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Overview of the Most Important Artists of the Renaissance

Giotto

Born in 1267, died in 1337. Painted the Life of St. Francis of Assisi which is identified as one of his earlier works. Though an artist of the medieval period, he influenced such greats as Michelangelo and Raphael because he introduced some of the earliest solutions to creating the illusion of three-dimensionality in paintings and because his way of composing his paintings so effectively conveyed the the subject he was painting. Besides his work as an artist, he is famous for designing the Campanile (tower) of the Florence Duomo


Lamentation of Christ (1306)	Giotto's Campanile (1334)	Stefaneschi Triptych (c.1313-1320)	Baroncelli Polyptych (c.1334)

Brunelleschi

Born in 1377, died in 1446. Architect in Florence that made the cupola (dome) of the Florence cathedral. The Duomo of Florence has become the symbol of Florence, is its tallest building and is a symbol of the wealth and civic pride of the affluent families of the city during the Renaissance. The church, on which construction began in 1299, is crowned by the massive dome designed by Brunelleschi almost two centuries later. This building did not have a roof for 175 years because it posed a major architectural challenge with the large area the dome had to span. You can climb 463 steps up the dome and view the city below. In 1418, the Opera del Duomo announced a public competition to design and build the dome. Several leading architects participated, but the main contenders were Filippo Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Ghiberti. Brunelleschi's design was innovative and groundbreaking. He proposed a self-supporting, double-shell dome, avoiding the need for external buttressing or scaffolding. He also invented innovative construction machinery and techniques to manage the materials and labor. Ghiberti, a renowned artist known for his Baptistery doors, initially won a previous competition for the bronze doors of the Baptistery. Despite Brunelleschi winning the dome competition, Ghiberti was appointed as his co-superintendent. Brunelleschi's dome was completed in 1436, becoming a masterpiece of Renaissance architecture and engineering. It remains the largest brick dome in the world and a symbol of Florence. Beyond his abilities as an architect, Brunelleschi was recognized for using geometric principles in creating perspective and influencing both Masaccio and Donatello to follow that style.


Santa Maria del Fiore Dome (1446–c.1461)	Nave of the Santo Spirito, Florence (1441–1481)	Pazzi Chapel (1441–1460s)

Ghiberti

Born in 1378, died 1455. Exceptional bronze sculpture, most famous for being selected to do the doors to the baptistry of the doors of the Duomo in Florence, being chosen over such artists as Brunelleschi and Donatello. Some art historians define the entries submitted in this contest as the beginning point of Renaissance art. Ghiberti spent 21 years doing the north doors. The year after he completed those doors, he was commissioned to do the east doors. He spent the next 28 years producing the brass panels depicting the Old Testament that complete those doors which Michelangelo described as the "gates of Paradise." He also sculpted St. Matthew and St. John the Baptist out of bronze for the Orsanmichele in Florence.


Gates of Paradise (1425-1452)	Gates of Paradise - Abraham Panel	Gates of Paradise - Adam & Eve Panel

Masaccio

Born in 1401, died in 1428. Perhaps one of the most influential artists of the Renaissance. Historians claim that he, along with Donatello and Brunelleschi, inspired the style of art that typifies art of the period. In his 27 years on the planet, he developed a style that used perspective in a way that created an illusion of three-dimensions--a significant change from the flat style of painting that typified medieval art. His most famous work can be found in the Brancacci Chapel in Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence. One interesting fact about the Expulsion from the Garden of Eden is that three centuries after the fresco was painted, Cosimo III de' Medici, in line with contemporary ideas of decorum, ordered that fig leaves be added to conceal the genitals of the figures. These were eventually removed in the 1980s when the painting was fully restored and cleaned. Shown below are both versions.


The Tribute Money (1424)	Virgin and Child with Saint Anne (c.1424)	The Expulsion (1426–1427)

Botticelli

Born 1445, died 1510. His best paintings are a series of mythological topics including the Birth of Venus and Mars & Venus, the Roman gods which reflected the return of Renaissance thought to its classical roots.


Birth of Venus (c. 1470s or 1480s)	Primavera (1482)

Titian

Born in c. 1487, died in 1576. The most famous painter from Venice at the start of the 16th century. Trained by Giovanni Bellini, He was noted for use of color and for the use of thick, dramatic brush strokes. Among his famous paintings is Bacchus and Ariadne


Allegory of Prudence (c.1565–1570)	The Rape of Europa (c.1560-1562)	Assunta (1516–1518)

Caravaggio

Born in 1573, died in 1610 A notable painting is his Death of the Virgin displayed in the Louvre, with the dramatic quality that was found in most of his works. He used foreshortening, shadowing and detail to portray scenes that drew out the emotions of the viewers. Caravaggio is often given credit for inspiring the Renaissance painters of northern Europe including Rembrandt.


David with the Head of Goliath (1609-1610)	Death of the Virgin (1601–1606)	Medusa (1597)

Donatello

Born in 1386, died in 1486. Famous for many things including the youthful sculpture of David in Florence. A less famous work in the city is the brass pulpits he build for the Old Sacristy of San Lorenzo which was built by Brunelleschi. Like Masaccio, Donatello was one of the earliest artists working with the idea of perspective. His method was sculpture and he brought dramatic shapes to life with his skills.


Equestrian Monument of Gattamelata (1450)	David (1430)	Saint John the Evangelist (1438)

Leonardo da Vinci

Born 1452, died 1519. His most famous works are the Mona Lisa and the Last Supper which are works in oil. He had a nature that was careful and precise, so that he never hurried to finish a work. He developed what are regarded as technical, manual skills that were so excellent that few artists in history have rivaled his ability. He had an exceptional intellect and fascination with the world around him. Besides his paintings, he left us a legacy of detailed drawings of the human anatomy, plans for a tank, helicopter, ideas on the construction of multi-level canal and road systems. Because he was an artist and a scientist at a time when both art and science, he has come to characterize the ultimate "Renaissance Man."


The Baptism of Christ (1472–1475)	The Last Supper (1498)	Mona Lisa or La Gioconda (1503–1507)	Leonardo's study of a foetus in the womb (c.1511)

Michelangelo Buonarroti

Born 1475,died 1564. In the 89 years that he lived, Michelangelo created many of the works of art that we think of when we think of the Renaissance. A skilled painter who spent many years completing the frescoes that adorn the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo had trained as a sculptor and created two of the world's greatest statues--the enormous David and the emotional Peita.


David (1501-1504)	Sistine Chapel Ceiling (1508-1512)	Pietà(1498-1499)	Moses (1513-1515)

Raphael Sanzio

Raphael, born Raffaello Sanzio in 1483 in Urbino, Italy, was a master painter and architect of the Italian High Renaissance, renowned for his exceptional grace, clarity, and harmony in art. Trained under Pietro Perugino, Raphael quickly developed his own distinctive style, blending the serene beauty of Leonardo da Vinci with the dynamic compositions of Michelangelo. His most celebrated works include the frescoes in the Vatican’s *Stanze di Raffaello*, particularly *The School of Athens*, which exemplifies Renaissance ideals by depicting classical philosophers in a majestic architectural setting. Raphael was also a master of portraiture and Madonna paintings, such as *The Sistine Madonna* and *Madonna of the Goldfinch*, which reveal his delicate handling of composition, light, and emotion. He played a major role in shaping Renaissance art and architecture until his untimely death in 1520 at the age of 37, leaving behind a legacy of refinement and humanistic expression.


School of Athens (1509–1510)	Sistine Madonna (1512)	Portrait of Pope Julius II (1512)	Portrait of Baldassare Castiglione (1514-1515)