Section 2' The Northern Renaissance

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Section 2. The Northern Renaissance
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Had I not torn myself from Rome, I could never
have resolved to leave, wrote Dutch priest
Desiderius Erasmus. There one enjoys sweet
liberty, rich libraries, the charming friendship
of writers and scholars, and the sight of antique
monuments. Inspired by his visits to Italy,
Erasmus helped spread the Renaissance to northern
Europe. Unlike Italy, Northern Europe recovered
slowly from the ravages of the Black Death. Only
in 1450 did the north enjoy the economic growth
that had earlier supported the Renaissance in
Italy.
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Section 2. The Northern Renaissance

• Northern Europe recovered slowly from the ravages
  of the Black Death

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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• The Northern Renaissance began in the prosperous
  cities of Flanders about 1450

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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• The rest of Europe began its cultural rebirth in
  the 1500s

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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• Albrecht Durer - the German Leonardo -helped
  spread the ideas of the Renaissance

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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• Durer was famous for his engravings

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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• Jan and Hubert van Eyck were the most notable of
  the Flemish painters

Jan van Eyck The Arnolfini Marriage The
Betrothal of Giovanni Arnolfini and Giovanna
Cenami, 1434
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The bride to be has placed her right hand into
the left hand of her fiancé to symbolize their
intention to wed. Some of the other symbols a
dog symbolizes love and fidelity, a pair of white
slippers in the lower left symbolize the sanctity
of marriage, fruits on the windowsill symbolize
fertility and original sin, a candle burning in
daylight acknowledges faith in God as well as his
all-seeing eye. A convex mirror hangs on the
wall behind the bride and groom. In this mirror
is a reflection of the backs of the principal
figures, accompanied by those of the painter and
another man who witness the betrothal. The frame
of the mirror contains ten medallions portraying
scenes from the life of Christ.
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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• They portrayed townspeople and religious scenes
  in realistic detail

Virgin and Child with Saints Barbara and
Elizabeth and Jan Vos, by Jan van Eyck
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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• The van Eycks are credited with developing the
  use of oil paint

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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• Pieter Bruegel portrayed peasant life and
  influenced later artists

Peasant wedding by Pieter Brueghel, 1568
The Peasant Dance by Pieter Brueghel, 1568
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I. Artists of the Northern Renaissance

• In the 1600s, Peter Paul Rubens blended realism
  with classical themes

Venus and Adonisc. 1635
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II. Northern Humanists

• Humanists stressed education and classical
  learning while emphasizing religious themes

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II. Northern Humanists

• Erasmus called for a translation of the Bible
  into the vernacular of ordinary people

Desiderius Erasmus, 1466-1536
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II. Northern Humanists

• Erasmus was disturbed about corruption in the
  church - used humor to expose immoral behavior

In Praise of Folly, first printed in 1511, is
considered one of the most influential works of
literature in Western civilization and one of the
catalysts of the Protestant Reformation.
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II. Northern Humanists

• Thomas More pushed social reform and wrote about
  an ideal society in the Utopia

Utopia (published in 1516) attempts to offer a
practical response to the crises of the fifteenth
and sixteenth centuries by carefully defining an
ideal republic.
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III. Writers for a New Audience

• Francois Rabelais used humor to express his
  opinions about religion, education, and other
  subjects

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III. Writers for a New Audience

• William Shakespeare wrote 37 plays - comedy,
  history, tragedy, and misplaced ambition

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III. Writers for a New Audience

• Shakespeare enriched the English language by
  adding over 1700 new words

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III. Writers for a New Audience

• Cervantes of Spain wrote Don Quixote, mocking the
  ideal of medieval chivalry

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IV. The Printing Revolution

• In 1456, Johann Gutenberg was the first to use
  moveable metal type to print a Bible

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IV. The Printing Revolution

• Printing presses became common across Europe and
  more and more people learned to read