late 1200's and early 1300's. The end of the Renaissance is usually dated around 1600 and subsequent artistic and philosophical movements like the Baroque period, or the Enlightenment simply continued what the Renaissance had started.
Where did it occur?
Historians agree that this particular historical period began in the Tuscan city of Florence which earned it the nickname “cradle of the Renaissance”. From there the artistic and architectural style and the philosophy behind it spread to the rest of Italy then to the rest of Europe. During the Renaissance Florence became one of the most important cities in Europe and was a capital of finance, commerce, art and culture.
Why?
This is also a tricky question for historians as there are a number of factors that could be considered to have caused the Renaissance, historians attribute the start of this period to the following circumstances and events.
Republican city-states- unlike other nation states like France, England and Spain where autocratic monarchs ruled, Florence and many other Italian city states were republics. Because of its strong artisanal culture Florence itself was governed through its artisanal and commercial guilds, this form of government likely contributed to the city's rise as an artistic and cultural hub.
The Plague of 1348- which killed as much as 70% of the population in some cities, caused a serious demographic, political and social crisis that had a profound effect on society.
Commerce- Most historians place a large emphasis on the fact that many Italian city-states moved on from feudal society, to more mercantile and commercial societies; thanks in large part to Christian pilgrims travelling to Rome and the peninsula's geographic position at the center of profitable trade routes.
Surroundings- All throughout the Italian peninsula the ruins of the incredible Roman buildings, their lifelike paintings and statues were rediscovered, sparking an interest in recreating the splendor of ancient architecture and art.
Who made it happen?
We could name many, many artists, poets and philosophers that were of immense talent and importance, like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Machiavelli, Petrarca, Rafael, Donatello, Botticelli just to name a few. However it is likely that all of these artists would not have been able to develop their talents and create their masterpieces without the Medici Family.
The Medici Family- Its patriarch Giovanni de Bicci de' Medici, came from a family of wool merchants and unlike most successful men at the time he was not a nobleman. After learning the Florentine banking system from his uncle Vieri de' Medici, he went on to found the Medici Bank. Within one generation the Medici became one of the richest and most powerful families in the world.
Despite his wealth, Giovanni was considered a man of the people because the loans provided by the Medici bank to merchants and small shopkeepers kept many in business or lifted them out of poverty. It was this sensibility towards common people and his son's classical education that would lay the foundation for the Renaissance. With the Medici’s generational patronage of the arts, combined with a strong and already established class of artisans and craftsmen, Florence was perfectly poised to become a cultural capital of Europe. Giovanni de’ Medici’s descendants directly or indirectly ruled or influenced Florence for the next 400 years.
