Masterpieces of the Renaissance
Take a closer look at Renaissance masterpieces. In this Expedition you'll travel to the Uffizi Gallery and Piazza della Signoria in Florence, The Doge's Palace in Venice, Campidoglio and Capitoline Museums in Rome and the Frick Collection in New York City.
This story was created for the Google Expeditions project by Smarthistory, now available on Google Arts & Culture
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Uffizi Gallery: The Renaissance Begins
The Uffizi in Florence is a great place to see the beginning of Italian Renaissance art. The paintings in this room date from the late middle ages. They have gold backgrounds, and subjects from the Christian tradition—images of Christ on the cross, and Mary (Christ’s mother) holding her young son.
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During this time, art was nearly always in the service of the Church but soon, artists will become interested in the natural world, and the potential of human beings.
Maesta of Santa Trinita (1280 - 1290) by Cenni di Pepo CimabueUffizi Gallery
Cimabue, Maestà of Santa Trinita, c. 1280-90
This large painting gets its name from the church that it was made for (the Church of Santa Trinita, Florence). Cimabue depicted Mary on a throne—like a queen—surrounded by angels and holding the baby Jesus on her lap.
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Giotto, Ognissanti Madonna, c. 1310
Giotto’s Ognissanti Madonna also shows Mary and Jesus. For Christians, Jesus Christ is God in human form. Here Giotto applied gold to the background, suggesting the light of heaven. But Giotto’s figures look solid and his space is more defined than Cimabue’s.
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Duccio, Rucellai Madonna, 1285-86
Florence, and its rival city-state, Siena produced some of the greatest artists of this period. Duccio worked in Siena, and in this 15-foot high painting he used light and shadow, delicate color, and decorative patterns to depict the divine.
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Botticelli was interested in representing human beauty and was inspired by sculptures of the ideal bodies of gods and goddesses from ancient Greece and Rome. This was a big shift away from the medieval focus on the stories of the Bible.
La Primavera (Spring) (1481 - 1482) by Botticelli FilipepiUffizi Gallery
Botticelli, Primavera, 1477-82
Primavera means “spring.” Flowers bloom all around. In the center, The ancient Roman goddess of Love stands in a garden crowded with graceful nymphs and goddesses—she is associated with April. On the left, the god Mercury (associated with May), wears red.
The birth of Venus (1483 - 1485) by Sandro BotticelliUffizi Gallery
Botticelli, Birth of Venus, 1484-86
An ideally beautiful Venus is born from the foam of the sea as a nymph reaches out to cover her. Botticelli’s Venus is inspired by ancient Greek and Roman sculpture, an example of the Renaissance interest in ancient art and mythology.
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Botticelli, Madonna of the Pomegranate, 1487
Mary, mother of Christ, sits amoung angels. But here the gold background is now blue sky and Jesus looks more like a real baby. The Pomegranate symbolizes an important belief in Christianity—that Christ rose after his death on the cross.
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Venice was then ruled by wealthy noble families and the head of the government was the Doge, whose Palace was decorated by many of the most important artists of the city. We are inside his palace in the enormous Great Council Hall where the nobles met to govern Venice.
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Jacopo Tintoretto, Paradise, 1588/92
Behind where the Doge sat, Tintoretto painted an enormous scene of Paradise. Christ greets his mother surrounded by arcs of holy figures. The archangel Gabriel brings lilies—a symbol of purity and Michael carries a sword and scale—symbols of judgement.
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Veronese, Apotheosis of Venice, 1585
Look up! The ceiling is covered with paintings. The large oval painting by Veronese is the Triumph of Venice. The woman is a symbol of Venice. She is crowned by Fame while other figures represent honor, peace, security, happiness, abundance, and liberty.
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Political power was held instead by wealthy merchants (such as the Medici) and guilds (similar to trade organizations such as wool merchants). The piazza is filled important sculpture and architecture from different periods. Today, this grand public space attracts thousands of tourists.
