Changes in Human Figure in Art Painting 1: Early Renaissance (Fourteenth Century, 1300 - 1399) Artist:Giotto di Bondone Title:The Adoration of the Magi Date:13 Medium:Tempera on wood, gold ground Location:the Arena Chapel (Capela Scrovegni), Padua, Italy
3 Painting 2: Northern European Renaissance (Fifteenth Century, 1400 - 1499) Artist:Masaccio Title:The Holy Trinity Date:1425 - 1428 Medium:Fresco Mural Location:Santa Maria Novella
4 Painting 3: Italian Renaissance (Fifteenth Century, 1400-1499)
5 Artist:Leonardo da Vinci Title:Last Supper Date:1495 - 1498 Medium:Oil, Tempera, Fresco Location:Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan All throughout our history, the one major era that we all hear and learn about is the Renaissance. "The Renaissance era was a period of rebirth in almost all the cultural and societal faculties and institutions throughout Europe, including art" [ CITATION art22 \l 1033 ]. Three of the biggest artists of the Renaissance were Giotto di Bondone, Masaccio, and Leonardo da Vinci. The paintings I have chosen are very well known throughout the Renaissance period and have a lot of history to them. Located in theScrovegni Capelin Padua, Italy, The Adoration of the Magi has some amazing elements, one of which is the shooting star. Known as the Star of Bethlehem, the shooting star Giotto painted was an inspiration from an experience he had in 1301. He witnessed his first shooting star experience and in fact it was that of Halley's Comet. Another interesting point about this painting is that it is part of the Life of Christ cycle, and it is placed in the middle tier on the south wall of the Scrovegni Capel [ CITATION Kat19 \l 1033 ]. The Holy Trinity by Masaccio is another famous painting in the Renaissance. One interesting fact about this painting is that if you really look at it you will notice that Christ is actually standing. Looking at this painting, I also noticed that on the tomb at the bottom there is an inscription. This inscription says, "IO FU GA QUEL CHE VOI SETE E QUEL CHI SONO VOACO SARETE". This translates to "What you are, I once was; what I am, you will be"
6 [ CITATION Tea22 \l 1033 ]. This is interesting because is signifies that the skeleton in the tomb was once alive and that death is inevitable. The Last Supper by Leonardo signifies two events. First, is when Christ said to his apostles that one of them would betray him. Second, is when Christ blessed the bread and wine and said "take, eat; this is my body" and "drink from it all of you; for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for the forgiveness of sins" [ CITATION DrS15 \l 1033 ]. Two interesting facts are that you will not find this painting in a museum and although it is painted on a wall, it is not a fresco. Since the beginning of time, the human figure has evolved, including in art. In the adoration of the magi, the figures were formed with gestures, movements, facial expressions, and emotions. His perspective of how the human figure should be presented as well as the form of this painting, brings to life. His use of contour and gestural lines create a humanlike visual where the figures are moving. Not only that, the way he uses color to create depth brings his figures to focus more clearly. In The Holy Trinity, the figures look very realistic. This painting has it all, from form to content and everything in between. The use of space to create this three- dimensional piece is extraordinary. His lines are clear, and his atmospheric perspective, directional light, and chiaroscuro really brings out how he depicts the figures, all without using outlines. In the painting of the Last Supper, Leonardo di Vinci uses lines, color, shape and composition to define his figures. I believe they are painted as they would look when the event took place. Although each of these artists are very different, I believe that the way they depict the human figure is somewhat the same. If you look at all of the paintings together, the figures all have a specific form, look natural, and seem to have emotions and movements. With that said, I
7 know that when Giotto paints human figures, they are neither stylized nor elongated. He paints them with features and emotions and dresses them in fabrics that are organic, have shape and weight rather than have them flowing. Looking at Masaccio's human figure, his style is a lot like Giotto, however he uses linear and atmospheric perspective, directional light, and chiaroscuro. This allows him to represent form through light and color without using outlines to show shape. Looking at Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, you can see that his human figure is also a lot like Giotto's. Leonardo uses one-point perspective, chiaroscuro (bold shadow contrast), and sfumato (hazy shading) when painting his scenes. This allows him to bring the viewer's focus to the importance of t
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