OF THE 
 U N I VLR.S ITY 
 or ILLINOIS 
 
 \2:)OQ> 
 
/ 
 
MACMILLAN'S STANDARD LIBRARY 
 
 RENAISSANCE AND 
 MODERN ART 
 
 « 
 
9 
 
LIBRARY 
 UNIVERSITV OF iLLlNOiS 
 URBANA 
 
RENAISSANCE 
 
 AND 
 
 MODERN ART 
 
 BY 
 
 W. H. GOODYEAR, M.A. 
 
 CURATOR OF FINE ARTS IN THE MUSEUM OF THE BROOKLYN 
 INSTITUTE 
 
 AUTHOR OF "A HISTORY OF ART," "THE GRAMMAR OF 
 THE LOTUS," " ROMAN AND MEDIEVAL 
 ART," ETC. 
 
 WITH MANY ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 NEW YORK 
 GROSSET & DUNLAP 
 PUBLISHERS 
 
COPVRIGHT, 1894, 
 
 By flood & VINCENT. 
 
 First published elsewhere. 
 Reprinted February, 1900; June, 1901; 
 May, 1902; June, 1904; February, 1906. 
 
 Berwick & Smith, Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 
 
' (ji^ivERSiTY or mm \^ — 
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 The first wish of the student, who has been introduced 
 to a new and important field of study by means of a sum- 
 mary and closely condensed compendium, is to know of 
 I ^ the books which may supplement and enlarge his field of 
 ^^view, which may supply him with a larger number of facts 
 -<;^alDout it, and bring him nearer to the individual lives and 
 V historic details which the space available for a summary 
 compendium is insufficient to include. Not the least im- 
 portant matter of this work will therefore, be the hints here 
 '•^and there scattered through it as to such further source of in- 
 formation. The '^Suggestions in Aid of Reading," which 
 > I have compiled for the special course in Art History of the 
 ^Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, would furnish a 
 .^number of additional references, among which historical 
 : ^ works, as distinct from those specially devoted to art, have 
 ;^received considerable attention. The English author who 
 ^has made a specialty of the historic Renaissance is Sy- 
 ^monds. Jacob Burckhardt's Civilization of the Renais- 
 Jsance," translated from the German by Middlemore, is a 
 :^pithier, more philosophical, and much shorter work. I 
 M should not wish to urge its use to the exclusion of Symonds, 
 vbut no serious student can afford to forego the knowledge 
 - of it. It may be said in general that the wider one's 
 .-^ .knowledge of history and literature, the more interesting 
 > does the art of the Renaissance become; and, conversely, 
 yj that there is no better introduction to the study of modern 
 '• history and modern literature at large than the study of this 
 ^ art. Of all histories of English Literature, Taine' s is the one 
 
 iii 
 
 I 1 62674 
 
iv 
 
 Preface, 
 
 which keeps closest in touch with the point of view which 
 recognizes Renaissance Italy as the main source of modern 
 culture, while Ranke's histories, especially his History of 
 the Popes and his History of England," are the best 
 general reference for the sixteenth and seventeenth cen- 
 turies at large. Fiske's ''Discovery of America," and 
 Campbell's ''Puritan in Holland, England, and America," 
 are the books best calculated to bring our own American 
 history into line with that of continental Europe. I have 
 mentioned these various books from the conviction that the 
 only true philosophy of modern history is that which moves 
 from the Renaissance as its elementary basis, that the study 
 of Renaissance art is the best approach to Renaissance 
 history, and that the best supplementary reading is that of 
 the historians whose point of view is the largest and most 
 comprehensive. 
 
 I have to make acknowledgment in this preface to the 
 persons whose kindness has enabled me to illustrate the 
 works of recent American and recent foreign artists. 
 Among these I must specialize, first, the American painters 
 and sculptors who have allowed me to publish their works, 
 and the various owners of the same. Mr. Henry T. Chap- 
 man, Jr., of Brooklyn, has allowed me to publish several 
 of his precious possessions. Prof Halsey C. Ives, chief of 
 the Art Palace at the Columbian Exposition, was good 
 enough to give me carte blanche in his department, subject 
 to the permission of the artists and owners concerned. 
 Finally, I have to thank Mrs. Mabel Rolfe, of Cambridge, 
 Mass. , for her goodness and cleverness in the matter of the 
 photographs taken at Chicago. The pictures for my frontis- 
 piece and for all American paintings published were taken 
 by her, as well as the pictures of Thornycroft' s Teucer and 
 Rodin's Andromeda. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Chapter. Page. 
 
 I. The Renaissance Period. — Limits of 
 the Renaissance Period. — The Term 
 Defined ..... 15 
 II. Contemporaneous History . . 19 
 
 III. Position of Art in the Italian Re- 
 
 naissance 27 
 
 IV. History of Italy Since the Renais- 
 
 sance, AS Explaining the Decline 
 OF Italian Art .... 33 
 V. Divisions of Renaissance Periods and 
 
 Style ..... 39 
 VI. The Traits of Renaissance Architec- 
 ture 42 
 
 VII. Philosophy of Renaissance Archi- 
 tecture . . . . . 54 
 VIII. Renaissance Architecture in Theory 
 
 AND IN Practice .... 61 
 IX. Criticism of Renaissance Architec- 
 ture 64 
 
 X. Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Cen- 
 tury Renaissance Architecture 72 
 XI. Historic Sketch of Sixteenth Cen- 
 tury Renaissance Architecture 86 
 XII. Decadence of Renaissance Architec- 
 ture, Seventeenth and Eighteenth 
 Centuries 97 
 
 XIII. Relation of Painting to Other Arts 
 
 OF the Renaissance . . 107 
 
 XIV. Fifteenth Century Renaissance 
 
 Painting iii 
 
 V 
 
vi 
 
 Contents. 
 
 Chapter. Page. 
 
 XV. Philosophy of the Perfection of 
 
 Italian Painting . . . 125 
 XVI. Leonardo da Vinci . . .132 
 XVII. Raphael Santi of Urbino . . 139 
 XVIII. Michael Angelo Buonarroti . 150 
 
 XIX. CORREGGIO AND TiTIAN . . 1 59 
 
 XX. Seventeenth Century Renaissance 
 
 Painting 170 
 
 XXL Sixteenth Century German and 
 
 Flemish Painting . . . 183 
 XXII. Seventeenth Century Dutch Paint- 
 ing 187 
 
 XXIII. Renaissance Sculpture. — Relations to 
 
 Modern History .... 196 
 
 XXIV. Early Renaissance Sculpture. — Crit- 
 
 ical Review . . . . .199 
 
 XXV. Early Renaissance Sculpture. — His- 
 toric Sketch .... 205 
 
 XXVI. Renaissance . Sculpture. — Philosophy 
 
 of its Decline . . . . 218 
 
 XXVII. Renaissance Sculpture. — Michael An- 
 gelo . . . . . . 222 
 
 XXVIII. Renaissance Sculpture. — Later Styles 
 
 and Decadence . . . .229 
 
 XXIX. The Greek Revival of the Eigh- 
 teenth Century . . . 240 
 XXX. Architecture of the Nineteenth 
 
 Century 250 
 
 XXXL Sculpture of the Nineteenth Cen- 
 tury 256 
 
 XXXII. English and French Painting. — Eigh- 
 teenth and Nineteenth Centuries . 272 
 XXXIII. Recent American Art . . 292 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Samson, by Elihu Vedder Frontispiece, 
 
 Figure. Page. 
 
 1. Late French Renaissance Carved and Gilded 
 
 Wooden Chest and Table i6 
 
 2. Armor of Christian IT. of Denmark. Italian 
 
 Renaissance Ornamentation 20 
 
 3. Tomb of the Children of Charles VIII. Tours 21 
 
 4. German Renaissance Fowling Pieces 23 
 
 5. French Renaissance Bellows 24 
 
 6. Renaissance Italian silver-gilt Wine Pitcher. 
 
 School of Benvenuto Cellini 25 
 
 7. Wrought-iron Standard-holder on the Strozzi 
 
 Palace, Florence. By Caprarra 28 
 
 8. Carved wooden Trousseau Chest, supporting 
 
 the Roman Wolf. Early Italian Renaissance 29 
 
 9. Italian Renaissance Bronze Gates in Venice . . 31 
 
 10. French Renaissance Doorway at Frejus .... 36 
 
 1 1 . Room in the Chateau of Oyron 43 
 
 12. Renaissance pediment, entablature, and ''en- 
 
 gaged'* columns. Equitable Building, New 
 York 46 
 
 13. Brownstone Front. New York 47 
 
 14. French Renaissance Detail, House of Agnes 
 
 Sorel, Orleans 48 
 
 15. So-called Temple of Saturn, Rome, and Arch 
 
 of Septimius Severus 50 
 
 16. Renaissance Villa near Vicenza, by Palladio . . 51 
 
 17. Temple of St. Peter, in the Cloister of S. 
 
 Pietro in Montorio, Rome. By Bramante . 52 
 
 18. Early French Renaissance ''engaged" classic 
 
 columns. Chateau d'Usson 55 
 
 19. Renaissance Fifteenth Century Decorative De- 
 
 tails, borrowed from Greco- Roman .... 59 
 
 vii 
 
viii List of Illustrations. 
 
 Figure, Page. 
 
 20. French Renaissance pediment and entablature. 
 
 Hotel Colbert, Paris 62 
 
 21. Early French Renaissance "engaged" classic 
 
 columns. Viviers 63 
 
 22. Architectural Renaissance Details framing a 
 
 Madonna Relief, by Mino da Fiesole .... 65 
 
 23. Early French Renaissance engaged columns and 
 
 entablature. Church at Gisors 66 
 
 24. Ancient Roman Ruin. Theater of Marcellus • . 67 
 
 25. Cathedral of Versailles. Eighteenth Century . . 69 
 
 26. Palace Poli, and Fountain of Trevi, Rome ... 71 
 
 27. Church of San Lorenzo, Florence. By Brunel- 
 
 lesco, 1425 . , , 73 
 
 28. Church of San Spirito, Florence. After the de- 
 
 sign of Brunellesco 74 
 
 29. Church of the Annunciation. Genoa ... 75 
 
 30. Doorway of the Cloister of Santa Croce, Flor- 
 
 ence. By Brunellesco 77 
 
 31. Window Pediment of the Doge's Palace. Ven- 
 
 ice. By Pietro Lombardo 78 
 
 32. Early Renaissance Capital. Venice 79 
 
 33. Ornament from the Tomb of Gaston de Foix 80 
 
 34. French Renaissance Wood-carving 81 
 
 35. Court of the Ducal Palace at Urbino 82 
 
 36. Palace Rucellai. Florence. By Alberti ... 83 
 
 37. Pitti Palace, by Brunellesco. Florence. . . 84 
 
 38. Strozzi Palace, by Benedetto da Majano ... 85 
 
 39. Arcade and Court of Palace Massimi. Rome 86 
 
 40. Cancellaria Palace, Rome. By Bramante ... 87 
 
 41. Court of the Church of Santa Maria della Pace 88 
 
 42. St. Peter's Church. Rome. Interior .... 89 
 
 43. St. Peter's Church. Rome. Exterior ... 90 
 
 44. Court of the Palace Massimi. Rome .... 91 
 
 45. Palace Bartolini. Florence 92 
 
 46. Second Story, Court of the Farnese Palace 93 
 
 47. Palace Marcantonio Tiene, by Palladio. Vi- 
 
 cenza 95 
 
 48. French Doorway. Villeneuve-les- Avignon . . 97 
 
 49. French Doorway. Villeneuve-les-Avignon . . 98 
 
List of Illustrations. ix 
 
 Figure. ^ ^ Page. 
 
 50. French Doorway. Villenenve-les-Avignon . . 99 
 
 51. Cathedral of Murcia. Spanish Renaissance . 100 
 
 52. St. Mary's College. Oxford loi 
 
 53. St. Etienne du Mont. Paris 102 
 
 54. St. Paul's Cathedral. London 103 
 
 55. House in Leyden. Dutch Renaissance .... 104 
 
 56. Town Hall of Leyden. Dutch Renaissance 105 
 
 57. Ceiling of a Room in the "Chateau of Oyron, 
 
 with Mythologic Paintings 108 
 
 58. Loggie or Corridor of the Vatican 109 
 
 59. Detail from the Raising of Eutychus. Masaccio. 
 
 Brancacci Chapel, Florence 113 
 
 60. St. Paul Visiting St. Peter in Prison. Design 
 
 by Masaccio 116 
 
 61. Christ Giving the Keys to Peter. Fresco 
 
 by Perugino. Sistine Chapel, Rome ... 117 
 
 62. Detail from the Fresco of Peter and Paul Heal- 
 
 ing the Sick and Lame. Probably by Ma- 
 saccio. Brancacci Chapel, Florence .... 120 
 
 63. Detail from the Framing of a Madonna. Era 
 
 Angelico. Uflfizi Gallery, Florence .... 121 
 
 64. Meeting of Mary and Elizabeth. Ghirlandajo 122 
 
 65. Detail from the Series of Paintings by Carpac- 
 
 cio for the Story of St. Ursula 123 
 
 66. Detail of a Madonna, by Filippo Lippi ... 125 
 
 67. Virgin Adoring the Infant Savior. Lorenzo 
 
 di Credi. London 126 
 
 68. The Virgin and Child with two Saints. Peru- 
 
 gino. London 127 
 
 69. Martyrdom of St. Sebastian. Pollajuolo ... 128 
 
 70. Portrait of Leonardo da Vinci. Uffizi Gallery. 132 
 
 71. La Gioconda. Portrait by Da Vinci .... 133 
 
 72. The Virgin and St. Anne. Da Vinci. Louvre 134 
 
 73. The Last Supper. Da Vinci. Milan. . . . 136 
 
 74. Fresco by Luini at Lugano 138 
 
 75. House in Urbino where Raphael was born . . 139 
 
 76. The Camera della Segnatura in the Vatican . . 140- 
 
 77. Plato and Aristotle. From the ''School of 
 
 Athens." Vatican. By Raphael 141 
 
X 
 
 List of Illustrations. 
 
 Figure. Page. 
 
 78. Apollo, Detail of the ^ ^ Parnassus/ ' by Ra- 
 
 phael. Vatican 142 
 
 79. Detail from the Jurisprudence/' by Raphael. 143 
 
 80. Detail of the ''Madonna in the Meadow," by 
 
 Raphael. Vienna. . ' 144 
 
 81. Detail from the Betrothal of Mary and Joseph, 
 
 by Raphael. Milan 145 
 
 82. Detail of the Portrait of Angiolo Doni, by Ra- 
 
 phael. Pitti Palace 146 
 
 83. Portrait of Maddalena Doni, by Raphael. . . . 147 
 
 84. Detail of the ''Transfiguration," by Raphael. 148 
 
 85. Bust of Michael Angelo, dating 1570 150 
 
 86. Creation of the Sun and Moon. Detail from the 
 
 Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel 151 
 
 87. Detail from the Series representing the Fore- 
 
 fathers of Christ. Sistine Chapel Ceiling . . 152 
 
 88. The Sistine Chapel. Vatican Palace 154 
 
 89. Detail from the Last Judgment, by Michael 
 
 Angelo 156 
 
 90. Decorative Figure, Sistine Chapel Ceiling. ... 157 
 
 91. Detail from Correggio's Virgin Adoring the In- 
 
 fant Savior. Uffizi Gallery. Florence ... 1 59 
 
 92. Christ Appears to Mary Magdalen after the 
 
 Resurrection. Correggio. Madrid .... 160 
 
 93. Hall of the Grand Council, Doge's Palace . . 162 
 
 94. Detail from Titian's Portrait of "La Bella." 
 
 Pitti Palace, Florence 163 
 
 95. Detail from Titian's Assumption of the Virgin. 
 
 Venice Academy 164 
 
 96. St. Bridget offering Flowers to the Infant Sa- 
 
 vior. Titian. Madrid 165 
 
 97. Detail from Titian' s Presentation of the Virgin. 
 
 Venice Academy 1 66 
 
 98. Portrait by Palma Vecchio. Vienna 167 
 
 99. Detail from the Feast in the House of Levi, by 
 
 Paul Veronese. Venice Academy 168 
 
 100. Portrait of Henrietta of France, Queen of Charles 
 
 I. of England. Van Dyck. Pitti Palace. . . 170 
 
 101. The Dead Savior. Van Dyck. Antwerp. , , 171 
 
List of Illustrations. xi 
 
 Figure. ^ ^ Page. 
 
