Introduction to the Humanities - Essay Example

Religion and Theology Details: al Affiliation: Introduction The beautiful constructions of the cathedrals in the fourteenth century Italy were influenced by money that was deposited in the towns by nearby Byzantine civilization. Zealous Christian traders attacked and plundered its capital city, Constantinople and came away influenced by the creative structures and edifices. Business practice and the emergent manufacturing and financial sectors thrived which meant that many merchants came to Italy seeking to build their fortunes and inevitably enrich the city.

The change in the painting styles, including the articulation of human emotion as well as the emphasis on the unnatural aspect of religious center figures such as the Virgin Mary shows Byzantine influence.In addition, realism began to be noticed in the paintings of the artists. Many paintings before had merely schemed through the outlines of works of art thus rendering them as crude works of art. The use of color and lines was applied to lend volume to works of art. Even though their was noticeable improvement, some characteristics of medieval theology such as the inclusion of radiance lingered.

The painter Giotto di Bondone created works that made a study of human emotion and individuality that had not been experimented with before.Artists tended to give their divinely inspired paintings uncoordinated shapes such as extended necks to add onto their supernatural appearances. Long hands with extraordinarily long and extended fingers and grim expressions were also used to signify the importance of the subject being painted. Fresco painting where water supported dyes and tints were placed on recently applied plaster on wall planes.

In order to bring about the production of the most durable quality, successive coats of plaster would be applied on the walls and then allowed to set and dry. The artist would trace the design of the figures that he intended to create on the drying wall after which a final smooth coating of plaster was then put on the wall, in a method where the outlines of the artist’s designs were clearly visible and could be worked upon. When the artist finally applied the paint, the tints would fuse with the sand particles giving them permanence and resistance to aging since they were transformed to being a part of the wall and not just its outer layer (Bishop, 2010).

To avoid making mistakes with his outline, the painter had to work quickly while the wall was still wet. What especially set apart the artists like Giotto from their contemporaries was the freedom of expression that they portrayed in their paintings thus giving them a more lifelike look. They also showed discernable anatomy and were clothed in apparel that appeared to have weight and structure. A common theme of the art of that period was its preoccupation with death and salvation. It was probably because of the diseases that were killing epic proportions of the population.

Even the concentration on depicting divine subjects seems to point at the fact that the residents of that age did not concern themselves too much with everyday life but hoped upon the promise of the hereafter. ReferenceBishop, P. (2010). Adventures in the Human Spirit. New Jersey: Prentice Hall.