Comparative Exploration of Mannerism and the High Renaissance

Comparative Analysis

Assignment Instructions:

1. Select an artwork that, in your opinion, best reflects the characteristics of the Renaissance. (This should be a different selection from the choice you made for our discussion forum How Do We Recognize Renaissance Art?.)

2. Select an artwork that, in your opinion, best reflects the characteristics of Mannerism.

3. Upload an image of or link to both artworks in the spaces indicated below.

4. Outline at least 5 bullet points for each artwork that identifies what stylistic characteristics your selections illustrate in the spaces indicated below. (5 points about the characteristics your Renaissance selection illustrates and 5 points about the characteristics your Mannerist selection illustrates.)

5. In the space indicated below, write a one paragraph (200 words) analysis of your Mannerist selection that discusses:

How it engages the characteristics of classical antiquity in new ways
How it may have inspired a deeply personal devotional experience (if you selected an artwork with a religious subject)
How it may have appealed to an aristocratic patron as a reflection of that patron’s wealth, their appreciation of beautiful things, and as a way cultivate their elite persona

Characteristics of Northern Mannerism
Some defining features of Mannerism in Northern Europe include:
–dramatic gestures
–asymmetrical and dramatic compositions and arrangement of figures
–lavish costumes
–vivid and often abrasive use of color/color combinations
–artists demonstrate their technical skill
–expressive/imaginative architecture that combines Gothic and Renaissance elements

Characteristics of Italian Mannerism
–compositional tension and instability
–distortion of the human figure
–flattening of pictorial space and ambiguous space 
— unbalanced organization of figures and objects
–unusual visual complexities
–vivid and often abrasive use of color/color combinations
–unusual conceptual complexity/intellectual sophistication
lack of symmetry, balance, organization
dramatic and tense scenes
focus on contemplation and meditation rather than a focused part of a story or a moral/theme

**Remember that Mannerism in France and Spain combines many characteristics from Italy and Northern Europe.**

Characteristics of Renaissance
–symmetry and balance
–religious subjects
–harmonious color combinations
–revival of classical antiquity
–study of human anatomy
–naturalism and realism
–linear perspective

In the space indicated below, write a one paragraph (200 words) analysis of your Mannerist selection that discusses:

How it engages the characteristics of classical antiquity in new ways
How it may have inspired a deeply personal devotional experience (if you selected an artwork with a religious subject)
How it may have appealed to an aristocratic patron as a reflection of that patron’s wealth, their appreciation of beautiful things, and as a way cultivate their elite persona

 

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