Historical Developments

The Protestant Reformation marked a break with existing Christian traditions and both the Protestant and Catholic reformations contributed to the growth of Christianity.

Protestant Reformation

• In the early 16th century, the Protestant Reformation shattered the unity of Roman Catholic Christianity

• Reformation began in 1517 when a German priest Martin Luther (1483-1546) publicly invited debate about various abuses within the Roman Catholic Church by issuing a document, known as the Ninety-five Theses, nailing it to the door of a church in Wittenberg

• Many people were critical of the luxurious life of the popes, the corruption and immorality of some clergy, the Church’s selling of indulgences (said to remove the penalties for sin), aspects of church life and practice.

• Martin Luther said that salvation came through faith alone (sole fide) which raised some interesting and new theological questions

Reformation and Technology

• Martin Luther’s ideas provoked a massive schism within the world of Catholic Christendom

• Some kings and princes, many of whom had long disputed the political authority of the pope, found in these ideas a justification for their own independence and an opportunity to gain the lands and taxes previously held by the Church

• Reformation spread quickly both within and beyond Germany thanks to the recent invention of the printing press

• “God has appointed the [printing] Press to preach, whose voice the pop is never able to stop!”

Protestant Reformation v Scientific Revolution

The Protestant Reformation and the Scientific Revolution/Enlightenment shared a common hostility to established authority, and they both represented a clear departure from previous patterns of thought and behavior. But they differed sharply in how they represented the changes they sought. Reformation leaders looked to the past, seeking to restore or renew what they believed was an earlier and more genuine version of Christianity. Leaders of the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment, on the other hand, foresaw and embraced an altogether new world in the making. They were the “moderns” combating the “ancients.”

Reformation and Women

• Reformation teachings and practices did not offer women a greater role in the church or society

• Veneration of Mary and female saints ended, leaving the male Christ figure as sole object of worship

• Opposition to celibacy and monastic life closed convents, which had offered some women an alternative to marriage

• Protestants gave to reading the Bible for oneself which stimulated education and literacy for women, but there was still emphasis on women as wives and mothers subject to male supervision

The Renaissance

• Western Europe emerged from the Middle Ages during an era known as the Renaissance

• From 1300 to 1600, Western Europe experienced a “rebirth” in trade, learning, art & Greco-Roman ideas

• During the Renaissance, Europeans developed new ideas in art, government, & human potential

• The Renaissance marked the beginning of the “modern era”

• Italian cities & a wealthy middle class began to form in Italy

• The most important Italian city was Florence, where wealth from trade sparked the Renaissance

• A new middle class of bankers, merchants, & skilled craftsmen gained lots of power

• The Medici family were wealthy bankers who used their wealth to turn Florence into Italy’s most artistic city

• After the Bubonic Plague hit Europe, demand for labor increased, and peasants’ demanded higher wages

• The rise of trade during the Renaissance gave  people options to leave the manor & move to cities to serve as merchants or skilled artisans

• During the Renaissance, people had more options than ever before which led to a belief that people can accomplish anything

Government during the Renaissance

• Kings were able to tax merchants & use their wealth to build armies & strong nations which hurt the power of the feudal lords

• From 1337 to 1453, England & France began a conflict called the Hundred Years War

• During the war, nationalism increased as people became loyal to their king & nation, rather than their lord

• New military weapons like the longbow decreased the power of feudal lords & knights

• In the late Middle Ages, the Pope & the Catholic Church lost some of its influence as a result of the losses to Muslim armies during the Crusades

• Despite having less influence, the Catholic Church was still an important part of people’s lives but theologians and writers began to challenge the authority of the Church

The Renaissance

• Individuals became the center of attention during the Renaissance

• Social status was based on wealth & ability, not birthright

• A new way of thinking began during the Renaissance called Humanism

• Humanist writers focused on both religious and secular (non-religious) issues.

• Emphasized the study of classical Greek and Roman texts & emphasized education for individual improvement

Vitruvian Man

• Drawing by Leonardo da Vinci around 1490

• Accompanied by notes based on the work of the architect Vitruvius

• Based on the correlations of ideal human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius

• Vitruvius described the human figure as being the principal source of proportion among the classical orders of architecture.

Renaissance Art

The Classical Period

The Classical Period covered the height of the Greek culture and the Roman Empire, from its rise to its fall, about 500 B.C.E. to 500 C.E. The people of these ancient societies developed many of the ideas that, today, make up our mathematics, science, literature, and art.

Forms of Art: sculpture, painted pottery, murals, mosaics

Purposes: to show the importance of people and leaders, as well as gods and goddesses

Characteristics of Classical Art:

• Figures look idealized, perfect

• Bodies look active, move convincingly

• Bodies are often nude, sometime draped in togas

• Faces are bland and calm, without emotion

• Scenes show heroic figures or real people doing real tasks of daily life

• Little background or sense of perspective (when distant objects look smaller and far away)

The Medieval Period

The Medieval Period in Europe, which lasted roughly from A.D. 500 to 1400 C.E., was characterized by the rise of feudalism and the controlling power of the Catholic Church in people’s lives.

Forms of Art: stained glass windows, sculptures, illuminated (decorated) manuscripts, paintings, tapestries

Purposes: to teach religion to people who cannot read

Characteristics of Medieval Art:

• Subjects mostly religious

• Figures look flat and stiff with little real movement

• Important figures are large

• Fully clothed, draped in deeply carved, stiff-looking clothes

• Faces are solemn with little emotion

• Paintings use vibrant colors

• Flat, two-dimensional painted figures

• Backgrounds a single color, often gold, no interest in creating a realistic space

Renaissance

The Renaissance included a rebirth of interest in Classical culture. It began around 1400 and lasted until 1650. People rediscovered the writings and artwork of the Greeks and Romans, borrowed their ancient ideas, and combined them in new ways.

Forms of Art: sculptures, murals, drawings, paintings

Purposes: to show the importance of people and nature, not just religion

Characteristics of Renaissance Art:

• Both religious and nonreligious scenes

• Figures look idealized, perfect

• Bodies may look active, moving

• Bodies may be nude or clothed

• Real people doing real tasks of daily life

• Faces express what people are thinking

• Colors respond to the light that falls on them

• Interest in nature, lots of natural detail

• Full, deep backgrounds with perspective

• Paintings are symmetrical (balanced on both sides)