 1 02. Jacob's Ladder. Ribera. Madrid 172 
 
 103. Portrait of the Dwarf El Primo. Velasquez. . 173 
 
 104. The Divine Shepherd. Murillo. Madrid. . . 174 
 
 105. Detail from a Holy Family, by Rubens .... 176 
 
 106. Madonna, by Guido Reni. Uffizi Gallery. . . 177 
 
 107. The Annunciation. Sassoferrato. Louvre. . 178 
 
 108. Saint Cecilia. Sassoferrato 179 
 
 109. Detail from Diana's Chase. Domenichino. . . 180 
 no. Portrait of Lucas Baumgartner. Albert Diirer. 182 
 
 111. Woodcut by Albert Diirer 184 
 
 112. The Flagellation. Woodcut by Albert Diirer . 185 
 
 113. Portrait of Hans Holbein, by himself 186 
 
 114. Franz van Mieris. Portrait of the Artist and 
 
 his Wife. The Hague 187 
 
 115. Cattle. Paul Potter. The Hague 188 
 
 116. The Anatomy Lesson. Rembrandt. The Hague 189 
 
 117. Banquet of the Officers of the Archers' Corps of 
 
 St. Adrian. Franz Hals. Haarlem .... 190 
 
 118. Portrait. Rembrandt. Amsterdam 191 
 
 119. The Doctor's Visit. Jan Steen. The Hague . 192 
 
 120. Dutch Landscape. Ruisdael. Amsterdam. . 193 
 
 121. Tavern Scene. David Teniers the Younger. . 194 
 
 122. Swathed Infant, by Andrea della Robbia . . . 199 
 
 123. Equestrian Statue of Gattamelata. By Dona- 
 
 tello. Padua 200 
 
 1 24. Christ Healing the Sick. By Andrea and Luca 
 
 della Robbia. Florence 201 
 
 125. The Annunciation. Relief in Enameled Terra 
 
 Cotta. By Andrea della Robbia. Prato. 202 
 
 126. Lunette in Enameled Terra Cotta. By Luca 
 
 della Robbia. Madonna and Child 203 
 
 127. The Baptistery of Florence . . • 205 
 
 128. Christ and the Money Changers. Bronze Relief 
 
 Panel, by Ghiberti 206 
 
 1 29. Christ and Peter Walking on the Water. Bronze 
 
 Relief Panel, by Ghiberti 207 
 
 130. Design for a Bronze Door Panel, by Briinellesco. 208 
 
 131. Design for a Bronze Door Panel, by Ghiberti. 209 
 
 132. Bronze Doors, by Ghiberti. Florence. ... 210 
 
xii 
 
 List of Illustrations. 
 
 Figure. ^ Page. 
 
 133. The Story of Jacob and Esau, by Ghiberti. . . 211 
 
 1 34. Sacrifice of Isaac. Abraham and the Angels. 
 
 Hagar and Ishmael, by Ghiberti 212 
 
 135. The Story of Joseph, by Ghiberti 213 
 
 136. Decorative Details from the second pair of 
 
 Bronze Doors by Ghiberti . 214 
 
 137. Equestrian Statue of Colleoni, by Verocchio. . 215 
 
 138. Bust of Nicolo da Uzzano, by Donatello ... 215 
 
 139. Marble Shrine Relief of the Madonna and Child 
 
 in Vienna. Florentine Work 216 
 
 140. St. George, by Donatello. Florence 218 
 
 141. David, by Verocchio. Florence 219 
 
 142. David, by Donatello. Florence 220 
 
 143. Detail of the David, by Michael Angelo . . . . 222 
 
 144. Moses, by Michael Angelo. Rome 223 
 
 145. Detail of the Tomb of Lorenzo Medici .... 224 
 
 146. Tomb of Lorenzo Medici. Florence 225 
 
 147. Allegorical Figure of the Day from the Tomb of 
 
 Giuliano Medici, by Michael Angelo .... 226 
 
 148. Captive, by Michael Angelo. Louvre .... 227 
 
 149. Perseus, by Benvenuto CelHni. Florence. . . 229 
 
 1 50. Figures from the Reliefs of the Fountain of 
 
 the Innocents, by Jean Goujon 230 
 
 151. Mary of Burgundy. Maximilian's Tomb at Inn- 
 
 spruck 231 
 
 152. King Arthur. Bronze; by Peter Vischer. From 
 
 the Maximilian Monument at Innspruck . . 232 
 
 153. Wood-carved Confessionals at Antwerp . . . 233 
 
 154. ^neas and Anchises, by Bernini 234 
 
 155. Pulpit of the Brussels Cathedral 235 
 
 156. The Escape from Error, by Queirolo. Naples. 236 
 
 157. Prometheus, by Adam. Louvre 237 
 
 158. Statue of Louis XV., by Nicolas Coustou . . 238 
 
 159. Portrait of Col. Epes Sargent, by John Single- 
 
 ton Copley 241 
 
 160. Ganymede, by Thorwaldsen. Copenhagen . . 246 
 
 161. Detail of the Perseus, by Canova. Vatican . 247 
 
 162. The Angel of Death. Detail of the Tomb of 
 
 Clement XIII., in St. Peter's. By Canova . 248 
 
List of Illustrations. xiii 
 
 Figure. Page. 
 
 163. Houses of Parliament, London. By Barry . . 252 
 
 164. Courthouse and Jail of Pittsburg, by H. H. 
 
 Richardson. Romanesque Revival .... 254 
 
 165. Teucer, by Hamo Thornycroft 256 
 
 166. Bronze Equestrian Statue of Frederick the 
 
 Great, by Ranch. Berlin 257 
 
 167. Andromeda. Design for the Gates of Hell. 
 
 (Dante's Inferno.) By Rodin 258 
 
 168. Cast of a Lion, by Barye. Trocadero Museum. 259 
 
 169. Teucer, by Hamo Thornycroft 261 
 
 170. Bronze Group. Charles Dickens and Little 
 
 Nell, by F. Edwin Elwell 263 
 
 171. Bronze Statue of Henry Ward Beecher. Brook- 
 
 lyn. By J. Q. A. Ward 264 
 
 172. Bronze Statue of Hamilton, Brooklyn. By 
 
 William Ordway Partridge 265 
 
 173. Landscape Group, by E. C. Potter and Daniel 
 
 C. French. Columbian Exposition .... 266 
 
 174. Statue of the Republic, by Daniel C. French . 267 
 
 175. Sea Horses. Detail from the Fountain, by 
 
 MacMonnies. Columbian Exposition . . . 267 
 
 176. Mounted Indian, by Proctor. Columbian Ex- 
 
 position 268 
 
 177. Aerial Navigation, by John J. Boyle. Trans- 
 
 portation Building, Columbian Exposition . 269 
 
 178. Bronze Statue of Abraham Lincoln, by Augus- 
 
 tus St. Gaudens. Lincoln Park, Chicago . 270 
 
 179. Boy Fighting, by Gainsborough 273 
 
 180. Landscape, by Diaz 274 
 
 181. Peasant Woman, by Millet 275 
 
 182. Landscape, by Corot 276 
 
 183. Landscape, by Claude Lorrain 278 
 
 184. Landscape, by Homer Martin 279 
 
 185. Maine Coast in Winter, by Winslow Homer . 280 
 
 186. Labor, by J. F. Millet 284 
 
 187. A Great Gale, by Winslow Homer 285 
 
 188. Sailors, Take Warning," by Winslow Homer 286 
 
 189. Greek Girls Playing at Ball, by Sir Frederick 
 
 Leighton 287 
 
xiv 
 
 List of Illustrations, 
 
 Figure. Page. 
 
 190. Love and Death, by George F. Watts .... 288 
 
 191. Reading from Homer, by Alma-Tadema . . . 289 
 
 192. Sea Nymph, by Burne-Jones 290 
 
 193. The Young Marsyas, by EHhu Vedder . . . . 291 
 
 194. Design for an Illustration of Browning's ^'Men 
 
 and Women,'' ^'Childe Roland to the Dark 
 
 Tower Came." By John La Farge . . . . 292 
 
 195. Portrait, by J. S. Sargent • . . 293 
 
 196. The Lair of the Sea Serpent, by Elihu Vedder. 294 
 
 197. The Deserted Inn, by Wordsworth Thompson . 296 
 
 198. The Sculptor and the King, by George de 
 
 Forest Brush 297 
 
 199. Christ and the Fishermen, by F. V. Du Mond 298 
 
 200. ''Got Him," by Henry F. Farny 299 
 
 201. An Impromptu Affair in the Days of ''The 
 
 Code," by Frederick James 300 
 
 202. The Fisherman and the Geni. From "The 
 
 Arabian Nights." By Elihu Vedder . . . 302 
 
 203. Delilah, by Elihu Vedder 303 
 
 The engravings of pictures reproduced from photographs made by the special 
 permission of artists and owners for this book are protected by copyright. 
 
RENAISSANCE AND MODERN ART. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 THE RENAISSANCE PERIOD. 
 
 Limits of the Renaissance Period. 
 
 The period covered by the title of my book has had a 
 duration of about five hundred years. The Renaissance 
 had fairly begun in the early part of the fifteenth century, 
 and from the standpoint of general history the beginning of 
 the Renaissance was the beginning of modern times. In a 
 broad and general sense this period cannot be considered 
 to have ended yet. Modern civilization dates from the 
 Renaissance and was created by it. 
 
 This broadest and largest fact about the Renaissance is 
 best explained, proven, and illustrated through the history 
 of art. 
 
 It therefore holds, in a large sense, that Renaissance art 
 must also be conceived as still continuing. It is especially, 
 however, in architecture and in ornament that the proof 
 and illustration of this fact can be most definitely given. 
 In sculpture and in painting, although the relations and 
 connections of modern art with its Renaissance origins are 
 perfectly definite and perfectly continuous, they are not so 
 immediately obvious without research. 
 
 On the other hand there are uses of the term Renaissance 
 
 15 
 
i6 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 in which, both for history in a general sense and for the 
 history of art in a special sense, it must be considered as 
 having long since ended. It seems then proper at the 
 outset of this little book, to indicate the various senses in 
 which this word may be legitimately used as regards limits 
 of time and period ; observing, at the same time, that 
 whenever we feel disposed to restrict the sense of the term, 
 we have still chosen a title for our book which is perfectly 
 explicit. The period to be covered began about 1400 A. 
 D. and has not ended. No one can deny that modern art 
 and history began about this time. Whenever the Renais- 
 sance may have ended, 
 there is no doubt as to 
 when it began. Our 
 title, therefore, covers 
 the ground in any 
 case. 
 
 A discussion about 
 words is never useless 
 when it tends to bring 
 out facts. The fact to 
 be indicated then is 
 this: that in some 
 senses the term * * Re- 
 naissance, ' ' either in 
 art or history, specially 
 applies to Italy in the 
 fifteenth and sixteenth 
 centuries, and to the 
 obvious and palpable 
 influence of Italy on 
 foreign countries at 
 this time. This is the special and generally recognized use 
 
 Fig. I. — Late French Renaissance Carved and 
 Gilded Wooden Chest and Table. 
 At Moyenmoutier. 
 
The Renaissance Period, 
 
 17 
 
 of the term. Although no one can deny that the seven- 
 teenth century continued to exhibit and spread this influ- 
 ence, the term is not so generally understood as applying 
 to a period of history when the seventeenth century is in 
 question. Still less would the eighteenth century be con- 
 sidered to come within the limits of the period, according 
 to the usual acceptance of historic divisions. On the other 
 hand the history of art during the seventeenth and eigh- 
 teenth centuries enables us to prove without the least diffi- 
 culty that the same historic influences are really always in 
 question. 
 
 As a matter of fact the first distinct break with these 
 Italian traditions in taste, literature, and art, occurred in the 
 latter half of the eighteenth century, and even then it is 
 only in a narrow and limited sense that they can be said to 
 have ended. 
 
 The Term Defined. 
 
 What was the Renaissance ? According to a literal ren- 
 dering of the word, which is French for rebirth," it 
 was a rebirth of civilization, of literature, and of art, and 
 according to universal acceptance the word relates to Italy ; 
 for we never speak of the English, French, German, or 
 Spanish Renaissance, without the implication that Italy was 
 the original home, center, and inspiration of the movement. 
 
 But rebirth'* implies that something had ceased to 
 exist which once existed. The word therefore implies two 
 preceding periods as well as its own. It implies a preced- 
 ing 3eriod which was reborn, and it implies an intervening 
 period of cessation, a gap or chasm between that period 
 and itself. The word Renaissance therefore carries with 
 itself a conception of the Middle Age as this intervening 
 period, and a conception of itself as a rebirth of the civili- 
 
1 8 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 zation of the Roman Empire. These were the conceptions 
 of the ItaHans of the Renaissance. 
 
 Now, as a matter of fact, civiUzation is never reborn; it 
 continues — ^with changes. Nothing could be more differ- 
 ent, as a matter of fact, than was the civiHzation of Italy in 
 the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries from the civilization of 
 ancient Rome. But this matter-of-fact distinction escaped 
 the perception of the Italians themselves. They believed 
 themselves to be reviving the civilization of the past, when 
 they were in reality only learning from it. This belief 
 colored their language, their literature, their daily life, and, 
 therefore, their art. 
 
 In the character of the period we shall therefore gradu- 
 ally learn to separate two things: on the one hand, the 
 estimate which the time made of itself, its enthusiasms, 
 sentiment, patriotism, coloring — in brief, the dream of the 
 Roman Empire; on the other hand, the actual conditions 
 and facts of early modern civilization. 
 
 The first aspect of the Renaissance was mainly confined 
 to Italy of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries and its 
 obvious reaction on other European countries. But the 
 actual facts and conditions of early modern civilization 
 were necessarily controlling facts and conditions for all later 
 modern civilization. It is in these two senses that our 
 conceptions of the Renaissance as a special period, and of 
 modern history as a whole, either fall apart or hold to- 
 gether. 
 
CHAPTER II. 
 
 CONTEMPORANEOUS HISTORY. 
 
 For a perfectly practical and common-sense knowledge 
 of facts (as distinct from theories about terms, which can 
 only carry real meaning in so far as we know these facts) 
 let us remember what we can of the contemporary history 
 of Europe in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, when the 
 Renaissance began and most beneficently flourished. 
 
 In England the Wars of the Roses had ended in the ex- 
 haustion of the feudal aristocracy and the rise to power of 
 a despotic Tudor dynasty (Henry VII., Henry VIII., Ed- 
 ward VI., Mary, Elizabeth) whose despotic power was 
 mainly used to antagonize the feudal nobles and to exalt 
 the importance of the cities and of the commercial classes. 
 The great personal popularity of Queen Elizabeth, in spite 
 of her arbitrary acts and despotic rule, is the best re- 
 minder of this significance of her dynasty. 
 
 In France the same alliance of royal despotism and com- 
 merce against feudalism was still more apparent during the 
 reigns of Louis XL, Charles VIIL, Louis XII., Francis I., 
 and their successors. During these two centuries England, 
 France, and Spain all illustrate the tendency to national 
 consolidation and concentration, as opposed to the earlier 
 dismemberment of these countries in local feudal princi- 
 palities. 
 
 As regards the existence of modern monarchies and 
 modern states, the history of modern Europe at this time, 
 therefore, clearly begins to show its character. In Ger- 
 
 19 
 
20 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 many we find at this time the memorable events of the 
 Reformation. Otherwise, the great maritime discoveries 
 made first by Portugal and Spain, the invention and spread 
 
 Fig. 2. — Armor of Christian II. of Denmark. Italian Renaissance 
 Ornamentation. First half of Sixteenth Century. 
 
 of the art of printing, the use of gunpowder, and of stand- 
 ing armies of artillery and infantry, and the astronomical 
 announcements of Copernicus regarding the true nature 
 of the planetary system are to be mentioned as leading 
 facts of general history. Where then, the student may 
 ask, does the Renaissance appear to be a controlling fact 
 of history ? 
 
 To this we might answer: first, that in so far as the 
 organization of a modern state is concerned, its necessary 
 
Contemporaneous History, 21 
 
 basis is admitted to be a uniform system of taxation; and 
 this again presupposes a census, an administrative system, 
 and settled and prosperous industries. Now in all these 
 things it is known that Italy was the teacher of Europe. 
 As opposed to the arbitrary, oppressive, spasmodic, and ill- 
 adjusted levies of money made by the sovereigns of 
 northern Europe down to the close of the Middle Ages, 
 Italy was the country where a census and uniform taxation 
 were first generally in use, and they spread from this 
 
 Fig. 3.— Tomb of the Children of Charles VIII. Tours. Renaissance style. 
 
 country to the North. The state of Ferrara has been 
 much quoted for its especially fine administrative system. 
 Florence and Venice were also among the foremost in 
 matters of the census and of regular taxation. The diplo- 
 
22 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 matic system of Venice was so highly developed that the 
 reports of her ambassadors to the various states of Europe 
 are at present our best authority for the history of the six- 
 teenth and seventeenth centuries. The histories of • the 
 German historian Ranke, which are the best authority for 
 all countries of Europe during the sixteenth and seventeenth 
 centuries, are largely founded on these reports. What 
 the Rothschilds are to the countries of modern Europe, 
 the bankers of Florence were to the sovereigns of the 
 North during the fifteenth century.* Most of the industries 
 of modern civilization can either be traced to the North 
 from Italian sources or were found in Italy in highest per- 
 fection. The manufactures of silks, velvets, and laces may 
 be mentioned as cases in point. 
 
