High Renaissance Art Analysis

High Renaissance art, emerged in the 16th century, was characterized by the rebirth of Antiquity, the emphasis on human beauty and knowledge, the naturalistic depiction of body type and body proportion achieved by artists’ advanced study of science and anatomy. During this period, the popular ideology, individualism, praised talented individuals, so that many masters of art were appreciated by the society. Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino (1483-1520), known as Raphael, is one of those art masters who epitomized the characteristics of High Renaissance art. He was famous for his Madonnas, which unified the human beauty and the devotion. Although he learned from different masters, he was also able to create his own harmonious, clear, and illuminating

Leonardo’s chiaroscuro skill was unprecedented, as his paintings can present subtle changes of light and shadow on the face of the figures. Moreover, because he believed that a high-quality painting should be integrated into the wall, his painting style was painterly. It modified the contour of the figures, thus the softness of skin and a stronger three-dimensional sense of space were created. In Virgin of the Rocks and The Virgin and Child with St. Anne, the facial expression of Madonna is implicative but gentle and kind, which is achieved by the modest changes of light and shadow on her face. The chiaroscuro around her mouth creates a tender and caring smile. Raphael studied Leonardo’s Madonnas carefully, as he was determined that Leonardo was the best master to study the expression of figures and elegant forms. For instance, in his Madonna in the Meadow, he imitated the facial appearance of Leonardo’s Madonna, the painterly style, as well as the skill of chiaroscuro. Raphael’s Madonna looks down and slightly turns to the left, with her eyes caringly focuses on the two children. The corner of her mouth rises gently, and her skin is smooth and soft. All of these details resembles Leonardo’s Madonna, which improve the gentleness and softness in his

Santi was a leading renaissance painter, poet, and courtier, who preferred light tone and color of high saturation. For instance, his in The Virgin and Child (fig.5), Mary wears a bright red dress, which contrasts with the green lining of the cloak. Moreover, through the window decorated with a tapestry of complicated pattern, an exuberant landscape is depicted using bright colors. Raphael started learning painting at a very young age with his father. Therefore, Santi’s colorful style might have had enlightened Raphael’s talent of drawing, and created a silent transforming influence on him. Moreover, when Santi realized that Raphael had become superior to him, he sent Raphael to Perugino, one of the most famous painters in central Italy. Perugino’s style was also colorful with a light tone. In 1504, Raphael painted The Marriage of the Virgin (fig.6), which is almost identical to Perugino’s work of the same theme (fig.7) painted from 1500 to 1504. Therefore, it could show that Raphael had made great effort to study Perugino’s style and skills. Although Raphael changed his focus of study to Leonardo and Michelangelo’s style after he arrived at Florence, Santi and Perugino’s impact on his childhood was still far-reaching. Therefore, Raphael preferred bright tonality and vivid