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Leonardo da Vinci was a Florentine artist, one of the great masters of the High Renaissance, who was also celebrated as a painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, and scientist. His profound love of knowledge and research was the keynote of both his artistic and scientific endeavors. His innovations in the field of painting influenced the course of Italian art for more than a century after his death, and his scientific studies, particularly in the fields of anatomy, optics, and hydraulics, anticipated many of the developments of modern science. |
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Rembrandt was a Dutch baroque artist who ranks as one of the greatest painters in the history of Western art. His full name was Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, and he possessed a profound understanding of human nature that was matched by a brilliant technique, not only in painting, but in drawing and etching, and his work made an enormous impact on his contemporaries and influenced the style of many later artists. Perhaps no painter has ever equaled Rembrandt's chiaroscuro effects or his bold impasto. |
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Botticelli's signature motifs, highly detailed ornamentation, a rich color palette, and attenuated forms, make his paintings both immediately recognizable and wholly original. Born in Florence, Botticelli was exposed to the rich art tradition offered by that city. Originally trained as a goldsmith, Botticelli also apprenticed under the painter Fra Fillipo Lippi, who instilled an interest in Gothic forms, new perspectival devices, and a greater sense of corporality. As a result, the artist developed a unique style that acknowledged the Florentine art tradition and thta also strove to be innovative. After a series of religious and devotional commissions, Botticelli was asked to paint a series of mythologically themed pictures. His famous Birth of Venus was a product of this commission. The Birth of Venus employs a light color scheme and references to Springtime, invoked by Venus herself and the goddess Hora (both symbols of spring), to create a beautiful, enigmatic scene that was intended for an Italian pastoral retreat. Botticelli's combination of a goldsmith's eye for detail and a mathematician's sense of geometry created an oeuvre that was both highly decorative and compositionally innovative. |
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As sculptor, painter, architect, poet, and engineer, Michelangelo Buonarroti stands as the archetype of the Renaissance genius, with a talent that transcends time and continues to influence and inspire contemporary artists. Michelangelo began his career in Florence in 1488, as an apprentice in the studio of Domenico Ghirlandaio. He quickly moved to the Medici Court in Florence where he gained an appreciation for classical sculpture and humanist philosophy that shaped and influenced his work. After the death of his patron, Lorenzo de Medici, the artist traveled to Bologna and Rome, continually refining his brilliant technique and establishing his reputation as a dominant force in the arts. In May of 1508, Michelangelo accepted a commission from Pope Julius II to paint the Vatican's Sistine Chapel ceiling. Initially, Michelangelo was reluctant to accept the commission, regarding himself a sculptor, but his initial trepidations faded and he began the project in early 1509. Using the centuries-old technique of fresco, Michelangelo worked at a feverish pace under exceptionally adverse conditions. Although the artist devoted the last thirty years of his life almost exclusively to architecture, his powerful paintings remained enormously influential, and continue to stand among the supreme masterpieces of art history. |
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Tender scenes of children, women, and angels made Bouguereau one of the most successful artists during France's Second Empire and continue to make his work popular today. In order to earn enough money to attend the Ecoles des Beaux-Arts, France's most prestigious art school, Bouguereau kept books for a local wine merchant and colored lithographic labels for a grocer. After work, the artist would make drawings late into the night. His persistence and hard work paid off when he was granted the coveted Prix de Rome in 1850, which allowed him to study art in Italy for three years. After a series of successful public commissions and with representation from several prestigious international galleries, Bouguereau was elected to the French Academy in 1876, a position he had sought his entire career. |
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