 It would appear then for the fifteenth and sixteenth cen- 
 turies, that while the size and power of the modern mon- 
 archies in England, France, and Spain may first attract 
 attention, their very existence in the matter of administra- 
 tion was due to Italy. It is significant that it was cus- 
 tomary for the courts of northern Europe during the 
 sixteenth century to have an Italian diplomatist in their 
 employ. Such, for instance, was the true position of the 
 unfortunate Rizzio at the court of Mary Queen of Scots, 
 although he is generally quoted by English historians as 
 having been a musician. 
 
 In the matter of the maritime discoveries, which are the 
 most obvious distinction of the fifteenth century, it should 
 not be forgotten that Columbus was a Genoese, that 
 the Cabots were Venetians, and that the knowledge of the 
 earth's rotundity, which was the basis of the search of 
 Columbus for the eastern shores of Asia, was spread by 
 
 * For an account of their enormous loans to French sovereigns, see the History 
 of France by Michelet, 
 
Contemporaneous History, .'23 
 
 Florentine astronomers and men of learning. As regards 
 the science of modern warfare, we may mention that the 
 first treatise on gunnery was written by the artist Leonardo 
 da Vinci, who was himself a practical artilleryman. Al- 
 though printing was invented in Germany, it was in Venice 
 that the art found its early highest developments Coper- 
 nicus was a native of Prussia, but he had studied five years 
 in Rome before reaching his conclusions regarding the 
 planetary system. 
 
 It would appear from the above suggestions that even 
 where other countries of Europe seem to have been fore- 
 most, an Italian influence may frequently or generally be 
 traced and proven. As regards the general system of 
 modern law we know that the University of Bologna was 
 the great center of legal studies during the centuries which 
 
 Fig. 4.— German Renaissance Fowling Pieces (about 1600). In Vienna. 
 Style and designs Italian. 
 
24 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 prepared the way for modern times, and that the Univer- 
 sity of Padua was the famous center of Europe for the 
 study of anatomy and medicine. It is no mere chance 
 which has made the vioHns of Cremona famous above all 
 others, and that the word ' ' piano ' ' is ItaHan, or that Lom- 
 bard Street in London has its name from the Italian bank- 
 ers who were settled there. It is no 
 mere chance which carries the names 
 of Torricelli and Galileo wherever the 
 study of physics travels, or that the 
 name of Galvani has coined a new 
 English word. It is no mere chance 
 that the finest European palace of the 
 nineteenth century, architecturally 
 speaking, was built for the residence of 
 a Florentine banker of the fifteenth 
 century (the Pitti Palace), or that 
 Venetian glass'* is still a synonym 
 for all that is elegant and graceful in 
 that material. It is no mere chance 
 that the parks of French Versailles or 
 German Schwetzingen and Hesse Cassel 
 were imitations of Italian originals, 
 whose landscape gardening was the in- 
 FiG. 5.— French Renais- spiratiou of all modcm art in this direc- 
 
 sance Bellows. (Italian . -1 .1. '^'i 
 
 style.) Collection of the tiou. It IS not chauce that artihcial 
 flowers were known as ' ' Italian flowers' ' 
 In Germany, or that the lace manufactures of Valenciennes 
 and Alen^on were transplanted from the Island of Murano, 
 or that the high ruffs of Queen Elizabeth point to a fashion 
 which came from Italy. 
 
 For the matter of refinement in behavior, we have the 
 opinion of Dr. Samuel Johnson that the finest work ever 
 
Contemporaneous History. 
 
 25 
 
 written on good breeding was that entitled ' ' The Cour- 
 tier," which came from the pen of Raphael's friend, the 
 Count Castiglione. For 
 the matter of general 
 education, we have the 
 opinion of Gregorovi- 
 us, the greatest Ger- 
 man authority on the 
 history of medieval 
 Rome, that the Italian 
 ladies of the fifteenth 
 century were the su- 
 periors in education of 
 the German ladies of 
 our own day. We 
 know that lady profes- 
 sors were lecturing in 
 the University of Bo- 
 logna some centuries 
 
 Uf^fr^rt:^ fV><a Amf^r\nctr\ FiG. 6— Renaissance Italian silver-gilt Wine 
 
 oeiore me /American pitcher, sixteenth Century. School of Ben- 
 colleges were hesita- ^^""^^ C^^^^"^- ^^"^ ^^^^^^^ Florence. 
 
 ting to admit a female student. It is only necessary to 
 glance at the portraits of fifteenth and sixteenth century 
 Italians, which will be found in later pages, to be aware of 
 their intellectual and personal refinement; a refinement 
 which does not equally distinguish, for instance, the German 
 portraits of the same age. 
 
 Finally, in the matter of literature let us notice thr 
 Italian inspiration of Spenser's ''Faerie Queene," and the 
 dramas of Shakespeare which are founded on Italian stories 
 or whose scenes are laid in Italy — then those additional 
 ones (all of the antique subjects) based on the ''Lives " of 
 Plutarch, a work which found its way into Shakespeare's 
 
26 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 library through a French translation, but which first came 
 into notice through Italian students. Or turn to the 
 ''Paradise Lost'' of Milton, who had traveled in Italy, 
 and consider the classical citations and references drawn 
 from Italian learning. In the literature of the French, the 
 comedies of Moliere or the tragedies of Corneille and Ra- 
 cine will offer still more striking illustrations. 
 
 It is apparent from these references that the statues of 
 Michael Angelo, Donatello, and Verocchio, the paintings of 
 Raphael, Correggio, and Titian, the buildings of Brunel- 
 lesco, of Bramante and Palladio, are not isolated facts ex- 
 plained by isolated individual genius in the history of art. 
 They are facts of general history, phases of general civiliza- 
 tion, illustrations parallel to those which I have just 
 advanced in other lines of intellectual activity, of educa- 
 tion, culture, and refinement. 
 
CHAPTER III. 
 
 POSITION OF ART IN THE ITALIAN RENAISSANCE. 
 
 It is interesting to inquire, for a moment, why the art of 
 the Renaissance has assumed such proportions in the pubHc 
 eye as to dwarf its other claims to glory. Why is it that 
 the influence of Italian studies on Harvey's announcement 
 of the circulation of the blood or the precedence of Italian 
 students in the investigations of political economy is less 
 prominent in the public mind than the frescoes of the 
 Vatican or the tombs of the Medici ? 
 
 One obvious answer is that modern science and modern 
 civilization at large have far outstripped their first begin- 
 nings — so far, that these beginnings are forgotten in the 
 magnitude and wonders of later and recent discoveries; 
 whereas the absolute superiority of Italian art in the early 
 sixteenth century to our own art of the nineteenth century 
 is still uncontested and incontestable. No critic has ever 
 claimed that the art of the nineteenth century rivals the 
 Italian art of the early sixteenth century — that we have 
 produced anything to compare with the color of Venetian 
 paintings, with the figure composition of Raphael, or with 
 the colossal genius which reveals itself in the ceiling decora- 
 tion of the Sistine Chapel. 
 
 In other words, modern civilization has gone forward as 
 a whole, but in its later art it has neither surpassed nor 
 equaled its earliest achievements. The verdict of the 
 modern artist and the modern critic still awards the palm 
 
 27 
 
Fig. 7.— Wrought iron Standard-holder on the Strozzi Palace, Florence. 
 By Caprarra, Fifteenth Century Renaissance. 
 
Position of Art in the Italian Renaissance. 
 
 29 
 
 to Ghiberti or to Titian, while the man of science who 
 stands on the shoulders of GaHleo possibly forgets him in 
 the marvels of his own discoveries. 
 
 One task, therefore, of the art critic and the art historian 
 IS to explain the reasons why art and science have so far 
 parted company; to show the peculiar position of art in the 
 Renaissance period, the special causes of its special ex- 
 cellence and the reasons for its later relative decline; but 
 without forgetting to point out that the excellence of 
 Renaissance art was only one phase of a general culture 
 which otherwise has 
 culminated in the 
 triumph of later civ- 
 ilization. 
 
 Some further 
 points regarding the 
 relations of art to 
 the public and social 
 life of early Italy 
 have been m e n - 
 tioned in my ''Ro- 
 man and Medieval 
 Art, ' ' in matter re- 
 lating to the Italian 
 
 paintings of the fourteenth century, the late Gothic period 
 of Italy. ^ 
 
 If we again turn to our question— why is it that the art 
 of the Renaissance has assumed such proportions in the 
 public eye as to dwarf its other claims to glory?— we shall 
 find another obvious answer waiting for us. 
 
 The paintings of Raphael and the statues of Michael 
 Angelo can be seen. Every traveler in Italy makes 
 acquaintance with them. The beauties of Italian art are 
 
 Fig. 8 —Carved wooden Trousseau Chest, support- 
 ing the Roman Wolf. Early Italikn 
 Renaissance. Siena. 
 
30 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 familiar to every picture gallery of Europe. Engravings 
 and photographs and casts and copies have spread the 
 knowledge of this art wherever modern civilization has 
 made its way. It is quite a different matter to laboriously 
 search for the principles of law, of governmental science, for 
 the connections of literary influence, to trace out the history 
 of inventions and industries, to follow the course of social 
 life, the history of music or of medicine, of diplomacy or 
 manners. These studies are among the most laborious 
 known to man. They demand the patience and the talents 
 of a specialist, either to make them at first hand or to 
 study them when they have been made. It is partly be- 
 cause buildings, pictures, statues, and decorations last and 
 are visible to every eye, that Italian art holds a place in the 
 history of art which only the specialist is able to concede to 
 Italy in the history of civilization. 
 
 But we have still a reason why Renaissance art has been 
 exalted at the expense of the Renaissance civilization which 
 produced it. Italy as a country did not long hold the 
 pre-eminence which belonged to her in the fifteenth and 
 early sixteenth centuries. Other nations profited by her 
 advance and took her place. In successive order Spain, 
 France, England, and Germany have filled the place which 
 she once took in science, art, and letters. Italian 
 paintings of the seventeenth century are not superior to 
 those produced by Spain or Flanders at the same time. 
 English artists in the eighteenth century and French and 
 American artists in the nineteenth century have far out- 
 stripped the Italians of these same centuries; and what 
 holds of art holds also of letters and of science when we 
 compare the place taken among nations by the Italy of 
 to-day with the place taken among nations by the Italy of 
 1500. Of all contrasts, that would be most striking, which 
 
Position of Art in the Italian Renaissance. 
 
 31 
 
 should compare the Netherlands of the seventeenth century 
 vith the Italy of the same time, as related with a similar 
 comparison for two centuries before. 
 
 In other words, special nations have controlled the field 
 
 Fig. 9. — Italian Renaissance Bronze Gates in Venice. Sixteenth Century. 
 
 of history in intellectual and moral force at certain times. 
 Civilization radiated from the Netherlands in the seven- 
 teenth century to England and America* as it radiated 
 from Italy in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries to the 
 Netherlands, Spain, France, and Germany. 
 
 In our estimate of Renaissance civilization we are bound, 
 therefore, to consider the backwardness of other countries 
 at the given time as compared with Italy, but in our ac- 
 
 * Pouglas Campbell, " The Puritan in Holland, England, and America." 
 
32 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 count of the reasons why Itahan civihzation has* been 
 edipsed by its own triumph over other nations, we are 
 bound to consider that these other nations have become in 
 their turn superior. The payment of a debt of gratitude 
 to the past is easily overlooked when the wheel of history 
 has made another turn. 
 
 Probably, therefore, there is no matter of more immedi- 
 ate importance to our subject than to understand the causes 
 which led to the relative decline of Italy after the first 
 quarter of the sixteenth century, which was the zenith of 
 the Renaissance. A natural skepticism of the human mind 
 often asserts itself above the verdict of the critic. The 
 greatness of the * ' Old Masters ' ' has been often called in 
 doubt, although never -overthrown. Two things appear 
 essential to a reasonable philosophy of their greatness, to 
 show not only what produced it, but to show also why it 
 did not last. 
 
CHAPTER IV. 
 
 HISTORY OF ITALY SINCE THE RENAISSANCE, AS EXPLAIN- 
 ING THE DECLINE OF ITALIAN ART. 
 
 In OUR own time only, has Italy taken a place among 
 European powers as a united national state. Her national 
 existence as a country with one government is as recent as 
 1 87 1, and even the beginnings of her rise to national unity 
 are as recent as 1859. 
 
 It was in this year that the Kingdom of Sardinia, whose 
 main and most important territory was the province of Sa- 
 voy, began, under Victor Emmanuel, to extend its power 
 over other parts of Italy. In 1859 the territory of Milan 
 was added to this kingdom at the expense of Austria, 
 which then controlled it, by the Peace of Villafranca. 
 
 It will assist our conception of the condition of Italy dur- 
 ing the period between the early Renaissance and the 
 second half of our own century if we now trace the history 
 of Milan from 1859 back to 1545. Till 1859 Milan had 
 been Austrian territory since the French Revolution. Be- 
 fore the French Revolution it had been Austrian territory 
 since 17 13 and the close of the War of the Spanish Suc- 
 cession. Before 1700 Milan had been Spanish territory 
 since 1545. 
 
 In i860, one year after the Kingdom of Sardinia had 
 acquired Milan, General Garibaldi inaugurated a revolution 
 in Sicily which had momentous consequences. The State 
 of Naples, that is all Italy south of the States of the 
 
 33 
 
34 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Church, including Sicily, declared for Italian unity under 
 Victor Emmanuel; and Tuscany, with several minor Italian 
 States, followed the same course. This gave Italy her 
 present national dimensions, less the States of the Church 
 and the State of Venice. 
 
 We will now trace back the histories of Naples and Tus- 
 cany to the time of the early Renaissance, as we have 
 already traced that of Milan. Before i860 Naples and 
 Sicily were ruled by a Spanish Bourbon dynasty. Aside 
 from the time of the French Revolution and of Bonaparte, 
 Naples and Sicily had been Spanish Bourbon since 1738. 
 Before 1738 they had been Austrian territory since 17 13. 
 Before 17 13 they had been Spanish territory since 1501. 
 
 Before i860 Tuscany was ruled by a branch of the House 
 of Austria, and had been so ruled, aside from the time of 
 the French Revolution and of Bonaparte, since 1737. Be- 
 fore 1737 Tuscany had been ruled in the interest of Spain 
 by a dynasty dating from the year 1530 and the marriage 
 of a Medici grandee with a daughter of the Hapsburg 
 Emperor, Charles V. 
 
 We will now return to modern Italy after i860. Her 
 next step toward consolidation was the incorporation of the 
 territory of Venice, which fell to Italy as a result of her 
 participation in the war waged by Prussia against Austria 
 under the direction of Count Bismarck, in 1 866. Venice, 
 therefore, before 1866, was Austrian territory and had been 
 so ruled since the Congress of Vienna, in 1815. The loss 
 of her mdependence had been then as recent as the cam- 
 paigns of Bonaparte in Italy. 
 
 The final step in the consolidation of modern Italy was 
 the acquisition of the States of the Church and the occupa- 
 tion of Rome as the capital city of the nation. This event 
 occurred in 1871 as a result of the Franco- Prussian war. 
 
History of Italy since the Renaissance, 
 
 35 
 
 The French troops who had occupied Rome in the interests 
 of the States of the Church were withdrawn for service at 
 home against the Germans, and united Italy thus gained 
 Rome for its capital. The independence of the States of 
 the Church then terminated, dated from the time when the 
 Exarchate of Ravenna was presented to the popes by the 
 father of Charlemagne.* 
 
 From this sketch of the recent history of Italy, and from 
 these facts relating to the earlier history of her various ter- 
 ritories it results that at the opening of the French Revolu- 
 tion and the close of the last century, her only important 
 independent territories were the States of the Church and 
 the State of Venice, the latter then in a condition of 
 political dotage and decay. 
 
 Otherwise, it results from this sketch, that of the three 
 main political divisions of Italy, aside from the two just 
 named, Naples and Sicily were foreign territory as early as 
 1 499 ; that Tuscany was ruled in foreign interest as early as 
 1530, and that Milan was Spanish as early as 1545. 
 
 In other words, the decline of Italy and of Italian art 
 after the first quarter of the sixteenth century is explained 
 by a loss of political independence, according to dates and 
 conditions thus briefly sketched, and what has been said 
 about the greater Italian States holds, with slight variations 
 of time and detail, for the lesser ones. 
 
