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The Italian Renaissance was probably the greatest cultural movement in the history of western art. |
Renaissance means 'rebirth', more specifically the rebirth of the classical cultures of Greece and Rome. This was a period of high ideals and rapid development in science and architecture as well as in art. During the period between the late 13th century and the early 17th century painting and sculpture were transformed from skilled crafts of the middle ages to high art forms whose practitioners associated with nobles and royalty. Our 'Italian Renaissance and French' section encompasses both the high-renaissance and a later periods such as Baroque, Rococo and Romanticism in Italy, France and Spain.
Northern European art. The influence of the renaissance in Italy soon stretched across Europe, through Germany and on to the low countries. Artists like Holbein and Van Eyck were hugely influential, with the latter being credited for the invention of oil painting. A great tradition of genre painting also developed in Flanders (modern Belgium) with Jan Brueghel (1568-1625) being a prominent early figure. The tradition continued with Jan Vermeer (1632-1675) lending a more personal mood to the depiction of everyday subjects. Rembrandt Van Rijn though(1606-1669), was arguably the greatest painter of this epoch. His subjects varied from portraits to religious scenes and those of everyday life, his style was Baroque; a dramatic combination of strong contrasts of light and dynamic compositions.
Our Northen European section also covers artists from Britain, such as the landscape painters of the Romantic movement, Constable and Turner, and the classical and Pre-Raphaelite works of Waterhouse and Rossetti from the 19th Century. American works of the 18th and 19th century are also featured.
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From this section you can explore great artworks of the past from ancient times, through to the renaissance, upto and including the finest of the 19th Century.
Browse deeper into classics using the sub-categories to the right. |
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