Analysis of Two Master Artists: Botticelli and Rembrandt

Botticelli's works, particularly Primavera (1478) and The Birth of Venus (1486), "epitomize for modern viewers the spirit of the Renaissance" (WebMuseum). If you look at the image of La Primavera, it emulates everything that the Italian Renaissance art was about: paying attention to the qualities of human beings. Also, his art pointed out the beauty and grace of the human form. Primavera has so much clarity and harmony in it. It gives so much attention to the beauty of the human form. Also, the painting emulates the birth of the spring season. It is from this that one can be led to believe that this signifies the revival of the worldly spirit and civic virtue of the ancient Greeks and Romans (Humanism). It also signifies the breakout of Individualism. Artists like Botticelli wanted to show others what masterpieces they could create and make clear their different personalities.

As was just pointed out, Primavera emulates the birth of the spring season. As is pointed out in the textbook, the descriptive narrative is read from right to left:

Zephyr, the wind god, chases Chloris, who is then transformed into Flora, the

Goddess of the flowers; the Three Graces (Chastity, Beauty, and

Voluptuousness), daughters of Zeus and constant attendants of Venus, dance in

Their diaphanous drapery; and Mercury, a god of spring, restrains the elements

While the blindfolded, winged cupid shoots his arrows of love from above

(Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 24).

As the textbook points out, La Primavera "reflects the Neo-Platonic teaching that human beings communicate with the Divine through Love" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 24). For instance, when Chloris is transformed into Flora, this symbolizes the love blossoming in the human mind.

The style of Botticelli's art changed drastically in the late 1480s onward. This happened after he became involved with the reformist Girolamo Savonarola when he came to Florence in the 1490's. Savonarola preached austerity and reform and, as the text says, it was as if Savonarola had a "spell" over Botticelli. Savonarola made the Florentines believe "that they had been marked by God for a special destiny" (Web Gallery of Art). Such paintings as The Mystic Crucifixion (1500) and Mystic Nativity (1490's) make clear to people his extreme religious devotion, something that was characteristic of the Reformation. Unlike his earlier paintings, the subjects of his later paintings are replaced with subjects that are "intense and passionate" and they "resonate with religious meaning" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 24). The Reformation fostered a religious individualism that was the counterpart of the intellectual individualism of the Renaissance. Rebellion against clerical authority was a major characteristic of the Reformation. The Mystic Crucifixion "shows the salvation of a repentant Florence" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 24). During the time of the Reformation, many Protestants believed that God had chosen them for salvation and they developed the self-assurance and assertiveness that was characteristic of the modern westerner.

Rembrandt painted in the Baroque Age which, according to the text, "was primarily defined during the seventeenth century when popes, kings, and aristocrats, eager to demonstrate their wealth and power, appropriated an artistic style characterized by majesty, opulence, sensuality, tension, and drama" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 95). Rembrandt and other artists of this time expressed extreme emotions in their paintings. Rembrandt and other Dutch artists preferred to paint pictures of their townspeople, landscapes, and themselves. One of his most well known paintings was The Company of Captain Frans Banning Cocq (1642), also known as The Night Watch. This is a militia painting in which the changing fashions are revealed: traditional uniforms to modern dress. Militia uniforms were richly decorated and Rembrandt used rich, golden colors to paint the portrait. Another significant characteristic of the painting is that not all of the subjects were painted on equal footing. As the text says, some of the men of the militia were hidden as they were bathed with shadows. One man in the painting is almost nonexistent as only his eyes can be seen (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 114). This painting fits with the fact that most artists of this time period "depicted the shadowy, the formless, and the mysterious in the visual image" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 107). It should also be noted that, from the beginning of the sixteenth century onward, it was common for militias to regularly commission group portraits. Members of the civil guard held a rather high post in the sixteenth and 17^th centuries. It was in the 17^th century when civic guard guilds (a guild is a society of persons united by a particular aim or occupation) became a social gathering for gentlemen. Rembrandt's use of bright colors signifies their high social status of his time (Rijksmuseum).

The Renaissance became known as the period of rebirth. It was a time when people of other countries such as Italy, France, Spain, Germany, and England gained a "fresh respect for the humanistic and worldly culture of ancient Greece and Rome" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 5). Humanism, the revival of the worldly spirit and civic virtue of the ancient Greeks and Romans, and Individualism, the desire for the elite to show off their unique capabilities and personalities, were two major hallmarks of the Renaissance. The works of artists such as Sandro Botticelli paid particular attention to the qualities of human beings. Their works also pointed out the beauty and grace of the human form. This was different from the medieval times because, even though Renaissance artists continued to use religious themes in their works, they didn't let religion dominate art. They did this by shifting the attention from heaven to the natural world and from there to the human being. Things changed during the Baroque age (end of 16^th to beginning of 17^th century). Unlike Botticelli, artists such as Rembrandt went against the clarity and harmony that was depicted in Italian Renaissance art. As the text points out, artists of this period "depicted the shadowy, the formless, and the mysterious in the visual image" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 107). During this time, a person's status in society became more important so of course "most Baroque artists emphasized majesty and grandeur" (Perry, Baker, and Hollinger 107).

Sources:

Perry, Marvin, J. Wayne Baker, and Pamela P. Hollinger. The Humanities in the Western Tradition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2003.

WebMuseum, Paris. Ed. Nicolas Pioch. 19 Jun. 2006. BMW Foundation. 5 Feb. 2007 www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/botticelli/>.

Web Gallery of Art. Ed. Emil Kren and Daniel Marx. 5 Feb. 2007. .