 In the political downfall of Italy, following the early 
 Renaissance period, we have two turning points of decisive 
 import: the sack of Rome by the army of Charles V. in 
 1527, the siege of Florence and consequent downfall of 
 Tuscany in 1529 and 1530. All other events are merely 
 matters of detail in comparison with these. In 1527, 
 through the sack of Rome, the popes were obliged to 
 
 * " Roman and Medieval Art," p. ii6, 
 
36 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 abandon the task they had set themselves — of defending 
 Italy from foreign invasion. In 1530 the establishment of 
 a Medici despotism over the State of Florence (Tuscany) 
 sounded the death-knell of the less powerful Italian free- 
 states and principalities.* 
 
 Let us now observe the relation of dates in the history of 
 Italian art to these events. The last monumental wall- 
 painting in point of 
 time, belonging to the 
 zenith of the Italian 
 Renaissance, was 
 Michael Angelo's 
 "Last Judgment.'* 
 This was begun in 
 1534; the painter, Cor- 
 reggio, died in the 
 same year. Raphael 
 died in 1520 and Le- 
 onardo da Vinci died 
 in 1 5 19. We cannot 
 point to any important 
 school or artist of the 
 zenith of the Italian 
 Renaissance after 1534, 
 outside of the school 
 of Venice, whose per- 
 fection lasted for some 
 time longer. We also 
 note that Venice was the one important State of Italy which 
 had preserved its independence after this time. In the 
 architecture and decoration of Renaissance style, we trace 
 a rapid contemporaneous decline. In the sculpture of the 
 
 * Grimm's " Life of Michael Angelo" offers an excellent account of these events. 
 
 Fig. 10. — French Renaissance Doorway at 
 Frejus (Southern France.) 
 
History of Italy since the Renaissance, 37 
 
 Renaissance we follow the same course and tendency. 
 
 In the philosophy of our subject, then, we follow the lead 
 of all great writers and critics in connecting the greatest de- 
 velopment of Italian art with a period of then unexampled 
 commercial prosperity, which the country enjoyed between 
 1300 and 1530 — and with the existence of a series of small 
 but vigorous and stirring principalities, republics, and free- 
 states, whose small dimensions allowed and favored a 
 wonderful development and assertion of individual char- 
 acter, whose very rivalries and contentions contributed to a 
 production of works of art in which each little state strove 
 to surpass its neighbors.* 
 
 In the philosophy of our subject we again agree with 
 greater authorities in connecting the first decline of Italian 
 Renaissance art with the political overthrow of the small 
 Italian principalities and free-states. But this political 
 downfall of the Italian communities has a deeper significance 
 for social history, both in Italy and in northern Europe, 
 than might be imagined. When its obvious causes are 
 sought for they appear to be the weakness of small states 
 divided by jealousies and unable to unite against a foreign 
 foe (France or Spain, as the case might be) of greater 
 military power. Undoubtedly the Italian States were small 
 and divided one against the other. Undoubtedly the Italians 
 had grown effeminate through over-civilization, by contrast 
 with the more brutal soldiery and larger standing armies of 
 the North — but the essential fact remains that Italy became 
 the battle-ground of Europe in the early sixteenth century 
 because her territories were the richest and most highly 
 civilized. The essential fact remains that the entry of 
 northern powers into Italy, implies the necessary spread of 
 
 *For the relations of the artists to these political conditions, see " Roman and 
 Medieval Art," pp. 216-228. 
 
38 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Italian civilization to the North by virtue of this contact. 
 The decline of the Italian Renaissance at home is thus 
 contemporaneous with the spread of the Italian Renaissance 
 over Europe, and the very downfall of the Italian States 
 attests the superiority of their material prosperity and of 
 their civilization as attracting the cupidity of France and 
 Spain and Germany. 
 
CHAPTER V. 
 
 DIVISIONS OF RENAISSANCE PERIODS AND STYLE. 
 
 In the periods of Renaissance art we thus distinguish 
 two divisions of especial importance — one between 1400 
 and 1530, the time of development, of greatest success, of 
 supreme triumph; one after 1530, the time of expansion 
 over Europe and of relative decline at home. 
 
 These divisions in the history of art correspond to the 
 general facts respecting civilization at large, which the art 
 accompanies, attests, and reflects. 
 
 It is in line with these facts that the general art of North 
 Continental Europe is mainly superior in the seventeenth 
 century to that of Italy, although originally derived from 
 it. This seventeenth century art of North Continental 
 Europe again yields in importance to that of England when 
 the eighteenth century is reached. In the art of painting, 
 at least, the Renaissance drew its last breath on the shores 
 of the New World, with the painters of the American revo- 
 lutionary time, who In their turn had derived from England 
 the inspiration of Reynolds and of Gainsborough. The 
 art of the Americans, Washington Allston, Copley, Gilbert 
 Stuart, and Rembrandt Peale, is thus an interesting contin- 
 uation and survival of that of the '^Old Masters." 
 
 It will now assist our sketch of the early Renaissance 
 (1400- 1 5 30) to fix a few synchronisms in mind. 
 
 In 1453 the conquest of Constantinople by the Turks 
 ended the history of the Byzantine Empire and of ancient 
 Roman civilization. This event is universally quoted for 
 
 39 
 
40 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 its influence on the intellectual activity and the learning of 
 Italy, as many learned Greeks then settled there, and the 
 treasures of ancient classic literature were, in consequence, 
 more actively studied. In 1452 the second pair of Ghib- 
 erti's bronze doors for the Florence Baptistery were fin- 
 ished. There is, therefore, an exact synchronism between 
 the revival of classic learning in Italy and the comple- 
 tion of Ghiberti's doors, which are the most remarkable 
 works of art finished during the earlier Renaissance. 
 
 In 1498 Columbus touched the shores of the American 
 continent. About the same year Leonardo da Vinci 
 finished his "Last Supper" at Milan, which is the paint- 
 ing of paintings in the history of art; not because it is nec- 
 essarily the greatest of all pictures, although this might 
 easily be claimed for it, but because nothing done before it 
 remotely approached either its greatness of conception, or 
 its perfection of execution, and because nothing was done 
 after it which did not owe a portion of its perfection to 
 the influence of the great master who achieved it. 
 
 In the following year Leonardo's patron, the Duke Lu- 
 dovico Sforza, fled from Milan, as the French, under Louis 
 XII., invaded his territory, one step in the series of cam- 
 paigns which thirty years later terminated in the political 
 downfall of Italy. Most of the greatest Italian paintings 
 belong to the intervening time. In 1501 Ferdinand the 
 Catholic, of Spain, conquered the territory of Naples and 
 Sicily, that is all Italy south of the States of the Church. 
 
 In 1509 Henry VIII. of England succeeded his father. 
 In 1506 Pope JuHus II. began the erection of St. Peter's 
 Church, at Rome, the greatest building of the Renaissance. 
 In 1508 the ceiling frescoes of the Sistine Chapel were be- 
 gun by Michael Angelo, and the frescoes of the Vatican 
 Palace were begun by Raphael. 
 
Divisions of Renaissance Periods and Style. 41 
 
 In 152 1 Luther attended the Diet of Worms, and the 
 great wars began in Italy between France and Spain for the 
 leadership of Europe and the mastery of Milan. Raphael 
 died one year, and Da Vinci died two years before these 
 events. 
 
 In 1527 and 1530 respectively, occurred the sack of Rome 
 and the capitulation of Florence. None of the greater 
 Italian painters survived these events more than a few years 
 — excepting Michael Angelo and the artists of the Venetian 
 school. In Vasari's Lives of the Artists," our one great 
 original authority for artists' biographies in Italy, it is of 
 great interest to follow the fortunes and work of the various 
 painters as affected by the sack of Rome, and their conse- 
 quent dispersion and failing fortunes. 
 
 According to foregoing dates the zenith of the Italian 
 Renaissance dates between the completion of the ' ' Last 
 Supper,'' 1498, and the beginning of the ''Last Judg- 
 ment," 1534. 
 
CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE TRAITS OF RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 I HAVE endeavored to indicate some various answers to 
 the question, ''What was the Renaissance?" but we have 
 not yet penetrated beneath the surface or touched the heart 
 of the matter. In fact, until we take up its art in individual 
 examples, it would be difficult to fix the real character of 
 the time. 
 
 So far, in the illustrations scattered throughout preceding 
 pages, my idea has been to show, through forms, orna- 
 ment, furniture, details of buildings, and the like, the 
 general influence of Italian Renaissance civilization on for- 
 eign countries and the rest of Europe, from the point of 
 view that the object which can be seen represents a wider 
 influence in science, manners, laws, and culture. 
 
 Comparison with following illustrations from Italy will 
 indicate the relation and dependence of this art, and, there- 
 fore, of the attendant civilization, on the Italian. 
 
 It often happens that a superficial fact represents and im- 
 plies an underlying current, a hidden spring of power, a 
 deep-seated motive and cause. Thus it is with the archi- 
 tecture and ornament of this historic period, whose lasting 
 historic influence on every phase of modern life is still 
 attested by the ' ' brownstone fronts ' ' of New York City, 
 by the new Parliament House of Berlin, by the Opera 
 House of Paris, by the City Halls of New York, of Phila- 
 delphia and Chicago, by countless public and business 
 
 4? 
 
Fig, II,— Room in the Chateau of Oyron. French Renaissance. 
 
44 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 buildings in every city of Europe and America, and by the 
 terminal ornaments of many bedsteads and bureaus of ordi- 
 nary fashion down to the year 1870. 
 
 I have in my ^ ' Roman and Medieval Art ' ' given some 
 account of the * * Italian Gothic ' ' architecture, of its repug- 
 nance to the usual appearance and natural principles of the 
 Gothic of northern Europe, of its remarkable versatility of 
 appearance, combined with constant rejection of what we 
 know as Gothic character. In this rejection of the Gothic 
 by the so-called * ' Italian Gothic, ' ' we have a prophecy of 
 the character of . the Renaissance, whose leading feature 
 was outspoken reaction against the ideals, tastes, and habits 
 of the Middle Ages. 
 
 In northern Europe the overthrow of the Gothic art was 
 violent, revolutionary, and essentially sudden. It was dis- 
 placed by the Italian architectural style and art now known 
 as the Renaissance, and the Gothic rapidly tended to dis- 
 appear after the opening of the sixteenth century in favor of 
 this Italian style, and ultimately disappeared entirely. 
 
 Some English buildings of the middle seventeenth cen- 
 tury are among the latest to show Gothic character, and 
 England, by virtue of her remote and insular position, was 
 the last country, aside from Russia, to yield completely to 
 the Italianizing movement, which naturally reached her 
 through intermediate countries. 
 
 The spread of this Italian style to the north was simply 
 one result of a diffusion of Italian taste and culture which 
 carried with itself a particular architectural style. In other 
 words, the history of Renaissance architecture in northern 
 Europe is a secondary fact, conveying a much larger fact in 
 social life and general history — some of whose phases I 
 have briefly mentioned in preceding pages. But although 
 the history of architecture belongs to a series of secondary 
 
The Traits of Renaissance Architecture, 
 
 45 
 
 facts, it is, notwithstanding, a visible and ocular illustration ol 
 this larger fact of greater importance: that the ideals, tastes, 
 and habits of medieval Europe were displaced and over- 
 thrown by a wave of Italian culture and Italian civilization. 
 
 At bottom, it was a question in northern Europe of the 
 comforts and luxuries which were mainly unknown to the 
 Middle Ages — the use of window glass or of carpets, a 
 better table, more garden vegetables, greater refinement of 
 manners, more intellectual activity, less rude hunting and 
 warfare, more music and books, more luxurious furniture, 
 m.ore fashionable clothes, more comfortable houses, and the 
 like. All these various refinements of living spread from 
 Italy and carried with themselves tastes of decoration and 
 architectural style, which also were Italian. 
 
 A great assistance to the knowledge of our subject at 
 large is, consequently, some specific information as to the 
 general backwardness of northern Europe, as compared 
 with Italy for the given time. For American and English 
 readers the best work on this subject is Douglas CampbelPs 
 
 Puritan in Holland, England, and America.'* When we 
 understand that even an English queen had to send to the 
 Netherlands for a salad; when we can fix the date when 
 starched and properly laundried linen was first procurable 
 in England, and how it came there; or the time when 
 window glass was generally introduced from the Continent — 
 it is much easier to appreciate the gradual flow and gradual 
 introduction into northern Europe of the ordinary refine- 
 ments and comforts of modern life from Italy. It is true 
 that Campbell's book solely concerns the contrast between 
 England and the Netherlands, but it none the less graphic- 
 ally portrays the condition of England at this time; and 
 what holds at one time, and in some particulars for England 
 as against the Netherlands, holds at slightly earlier dates 
 
46 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 and in other particulars for northern Europe in general as 
 against Italy. 
 
 It is not difficult to understand, therefore, why an Italian 
 architecture should have so completely overrun northern 
 
 Europe, and why its 
 traditional repetition 
 should have lasted to 
 our own day. It is not 
 quite so immediately 
 obvious why the style 
 whose dominant features 
 are illustrated in these 
 pages should have 
 sprung up in Italy itself 
 In so far as we have 
 attempted to describe 
 Italian civilization of the 
 Renaissance, it has been 
 by emphasizing its mod- 
 ern character and by 
 asserting the absence of 
 this modern quality in 
 northern Europe before 
 Italian influence introduced it there. Why, then, should 
 this modern quality have disguised itself in Italy by that 
 imitation of ancient Roman art and architecture which is 
 the one essential feature of the Renaissance style ? Before 
 answering this question, let us verify this essential feature 
 in details and by examples (Figs. 12-29, inclusive). 
 
 In its developed examples we specify as the most obvious 
 characteristic of the Renaissance style the use of the 
 ' ' Greek Orders, ' ' and of the classic columns, capitals, and 
 details as continued by the Roman Empire; the regular or 
 
 Fig. 12. — Renaissance Pediment, Entablature, 
 and "Engaged" Columns 
 
 Building, New York. 
 
 Equitable 
 
The Traits of Renaissance Architecture. 
 
 47 
 
 frequent employment of the ' ' engaged ' ' columns and ' ' en- 
 gaged ' ' entablatures, that is, of the simulated Greek colon- 
 nades familiar on Roman ruins; and the gable-shaped or 
 curved pediments, likewise familiar as decorations over 
 niches in Roman art, and originally borrowed from the con- 
 struction of the front of a Greek temple. (In this deriva- 
 tion we do not include the curved pediment as having been 
 directly borrowed from Greek forms; this is a Roman 
 decorative variant of the gable-shaped pediment.)* 
 
 Otherwise we emphasize in Renaissance surface orna- 
 ment a revival of the 
 scroll ornaments, 
 ' ' honeysuckles, ' ' an- 
 themions, lotus trefoils, 
 egg-and-dart mould- 
 ings, and ''acanthus" 
 ornaments ; of the 
 griffins, masks, cupids, 
 and tritons, which were 
 the decorative stock in 
 trade of the later 
 Greeks and their Ro- 
 man copyists. The ''bead mouldings," guilloche, and 
 meander (key pattern or Greek fret), and rosette are also 
 constant or familiar ornaments of the Renaissance copies 
 of the Greco-Roman patterns, f 
 
 *For the pediment, see "Roman and Medieval Art," Figs. 19 and 21. For 
 illustrations of "engaged" columns and entablatures, see its Figs. 11, 18, 19. For 
 IheRoman use of Greek architectural " Orders " and ornamental details, see also 
 the architectural illustrations of Chapter VI., of the same work. 
 
 fSee illustration p. 51, " Roman and Medieval Art." The most important series 
 of illustrations for these ornamental details will be found in " Greek Architecture 
 and Sculpture," Chautauqua Series, pp. 47-58. All these Greek ornaments were 
 handed down to the Roman architecture and were thence borrowed by the Renais- 
 sance. See also Figs, i, 23, 38, same work, and all its illustrations for the "Orders," 
 capitals, bases, etc. 
 
48 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 Let us finally lay especial stress on the revival of the 
 round arch and the entire abandonment of its pointed form. 
 This again was due to the Roman influence. 
 
 In the matter of these various details which specify Re- 
 
 FiG. 14. — French Renaissance Detail. House of Agnes Sorel, Orleans. 
 
 naissanfSe style in architecture, the greatest difficulty of the 
 learner is his great familiarity with their constant repetitions 
 in nineteenth century use. This seems a strange assertion 
 and yet it is strictly true. It is not always easy to under- 
 stand that with which we are most closely in contact. The 
 constant traditional repetition of Renaissance pediments in 
 furniture, of Renaissance ornamental details in street cars 
 or on silverware, of Renaissaince pediments, ' * engaged ' ' 
 columns and entablatures to be everywhere seen on public 
 and private buildings, cultivates a presumption that such 
 details are a necessary feature of our surroundings, a 
 matter-of-course appearance. As now used they have gen- 
 erally lost the artistic quality which they once possessed, 
 
The Traits of Renaissance Architecture, 49 
 
 either of composition or execution or both. To indicate 
 some distinctions between the average Renaissance forms of 
 our own art and the first Italian originals is one important 
 task of my book, and is best apparent from the illustrations 
 themselves. These modern traditional repetitions rarely 
 attract the eye by the beauty of the older originals, and by 
 force of constant repetition they have become common- 
 place — unnoticed because they are too familiar. 
 
