Roles Of Women In Renaissance Art

The age of the Renaissance was one of wonder, discovery, and new horizons. In particular, there is the idea of the power of the individual and what a “self-made” man, or woman sometimes, (usually in this era) can do with it. Many forms of this took place during the Renaissance and thought different means. In politics, this line of thought and behavior was exemplified by the role of the courtier. A courtier was represented by their rank and service to a ruler or prince in Renaissance Italy, particular their code of conduct with their actions. This was one way in which a person expressed their individualism to the outside world. The courtier figure was supposed to be a civilized model for all around him and this reflected in his or her decisions.
The historical period represented a way for many people to express their interests and talent in something. The artist, Giorgio Vasari chronicled the lives to two notable Renaissance individuals. These two are the artists Leonardo Da Vinci (1452-1519) and Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564). For Vasari, these two men were driven by their curiosities and their interests in the world to explore it as they wished. Leonardo focused on a scientific view of nature and this was reflected in his artwork. While Michelangelo was more prolific than Da Vinci, his works still have a distinctive look and feel to them. An example of Michelangelo’s style is when he was chosen to create a Pieta, “In the body of the dead Christ, to say nothing of the admirable draperies, is shown the absolute perfection of research in anatomy; every vein, every muscle, every nerve is perfectly rendered as it appears in death.” From this one example we can see how Michelangelo placed an importance of this own artistic vision to become a reality and set his one distinct individual mark on the Renaissance period. Michelangelo also his lifelong interest in both piety and pagan imagery. When he was commissioned to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome, Michelangelo was initially unhappy but threw himself into that work. “…from 1508 to 1512, Michelangelo with intense, ceaseless, creative energy filled the space with images of
This level of individual curiosity is one of the reason he is remembered today and noted by Vasari. In essence these two figures made their individual creative mark by creating in their artwork images that were original and impressive to the Renaissance Italy. Michelangelo was beloved at the time of his death and Vasari wrote about the raising of his funeral bier, “Blessed was he who could get a shoulder under it! All desired the glory of having borne to earth the remains of the greatest man ever know to the arts.” While the passing of Leonardo Da Vinci in 1519, Vasari wrote in these words in The Lives of the Artists, “The death of Leonardo caused great sorrow to all who had known him. Nor was there ever an artist who did more to honor the art of painting.” So it seems that these two artists made heavy contributions to the intellectual and artistic movements that diffused though-out the Renaissance