I agree with your points to varying degrees. I never had much appreciation for Renaissance art until my teenage fascination with Leonardo was rekindled back in 2018. While I would never hang a print of his Saint Jerome or The Last Supper on my wall (both too religious for secular me), I've come to appreciate these works deeply—even though the former remains largely unfinished and the other has deteriorated significantly, with only about 20-25% of the original paint remaining. Both are outstanding expressions of what Leonardo called "the motions of the mind" – the outward physical manifestations of inner emotional states. Similarly, though Raphael painted about 50 Madonnas, I can now distinguish and appreciate the differences between them. Renaissance art is still far from my favorite period or style of art, but understanding the historical context and the lives of these artists (especially Leonardo) has helped me to appreciate it much more.
Aye, the flatness and lack of subtlety look boring. However, looking back at some of the paintings from this post, I'm definitely curious now. I'm curious about the first painting where the haloed lady is spicy towards an angel. Also, the one where a toddler is giving a sword to a baby is pretty metal.
All so true. Good thing I’d trust you with my life.
Very exciting. I share all of your frustrations with renaissance art. I look forward to seeing how you tackle this subject.
I agree with your points to varying degrees. I never had much appreciation for Renaissance art until my teenage fascination with Leonardo was rekindled back in 2018. While I would never hang a print of his Saint Jerome or The Last Supper on my wall (both too religious for secular me), I've come to appreciate these works deeply—even though the former remains largely unfinished and the other has deteriorated significantly, with only about 20-25% of the original paint remaining. Both are outstanding expressions of what Leonardo called "the motions of the mind" – the outward physical manifestations of inner emotional states. Similarly, though Raphael painted about 50 Madonnas, I can now distinguish and appreciate the differences between them. Renaissance art is still far from my favorite period or style of art, but understanding the historical context and the lives of these artists (especially Leonardo) has helped me to appreciate it much more.
I look forward to your course.
Aye, the flatness and lack of subtlety look boring. However, looking back at some of the paintings from this post, I'm definitely curious now. I'm curious about the first painting where the haloed lady is spicy towards an angel. Also, the one where a toddler is giving a sword to a baby is pretty metal.
Gene, I like the gracious curiousness you’re demonstrating there! She IS spicy towards that angel! That IS pretty metal of that baby!
Erm… I can’t wait? 😏
Hopefully I’ll be able to work through some of those challenges! 🙃
Any resonate with you?
Pretty much all of them! I think that will be part of what will make this course interesting.