Speech at Chunhui Hall of Southeast University (Abstract)

Deborah Howard, Visiting Professor of Southeast University, Professor of Art History Department of Cambridge University.

Part one: Florence and the early Renaissance.

Renaissance "Renaissance", that is, "rebirth" in French. In the Italian Renaissance Civilization written by Jacob Burckhardt (1860), it was first used to describe the Italian civilization from 15 to16th century. As early as 1550, the concept of "rebirth" was used by Italian artist vasari in the first edition of his book Biography of the Artist. He divided the artistic development of that era into three stages:/kloc-the embryonic stage of the 4th century,/kloc-the adolescence of the 5th century, and/kloc-the prime of the 6th century. The division of these three periods makes the vague concept of artistic development and progress clear and intuitive. Later historians inherited this effective research framework from vasari. The concept of "Italian Renaissance Art" is still in use today, and its connotations are as follows: First, vasari divided his artist biography into three stages, each of which corresponds to an independent century. Secondly, Italy is the birthplace of this Renaissance. Thirdly, the concept of revival originated from the revival of the great art of ancient Rome. Fourthly, vasari's biography focuses on "the personality characteristics of artists" for the first time, calling those who stand out from all artists "gifted geniuses". But vasari also holds some prejudices. For example, he thinks that only painting, sculpture and architecture are advanced art forms, and he pays little attention to other art forms. This concept influenced the later art research.

Florence made amazing synchronous progress in painting, sculpture and architecture at the beginning of15th century, and became an art center at that time. These achievements depend on enlightened patrons. Florence provides an excellent environment for art, and the power of this city and country is mainly concentrated in the hands of a guild composed of bankers, businessmen and manufacturers. Those wealthy families, especially the big bankers Medici and Lucilla, are keen on art sponsorship, willing to learn more about ancient Roman civilization, and like to recruit a group of scholars called "humanists" to concentrate on the study of ancient Greek and Roman literature and history.

Let's pay attention to/kloc-three artists who led the artistic revival at the beginning of the 5th century.

Brunelleschi (1377- 1446) brunelleschi is generally regarded as the first architect of the Renaissance. Vasari believes that the decisive inspiration of brunelleschi's devotion to architecture lies in his early trip to Rome with fellow artist Donatello, and the study of ancient Roman architecture is an important step in the learning process of architects. Brunelleschi's first exhibition of his new harmonious order system was an orphanage funded by his guild. In addition to artistic achievements, the Renaissance is also an important period of technological progress and scientific development. 1420, brunelleschi was entrusted to build the dome of Florence Cathedral. He not only invented how to erect the dome without temporary dome support, but also invented new machinery used in the construction process. The dome is a double-shell hollow roof structure supported by steel arch ribs. The top of the lower shell is stone, and the top of the upper shell is herringbone brick. This may be the most important technological progress during the Italian Renaissance. At the same time, brunelleschi invented the technique of expressing three-dimensional space on a two-dimensional plane with a little perspective, and it was the perspective technique that caused the painting revolution. We can see this from his works with Ma Saqiao, a great contemporary painter.

Ma Saqiao (1401-C.1428) Ma Saqiao's works fully demonstrate how to use perspective to give people a sense of quality and quantity. His style is simple and less decorative, showing a new concern for space and volume. He and Mazzoli Noe made a series of wet murals for the burka Chapel of Notre Dame de Camille in Florence, with vivid characters and precise shapes, creating an incredible sense of space extension in the picture. Subsequently, perspective technology was soon mentioned by another Florentine architect, artist and scholar alberti in his book On Painting (1435). The new technology of perspective enables the audience to enter the world of painting personally. A little perspective greatly expands the possibility of realistic art.

Donatello (1386- 1466) Donatello is good at using various media, including marble, rock and bronze. The early series of sculptures by the Gospel authors show a magnificent and immortal new modeling style. His study of classical style is evident in his traditional bronze sculpture David. Donatello and Padova made a bronze statue of a famous mercenary commander riding a horse-the bronze statue of Catamirada.

Conclusion The teaching of these three pioneers at the beginning of the15th century influenced almost all Italian artists later. The innovation of painting can be seen in the works of many painters. We reviewed the artistic pictures of Florence, which made innovations in architecture, painting and sculpture in the early15th century. Ancient Rome is regarded as a lost golden age, and all artists and patrons are eager to rebuild it. Inevitably, we can only understand that era through vasari's narration, and many recent ideas have filled our understanding of the Renaissance, which we must be cautious about.

Part II: Rome in the heyday of the Renaissance (1500- 1527)

At that time, Rome, which was in the early stage of vasari's "maturity", had become a new Italian art center.