 We have then, as learners, two distinct points of view 
 and two points in view. One is to grasp the great 
 lesson of modern history involved in this constant repe- 
 tition — the lesson that our civilization still carries with 
 itself this mute witness and evidence of its Italian origin 
 snd coloring. On the other hand our effort must be to 
 place ourselves at a point of view where these architectural 
 ornaments and forms would be an absolute novelty, to con- 
 ceive the time when they were unknown and unfamiliar, 
 and then finally to grasp the causes which led to their re- 
 adoption and exclusive use. 
 
 Whatever may be the facts of to-day, the eye of Europe 
 in the Middle Ages was not accustomed to Greco-Roman 
 forms in art. In Spain, France, Germany, or Britain, the 
 Roman ruins were even then so rare, although they have 
 become rarer since, that any knowledge of them, even in 
 an antiquarian sense, was out of question. In Italy Roman 
 ruins were no rarity, and in Rome they were abundant, but 
 the idea of copying their architecture never suggested itself 
 to an Italian of the Middle Age. That antiquarian and 
 historic interest in relics of the past which is so natural to 
 us, is an interest which dates from the Renaissance. To 
 the Middle Age the ruin was a quarry; nothing more. This 
 was its use and interest until the ruin disappeared, and an* 
 other was sought to be destroyed in its turn. 
 
50 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 We have then this problem. For a thousand years, from 
 the fifth to the fifteenth century, the Roman ruins of Italy, 
 and especially of the city of Rome itself, were an even 
 more familiar feature of the daily surroundings of the 
 people than they are to-day (for many have been destroyed 
 since the fifteenth century, and even the use of the Colos- 
 seum as a quarry was not stopped till the eighteenth cen- 
 tury) yet no one had taken an interest in them. Least of 
 all had any architect undertaken to transplant their orna- 
 ments, and their constructive details, to a modern building. 
 Then, about the middle of the fifteenth century we find 
 
 Fig. 15. — So-called Temple of Saturn, Rome, and Arch of Septimius Severus. 
 Renaissance Church in the background. 
 
 new buildings in which every ornamental detail and maoy 
 constructional forms are directly borrowed from the Roman 
 ruins. By the beginning of the sixteenth century it is 
 
Traits of Renaissance Architecture. 
 
 5^ 
 
 impossible to point to any Italian building which does not 
 show their influence. Half a century later and all which 
 make pretensions to architectural effects are borrowers from 
 end to end and from top to bottom of Greco-Roman de- 
 tails. 
 
 To comprehend the sweeping character of the revolution 
 in art and history which had thus taken place, we need 
 above all to familiarize the eye with the appearance of the 
 northern medieval or Italian Gothic buildings which pre- 
 ceded. Our present illustrations are too precious to be 
 allotted to these earlier buildings. None the less must the 
 reader bear them constantly in mind and make use of all 
 accessible illustration for them.* 
 
 Examine the house, the castle, and the church of the 
 Middle Age — first in 
 northern Europe. The 
 house was a plain but 
 picturesque utilitarian 
 structure; often show- 
 ing its timber frame- 
 work, which thus 
 became at once a dec- 
 orative and construc- 
 tive feature, often with 
 overhanging upper 
 stories — thus econo- 
 mizing ground space, 
 enlarging upper rooms, and contributing to picturesque 
 effect. The castle was a stern and massive pile of masonry. 
 The church was a miracle of stone lace-work, of lofty spires, 
 pointed pinnacles, rising buttresses, grotesque gargoyles, 
 
 Fig. i6. — Renaissance Villa near Vicenza by 
 Palladio, with Greco-Roman portico. 
 Sixteenth Century. 
 
 * " Roman and Medieval Art," type of the house, Fig. 122 ; type of the castle. Fig. 
 120. Compare all its illustrations for Gothic and Italian Gothic churches. 
 
52 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 furrowed piers, stained-glass windows, and sculptured door- 
 ways. In the great town halls of Flanders or of northern 
 
 France we find such 
 details transferred also 
 to the secular public 
 buildings. 
 
 Compare the Italian 
 Renaissance build- 
 ings. The frowning 
 castle is displaced by a 
 mansion, a country- 
 seat, a villa, a palace, 
 or a university. It is 
 not only in the ap- 
 pearance, but in the 
 uses and purposes of 
 buildings, that we find 
 a change. As regards 
 secular architecture 
 and private architec- 
 ture, we ^ h a V e an 
 enormous revolution 
 in society thus im- 
 plied. The decorative exteriors of domestic architecture 
 and private buildings are one sign of that modern life in 
 Italy which was then beginning there. 
 
 In the private dwellings of Italy we begin, then, to recog- 
 nize the modern mansion as distinct from the picturesque 
 but generally unadorned house of the medieval burgher. 
 In churches, the Italian could not abandon the Gothic dizzy 
 interior altitude, the deeply furrowed and clustered pier, or 
 the r^eries of exterior perpendicular buttresses with crown- 
 ing pinnacles, because in the Italian Gothic he had already 
 
 Fig. 17— " Temple of St. Peter," in the Cloister 
 of S. Pietro in Montorio, Rome. (Greco- 
 Roman Colonnade.) By Bramante, 1502. 
 
Traits of Renaissance Architecture. 
 
 53 
 
 rejected them. What he did abandon was the pointed 
 arch, which the ItaUan Gothic had in common with the 
 North, the exterior panelling in horizontal stripes, or in 
 lozenges, of vari-colored masonry and the beautiful decora- 
 tive details which he had himself worked over and adopted 
 from the northern Gothic. What he introduced we have 
 already said was the classic Orders''; columns, entabla- 
 tures, niche, door, and window pediments, and the whole 
 catalogue of ancient Greco-Roman ornaments. 
 
CHAPTER VII. 
 
 PHILOSOPHY OF RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 We HAVE pointed out that the change from Gothic to 
 Renaissance style was mainly an abrupt and sudden one in 
 northern Europe, whereas the Italian Gothic had fore- 
 shadowed, at least in a negative way, the dislike for 
 medieval art forms which the Renaissance openly pro- 
 claimed. It is also understood that the Renaissance style 
 appeared in northern Europe at a relatively later date, and 
 after the fashion was distinctly established in Italy. 
 
 As distinct from the more formal and abrupt introduction 
 of this architectural style in the North, the growth of 
 Renaissance style in Italy was gradual and tentative at first, 
 and in the details of carved ornament of the Italian Gothic 
 we can detect many anticipations of the classic influence 
 which ultimately became a constant formula. We will not, 
 however, just yet deal with the actual historic beginnings or 
 tentative features of the early Renaissance. We will rather 
 accept it in ultimate forms and fixed and definite character, 
 in order to meet the question so far unanswered : ' ' What 
 was the cause of its introduction ? Why did the first 
 modern nation of Europe turn back to Roman antiquity for 
 its ideas of art in architecture ? ' ' 
 
 Strangely enough the answer does not begin with archi- 
 tectural history. On the contrary it appeals to the history 
 of literature. And the appeal to literature goes back to 
 the elementary facts regarding the modern features of Re- 
 
 54 
 
Philosophy of Renaissance Architecture. 55 
 
 naissance civilization which I have already sketched; but in 
 a somewhat roundabout and novel fashion. 
 
 Let us return to our starting point and elementary posi- 
 tion that Italy, in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, had 
 reached a phenomenal degree of material prosperity, of 
 comfort, of luxury, 
 and of refinement. 
 With this condition 
 the Italian had to con- 
 trast ; first, the con- 
 temporary condition of 
 northern medieval and 
 feudal Europe; second, 
 his own previous me- 
 dieval condition. Both 
 of these contrasts were 
 to his thinking, to the 
 disadvantage of the 
 Germanic element in 
 medieval history. The 
 empire of Rome in 
 western Europe had 
 been overthrown by 
 invasions of German 
 tribes, and the Italian 
 had since that time 
 justly conceived of northern Europe as Germanic, or as he 
 termed it, using the name of one German tribe for all — 
 '^Gothic." 
 
 In our days the memory that medieval Spain dates from 
 the invasions of Visigothic Germans, that medieval France 
 dates from the invasion of Prankish and Burgundian Ger- 
 mans, is not so distinct, unless it be to the professional his- 
 
 FiG. 18. — Early French Renaissance. (Engaged 
 classic columns.) Chateau d'Usson at 
 Echebrune. 
 
56 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 torian, as it was to the Italian of the fourteenth and fif- 
 teenth centuries. He knew well that the desolation, bar- 
 barism, pillage, and downfall that had overwhelmed Ro- 
 man Europe and his own country in the fifth century after 
 Christ, were the work of the ' ' Goths, " as he termed them. 
 Both the West-Goths (Visigoths) and East-Goths (Ostro- 
 goths) had actually pillaged Italy, and although she had 
 suffered more from the barbaric Lombard Germans who 
 subsequently settled there, the word ''Goth" kept alive the 
 memory of all these injuries. The very word ''Gothic,'* 
 as still applied to northern architecture, was originally used 
 by the Italians and used by them as a term of reproach and 
 contempt, as we should say " barbarian."* 
 
 For Italian conception the Middle Age was "Gothic," 
 that is to say Germanic, in origin and character. When the 
 period of barbarism, or of depressed civilization, in Italy had 
 been lived down ; when refinement, culture, and prosperity 
 had returned, two results were natural — a revived interest 
 in that national past, of the time of the Roman Empire, 
 when refinement, culture, and prosperity had also prevailed; 
 and a consciousness of national superiority to the ruder 
 and rougher traits of contemporary northern Europe. 
 
 With wealth and leisure came the cultivation of liter- " 
 ary tastes and habits; the language of the Italian was itself 
 a modified Latin, and to him the study of the ancient Latin 
 offered no great difficulties. The learning which had so 
 far slumbered in the monasteries or which had been con- 
 fined to superior prelates of the church, was opened to the 
 laity and the nation at large. 
 
 Italian poets and authors like Dante, Petrarch, and Boc- 
 caccio, had already in the fourteenth century awakened a 
 taste for reading, but they did not suffice to meet the pop- 
 
 *" Roman and Medieval Art," p. 159. 
 
Philosophy of Renaissance Architecture, 57 
 
 ular demand. The Latin authors were now at hand to 
 meet it. National patriotism, the revived memory of an- 
 cient glories when Rome and Italy had led the world, com- 
 bined with that appreciation for the refinement, simplicity, 
 and vigor of the ancient Latin literature which has always 
 since been felt by the cultivated man of letters and which 
 the Italian felt most warmly because he felt it first. 
 
 It is difficult, when the study of Latin has become the 
 bugbear of the schoolboy, the ungrateful task of most 
 college students, and the rapidly abandoned burden of the 
 college graduate, to realize the enthusiasm of the time 
 when people studied Latin because they liked it and not 
 because they were forced to it. Notwithstanding, all our 
 Latin studies, as pursued in modern colleges, are an inherit- 
 ance from the Italian Renaissance. 
 
 To say that Roman history and literature were studied 
 critically would be saying too much, but they were studied 
 enthusiastically, which was something better. More than 
 this, it must be remembered that the fund of actual science 
 and actual information was a narrow and limited one in the 
 fifteenth century as compared with ours. There were not 
 then a multitude of school geometries borrowed from 
 Euclid's to take the place of Euclid. The astronomy and 
 geography which led to the discovery of America were 
 studied in Ptolemy. Pliny was, in the sixteenth century, 
 a more important authority in natural history than he 
 is to-day. As for the history of antiquity, that which we 
 learn now from a hundred modern authors, was learned 
 then at first hand from those ancient originals, which the 
 later modern authors have worked over for our use, and 
 which we can now more easily afford to ignore. 
 
 There were no Gibbons and Mommsens in the fifteenth 
 century. The ' ' knowledge of the ancients ' ' was no empty 
 
58 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 phrase to an Italian of that time. Much or most that he 
 knew himself, he was forced to learn from them. The 
 Latin authors, therefore, were not studied then as they are 
 now — as matter of ^ ' literature ' ' and simply for literary 
 style and literary training. What they contained was not 
 only worth knowing, but it was more than the time itself 
 otherwise knew. 
 
 These enthusiasms of the Renaissance were emphasized, 
 exaggerated, and directed by the influence of the learned 
 Byzantine Greeks, whose influx into Italy we have already 
 mentioned as a consequence of the Turkish conquest of 
 Constantinople and the territories of the Byzantine Empire. 
 
 The stamp of the Renaissance was, therefore, a literary 
 ' ' craze, ' ' fully justified and explained by the history of the 
 time, but curiously eccentric in many of its outward mani- 
 festations. The giving of Latin names to children, the 
 Latinizing of one's own name, were a constant occurrence. 
 We are told by the greatest historian of the Renaissance,* 
 that a pope of the fifteenth century, who was engaged in 
 war wdth the State of Naples, spared the town of Arpinum 
 from sack because it had been the birthplace of Cicero. 
 Another strange story concerns a conspiracy in Milan, where 
 it appeared on the trial of the conspirators that they had 
 carefully studied the Catiline of Sallust before laying their 
 plans. Burckhardt also mentions the diplomatic contro- 
 troversy between the States of Florence and Naples, which 
 was ultimately settled by the transfer from Florence to 
 Naples of the finest copy of Virgil in the possession of the 
 former state. We have also the well-known fact regarding 
 the discovery of the Laocoon group of statuary now* in the 
 Vatican, that Pope Julius II. awarded the owner of the 
 ground on which it was found an annuity not only payable 
 
 * Burckhardt, " Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy" 
 
Philosophy of Renaissance Architecture, 59 
 
 for life but hereditary in the family. This extraordinary 
 reward appears to have been mainly due to the fact that the 
 group is mentioned by Pliny as having been considered the 
 finest work of sculpture in ancient Rome. 
 
 Nor did this ' 'craze' ' stop at literature or at eccentricities 
 which have an obvious literary bearing. The re-awakened 
 sense for form and elegance, the dawning distaste for the 
 grotesque but imaginative art of the Middle Ages, did not 
 stop with exalting Virgil at the expense of Chaucer, or with 
 preferring Cicero and Plato to the medieval theologians. 
 It applied its own studies in anatomy and in sculpture to 
 the appreciation of the antique statues, which after 1500 
 were rapidly brought to light from the piles of rubbish and 
 of ruined buildings which had covered them in Rome. At 
 
 Fig. 19. — Renaissance Fifteenth Century Decorative Details, borrowed from 
 Greco-Roman. From a tomb in S, Maria del Popolo, Rome. 
 
6o 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 a still earlier date the few ancient statues which were known 
 in Florence and in Padua were highly valued. Lorenzo 
 Medici founded in Florence a studio garden for sculptors' 
 studies and the display of ancient statuary (later part of the 
 fifteenth century) ; and the anatomists of the University of 
 Padua had their due influence on the interest which Man- 
 tegna and Squarcione devoted to ancient art. 
 
 The influence of the Torso Belvedere of Hercules now 
 in the Vatican, on the studies of Michael Angelo is well at- 
 tested. It is said that in extreme old age, when eyesight 
 failed him, he still caused himself to be led to this fragment 
 that he might feel and touch it. In a similar way the frag- 
 ments of ancient wall painting in the ruins of the Baths of 
 Titus furnished the motives and suggestions which Raphael 
 elaborated in the decoration of the Loggie of the Vatican. 
 
 Among all these instances of enthusiasm for the ancients, 
 it was natural that architecture should have its place and 
 share. Hence the architectural style of the Renaissance, 
 as copy of ^he constructional forms and ornamental details 
 of the Roman ruins. 
 
CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE IN THEORY AND IN 
 PRACTICE. 
 
 According to the archaeologic and critical antiquarian 
 views of our own day, an ancient building can onFy be said 
 to be copied when it is imitated entire. But this anxious 
 and literal point of view did not worry the architects of the 
 Renaissance. 
 
 We have seen that civilization as a whole in Italy could 
 not be, and was not, a revival of the ancient; however 
 much it learned from it and admired it, however much the 
 ideal of an actual revival might have been believed in by its 
 enthusiasts. The actual prosperity, the actual industries, 
 and the actual people were and remained Italian of the 
 fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, not Roman of the first or 
 second century. 
 
 In Renaissance architecture we are not dealing in any 
 sense with a revival of Roman architecture. We are only 
 dealing with an imitation of Roman forms applied to 
 modern buildings. This distinction between Renaissance 
 and Roman architecture is one of supreme importance, and 
 for the very reason that Roman borrowed designs and 
 forms were so exclusively used. 
 
 Rome had left ruins of temples, amphitheatres, public 
 baths, basilicas, and triumphal arches. The Italians were 
 building churches, villas, palaces, and mansions. The 
 general modern use and modern appearance of these Italian 
 
 6i 
 
62 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 buildings are perfectly obvious to us. No one could ever 
 mistake them for Roman buildings. This was one of their 
 merits, but it sometimes leaves a beginner in doubt as to 
 what makes a building ' ' Renaissance. ' ' The only way out 
 of this difficulty is a wide familiarity with the details of 
 classic Roman architecture. The application of any such 
 detail to any modern building is ' ' Renaissance ' ' ; provided 
 we are not dealing with the literal and exact imitations of 
 
 Fig. 20.— French Renaissance Pediment and Entablature ; Roman 
 Doric ("Tuscan") details. Hotel Colbert. Paris. 
 
 the original Greek temples and temple forms which did not 
 come in vogue until the latter half of the eighteenth century. 
 Since that time Renaissance traits are often found in build- 
 ings which are also under the influence of this Greek re- 
 vival; to be subsequently considered. 
 
