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The Renaissance and the Baroque Period

The Renaissance and the Baroque Period

Introduction

Art has always been a form of expression and with each historical era, new techniques and advances emerged. Every era has its own unique characteristics and style, influenced by the social conditions of that time and also inspired by the earlier period of history. Renaissance period brought revolution in every aspect of life and so was the case with arts. Renaissance art left its mark on every upcoming era and the Baroque era is also influenced by it while having its own characteristics.

Discussion

Renaissance Era

The period from approximately 1400 to 1650 when Western Europe underwent a series of radical changes in art, literature, religion, and politics.. Though the term may refer to any period characterized by artistic vitality or advanced thought, it traditionally refers to the 14th-, 15th-, and 16th-century cultures of Italy, France, Spain, England, Germany, and the Low Countries (Janson and Janson, 2004).

In the visual arts, sculptors studied anatomy in order to be able to portray the human body realistically. Painting—the dominant art of the age—also developed techniques to capture light and shadow and to give a sense of three-dimensionality. While the visual arts continued to focus on religious themes, more and more painters and sculptors honored wealthy patrons with portraits and statues (Bohn and Saslow, 2013). Stories from the Roman writer Ovid's Metamorphoses inspired many works of art.

Baroque Era

The origin of term “Baroque” is from the Portuguese language which means “irregular pearl”. The Baroque era was given the name to depict the irregularity and strangeness. The era started at late 16th century and lasted till the mid 17th century. The religious conflicts that emerged during the Renaissance with the appearance of Reformation and Counter Reformation influenced the art of that time to greater extent. Art during the Baroque period is marked with an impression of apprehension and progression (Janson and Janson, 2004). The practice of using distinction of shadows and light and abundance of quantity of space are famous techniques of that era. Realism and passionate spirituality were also utilized in the art of Baroque era. Artists used to portray individual personalities, emotions, passions and thoughts with the help of their facial expressions. It is said that the Baroque art was an exaggerated form of Renaissance art style (Carl and Charles, 2009).

Relationship between Renaissance and Baroque Period

The art works created during both Renaissance and baroque ...