15th Century Northern European ArtEarly Renaissance in Northern Europe

1400--1499

Guiding Question

After studying the art of wealthy Italian patrons, how can we determine the cultural power of the middle-class in Northern Europe?Portraiture (with oils)

Altarpieces (with genre symbols)

Geography of Focus

Bubonic Plague spreads through Europe during this time wiping out half of the population (in some places more than 2/3rds of the population will die)

This leads to regions of Northern Europe specializing in goods; the middle class starts to grow

Cities like Bruges and Ghent gain more power

Capitalism grows as Feudalism wanes

The Dukes of Burgundy are major patrons of the arts

The courts are enamored with chivalric events—jousts, processions, pageants

Humanism, as we studied in Italy, reaches Northern Europe as well

Guiding Events and FiguresThese may be political, scientific, literary, philosophical, religious

MUSIC

The Madrigal is popular

Secular songs about love, frivolity free from sacred limits

Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam

Humanist

Uses Satire to Criticize the Church

Reflections of the AgePHILOSOPHY

SCIENCE

Copernicus argues that the Earth revolves around the sun

Based on a Greek geographer and astronomer, Ptolemy

In subsequent presentations, you will learn more about:

Middle-class preferences in the Visual Arts

The concept of Transubstantiation as it is revealed in the visual arts

These presentations will prepare you to incorporate the information in the assignments and assessments for the week