Pope 65438+Three powerful popes in the third day of the 6th century were all enthusiastic about art. The first one was Julia II, who was an enthusiastic supporter of art and presided over the most brilliant genius bloom in the history of western art. Julia II died on 15 13, and was succeeded by Pope Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici from medici family, who became an enthusiastic patron of art. Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici died on150. Pope Hadrian VI ruled for only two years, and was later replaced by another Pope in medici family, Clement VII (1523- 1534). Clement's rule came to an abrupt end in the terrible "Roman plunder" in 1527. "Roman plunder" marks the end of this glorious era of art sponsorship.

Burla Monte (1444- 15 14) With the support of Julius II, three Renaissance masters Burla Monte, Michelangelo and Raphael created their most perfect works. Bramont came to Rome after the French invasion of Milan and started a series of ambitious construction plans with Julia II. One of them is the reconstruction of St. Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican. The first new sketch of St Peter's Cathedral is symmetrical. At the top of St. Peter's tomb is a large main vault with four small domes at four corners, and the gap is flexibly used as a positive factor in the design. However, this centrally symmetrical Roman cross design was finally abandoned, and he added a nave.

Michelangelo (1475- 1564) Julia II wanted to build a luxurious giant mausoleum for herself in the new St. Peter's church complex. He appointed the famous sculptor Michelangelo to take charge of the project, who designed four independent large monuments with more than 40 characters. In the end, the plan was never completed, and only a few statues survived. One of the reasons why the mausoleum was not completed was that Julia asked Michelangelo to decorate the ceiling for the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican. Michelangelo completed the whole plan by himself. At that time, he was only a 30-year-old young sculptor and had no experience in painting wet murals at all. Michelangelo finally completed the whole zenith mural in 15 12, which is also recognized as one of the greatest works in human history.

Raphael (1483- 1520) Julia II entrusted Raphael with the task of decorating the "signing hall" of the Vatican Palace. The first room (called the signature room) was designed as the Pope's private library. The walls and ceilings of the room are covered with pictures of all the subjects of human knowledge. The ceiling mainly depicts four typical libraries: philosophy, law, theology and literature. These four branches of human knowledge echo each other on the huge wet murals, completing the complex integration of ancient philosophy, literature and Christian creed and doctrine. Later, Pope Leo commissioned Raphael to design a series of large-scale paintings, make exquisite tapestries to decorate the lower walls, and asked him to build a huge "Madama Villa" on the hillside of Mount Margherio on the outskirts of Rome. Although it is not finished, Raphael's intention can be imagined from several sketches and a letter that describes the idea of villa very well. The beautiful veranda overlooking the hillside garden shows Raphael's desire to reproduce the lifestyle of ancient Roman villas.

Conclusion In 1527, many artists were robbed, attacked or put into prison. Most artists leave Rome as soon as possible to avoid being hurt. "Roman plunder" ended this art-sponsored moderns. Although some people will be shocked by the huge expenditure on art and architecture, it just gives the greatest artists an opportunity to show their outstanding skills and talents.

Part III:/kloc-Venice in the 6th century.

Venice, Venice, after centuries of trade with the East, has become prosperous and powerful. Long-term contact with Byzantine Islamic world and northern Europe has made citizens love gorgeous colors and decorative sculptures. In the center of the city, there are two solemn buildings, which show Venice's dominant position in overseas business. One is the St. Kyle Hall in Byzantium, and the other is the Governor's Mansion with Islamic and Nordic Gothic architectural styles.

St. Kyle Square150016th century, the St. Kyle Square, as the political center of Venice, was to be rebuilt, but the St. Kyle Palace and the Governor's Office were allowed to remain. Artist Barbagli faithfully described all the buildings in Venice with a woodcut bird's eye view (1500). The picture shows the L-shaped structure of St. Kyle Square, including the Grand Square in front of St. Kyle Hall and the Little Square in front of the Governor's Office. The amphitheater-style square is responsible for holding all kinds of important ceremonies. Those buildings look precarious and are very out of harmony with the national ceremony. Venice and China are determined to improve the appearance of the city center. 1496, architect Cordes built a bell tower at the entrance of Machelia Street, the main street of the commercial center of the urban trade zone. This big clock can not only accurately tell the time of celebrations and government meetings, but also predict the tides. Before that, people could only judge the time by the bell on the top of St. Kyle's bell tower. At noon every day, the shadow of the bell tower is just scattered on it, as if symbolizing the historical process from the Middle Ages to the modern times-the scientific era of the Renaissance. In the middle of the war between Venice and Cambre (1509- 15 17), an accidental fire broke out in the northern part of St. Kyle Square, and the management authorities resolutely decided to rebuild the entire northern part of the square. It was this feat that opened the prelude to the revival of Venice.