 There was the widest variety of appearance and structure 
 in the buildings of the time; it is only by their details, the 
 fashion of their ornament, and the method of its application, 
 that we are able to date and recognize them. Sometimes 
 the cornice of the building, the arcades of its interior court, 
 
Renaissance Architecture in Theory and Practice, 63 
 
 or the pediment of a door, or a window here and there, are 
 the only indications. Certainly the only satisfactory study 
 of the subject is that which makes clear what was done 
 and what was not done before the Renaissance began. In 
 other words, the best and only real basis for a knowledge of 
 this subject is a fair acquaintance with the architecture of 
 the Middle Ages, and the ability to know things by know- 
 ing what they are not. 
 
 It may be added, however, unfortunately, that the versa- 
 tility and variety of early Renaissance buildings have not 
 been perpetuated by the nineteenth century use of the saine 
 style, and the earmarks of the style in these later phases 
 are tolerably easy to recognize. 
 
 Fig. 21 — Early French Renaissance. Viviers. "Engaged" Classic Columns. 
 
CHAPTER IX. 
 
 CRITICISM OF RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 There was undoubtedly in Italy at the time that this 
 style was introduced, a wide development of villa and pal- 
 ace construction with certain general arrangements peculiar 
 to the country and the time, but these arrangements as re- 
 gards detail would come within the province of the student 
 of domestic economy or of social life rather than under the 
 notice of the critic of art. Each country of Europe had 
 likewise its own methods of arrangement and construction, 
 and each adopted the one ornamental style from Italy, just 
 as Italy had adopted the one ornamental style from the 
 ruins of Rome. In France, for instance, one dominant 
 type of building was a country seat evolved from the older 
 feudal castle. In Germany, houses which are palpably con- 
 tinuations of the medieval fashions were veneered with 
 Italian ornament. 
 
 It follows that when we face the historic monuments we 
 have to deal rather with a period than a ' ' style, ' ' at least 
 so far as similarities of construction are concerned. 
 
 In order then to specify ' ' Renaissance ' ' traits one needs 
 simply the ability to distinguish the ' ' Orders ' ' of the Greeks 
 as they were used by the Romans ; the Tuscan Doric, the 
 Ionic, and the Corinthian (with its bastard variant, the 
 Composite). One needs to be familiar with the divisions 
 of architrave, and frieze, and cornice, and the peculiar de- 
 tails allotted to each member according to the Doric and 
 
 64 
 
Criticism of Renaissance Architecture, 
 
 65 
 
 Ionic methods respectively.* One needs sufificient famili- 
 arity with ornamental patterns to know the stamp of a clas- 
 sic design. Otherwise a knowledge of the Italian Renais- 
 sance architecture is a knowledge of special historic build- 
 ings, of individual examples; above all a knowledge of the 
 distinctions between better and worse, early and late, which 
 are to the student of 
 history the most inter- 
 esting reflex of the 
 general changes in his- 
 toric life. 
 
 There is, however, 
 one matter of especial 
 importance to the crit- 
 icism of Renaissance 
 art, viz. : a knowledge 
 of the general attitude 
 of modern criticism to 
 the Roman architec- 
 ture which was copied. 
 
 It is a well estab- 
 lished canon of criti- 
 cism that the appli- 
 cation made by the 
 Romans of Greek ele- 
 ments of construction 
 to purposes of ornament without reference to constructive 
 meaning, was a departure from Greek ideals of art and from 
 the theoretic ideal of art in general. According to these 
 ideals the first mission of form is to express and convey 
 its use. 
 
 A column, therefore, which was devised as a means of 
 
 UJUOJ 
 
 Fig. 22. — Architectural Renaissance Details fram- 
 ing a Madonna Relief by Mino da Fiesole. At 
 Fiesole near Florence. Fifteenth Century. 
 
 " Compare "Greek Architecture and Sculpture," Chautauqua Series. 
 
66 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 support, allowing of intervening open spaces, is ,not a 
 thoroughly appropriate decorative member as applied to a 
 solid wall, where intervening spaces are not desired. The 
 significance of a capital is to emphasize by ornament the 
 point of pressu<p, of a base, to emphasize by ornament the 
 point of support, of a cornice, to emphasize by ornament 
 the roof line. The significance of a division between 
 ' ' architrave ' ' and ' ' frieze ' ' is the existence of an actual 
 stone lintel supporting another lintel, both destined to sup- 
 port the ceiling of a portico. When these various mem- 
 bers are simply imi- 
 tative carvings on a 
 solid surface to which 
 they bear no relation 
 of ornamental empha- 
 sis, they have in so far 
 lost their meaning. 
 
 For the Romans 
 themselves, who in 
 many other ways 
 lacked the higher re- 
 finement of the earlier 
 Greeks, we have a his- 
 toric point of view 
 which does not de- 
 mand that they should 
 have been more than 
 they were. Moreover, 
 we know that although 
 they frequently over- 
 looked the theoretic 
 principle in question, they did not do so at the expense 
 of general effects of construction. Their construction was 
 
 Fig. 23. — Early French Renaissance, "Engaged" 
 Columns and Entablature. Church at Gisors. 
 
Criticism of Renaissance Architecture, 67 
 
 solid, massive, powerful, and imposing, and their use of 
 the Greek colonnades in surface ornament was not such as 
 to impair these effects, and was in its way certainly deco- 
 rative and picturesque. In other words they essentially, 
 
 Fig. 24. — Ancient Roman Ruin. Theatre of Marcellus, showing "Engaged" 
 Columns and Entablature. 
 
 according to their own needs and character, built sensibly 
 and artistically, without claiming or showing the higher 
 refinement of the Greeks, whose forms they adopted and 
 used.^ 
 
 For the architecture of the early Renaissance we are 
 again obliged to make the concession due to common sense 
 and to history, as regards the use of the ' ' engaged ' ' col- 
 umns and entablatures. As for the Italians themselves, it 
 
 * For the critical objections to Roman methods of ornament, see Viollet le Due's 
 " Discourses on Architecture," translated by Van Brunt. 
 
68 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 must be remembered also that they were unacquainted with 
 ancient Greek architecture, which first came into notice in 
 the latter half of the eighteenth century. (At this late 
 date men of learning in Rome were planning an explora- 
 tion of southern Italy to study the Greek ruins supposed to 
 be there, as remains of the old Greek colonies of south 
 Italy. As late as the eighteenth century it was not known 
 that the Greek ruins at Paestum were the only ones, and this 
 shows how recently they had then attracted attention. ) The 
 virtues of early Renaissance buildings, like those of the 
 Romans, are also superior to the theoretic objection to the 
 * * engaged ' ' columns and entablatures based on the origi- 
 nal use and meaning of the Greek colonnade. The deli- 
 cacy and vigor of their ornament, the large effects of mass 
 and surface, and the practical adherence to constructive ap- 
 pearance, are worthy of all praise in the early Renaissance. 
 
 It is in the decadence of the Renaissance that we find 
 cause especially to regret the use of the ^ ^ engaged ' ' 
 column, simulated entablature and pediment — above all, 
 when their influence on our own modern standards of taste 
 is considered. 
 
 In this decadence the wall column and associated features 
 became a mania, a tedious repetition, a mechanical and life- 
 less formula. The influence of this decadence is shown 
 in many of our American Renaissance buildings, which 
 must be judged and condemned accordingly. 
 
 The one objectionable feature of the Renaissance style 
 was that it tended to divorce the system of ornament from 
 the system of construction; not only because one was 
 ancient and the other was modern, but also because the 
 Romans themselves had admitted the opening wedge in 
 this direction. When this divorce had been finally effected 
 there was no bound to the license of arbitrary forms and 
 
Criticism of Renaissance Architecture. 
 
 69 
 
 lines. The effect on modern taste of the later Renaissance 
 decadence was to obliterate the perception that a general 
 correspondence between form and use, a correspondence 
 in which ornament is consequently used to emphasize or 
 indicate construction, is the only standard admissible in the 
 strict criticism of buildings, furniture, and utensils. 
 
 Generally speaking, the division of dates already fixed by 
 the downfall of the Italian Free-states marks the time when 
 the decadence first began (1530). It showed itself in the 
 later part of the sixteenth century mainly by a colder and 
 more mechanical exe- 
 cution of decorative 
 details, by a more 
 formal and rigid ap- 
 plication of the ''Or- 
 ders ' ' to wall surfaces. 
 In the early Renais- 
 sance the ornamental 
 scroll-work is more 
 elastic and spirited, the 
 carving of details is 
 bolder and finer, the 
 relief of the projected 
 columns and entab- 
 latures is lower. 
 
 The higher the pro- 
 jection and relief of the 
 ' ' engaged ' ' columns 
 and pediments, the 
 
 later the date. In late Fig. 25.-Cathedral of Versailles. 
 
 Renaissance the feeling Eighteenth Century. 
 
 of the architect was more fretful, more anxious for 
 
 effect, less suggestive of reserve and power. For the 
 
70 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 higher and more numerous the projections of the ornament, 
 the deeper and more numerous the shadows. These shad- 
 ows again, when not determined by construction, detract 
 from the effects of mass and the repose and power of the 
 main lines and surfaces of the building. 
 
 In the seventeenth century there was an ever-increasing 
 tendency to multiply the breaks of surface and of outline, 
 often of so bold and so forceful design that it is difficult not 
 to admire, even when we feel disposed to criticise or at least 
 to withhold approval. On the whole, delicacy, refinement, 
 and repose distinguish the early Renaissance (before 1530). 
 On the whole, picturesque license, bold but arbitrary out- 
 lines, and cold and mechanical details, distinguish the 
 seventeenth century. 
 
 The eighteenth century continued in the same tendencies 
 until the ' ' Greek Revival ' * at its . close reacted against 
 them, and for a time displaced them by a more formal, 
 more ' ' correct, ' ' though colder, and perhaps equally me- 
 chanical, resurrection of the original Greek forms. The 
 force of the above remarks regarding the relation of style 
 to period will be considerably strengthened if the reader 
 will immediately proceed to compare in bulk the illustra- 
 tions for Chapter X. (fifteenth century) with those for 
 Chapter XII. (seventeenth century). The illustrations for 
 Chapter XI. (sixteenth century) will relate, as the case 
 may be, and according to comparative dates, either to the 
 fifteenth or seventeenth century as regards tendencies. 
 
 In spite of the above distinctions and gradations of Re- 
 naissance style, as between the fifteenth and eighteenth cen- 
 turies inclusive, we are also obliged to admit that as late as 
 the eighteenth century bold and powerful composition was 
 still generally practiced and that our own nineteenth cen- 
 tury Renaissance has been, generally speaking, the weakest 
 
Criticism of Renaissance Architecture. 7 1 
 
 Fig. 26.- Palace Poli, and Fountain of Trevi. Rome. Eighteenth Century. 
 
 of all, both in composition and detail. The exceptions to 
 this rule are mainly recent, and dating from the revival of 
 architectural taste visible in the later nineteenth century. 
 
 The general course of evolution in Italian architecture 
 which we have just sketched corresponds, it should be ob- 
 served, to a similar evolution which can be verified for the 
 Gothic, Roman and Greek styles. All began with simplic- 
 ity, vigor, and power — all tended to become more elaborate, 
 ornamental, and picturesque — all ended in complexity, rel- 
 ative weakness, over-elaboration, and straining for effect. 
 
 It should also be observed that the history of Italian 
 painting and Italian sculpture illustrates a parallel and sim- 
 ilar development, a parallel and similar decline. 
 
CHAPTER X. 
 
 HISTORIC SKETCH OF FIFTEENTH CENTURY RENAISSANCE 
 ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 Brunellesco of Florence is universally quoted as the 
 first great architect of the Renaissance (1377-1446). His 
 greatest achievement was the dome of the Florence Cathe- 
 dral.* The building itself was begun a century and a half 
 earlier. The details specifying the dawning style of the new 
 period are here confined to the lantern, or small crowning 
 member, which he did not live to finish, and this dome is 
 consequently rather significant for his engineering and 
 constructive ability and his general architectural science 
 than for points illustrative of the traits which we have so far 
 discussed. 
 
 Let it be remembered now, therefore, that these traits are 
 not in themselves the first claim of the early Renaissance 
 architects to distinction. It was their talent in construction 
 which made them great. The ornamental fashion of their 
 time is a matter of interest, and the way in which they used 
 it is a matter of interest, but the whole is greater than its 
 parts, and these must be considered in their relation to the 
 whole. Where the Renaissance details appear it is still by 
 constructive appearance and by their relation to con- 
 structive appearance that the building must be judged. 
 
 The dome of the Florence Cathedral is especially mem- 
 orable as having been the predecessor of St. Peter's 
 
 *" Roman and Medieval Art," p. 210 and Fig. 125. 
 
 72 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture. 73 
 
 dome at Rome, and Michael Angelo himself attributed his 
 ability to plan the construction of the latter to the lesson 
 and methods of the Florentine dome, which was slightly 
 larger than St. Peter's, although not raised so high above 
 the ground. It is significant for the difficulty of Brunel- 
 lesco' s task that no 
 architect had been 
 found for a century 
 and a half who was 
 willing to attempt it. 
 
 In two churches of 
 Florence, San Lorenzo 
 and San Spirito, we 
 are able more clearly 
 to specify the Renais- 
 sance decorative ele- 
 ment. As far as the 
 illustrations carry us 
 (Figs. 27, 28) this 
 element will simply lie 
 in the ' ' Corinthian ' ' 
 columns and capitals, 
 the sections of classic 
 architrave and frieze 
 used as an impost above them, in the profiles and orna- 
 mental treatment of the lines of arches, in the wall pilas- 
 ters and Ionic architrave of the aisles of San Lorenzo and 
 in the classic columns, entablatures, and small door pedi- 
 ment seen at the farther end of this church. These are all 
 imitations of Roman classic forms. 
 
 It will illustrate the constant departure of the Renais- 
 sance from its supposed models to observe here that such 
 an impost imitating a section of architrave and frieze, as 
 
 Fig. 27. — Church of San Lorenzo, Florence. 
 By Brunellesco, 1425. 
 
74 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 appears in these churches, is not once found in Roman art; 
 but that it is here imitated from the projecting section of 
 architrave and frieze visible on Roman triumphal arches, 
 where it is always attached on the rear side to a wall sur- 
 
 FiG. 28. — Church of San Spirito, Florence. After the design of Brunellesco, 
 
 face.* In the same way it may be noticed that the classic 
 column always supports a straight lintel; never an arch, as 
 here. This use of the column and arch continues that of 
 the Italian church basilicas which had never been entirely 
 abandoned. 
 
 We may also find in these church interiors, suggestive 
 contrasts with interiors of the contemporary northerr^ 
 Gothic or preceding Italian Gothic. 
 
 ? As, for instance, Fig. 33, " Roman and Medieval Art." 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture. 75 
 
 The Italian Gothic had already broken with the lofty- 
 naves of the North in favor of what may be called calmer 
 and more rational proportions. This tendency now asserts 
 itself still more distinctly. A church interior of consider- 
 ably later date (Fig. 29) may be used with these to illus- 
 trate some of the correspondences and contrasts of Re- 
 naissance churches with earlier ones.* The correspond- 
 ences lie in general arrangements and general plans; the 
 distinctions lie in proportion and ornamental details. 
 
 It appears from these views that the general plan of older 
 churches was retained 
 as regards nave and 
 aisles, clerestory, and 
 choir. They will also 
 show that Renaissance 
 churches frequently, 
 though not constantly, 
 returned to the basilica 
 use of columns as dis- 
 tinct from piers, t and 
 also that they fre- 
 quently vaulted such 
 churches when using 
 columnar supports, 
 which the medieval 
 church basilicas never 
 did. Flat timber ceil- 
 ings were also used. 
 This is the case with 
 the naves of the Florentine churches, San Lorenzo, and 
 San Spirito, while the aisles are vaulted. 
 
 * For these Gothic interiors see " Roman and Medieval Art." 
 t For this distinction, see " Roman and Medieval Art," p. 145. 
 
76 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 An immediate contrast by the reader, of San Lorenzo 
 with St. Peter's interior (Fig. 42) will probably be the 
 best means of understanding how Renaissance style is de- 
 fined by ornamental details, rather than by similarities of 
 construction. In this latter church, we find a vaulted ceil- 
 ing and heavy pier supports as distinct from the timber 
 ceiling and the arch and column. But the pilasters and 
 columns, capitals, entablatures, cornices, and ornamental 
 details are classic in both cases, and in these it is that the 
 Renaissance distinctive quality appears. 
 
