Renaissance Art and Humanism

• Artists and writers during the Renaissance expressed individualism through their focus on human potential and achievements, their embrace of classical learning, and their creation of realistic and emotionally expressive works.
• This expression of individualism led to a flourishing of creativity and innovation, and challenged traditional norms and values.

Birth of the Renaissance & the Italian Renaissance

• The Renaissance was a period of renewed interest in classical art and learning in Europe from the 1300s to the 1600s.
• Italian city-states thrived on trade, fostering a wealthy merchant class.
• The Medici family in Florence were patrons of the arts.
• Scholars and artists rediscovered and reinterpreted the classical civilizations of Greece and Rome.
• Humanism, an intellectual movement that focused on human potential and achievements, became prominent.
• Renaissance society became more secular, with a focus on worldly matters rather than solely on religious concerns.
• The "Renaissance Man" was an ideal individual who excelled in many fields, like arts and sciences.
• Renaissance art emphasized perspective, realism, and classical themes.
• Key Renaissance artists include Michelangelo (sculptor, painter), Donatello (sculptor), Leonardo Da Vinci (painter, inventor), Raphael (painter), and Gentileschi (painter).
• Writers began to use the vernacular, their native language, rather than Latin.
• Key Renaissance writers include Boccaccio (writer), Petrarch (poet), Machiavelli (political philosopher), and Vittoria Colonna (poet).

The Northern Renaissance

• Northern Humanists sought to reform society through education and promoting classical literature.
• Erasmus advocated for a Christianity of the heart, not just rules and ceremonies.
• Thomas More wrote "Utopia", about an ideal society.
• William Shakespeare is regarded as the greatest writer in the English language.
• Johann Gutenberg's printing press allowed for the mass production of books.

Luther Leads the Reformation

• The Catholic Church faced issues such as corruption and the sale of indulgences.
• Early reformers like Hus, Wycliffe, and Erasmus challenged the Church's authority.
• Martin Luther protested the sale of indulgences and other Church practices and emphasized salvation through faith alone.
• Indulgences were pardons that released individuals from sins.
• Luther posted his 95 Theses, formal statements criticizing the Church, on a church door in Wittenberg.
• The Protestant Reformation was a religious movement that split the Church.
• Charles V, the Holy Roman Emperor, opposed Luther's teachings.
• Lutheranism, a new religious denomination, emerged based on Luther's teachings.
• The Peace of Augsburg allowed each ruler to decide the religion of their state.
• Henry VIII established the Church of England/Anglican Church after the Pope refused to annul his marriage.
• The Act of Supremacy declared the English monarch the head of the Church of England.

The Scientific Revolution

• The Scientific Revolution was a new way of thinking about the natural world based on observation and experimentation.
• The geocentric theory (Earth-centered) was challenged by the heliocentric theory (sun-centered).
• Copernicus proposed the heliocentric theory.
• Brahe recorded astronomical data.
• Kepler proved that the planets revolve around the sun in elliptical orbits.
• Galileo Galilei's observations supported the heliocentric theory, leading to conflict with the Church.
• Isaac Newton developed the laws of universal gravitation.

Explore the Renaissance, a period of renewed interest in classical art and learning in Europe. Discover how Italian city-states thrived on trade, fostering a wealthy merchant class like the Medici family. Learn how humanism focused on human potential and achievements.