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Palazzo della Signoria, begun 1299
Palazzo is Italian for palace, and this building, with its thick walls, small windows, and crenellations intentionally looks more like a fortress than a palace, since this was built at time when the Italian city-states were often at war with one another.
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Michelangelo, David, 1501-4 (copy)
The Florentine’s loved Michelangelo 17-foot high David, so much they put it in the Piazza. David defeated the giant Goliath with God’s help and was a symbol of the Florence’s ability to fend off powerful enemies. Today a copy of David remains in the Piazza.
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Cellini, Perseus and Medusa, 1545
This bronze sculpture of Perseus holding the head of the monster Medusa was made for a ruler of Florence (a member of the Medici family). The mythic Medusa had snakes for hair and turned anyone who looked at her to stone.
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We’re also seeing two paintings of the Madonna that speak to the new, High Renaissance style that emerged at the end of the 1400s.
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Raphael, Portrait of Pope Leo X with Cardinals, c. 1518
Pope Leo X is pictured with a cousin and nephew, both cardinals. The date, 1518, is only one year after Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses condemning what he saw as Leo’s abuses, an act that would lead to the Protestant Reformation.
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Raphael, Portrait of Pope Julius II, 1511
Julius II gained the the nickname “the warrior Pope” because he led troops into battle to regain territory. He was ambitious and commissioned the new St. Peter’s Basilica and paintings by Michelangelo and Raphael, including the Sistine Chapel ceiling and this portrait.
Madonna of the Goldfinch (1505 - 1506) by Raffaello SanzioUffizi Gallery
Raphael, Madonna of the Goldfinch, 1505-06
Raphael places Mary, and the infants John the Baptist and Christ in nature. John holds a goldfinch—a symbol of the end of Christ’s life. Christ strokes the head of the bird accepting his fate. The sweetness and elegance are characteristic of Raphael’s art.
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Andrea Del Sarto, Madonna of the Harpies, 1517
Mary holds Jesus in the center of this dynamic composition. See how Mary’s hand and knee move toward us, movements echoed by John (in red). The artist uses brilliant colors and a soft hazy light to unify the figures with the interior.
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Much later Pope Paul III hired Michelangelo to renovate the hill top. The pattern of the pavement was designed by Michelangelo, as was the exterior design of the three buildings that frame the space. The Capitoline Museums are also here.
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Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, c. 173-76 C.E. (copy)
This ancient sculpture of Emperor Marcus Aurelius on horseback was of great interest to Renaissance artists and was particularly revered since it was mistakenly thought to represent Constantine, the Roman emperor who first accepted Christianity. The original is in the Capitoline Museums.
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Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, c. 173-76 C.E.
We are now inside the museum looking at the original 1800 year old sculpture. Look closely at the details, you can see the veins the horse and even some of the gold that once covered the bronze.
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Frick Collection: Piero and Duccio, two Renaissance masters
This small wood-paneled room was Mr. Henry Clay Frick’s study. We can see 9 individual paintings. In the middle ages and the Renaissance separate paintings like this were often joined to form an altarpiece (a painting that stood on the altar in a church).
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As time passed, the paintings were taken apart and ended up in various museums, including the Frick Collection in New York City.
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Piero della Francesca, St. John the Evangelist, 1469
This panel, by Piero della Francesca, was part of a many-paneled altarpiece. John holds a book—likely the gospel he authored. Piero uses bright light and and dark shadow to create a sense of monumentality. The gold halo indicates John’s divinity.
The Temptation of Christ on the Mountain The Temptation of Christ on the Mountain (1308−11) by Duccio di BuoninsegnaThe Frick Collection
Duccio, Temptation of Christ, 1308-11
This was part of a very large altarpiece with many scenes, almost like a cartoon, telling the story of the life of Christ. Here, Christ is tempted by the devil who offers all the kingdoms of the world. Christ says “Be gone Satan!.”
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Paolo and Giovanni Veneziano, Coronation of the Virgin, 1358
Mary is crowned Queen of Heaven by Christ while a choir of angels sing and play music. The two main figures are framed by intricate patterns and deep colors, an expression of the beauty of this Heavenly scene.