 It is generally admitted that the churches of the early 
 Renaissance are, comparatively speaking, less interesting 
 monuments than its palaces, mansions, and villas. As 
 contrasted with the mysterious, romantic, and picturesque 
 cathedrals of the Middle Age, which were still being built 
 at this time in northern Europe, they cannot claim an equal 
 interest; although their sense of proportion and of system 
 is a most interesting illustration of the modern spirit of 
 fifteenth century Italy. Aside from Florence, the most 
 usually quoted early churches of the period, in the matter 
 of interiors, are some in Venice; while the Certosa of Pavia 
 (church of the Carthusian Monastery) has the most cele- 
 brated facade. This dates from 1473. 
 
 In the matter of dates we shall do well to notice those of 
 San Lorenzo (1425) and San Spirito (after 1446) as fixing 
 the time of early beginnings of the style in general. 
 
 Before speaking of the palaces of this period we will still 
 confine ourselves to the name of Brunellesco, as repre- 
 sented by a door of the cloister of the Church of Santa 
 Croce in Florence (Fig. 30). 
 
 In this door we become more definitely aware of the 
 ornamental features of the Renaissance. We have here 
 the entire Renaissance system as far as one view may illus- 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture. 77 
 
 trate it — the antique border of scroll work framing the 
 door, the antique columns and entablature with its divisions 
 of architrave, frieze, and cornice, the latter decorated with 
 egg-and-dart mouldings, and the surmounting curvilinear 
 Roman variant of the gable-shaped pediment. 
 
 All of these details were borrowed by Brunellesco from 
 some ruin of Rome, in 
 which city he is known 
 to have zealously 
 sketched and studied 
 the ruins. The relief 
 of the saint and cher- 
 ubs, the cupids hold- 
 ing the crest, and the 
 medallion portraits be- 
 side it, are of course 
 Renaissance additions, 
 but the entire compo- 
 sition considered as a 
 door is also quite un- 
 familiar to us as a copy 
 of anything Roman. 
 No similar Roman 
 doorway can be quoted. 
 Our nearest parallel in 
 Roman art would be the framing of a niche for a statue, 
 and it is most likely that the entablature, with the columns 
 and the arc above them, were borrowed from separate 
 buildings (neither of them from a door), and recombined 
 according to a suggestion obtained from a niche. 
 
 This case will illustrate the whole system on which the 
 Renaissance architects worked, and the very freedom and 
 independence of these adaptations are their greatest charm. 
 
 Fig. 30. — Doorway of the Cloister of Santa 
 Croce. Florence. By Brunellesco. 
 
78 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 The distinction which I have already emphasized in general 
 between Roman architecture and Renaissance copies, is 
 thus illustrated by a special example. An infinite number 
 of such comparisons might be instituted. 
 
 We shall now turn for a moment to a window decoration 
 
 of somewhat later 
 date in Venice, in 
 order to consider its 
 typical relation to 
 the doorway. The 
 same elements of 
 antique detail are 
 in question, al- 
 though we cannot 
 specify any antique 
 window similarly 
 treated. A niche 
 framing, or even the 
 front of an entire 
 Roman temple, may 
 be considered as the 
 original suggestion. 
 At all events, we 
 have in these two 
 pediment forms 
 (curvilinear and tri- 
 angle) the motives which ultimately became a mania in the 
 later Renaissance, and whose endless repetitions and vari- 
 ations ultimately became so tedious (Figs. 45-53, inclusive). 
 
 What I wish to point out now for the earlier Renaissance 
 (at least down to 1520), is its reticence in the use of these 
 pediments. Confined to interiors and courts, they are 
 sparingly used even there. On the fa9ades and exteriors 
 
 Fig. 31. 
 
 -Window Pediment of the Doge's Palace. 
 Venice. By Pietro Lombardo. 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture. 79 
 
 of buildings they are unknown at this time. Their first 
 appearance and widest use at this time are for the frame- 
 work of decorative tablets, tomb-reliefs, shrines, and the 
 like. For such uses, the curvilinear pediment was the 
 ruling one. 
 
 The later introduction of these pediments into exte- 
 rior architecture was gradual and tentative. The same 
 point, though in a less emphatic degree, holds of the ' ' en- 
 gaged ' ' columns and entablatures, which appear in exteriors 
 at an earlier date. It is, however, in tombs, tablets, shrines, 
 and the like, that they 
 are most constantly 
 and universally found 
 for the fifteenth cen- 
 tury. 
 
 My best illustration 
 (because clearest and 
 largest) for the later 
 decorative system of 
 the Renaissance in ex- 
 teriors of buildings is 
 at this time the detail 
 from the framing of a 
 bas-relief by Mino da 
 Fiesole in the Cathe- 
 dral of Fiesole, near 
 Florence (Fig. 22). 
 The reader would do 
 well to carefully note 
 the correspondences 
 and distinctions here, in comparison with types just quoted 
 — the same classic cornice, frieze, architrave, capital, and 
 column, The decorative details aa here enlarged should 
 
 Fig. 32.— -Early Renaissance Capital. 
 
 church in Venice. 
 
 From 
 
So 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 also be carefully studied — the egg-and-dart moulding, bead 
 moulding, leaf-and-dart moulding, and anthemions.* On 
 the other hand, the original and beautiful design of the 
 capital would find no exact counterpart in ancient art, nor 
 
 should we be able to 
 point to any ancient 
 anthemions of exactly 
 similar design. A 
 similar remark applies 
 to our beautiful detail 
 of a capital from Venice 
 herewith (Fig. 32). 
 
 It is in these capi- 
 tals, decorative friezes 
 and relief ornaments of 
 early Renaissance art 
 that we find the most 
 original and most beautiful examples of antique influence. 
 
 None of these decorative motives are slavish or 
 mechanical copies, as our own nineteenth century designs 
 are apt to be; yet they have all the virtues of the best 
 antique designs ; the same elastic and vital feeling, the 
 same sense of balance and proportion. The more our 
 modern ornament is studied, the more its dependence on 
 these early Renaissance decorations, and also its general 
 inferiority to them, is apparent. I have in the illustra- 
 tions from armor, fowling-pieces, furniture, tombs, house 
 interiors, metal work, etc. (Figs, i-ii, inclusive), given 
 some indications of the all-powerful influence of this orna- 
 ment on later history. 
 
 As an indication of the early date at which these motives 
 began to make their way to the North, and as another 
 
 * Compare " Greek Architecture and Sculpture," Chautauqua Series. 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture, 8i 
 
 Fig. 34. — French Renaissance Wood- 
 carving. Chateau of Gaillon. 
 
 illustration of their beauty, we 
 call attention here to the 
 tomb of the children of the 
 French king, Charles VIII., 
 at Tours. This king was one 
 of those whose campaigns in 
 Italy have been mentioned as 
 an instance of the attractions 
 which Italian civilization was 
 beginning to have for the 
 North (Fig. 3). 
 
 The inventive and original 
 qualities of the early Renais- 
 sance, as distinct from its de- 
 pendence on antique orig- 
 inals, are also nowhere so 
 easily illustrated as in its 
 ornament in wood carving, 
 stone carving, terra cotta 
 modelling, metal work, ivory 
 carving, textile fabrics, lace, 
 velvets, etc. 
 
 The vigor and variety of 
 these designs exhibit a rapid 
 decline after 1530. After this 
 time they are to be found in 
 superioi, or at least equal, 
 excellence (for the given 
 period) in France or Ger- 
 many, for the remainder of the 
 sixteenth century (Fig. 34). 
 
 The detail from the tomb 
 of the French general, Gaston 
 
82 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 de Foix, who was killed at the battle of Ravenna in 15 12, 
 is illustrated as an easily dated work, typical for hundreds 
 and thousands of distinct yet similar designs (Fig. 33). 
 
 We have also other earlier illustrations typical for the 
 best Italian work and influence, although some are taken 
 from the art of other countries (Figs. 10, 14, 19). 
 
 Keeping to our point, that tombs, relief panels, decora- 
 tive details, and interiors offer the first numerous class of 
 distinctly Renaissance designs subsequently typical for ex- 
 terior architecture, we may turn to the early Renaissance 
 palaces and find our point corroborated here by the fact 
 that the interior court is generally the part of the building 
 where we can distinctly point to the antique influence. 
 
 On the whole, the palace of the Dukes of Urbino, the 
 birthplace of Raphael, has the most famous interior court 
 
 of the fifteenth century 
 (Fig- 35)- The archi- 
 tect was a distin- 
 guished, though not 
 largely quoted, man, 
 Luciano da Laurana. 
 The photograph is 
 typical for the general 
 interior arrangement of 
 contemporary Italian 
 mansions and palaces, 
 showing the open ar- 
 cade of the lower story 
 supported by classic columns. On the second story we 
 distinguish the typical classic Roman wall pilaster, but as 
 yet used in low relief and in modest fashion. No window 
 pediments are seen. 
 
 The earliest fa9ade which exhibits the classic wall pilas- 
 
 FiG. 35.— Court of the Ducal Palace at Urbino. 
 Fifteenth Century. 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture, 83 
 
 ter is the Florentine Palace Rucellai (1446-1451), a won- 
 derfully simple and imposing composition (Fig. 36). The 
 architect, Leon Bat- 
 tista Alberti, was the 
 most famous of his 
 time, which was that 
 of the generation after 
 Brunellesco. His name 
 is also a much quoted 
 one for Italian liter- 
 ature and for classical 
 studies, aside from his 
 architectural capacity. 
 
 In this building we 
 notice, aside from the 
 harmonious distri- 
 bution of the pilasters 
 and entablatures, the 
 extreme flatness of 
 their relief, as con- 
 trasted with later Re- 
 naissance style, and the 
 absence of window pediments (same contrast), also the 
 fine effect of the distinction given to each block of stone 
 by its projected setting. 
 
 Others of the most famous fifteenth century Florentine 
 palaces do not show even the modest amount of exterior 
 ornament which appears here. The most famous of all, 
 and of all modern palaces, is the Palace Pitti (Fig. 37) 
 dating from Brunellesco, though not finished by him. The 
 massive power and simplicity of this building are beyond 
 all praise. The method of leaving to the outer face of 
 each block of stone a part or all of its natural rough- 
 
 FiG, 36. — Palace Rucellai. Florence. By Leon 
 Battista Alberti. Fifteenth Century. 
 
84 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 ness is a means to one of the finest effects in architecture, 
 and was much employed by the greatest of American archi- 
 tects, H. H. Richardson, lately deceased. This method 
 was known to the Italians as Rustica or rustic work. 
 
 The built-in window pediments of the lower story date 
 from the following century, as does the pilastered deco- 
 ration of the rear of the building. 
 
 In the front of the Pitti Palace we see what effects are ob- 
 
 FiG. 37. — Pitti Palace by Brunellesco. Florence. Fifteenth Century. 
 
 tainable from simple rough masonry; from its contrast with 
 the plain door and window openings, with the sequence of 
 arched openings and shadows, and from the structural em- 
 phasis given by the divisions of the stories as marked by 
 the exterior galleries. To these effects must be added that 
 of the larger wall surfaces and rougher masonry of the lower 
 story. These contribute to an appearance of extra strength 
 
Historic Sketch of Fifteenth Century Architecture, 85 
 
 in the lower story, befitting its relation of support to the 
 upper ones. 
 
 In the celebrated Florentine Strozzi Palace, by Benedetto 
 da Majano, we have the same elements of power, the 
 simply and firmly emphasized lines of the stories and the 
 heavier masonry of the lower story. The massive cornice 
 of the building, by 
 Cronaca, is especially 
 famous, and is the one 
 exterior feature in 
 which an antique 
 model is apparent. 
 Tlie Riccardi Palace of 
 Florence is of similar 
 date and style. 
 
 These buildings are 
 more refined develop- 
 ments from the older 
 medieval buildings of 
 Italy. * Since they are 
 somewhat massive for 
 modern taste in their 
 fortress-like strength, it 
 must be remembered 
 that they actually were 
 fortresses as well as palaces and correspond in appearance 
 to their use and character. It must be added that average 
 modern taste is not sufficiently alive to the element of 
 reserve and power conveyed by large masses of plain 
 masonry. Taste has been corrupted by the overloaded but 
 mechanical ornament of nineteenth century Renaissance. 
 
 *" Roman and Medieval Art," Figs. 145, 146. 
 
 Fig. 38.— Strozzi Palace by Benedetto da 
 Majano. Cornice by Cronaca. 
 Fifteenth Century. 
 
CHAPTER XL 
 
 HISTORIC SKETCH OF SIXTEENTH CENTURY RENAISSANCE 
 ARCHITECTURE. 
 
 At the opening of the sixteenth century the simpHcity 
 and reserve of the early Renaissance were still general but 
 gradually gave way to more pronounced exterior deco- 
 rations, to a wider use and greater projection of the surface 
 
 ornament, and a more 
 broken treatment ot 
 lines and surfaces. The 
 name of Bramante, the 
 friend and possibly rel- 
 ative of Raphael, is at 
 this time the leading 
 one. We shall do well 
 now to notice once 
 more a Chapel at 
 Rome, illustrated in 
 an earlier chapter, and 
 designed by this fa- 
 mous architect (Fig. 
 17). 
 
 In Bramante' s Can- 
 celleria Palace at 
 Rome, a still noted 
 building, we find the 
 same low reliet of the classic pilasters as seen on the Palace 
 
 86 
 
 Fig. 39, — Arcade and Court of the Palace 
 Massimi. Rome. By Bal- 
 dassare Peruzzi. 
 
Historic Sketch of Sixteenth Century Architecture, 87 
 
 Rucellai, the same constructional emphasis on the lines of 
 the stories illustrated by earlier Florentine palaces, the 
 same artistic use of the blocks of masonry as in themselves 
 noble and beautiful parts of the building (Fig. 40). 
 
 In his court of the Church of Santa Maria della Pace at - 
 
 Fig. 40. — Cancellaria Palace, Rome. By Bramante. 
 Early Sixteenth Century. 
 
 Rome, we see once more the dignified, simple, and noble 
 composition of the best period of the Renaissance (Fig. 
 41). By contrast with the Palace at Urbino (Fig. 35), 
 where columns are used in construction, we have in the 
 lower arcade the pier and arch construction of the Roman 
 time, faced by flat pilasters. In the second story piers al- 
 ternate with columns to support the straight lintel, showing 
 another free departure from the Roman system which never 
 used a pier with the lintel. 
 
88 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 What the Church of St: Peter (begun 1506) would 
 have been if Bramante had finished or even partially com- 
 pleted it, we can only imagine. In its present shape it still 
 dates from him as the first architect who worked on its 
 plans, but has nothing either in plan or details to show for 
 Bramante at present (Figs. 42, 43). 
 
 The Renaissance was soon destined to take on colder 
 and more formal aspects, even in the hands of such great 
 artists as Raphael and Michael Angelo. The former became 
 the architect of St. Peter's after the death of Bramante, 
 
 KiG. 4I^ — Court of the Church of Santa Maria della Pace. Rome. 
 By Bramante. Early Sixteenth Century. 
 
 although nothing of the later building came to completion 
 in his lifetime, except the piers of the dome. Raphael also 
 built several palaces in Rome and Florence. By the year 
 
Historic Sketch of Sixteenth Century Architecture, 89 
 
 1546, when Michael Angelo assumed charge of the con- 
 struction, the cold and mechanical period of the Renais- 
 sance had fairly set in. 
 
 To Michael Angelo, as already mentioned, is due the 
 
 Fig. 42. — St. Peter's Church. Rome. Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries. 
 
 construction of the famous dome, which was finished accord- 
 ing to his plans after his death. But continued changes in 
 plan, all with the general purpose of increase in size, con- 
 tinued to be made and the most famous building of the 
 
90 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Renaissance dates in its present facade and in the details of 
 interior decoration from the seventeenth century only. 
 
 As regards prodigal luxury in details, enormous dimen- 
 sions of area, and gigantic size of its members, St. Peter's 
 deserves all the fame it has won. The besetting sin of the 
 period in which this church was finished was over-decora- 
 
 FiG. 43. — St. Peter's Church. Rome. 
 
 tion — the idea that expensive materials and lavish display 
 are alone sufficient to satisfy the demands of high art. In 
 this sense we are obliged to make certain reservations 
 regarding St. Peter's, and all buildings of the time of its 
 completion, without wishing to deny its importance as the 
 largest church of modern history; without wishing to forget 
 the wonderful engineering science displayed in the construe- 
 
Historic Sketch of Sixteenth Century Architecture. 91 
 
 tion of its dome and its imposing first place among the 
 monumental jewels of Rome. 
 
