Renaissance Aesthetic

The Renaissance Masters were just that – masters of art like the world had never seen before. People were taken in by the gifted talents of these men – they were drawn to the works that possessed unequaled qualities. One reason I believe that they continue to be popular is that there is something for everyone – the religious zealot, the philosopher, the commoner, the business man, etc. etc. People are intrigued by these paintings. They are masterfully executed, with a huge variety of subject matter, and placed in largely public places. Of course, there is always the mysteries of these paintings – whether imaged or invented. There is nothing like a good mystery to keep people talking about something!
The Renaissance brought realism into painting which is probably important to maintaining it’s popularity – people wanted realistic reproductions of real life things or people to keep and this maintained its popularity until the invention of photography. It’s only after the turn of the 20st century did artists really turn to impressionism, cubism, and other perception/expression type art.
I very much enjoy Renaissance art. Many of the works are religious in nature and my interest in religious history draws me there. In addition, I love the fanciful images that begin to appear in this era of painting and sculpture. Not everything has to make sense – some things are just fun. I love the new focus on anatomy and perspective that the masters brought into Renaissance art. It is fun to watch a progression as they seem to improve upon the techniques and yet to see lesser artists much later in history, struggle with the process. I’d love to see what Michaelangelo or Leonardo Da Vinci would paint today.