Cultura y Civilizacin de los Pueblos de Habla Inglesa I

Trabajo Prctico N 3

Renaissance Architecture

Alumnos:

Jesica Casarino Matas Ledesma Gabriela Saenz Valeria Valencia

TTULO The Renaissance is a great intellectual and cultural movement based on the revival of interest in classical culture, that occurred from the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries; a period which marks the transition from the Middle Ages to modern times and whose influence pervaded every aspect of society, even architecture, which is among the fields that depict Renaissances most characteristic feature. The movement reached England in the 16th century and had a pervasive influence on English literature, art, and political thought and developed some characteristics different from the Renaissance in the Continent. Nevertheless, not until the 17th century did the Renaissance characteristics in architecture flourish in England, all of which are clearly seen in Banqueting House, which will be the architectural example of this essay. The Renaissance was the transitional movement in Europe between medieval and modern times beginning in the 14th century in Italy, lasting into the 17th century1 that emphasized secular concerns as a result of the rediscovery and study of the literature, art, and civilization of ancient Greece and Rome. According to Bertrand Russell, two of the most outstanding features of this movement are the increasing authority of science and the diminishing authority of the Church. As regards the former, although science did not play an important role until the 17th century, the continually increased importance of practical science was building up in men a quite different outlook: it conferred upon men a sense of power over nature and environment. Another feature closely related to the rebellion against the spiritual authority, is the substitution of the authority of the Church for that of the ancients. Consequently, thought was liberated and broadened, breaking its scholastic framework as Renaissance raised scholars awareness of the variety of opinions held by reputable authorities, and for instance, the study of Plato and Aristotle was revived. This
1

The versions regarding the exact date of the beginning of the Renaissance vary. We chose for our essay the definition provided by Webster Dictionary.

4 emancipation from the authority of the Church led to the growth of individualism: there is a sharp break from a God- centred to a man-centred philosophy in which the emphasis is on the intellectual and reasoning capacities of individuals on their earthly setting. As previously stated, the Renaissance was a movement that went back to ancient Greece and Rome. This was expressed in the field of architecture. Renaissance buildings were characterized by the presence of Greek and Roman languages. The ancient Greeks placed great emphasis on symmetry and proportion, preferring straight lines. Buildings were usually made of marble, which was cut in large stones to make beams that would form, together with pillars and the gabled roof, the typical Greek building of the classical period. Greek motifs also include three orders: Ionic, Doric and Corinthian. When in the year 31 BC the Romans conquered Greece, they adopted their motifs and adapted them to their own needs. The beam-and-pillar motif was kept as ornamentation, and the dome and the round arch were used for the sake of structure. With the revival of classical culture, the architects of the 15 th century in Florence and Rome started to apply Greek and Roman motifs to their buildings. Instances of this are the basilica Santa Maria Dei Fiore2 and the Tempietto of San Pietro. In the first case, the classical language is evident in the large dome. In the second case, more classical features can be appreciated: the dome, the Doric order in the columns and the round arch. The Renaissance architects reinterpreted classical vocabulary, introducing characteristics that would be typical of the period, such as the mixture of different orders in the same building, and the alternation of round and gable hoods in the different storeys of a building. This intellectual and cultural movement reached England towards the end of the 15th century and exerted great influence on different aspects of the English society.
2

This building started to be built in the 13th century in Gothic style, but was completed in the 15th century, in classic style.

