Essay - Italian Renaissance Renaissance ('Rebirth') Refers to the Period After the...

Italian Renaissance

Renaissance ("Rebirth") refers to the period after the Middle Ages when a series of dynamic intellectual, cultural and artistic movements from ***** 14th ***** 16th century catapulted Europe towards rapid development leading to the Age of Enlightenment, ***** industrial revolution ***** the modern time. During this rich period ***** exciting developments in arts, sciences and politics, Italy was the major catalyst and became the cultural leader of *****. It also produced several outstand*****g artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Michaelangelo and Raphael who changed the face of European art forever and are worthy representatives of the Renaissance era. This paper is about ***** Italian Renaissance and the impact of the three great artists on ***** culture.

Background

***** period following the eclipse of the Roman Empire around 500 AD until the start of the "Renaissance" at ***** ***** of the 14th ***** is known in history ***** the Middle Ages of Europe. The period saw the rise of Christianity ***** the power ***** the Church that became a major influence in culture as well as *****. The Christian doctrine focused on salvation and ***** life hereafter and de-emphasized the worldly life and possessions. The ***** also saw the rise ***** spread of Islam, although most ***** Europe remained under the Byzantine Empire and a fragmented West. Italy's cities and towns in general became largely depopulated and ***** country, as a whole, bec*****me a rural society after the fall of the Roman Empire. This situation lasted ***** the 11th-12th century when Italy's strategic location on the trade routes between *****ern Europe ***** the Muslim world and Asia helped revive commercial and trade activity in ***** regi*****. The new found wealth generated by the trading activity as well as ***** declining ***** of the Church due to ***** jockeying for power between the papacy and the Holy Roman Emperor towards ***** end of the Middle ***** resulted in conditions that were ripe ***** 'Renaissance' in ***** ***** city-states, particularly Florence. (Hooker)

***** Renaissance and its Emphasis on Art group of Italian scholars in the 14th century started to believe that *****y lived in an era ***** resembled the great Greek ***** Rom***** civilizations of the past because there ***** an unusual amount ***** focus on artistic achievement in the period. *****y believed that their age was different from the darkness and ignorance that characterized the preced*****g era. The *****s and artists of the ***** began to take a marked interest in the physical world ***** in ***** knowledge derived from concrete sensory experience rather the abstract speculations and ***** in life after death ***** the Middle Age artists. Humanism and *****dividualism became the motto of the new age ra*****r than the monastic ideology centered on religious issues. Italy became the hub of *****, cultural and political developments during ***** early part of the Renaissance and the influence ***** its art and culture soon spread to other p*****s of Europe. ("Renaissance" Encarta; Hooker) number of remarkable Italian ***** lived and worked