It is worth mentioning that Venice in the Renaissance was the most important book printing and publishing center in the world at that time. Many important original manuscripts of ancient Greece and Rome were printed here for wider dissemination. Among them, Vitruvi's Architectural Theory in ancient Rome made the public know more about the theoretical laws of ancient Roman architecture.

Just like the important relationship between Bramont and Julia II between architects and patrons, the ambitious Venetian Governor Gerety (1523- 1538) and his favorite architect Sansevino have also established such a relationship, and Sansevino Sobino has made great contributions to the reconstruction of St. Kyle Square. Sobino was plundered by Rome and exiled abroad. When he first arrived in Venice, he had little experience in architecture, but he was famous for his sculpture talent. He soon got the opportunity to renovate the crumbling dome of St. Kyle's Hall, and used brunelleschi's method for reference to reinforce the dome. Vasari believes that Sam Sobino was highly recommended by Governor Gerety, who was called "a close friend of genius", before she had a chance to show her talent. Recognizing that being an artist's protector can not only increase personal influence, but also win public support, Gerety suggested that Sam Sobino rebuild the building of St. Kyle's Square. At that time, Sobino's most urgent problem was not to improve the chaotic state of the square, but to rebuild these buildings. The reconstruction project depends not only on economic stability, but also on the public's understanding of Roman architectural style and language in the heyday of the Renaissance.

It was Sobino's partner Sailio who provided theoretical support for the Roman Renaissance. 1528, Celio applied to the Venetian Senate for permission to publish a series of woodcut drawings-Five Pillars of Architecture. He plans to write a set of books, including several books on architecture. First published is the fourth volume introducing the classical architectural style. 1540 The third volume is about ancient Roman monuments. The publication of these two books has promoted the public's understanding of classical architectural theory. The influence of these works on the design of St. Kyle Square in Sobino should not be underestimated. Sailio claimed to be a professor of architecture (educator). In the fourth book, it was the first time to classify five pillars. Based on this, he not only theoretically influenced the style of new buildings in the square, but also compared the styles and grades of different buildings. After Sailio left Venice for France, he published his second book in Paris on 1545, which vividly and clearly described the reconstruction of Venice Center (combining aristocratic atmosphere with classicism is the essence of Gerety's innovative idea).

1538, Sobino designed the big bell tower. Ionia and Corinth are mixed into a composite column, and Sailio thinks this combination is very suitable to show the triumphant momentum. Sobino makes the bell tower no longer need support, and separates the library from the bell tower, so that people can see the Governor's Office from any angle in the square.

It is meaningless to distinguish the style differences between Sailio and Sansevino. Sobino is a talented architect and sculptor, and Celio is the disseminator of great new theories. Their personal success benefits from and depends on each other's achievements. In this way, the European public can also understand the superiority of those pillars in the Venetian neo-Roman style design in Gerety period.

1570, Sobino died, and the famous Italian architect Palladio mentioned in his paper "Four Readings of Architecture" published in Venice: Only after the famous architect and sculptor Mr. Sobino started architectural design, did we see the excellent architecture, and the architecture he designed for the agent of San Kyle was the most beautiful in history. Palladio anticipated the vacancy caused by Sobino's death and presented his power of attorney to the Vienna government. In his facade design for St. George's Church and Abbey Church, we can see his affirmation of the design of St. Kyle Square in Sobino. The Governor's Mansion suffered two serious fires in 1574 and 1577, and Palladio was recommended to rebuild the whole palace in a classical style. However, the Venice government has never had the courage to destroy this medieval building that has remembered the rights and prosperity of this country for centuries.

Conclusion Sobino signed his name "Florentine" at the end of his life. From 1527 to 1570, how did he successfully lead the construction industry? The reasons are very complicated, first of all, it should be attributed to the perfect sponsor system. Secondly, the neo-Roman sculpture style conforms to the ideology of people in this city. In addition, Sobino's refugee experience also brought him closer to the Venetians.

With the help of existing publications and talent, Sobino created an ideal visual effect and classical atmosphere that only talented artists can create, and so did Palladio. Vasari said: "Shan Sobino is indeed the best designer in this city, and his ability is admired from civilians to nobles." It was he who planned the Renaissance, the greatest city in Italy.

(Translation: Zhao Li, Ph.D. student, Art Department, Zhao Yan)