5 Nevertheless, English Renaissance had a marked different character from that of the Franco-Italian. The latter was amoral, artistic and pagan since the men of Italian Renaissance and their successors had lived in a world of art and science seldom touched by religion and had abandoned ecclesiatical affairs to the monks and clergy; whereas in England it was a moral, intellectual and religious movement as the men of the Renaissance used the study of Greek and Latin to reform the structure not only of the school but also of the Church herself and, what is more, it was in the educational and religious policy of the reformed schools and the reformed Church of England that Renaissances spirit found expression. Erasmus and Colets writings conveyed the most uncompromising spirit of Anticlericalism, and later, Cambridge reformers responded to the impulse of Luther from overseas, which influenced Henry VIII, the monarch who effected the anti-clerical revolution in England: the Reformation. The educational methods and ideals of the men of the New Learning, Erasmus, Colet and Lily among others, eager to study the Classics and the Bible in the original tongues, gave an increased value to school and University teaching. St Paul`s School, founded by Erasmus, with Lily as its headmaster to teach Greek and Ciceronian Latin became the prototype of the Reformed Grammar School that familiarized the young with with the Classics and provided the mental background for the better educated. Reinassances new conception of men as the centre of the universe and the emphasis placed on their intellect and the study of the classics resulted in the reform of the structure of the medieval school. The aim of education was no longer to prepare the individual for the affairs of the Church but to prepare responsible citizens for the affairs of the state. In the field of architecture, the Renaissance reached England in the mid 16th century. The spirit of the movement had influenced Tudor architecture in the first half of the century. However, although Tudor buildings were nearly all secular, expressing the

6 anticlerical spirit of the time, they were still medieval in form due to the attachment the English felt for the gothic style, which was related to nationalism. It was not, then, until the mid 16th century, during the reign of Elizabeth I, that classical motifs were applied in English buildings. At first, classical details were used in the form of decoration, and mixed with Gothic structures. Then, the English architect Inigo Jones introduced more features of the Italian Renaissance that would influence the basic shape of buildings.In the mansions, doors with round arches flanked by classical columns, statues of classical heroes as decoration and caryatids as columns were frequent, as well as a preference for simetry and proportion, which were evident in the E-shaped layout. Gothic details were still in use, though less frequent than a century before. Strap ornament of Germanic origin became a characteristic feature of this period. Renaissance architecture flourished in England in the 17th century. In 1620, the English architect Inigo Jones, who followed the steps of his master, Palladio (one of the hallmarks of Renaissance architecture in Italy) built the Banqueting House. The building is a perfect example of renaissance architecture. Inside it, the spirit of the Age of Reason is reflected clearly in the use of gold on the roof and columns, combined with whitewashed walls and the two rows of tall big windows. There was an exuberant proliferation of windows in this period, since glass appeared as a common material now, and the process of manufacture became more plentiful and cheaper. The building consists of two great cubic rooms which illustrate the concept of symmetry, proportion and equilibrium, also typical characteristics of the movement. On the street faade the classical language is very evident in the three levels of the building: a high rusticated basement; a first storey with a series of windows with segmental and triangular pediments separated by engaged Ionic columns and pilasters; and a second storey with Corinthian

7 columns and pilasters that correspond to those on the first storey as do the windows, and with a garland swang tying the capitals together beneath the flat balustraded roof. In conclusion, the Renaissance was a transitional period between the medieval and modern orders, since it was one of the factors that helped to dissolve the fabric of medieval society. Its spirit of enquiry and its vision of the ancient freedom of Greek and Roman thought permeated every sphere of life: education, science and arts. In England, it developed particular characteristics, which can be read through the language of architecture.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

8 Travelyan, George Macaulay "Tudor England Introduction." Illustrated English Social History: 1. Great Britain: Penguin Books, 1942. Print Travelyan, George Macaulay "Volume two: The Tudors and the Stuart era." History of England. United States: Doubleday Anchor Books, 1953. Print Woodward, G. W. O "The Arts and Sciences" A Short History of 16th century England: 1485-1603. United States of America: Landford Press, 1963. Print. Encyclopedia Britannic. 25 August 2010. <http://www.britannica.com/> Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. 26 August 2010. <http://www.iep.utm.edu/renaiss/> <http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/Banqueting_House.html>

APPENDIX

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The classics

The Parthenon (5th century BC). Most famous example of Greek classical architecture.

The Pantheon (reconstruction, 2nd century). One of the best illustrations of Roman architecture, with both Roman and Greek details.

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Italian Renaissance

Santa Maria Dei Fiore (dome: 15th century). Its dome built by Brunelleschi is a typical feature of Renaissance architecture.

Il Tempietto, San Pietro in Montorio (16th century). The pillars, hoods and dome illustrate classic motifs in Renaissance architecture.

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Renaissance architecture in England

Banqueting House (1620). Symmetry, hoods, pillars and pilasters in an English building.

Queens House (1614-1617). Also built by Inigo Jones, is a great instance of a classical building.