The Impact of the Reformation on Northern European Art: A Study of Patronage and Subject Matter
21.4 Discuss the impact of the Protestant Reformation on the visual arts in northern Europe, focusing your discussion on types of subject matter the patrons sought.
The Reformation in the sixteenth century divided Christianity between Catholics and Protestants. The Protestant Reformation led to a wave of iconoclasm, or the destruction of religious imagery. The relationship with God was reflected in everyday scenes depicted in paintings. Images of Christ, saints, and clergy became less frequent. Artists preferred to paint depictions of human folly and weakness, still lifes, and landscapes.
CH 22
22.1 Summarize the goals and interests of the Counter Reformation, and explain the impact of the Council of Trent on Italian artists working in its wake. It may be helpful to look back to chapters 20 and 21 in forming your answer.
22.2 Discuss how Bernini and Caravaggio established the Baroque style in sculpture and painting, respectively. Locate the defining traits of the period style in at least one work from the chapter by each of these artists.
Bernini’s David is one of the best examples of what the Baroque is about. Created in 1623, it introduces a new three-dimensional type of composition. The David bends at the waist and twists far to one side, ready to launch the rock. Bernini’s David is a twisting figure caught in movement and incorporates the surrounding space within the composition. Thus, the viewer becomes part of the action. Caravaggio painted The Calling of Saint Matthew in 1600. He uses tenebrism to make forms emerge from a dark background into a strong light, resulting in a theatrical spotlight. Viewers have the sense that they are witnessing the scene as it is occurring.
Ch 18
18.1 Explain how oil-painting technique allowed fifteenth-century Flemish painters to achieve unprecedented descriptive effects in their work. Support your answer by discussing one specific work in this chapter.
Since oil was slow to dry, it provided a luminous quality and flexibility. While still wet, changes could be made easily. Flemish painters could create highly detailed paintings.
18.4 Discuss the symbolic meanings that fifteenth-century viewers would have comprehended in the objects contained in the domestic environment of either the Merode Altarpiece or the Arnolfini Double Portrait.
In the painting A Double Portrait of Giovanni Arnolfini and His Wife (1434) by Jan van Eyck, it is full of mystery. We cannot tell whether she is pregnant or just lifting her skirt over her belly. But the luxury and their extravagant clothing indicate they are wealthy. They are surrounded by luxury objects: lavish bed hangings, a sumptuous chandelier, a precious carpet, and extravagant clothes. The crystal prayer beads hanging next to the convex mirror imply the couple’s piety. The mirror is a symbol of the all-seeing eye of God and is framed by scenes of Christ’s passion. The dog symbolizes fidelity, but here it could be another element to express luxury.
Ch. 19
19.1 Discuss Masaccio’s use of linear perspective in either The Tribute Money or Trinity with the Virgin, St. John the Evangelist, and Donors. How does he use this technique? Illustrate your points with a comparative reference to a work discussed earlier in this chapter or in a previous chapter.
19.4 Discuss the 1401 competition to choose an artist to create the bronze doors of the Baptistery. How did the competition affect the careers of the two finalists, Ghiberti and Brunelleschi?
After Ghiberti was declared the winner, Brunelleschi was so disappointed that he went back to Rome and never sculpted again. He refocused his career on buildings and became one of the most important architects of the Italian Renaissance. But for Ghiberti, he was acknowledged as the best artist, became well-known, got more work to do, and was later commissioned to create another set of doors for the Baptistery.
Ch 20
20.2 Write about either Michelangelo’s or Raphael’s extensive work in the Sistine Chapel. How did papal commissions push these two established artists in new creative directions?
In 1507, Pope Julius II ordered Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. The initial order was to replace the star-spangled blue decoration. Later, he wanted 12 apostles seated on thrones on the triangular spandrels between the lunettes framing windows. When Michelangelo objected to the limitations of the Pope’s plan, the Pope told him to paint whatever he wanted, and he did it. Michelangelo assembled a team of expert assistants to work with him. Then, when Leo X became Pope, he commissioned Raphael to produce ten cartoons for a lavish set of tapestries portraying scenes of the lives of Saint Peter and Saint Paul to decorate the chapel’s lower level. The cartoons were created in Raphael’s workshop with the collaboration of his assistants. This was five times more expensive than the Sistine Chapel ceiling.
21.4 Discuss the impact of the Protestant Reformation on the visual arts in northern Europe, focusing your discussion on types of subject matter the patrons sought.
The Reformation in the sixteenth century divided Christianity between Catholics and Protestants. The Protestant Reformation led to a wave of iconoclasm, or the destruction of religious imagery. The relationship with God was reflected in everyday scenes depicted in paintings. Images of Christ, saints, and clergy became less frequent. Artists preferred to paint depictions of human folly and weakness, still lifes, and landscapes.
CH 22
22.1 Summarize the goals and interests of the Counter Reformation, and explain the impact of the Council of Trent on Italian artists working in its wake. It may be helpful to look back to chapters 20 and 21 in forming your answer.
22.2 Discuss how Bernini and Caravaggio established the Baroque style in sculpture and painting, respectively. Locate the defining traits of the period style in at least one work from the chapter by each of these artists.
Bernini’s David is one of the best examples of what the Baroque is about. Created in 1623, it introduces a new three-dimensional type of composition. The David bends at the waist and twists far to one side, ready to launch the rock. Bernini’s David is a twisting figure caught in movement and incorporates the surrounding space within the composition. Thus, the viewer becomes part of the action. Caravaggio painted The Calling of Saint Matthew in 1600. He uses tenebrism to make forms emerge from a dark background into a strong light, resulting in a theatrical spotlight. Viewers have the sense that they are witnessing the scene as it is occurring.