Contents:

Introduction………2
Origin of the name…………..2
Architecture……………….3,4
Art………………5
Literature…………..6
Science……………..6
Sculpture…………..7
fashion ……………..7,8

1
 The Renaissance

Introduction
The period of European history referred to as the Renaissance was a time of great
social and cultural change in Europe. Generally speaking, the Renaissance spanned
from the 14th to the 16th centuries, spreading across Europe from its birthplace in
Italy. During the Middle Ages, Italy was not the unified country that it is today.
The Italian Peninsula was instead made up of a number of independent city-states,
most of which were ruled by powerful families.
The Renaissance also represented a break away from the conformist society and
culture of medieval Europe.
The most notable changes experienced during the Renaissance were in the fields of
art and architecture, literature, philosophy and science. In was in these disciplines
that new trends and fresh styles emerged, inspired by Europe's ancient history.

Origin of the name

The term 'renaissance' is derived from the French word meaning 'rebirth'. It is used
to describe this phase of European history because many of the changes
experienced between the 14th and 16th centuries were inspired by a revival of the
classical art and intellect of Ancient Greece and Rome.
The Renaissance was a time of great social and cultural change in Europe. It was a
period characterised by innovation, imagination and creativity. The Renaissance
was also a time during which Europe's classical past was revisited and
reinvigorated. Much of the inspiration behind cultural movements of the
Renaissance came from people's attempts to emulate (imitate and improve) the
legacies of classical European societies, such as Ancient Rome and Greece.

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Architecture

The European architecture of the period between the early 14th and early 17th
centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development
of certain elements of ancient Greek and Roman thought and material culture.
Developed first in Florence, with Filippo Brunelleschi as one of its innovators, the
Renaissance style quickly spread to other Italian cities. The style was carried to
France, Germany, England, Russia and other parts of Europe at different dates and
with varying degrees of impact.

Characteristics
Renaissance style places emphasis on symmetry, proportion, geometry and the
regularity of parts as they are demonstrated in the architecture of classical antiquity
and in particular ancient Roman architecture, of which many examples remained.
Orderly arrangements of columns, pilasters and lintels, as well as the use of
semicircular arches, hemispherical domes, niches and aedicules replaced the more
complex proportional systems and irregular profiles of medieval buildings.
The obvious distinguishing features of Classical Roman architecture were adopted
by Renaissance architects. However, the forms and purposes of buildings had
changed over time, as had the structure of cities.

Plan
The plans of Renaissance buildings have a
square, symmetrical appearance in which
proportions are usually based on a module.
Within a church, the module is often the width of
an aisle. The need to integrate the design of the
plan with the façade was introduced as an issue in
the work of Filippo Brunelleschi, but he was
never able to carry this aspect of his work into
fruition.

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Façade
Façades are symmetrical around their vertical axis. Church façades are generally
surmounted by a pediment and organised by a system of pilasters, arches and
entablatures. The columns and windows show a progression towards the centre.
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.

Columns and pilasters

The Roman orders of columns are used:- Tuscan,
Doric, Ionic, Corinthian and Composite. The orders
can either be structural, supporting an arcade or
architrave, or purely decorative, set against a wall in
the form of pilasters.

Arches
Arches are semi-circular or (in the Mannerist style) segmental. Arches are often
used in arcades, supported on piers or columns with capitals. There may be a
section of entablature between the capital and the springing of the arch.

Vaults
Vaults do not have ribs. They are semi-circular or segmental and on a square plan,
unlike the Gothic vault which is frequently rectangular.

Domes
The dome is used frequently, both as 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 internally.
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Renaissance Art
Renaissance patrons wanted art that showed joy in human beauty and life’s
pleasures. Renaissance art is more lifelike than in the art of the Middle Ages.
Renaissance artists studied perspective, or the differences in the way things look
when they are close to something or far away. The artists painted in a way that
showed these differences. As a result, their paintings seem to have depth.
An artist from Florence named Giotto was one of the first to paint in this new style.
Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452 in the village of Vinci. His name means
Leonardo of Vinci. Leonardo began his career working for a master painter in
Florence. By 1478, Leonardo left his master and set up his own workshop. People
have been trying to guess the secret behind the smile of his Mona Lisa ever since
he painted it around 1505.

Art
Unlike the artistic styles of the earlier Middle Ages, which placed more importance
on symbolism than reality, renaissance art was more life-like and contained
perspective. Painters began to depict the human form with increasing accuracy,
which was enabled by a better understanding of human anatomy.

5
Literature
The Renaissance was also a time of great literary change. Writers and poets looked
back to the poems and texts of Ancient Greece and Rome. Renaissance literature
dealt much more with human characteristics and behaviours, shifting away from
the religious and metaphysical subjects of earlier Medieval books, poems and
plays. With the invention of the printing press in the 1440s, information suddenly
became much more accessible to the general public, which had a huge impact on
the field of education.
The earliest Renaissance literature appeared in Italy in the 14th century; Petrarch,
Machiavelli and Ariosto are notable examples of Italian Renaissance writers.
Francesco Petrarch
• Known as the Father of Humanism (early
Renaissance thinker 1304-1374)
• (Wrote to letters to Roman poets that died hundreds
of years before Petrarch was born)
• Most famous work: Il Canzoniere, contained
sonnets written to his love, Laura

Science
Science and engineering were other fields that experienced
major changes during the Renaissance. Many new and
exciting discoveries were made, mainly in the areas of
anatomy, astronomy and physics. Breakthroughs in
engineering also paved the way for many of the world's most
significant inventions, such as telescopes, clocks and
spectacles.

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Sculpture
proper is often taken to begin with the famous competition for the
doors of the Florence Baptistry in 1403, from which the trial models
submitted by the winner, Lorenzo Ghiberti, and Filippo Brunelleschi
survive. Ghiberti's doors are still in place, but were undoubtedly
eclipsed by his second pair for the other entrance, the so-called
"Gates of Paradise", which took him from 1425 to 1452. The
intervening years had seen Ghiberti's early assistant Donatello
develop with seminal statues including his Davids in marble (1408–
09) and bronze (1440s), and his Equestrian statue of Gattamelata, as
well as reliefs.
The period was marked by a great increase in
patronage of sculpture by the state for public art and
by the wealthy for their homes; especially in Italy,
public sculpture remains a crucial element in the
appearance of historic city centres. Church sculpture
mostly moved inside just as outside public monuments
became common. Portrait sculpture, usually in busts,
became popular in Italy.
Michelangelo was an active sculptor from about 1500
to 1520, and his great masterpieces including his
David, Pietà, Moses, and pieces for the Tomb of Pope
Julius II and Medici Chapel could not be ignored by subsequent sculptors.

Fashion
Renaissance fashion and costumes mirrored the advancing culture, as increasing
trade made more clothing materials available. Nobility dressed themselves in
elaborate and brightly colored robes, gowns and other vestments. The upper class
reserved silk for themselves, and in some areas, peasants were forbidden to possess
it. Embroidery of gold and silver thread would be sewn to form fanciful designs
depicting scences from legends, nature or religion.

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Fashion represented a big status symbol during the Renaissance. The wealthy were
literally "wearing their wealth" as the expensive clothing helped establish a
reputation of wealth for the owner.