by Haroon Ahmed
In the modern day, if somebody wants to become powerful or famous, they would use the entertainment industry and media. But during the Renaissance, art was used for such means. The Renaissance was a major turning point in the history of Western Civilization, not only because it is presumed to mark the beginning of the modern era, but because with it came new thoughts in philosophy, religion, and aesthetics. All of these ideas were reflected through art, and art’s role in society during the Renaissance ultimately transformed into being of the utmost importance. Ideas were transmitted through art, and one of the most important ideas which developed was that of humanism. Humanism expressed a major shift away from a Church-centric life, towards one of individualism.
The word Renaissance means “rebirth”, and the Renaissance was indeed a rebirth in that Europeans were now developing a new culture unlike any in their history. However, in reality, the people of the Renaissance looked to the past for inspiration, rather than to the future. As explained in History of Aesthetics, “the Renaissance received its name for two different reasons and the name really has two meanings. First, the Renaissance was and is regarded as the rebirth of humanity, renovato hominis, as the movement of man to a higher level. Second, it was and is regarded as the rebirth of the past, of earlier culture, knowledge, and art, the rebirth of antiquity, renovato antiquitatis”1. The Renaissance was not simply a period of new methods of thinking and a new style of culture, rather it was a study of the past as a means to change the present. As
1 Tatarkiewicz, Władysław. History of Aesthetics, Volume III, Modern Aesthetics. page 35.1
has been stated, “we have therefore been too apt to think even of the Renaissance in poetry and formative art as a new departure, stimulated from without, and forming potion of a homogeneous development rather into the times that follows, than out of the times that went before”2. The philosophy of the Renaissance was very much neo-Platonic, due to a revival in the study of the texts of Plato, and religious thoughts reflected that as well. Rather than God being limited to the Church, many writers of the Renaissance looked to the works of philosophers such as Plato for answers on what is the reality of God.3
In the Medieval period, art was almost exclusively religious in style. It was one dimensional and lacked depth, emotion, or interpretation. Life in this time period revolved around the Church, and following the rules of the Church was one’s priority in life. The purpose of art was solely to tell religious stories, without interpretation or deviation, and any use beyond that was seen as wasteful. It was thought that “devoting oneself to the beauties of this world thus opens one up to sinfulness”4. The concern was with God alone, and for people of the time, God could only be seen through the Church. However, the disease, famine, and overall tough life of the Middle Ages left many in the late medieval society with a feeling of disillusionment. Many of them now “perceived God as being more distant – and sometimes less benevolent – than their twelfth- and thirteenth-century counterparts did”5. This, in addition to the growing corruption of the Church, caused people to turn away from seeking God, and towards the worldly life, to attain happiness. As Bertrand Russell states, “until the Renaissance, men had no such simple happiness
2 Tatarkiewicz. page 120.
3 McQuillan, Colin & Joseph J. Tanke. The Bloomsbury Anthology of Aesthetics. page 566. 4 McQuilian. page 71.
5 Findling, John E. & Frank W. Thackeray. Events That Formed the Modern World: From the European Renaissance through the War on Terror. page 37.
in the visible world, but turned their hopes to the unseen”6. This shift from seeking pleasure from the Divine to that of worldly life marked a key change in European ideology. The most significant change that occurred in the Renaissance was the shift from the Church-central thinking towards a new individualistic concept called humanism.
The humanism of the Renaissance relied on the study of classical Greek and Roman texts to understand man’s own potential outside of the Church. It challenged the views of the Middle Ages, in which the Church and clerics held power, and rather sought to explain man’s God-given power and autonomy. As Russell further states, “in the Renaissance period, new knowledge, both of antiquity and of the earth’s surface, made men tired of systems, which were felt to be mental prisons”7. Science and art combined, as can be seen throughout countless works of art, such as those of Leonardo da Vinci. Utilizing a mathematical system, the method of linear perspective in art was developed. Art was now no longer one dimensional, and rather was filled with depth and detail. While much art still carried religious themes, such themes were now interpreted by artists, and were meant to draw emotional responses. Religious scenes combined with Greek mythology, the human form was drawn with explicit detail, and art became a sign of wealth and prestige. No longer was art only created for the Church, rather, “much of the painting and sculpture was commissioned by individual civic leaders or businessmen as a way of flaunting their wealth and heightening their prestige”8.
Prior to the Renaissance, the philosophy of beauty was very nondescript, and interest in the arts were not seen as something of any value. Art did not require any training nor was it a
6 Russell, Bertrand. The History of Western Philosophy. page 317.
7 Russell, page 15.
8 Findling, page 30.
subject to study. This changed during the Renaissance, as aestheticism became something worthy of attention and knowledge. Beauty became something that could be utilized to gain power or to illicit an emotional response. It was something that could be studied and taught. The new idea of beauty was reflected all throughout the Renaissance world. Architecture was inspired by the Rome and Athens of the past, with beautiful, intricate facades being the choice of those who could afford it. As stated in The Bloomsbury Anthology of Aesthetics, the Renaissance “within the discourse of aesthetics, became a rallying cry for those seeking to accord priority to art and other sensuous manifestations of beauty9. Beauty was no longer something to be hidden or used to please God, rather it was publicized. Beauty was something which could distract from the harsh realities of life, and artists and architects sought to beautify society as a whole. As people are naturally attracted to beauty, the idea became that beauty could be used to gain power, propagate ideas, and ultimately influence society.
This new philosophy of the aesthetic gave way to an important change in the role of education in society. As Clark Hulse explains in The Rule of Art, “essential to the changes in European aesthetic theory that took place between 1400 and 1600 are the elevation of both literature and painting to the status of liberal arts, their endowment with bodies of theory, and the growth of an exception that a poet or painter or anyone wishing to enjoy poetry or painting is in need of a special intellectual training”10. It was expected that anyone in the upper class should have an education, which now included the fine arts. By reopening the classical texts of not only the Romans and Greeks, but as well as Arabic and Eastern European works 11, the people of the
9 McQuillan, page 73.
10 Hulse, Clark. The Rule of Art: Literature and Painting in the Renaissance. page 16. 11 Findling, page 32.
Renaissance gained insight into knowledge which had been previously lost. As Bertrand Russell states, “it liberated educated men from the narrowness of medieval culture, and, even while still a slave to the worship of antiquity, it made scholars aware that a variety of opinions had been held by reputable authorities on almost every subject”12. Furthermore, this knowledge became the worthiest endeavor, as people generally felt disappointed in the Church; “the disappointment with other values increased the worth of intellectual values. It led to the Renaissance thesis that intellectual values were the highest of all goods” 13.
The aesthetic changes of the Renaissance had a large impact on modernity as a whole. As stated in Events That Formed the Modern World, “the Renaissance had an enduring impact. Its ideas about the human condition, its approaches to literary and historical scholarship, and its belief in the importance of wordy affairs were crucial in shaping the sensibility of the modern Western world”14. It has also been argued that the Renaissance was the foundation of modern day secularism, as it signified a shift away from God and the Church, towards one’s own self and free-will. As Russell further writes of the factors which lead to modernity, “of these, two are the most important: the diminishing authority of the Church, and the increasing authority of science”15. Furthermore, the detrimental focus on beauty as a means to gain fulfillment and happiness, rather than through religion, can be seen in many modern societies today.
12 Russell, page 503.
13 Tatarkiewicz, page 37.
14 Findling, page 42.
15 Russell page 491.