 On the other hand, concession of the merit of St. Peter's 
 is not one to be made merely to bigness of dimensions for 
 its own sake. In exteriors, mere size is certainly the least 
 important of all things, if for no other reason, because we 
 can least control it; but large and ample interior apart- 
 ments will always claim first place in effect and power — and 
 the Italians of this age were noble designers in this regard. 
 The galleries, corridors, and loggias (arcades) of the Vati- 
 can Palace are one in- 
 stance out of many, 
 and the vestibule of St. 
 Peter's offers a fine 
 illustration in the same 
 direction. Our illus- 
 trations for the Sistine 
 Chapel, for the Vatican 
 loggias, and for the 
 Doge's Palace at Ven- 
 ice should be consulted 
 on this head, aside 
 from the interior view 
 of St. Peter's (Figs. 
 58, 88, 93). 
 
 The mention of St. 
 Peter's Church has 
 carried us beyond the 
 period of the early 
 sixteenth century, of which I am now generally speaking. 
 Meantime, in the first quarter of the sixteenth century, 
 countless buildings of fine proportions and beautiful detail 
 were in construction all over Italy. Among these I have 
 
92 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 selected the Palace Massimi in Rome as a typical building 
 for the zenith of the Renaissance (Figs. 39, 44). 
 
 We have in Fig. 39 an illustration of the Tuscan Doric 
 Order as revived from the Roman ruins.* It is still in 
 general modern use as a tradition from this time. The 
 Ionic is occasionally found on Renaissance buildings (Figs. 
 23, 46), but is far less frequent than the Corinthian (Figs. 
 26-32 inclusive, and many others). The Roman prefer- 
 ence for this latter Order accented its use by the Italian 
 Renaissance revival. In our own days the general domi- 
 nance of the Corinthian Order continues as a result. 
 
 In the Palace Mas- 
 simi it is still obviously 
 the construction which 
 attracts and interests 
 us. In other build- 
 ings the preference for 
 antique forms begins 
 to develop without 
 reference to the 
 effects of the building 
 itself The door and 
 window pediments, 
 now transferred to the 
 exterior facades, of- 
 fered a ready means to 
 inferior architects to 
 satisfy the demand for 
 antique designs with- 
 out taxing their own 
 invention. It would 
 be impossible to deny that there are countless fine and 
 
 * "Roman and Medieval Art," Fig. 12. 
 
 
 1 . 
 
 1 
 
 
 1 
 
 I--- ■ 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Fig. 45.— Palace Bartoliiii. Florence, 1520. 
 By Baccio d'Agnolo. 
 
Historic Sketch of Sixteenth Century Architecture, 93 
 
 imposing buildings on which these gables appear; equally 
 impossible to deny that they have found their final grave 
 > on the brownstone fronts of New York City (Fig. 13). 
 
 The Florentine Palace Bartolini, shown in Fig. 45, long 
 passed as the earliest example of the door and window 
 pediments on an exterior facade, but the Palace Pandol- 
 fini in Florence shows Raphael as predecessor (1516) in this 
 
 Fig. 46. — Second Story, Court of the Faniese Palace. Building by Antonio 
 di San Gallo and Michael Angelo. 
 
 regard, and they also appear in a drawing by Bramante, 
 who died in 15 14. The alternation of curvilinear and 
 angular pediments on the Palace Bartolini is again alter- 
 nated by changed arrangement on various stories. 
 
 The year 1520 is dangerously near the first decline of the 
 Renaissance, and we cannot but find the appearance of 
 the exterior pediments at this time significant. The first 
 
94 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 effect of a door or window is that of its entire shadow as 
 against the adjacent surface. The broken Hnes and surfaces 
 created by these projecting but still inefficient and useless 
 canopies tend to destroy a finer series of. contrasts than 
 they themselves create, and the breaks of wall surface 
 which they involve detract from effects of structural lines. 
 
 The sacrifice of the main lines and surfaces to elaboration 
 of details rapidly asserted itself after 1530. We find an in- 
 stance in the second story of the court of the Farnese Palace, 
 at Rome, where the removal of the pediments would con- 
 tribute to effects of proportion and contrast (Fig. 46). 
 
 In this view we also see the high projection of the 
 
 engaged^' columns, as contrasted with the flat pilasters 
 of the Rucellai and Cancellaria Palaces (Figs. 36, 40). 
 
 In their ultimate use of the classic Roman wall column, 
 the Italians strove to regain what they had sacrificed in the 
 matter of surface effects, and of structural lines in the hori- 
 zontal, by emphasis on the perpendiculars. This was ob- 
 tained by applying the simulated columns in the propor- 
 tion of the entire building (Fig/ 26), but at the expense of 
 any treatment emphasizing the stories, or other organic 
 conditions of the building. 
 
 This disregard of organism is the almost necessary resort 
 of any modern architect designing in Renaissance style and 
 wishing to give imposing lines to his building. To the 
 classic enthusiasms of the old Renaissance, which forced 
 the use of these columns on every important structure, we 
 can make almost any concessions, but there is no doubt 
 that they have laid a very serious burden on the shoulders 
 of later architects who have less interest in Virgil and 
 Pliny, and the same reverence for Vitruvius.* 
 
 ♦Vitruvius is the Roman author on architecture, whose work became the stand- 
 ard of appeal of all Italian architects soon after 1500. 
 
Historic Sketch of Sixteenth Century Architecture, 95 
 
 The last great architect of the Renaissance was Palladio, 
 15 18-1580. He was a native of Vicenza, and most of his 
 important work was in north Italy, especially in Vicenza 
 and in Venice. Two interesting views of his designs in 
 and near Vicenza are 
 subjoined; one of these 
 is his most famous villa 
 (Fig. 16). 
 
 The great merit of 
 Palladio was his dis- 
 position of interior 
 apartments and his ar- 
 rangements of interior 
 plans. In his use of 
 the ^'Orders'' on ex- 
 teriors he was distin- 
 guished by refinement, 
 moderation, a sense of 
 proportion and regard 
 for organic appearance 
 and effect. In his day 
 the use of these ^'Or- 
 ders ' ' in exteriors was 
 a matter-of-course formula for every architect, as a result 
 of that literary enthusiasm for Roman antiquity whose 
 peculiar causes I have endeavored to explain (pp. 54-60). 
 
 In these enthusiasms we understand the architects as 
 sharers within the domain of their own peculiar art, so that 
 Palladio, for instance, was a close student of the ancient 
 Roman ruins; but it is important to know that the larger 
 basis and groundwork of the architectural fashion was that 
 general point of view of the entire Italian culture and edu- 
 cation, in which the literary sentiment of the men of letters, 
 
96 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 the historic interest of the student of history, the debt of 
 the man of science to ancient learning, and the patriotic in- 
 terest of the average ItaHan in the former glories of his 
 country were the essential explanation. 
 
 We must not forget to mention finally the name of Vi- 
 gnola (1507- 1 573) whose treatise on the Orders has not even 
 yet entirely lost its influence on modern architecture. As a 
 planner and composer of buildings he was not Palladio's 
 equal, but he long ranked as the leading theorist on the 
 subject of Roman, /. e. Renaissance, details. The Italian 
 theory that Roman art was an inspired canon for the imita- 
 tion of all later history reached its climax in his treatise. 
 
CHAPTER XII. 
 
 DECADENCE OF RENAISSANCE ARCHITECTURE, SEVEN- 
 TEENTH AND EIGHTEENTH CENTURIES. 
 
 In THE latter part of the sixteenth century ItaHan archi- 
 tecture turned from the study and copy of the Roman 
 buildings to the study and copy of its own earlier copies. 
 The period of continu- 
 ation and tradition set 
 in, as against the period 
 of original adaptation 
 or of original creation 
 mistaken for adaptation 
 or disguised as adap- 
 tation. 
 
 In this period the 
 method and the form- 
 ula, that is to say the 
 classic detail, became 
 the main thing. The 
 building was forgotten 
 in its ornament. The 
 whole became less im- 
 portant than its parts. 
 The beautiful variety 
 and real inventiveness 
 of the early modern 
 Italian art gradually 
 disappeared, while the shell of its exterior and superficial 
 appearance continued to subsist. 
 
 97 
 
 Fig. 48. — French Renaissance Doorway. 
 Villeneuve-les- Avignon . 
 
98 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 In illustrating the later course of this movement we shall 
 find it interesting to choose a single motive and follow the 
 course of its evolution. We will select the curvilinear 
 pediment, which we first noticed at length over the door of 
 Brunellesco (Fig. 30). 
 
 The examples of subsequent evolution are selected from 
 the French Renaissance but will be typical for Italian coun- 
 terparts and originals. 
 
 In the French doorway (Fig. 48) we notice, as compared 
 
 with B runellesco' s 
 door, the higher pro- 
 jection and relief (de- 
 signed to produce 
 stronger shadows) both 
 of the main design and 
 of the ornamental carv- 
 ings in detail; and the 
 broken horizontals. 
 This break in the hori- 
 zontals is connected 
 with the assumption ol 
 a double plane for the 
 ornament, in which the 
 central portion is 
 thrown forward from 
 the sides; the motive 
 being to increase 
 variety of surfaces, 
 outlines, lights, and 
 shadows. 
 
 A momentous step farther in the same direction is visible 
 in our next French doorway (Fig. 49). Not only are the 
 projections enormously exaggerated, but the entire pedi- 
 
 FiG. 49. — French Renaissance Doorway. 
 Villeneuve-les-Avignon. 
 
Decadence of Renaissance Architecture, 
 
 99 
 
 ment is broken into exterior wings with a recessed center. 
 
 This broken pediment Hne, also found in the triangular 
 form of the same period, is to be seen in ruins of the 
 Roman decadence,* 
 but it appears in Italian 
 Renaissance art at a 
 later date than does the 
 unbroken form. 
 
 In our next doorway 
 (Fig. 50), the central 
 portion of the arc has 
 disappeared entirely. 
 The form can only be 
 comprehended by ref- 
 erence to the preced- 
 ing type. 
 
 Turn now to an en- 
 tire cathedral facade of 
 the late Spanish. Re- 
 naissance and we 
 have a type of the 
 
 baroque R e n a i S - ^^^^ 50.— French Doorway. Villeneuve-les- 
 
 sance style as origi- Avignon. 
 
 nally native to Italy of the seventeenth century (Fig. 51). 
 
 In this illustration the entire central front of the building 
 is a built up travesty of our last motive. What had once 
 been the framing of a door or window, and originally the 
 ornament of a Roman niche for a statue, has become the 
 entire front of a building. Meantime the original forms in 
 their original place can be seen on windows and niches for 
 statuary, of the same building. 
 
 The sway of this style in all parts of Europe is shown by 
 
 ♦View from eastern Syria, '* Roman andMedieval Art," p. 42. 
 
Fig, 51,— Cathedral of Murcia. Late Spanish Renaissance. 
 
Decadence of Renaissance Architecture. loi 
 
 the English example from St. Mary's College at Oxford 
 (Fig. 52), in which the twisted or spiral column ap- 
 pears, as an additional feature. Such columns must be 
 understood as having been originally in bronze and made 
 for the shrine of a church, as in the great shrine of St. 
 Peter's at Rome. In fact, the whole history of the later 
 Renaissance may be understood as a transfer of designs for 
 altars, shrines, and tablets to the exterior details, and, 
 finally, to the entire 
 composition of a build- 
 ing. What was more 
 endurable in the way 
 of broken surfaces and 
 arbitrary lines in 
 smaller and less pre- 
 tentious objects, or in 
 more tractable or duc- 
 tile materials, like 
 wood, plaster, or metal, 
 became less endurable 
 when transferred t o 
 entire buildings and to 
 large masonry forms. 
 
 In our critical atti- 
 tude toward the late 
 Renaissance our point 
 of view must be 
 largely determined by the dimension and use of the given 
 form, and by its relation to the entire building. Although 
 a doorway like that of St. Mary's College at Oxford 
 must be admitted to be a corrupt and extravagant design, 
 we cannot deny its picturesque quality and picturesque 
 relation to the whole building. From the standpoint 
 
 Fig. 52. — St. Mary's College. Oxford. Seven- 
 teenth Century English Renaissance, 
 
I02 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 of history it even becomes a most interesting evolution. 
 
 In face of an entire building like the Spanish Cathedral 
 of Murcia, where a similar design appears in the entire 
 front, which is worried and fretted from top to bottom with 
 
 meaningless breaks 
 and projections, our 
 attitude of criticism 
 becomes more severe, 
 although the historic 
 interest still preponder- 
 ates (Fig. 51). 
 
 In the French door- 
 ways which have been 
 quoted we must con- 
 cede much picturesque 
 beauty; given an 
 otherwise mainly plain 
 and unpretentious 
 house surface, as would 
 appear from the 
 glimpses of the ex- 
 teriors obtained in the 
 views. As regards the 
 element of dimension, where the form is the same, it is 
 clear that the facade of St. Etienne du Mont at Paris (Fig. 
 53) has sacrificed all thoughts of a serious relation between 
 appearance and construction by the size of its pediments. 
 Were the same shapes limited in size to the older use as 
 canopy for door or window, the building would be the 
 gainer. 
 
 It would be erroneous to suppose that the later Renais- 
 sance was entirely given over to perversions and over-elab- 
 orations of its earlier designs. Much was done that was at 
 
 Fig. 53.— St. Etienne du Mont, 
 Saventeenth Century. 
 
 Paris. 
 
Decadence of Renaissance Architeciure, 103 
 
 least imposing and monumental, and much that was com- 
 paratively simple, although in all these cases the mechan- 
 ical quality of the detail carvings in capitals and surface or- 
 naments is to be observed. In other cases a somewhat 
 cold and bare appearance, owing to the absence of orna- 
 ment in detail, is often apparent. 
 
 St. Paul's Cathedral in London (Sir Christopher Wren) 
 
 Fig. 54.— St. Paul's Cathedral. London. Seventeenth Century. 
 
 may be instanced as a case fairly described by the general 
 hints of the above paragraph. An instance of this cold 
 but still monumental style may also be found in the Cathe- 
 dral of Versailles, selected for a view because it offers an 
 available photograph illustrative of this class of later Re- 
 naissance art (Fig. 25). The Poll Palace at Rome, with 
 the facade fronting the Fountain of Trevi, is a fine illustra- 
 
I04 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 tion of the monumental qualities frequently found in late 
 Renaissance style (Fig. 26). 
 
 On the other hand it would be difficult to find in church 
 interiors any making pretensions to importance which are 
 not disfigured by the arbitrary and broken lines and details 
 of the shrines, tombs, and altars. 
 
 In its later days the Renaissance was at its best in locali- 
 ties where a simple 
 taste and simple life 
 forbade the effort at 
 extravagant display or 
 were, by virtue of the 
 personal dignity and 
 republican virtues of 
 the population, su- 
 perior to it. Such a 
 locality was Holland, 
 and we may find hints 
 on this point in the 
 views from Leyden 
 
 (Figs. 55, 56). 
 
 One of these views 
 reproduces a seven- 
 teenth century house 
 of some fame on ac- 
 count of its historic 
 associations with the 
 life of the Puritan 
 leader, John Robinson. 
 This house, built in 
 1683, stands on the site of the earlier one which he occu- 
 pied. Its appearance will recall many of the Colonial houses 
 of our own country and will remind us under what guise 
 
 Fig. 55. — House in Leyden. Seventeenth 
 Century Dutch Renaissance. 
 
Decadence of Renaissance Architecture, 105 
 
 the Italian style of the Renaissance was familiar to our 
 own immediate forefathers. 
 
 The Dutch Renaissance exercised decisive influence both 
 on England and on America, and explains the superior 
 simplicity of the so-called style of Queen Anne (English 
 eighteenth century Renaissance) and of our own so-called 
 "Colonial style" (early 
 American Renais- 
 sance). The way and 
 manner in which the 
 Netherland influence 
 affected both England 
 and America has been 
 best explained by a 
 book already quoted — 
 Douglas Campbell's 
 "The Puritan in Hol- 
 land, England, and 
 America. ' ' 
 
 To return finally for 
 a moment to the six- 
 teenth century period 
 of superior art, let us 
 remember here, also, 
 that at a given date 
 the contemporary building of France or Germany may be 
 superior to a given one in Italy; because as the style moved 
 from south to north and northwest, it largely traveled from 
 point to point by gradual geographical contact as well as 
 by sudden transportation by means of an imported Italian 
 architect, or through a native architect who had studied in 
 Italy. 
 
 Hence, as the history of the Renaissance all over Europe 
 
 Fig. 56,— Town Hall of Leyden. Dutch Renais- 
 sance. Late Sixteenth Century. 
 
io6 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 is one of an early period of more spontaneous and vital 
 energy as succeeded by another of more mechanical and 
 colder art, and as the movement started from an Italian 
 center, it follows that the North may reflect at a later time 
 an earlier stage of the Italian inspiration. Throw a stone 
 into the middle of a pool of water, and when the last 
 ripples are reaching its circumference the center has become 
 quiescent. This is an illustration of the course of historic 
 influence. It is doubtful if Italy can offer a parallel for the 
 given time to the sixteenth century castle fagades of German 
 Heidelberg, which it had inspired. Some of my most sig- 
 nificant illustrations for the vigor and life of early Renais- 
 sance Italian art are borrowed from France (Figs. lo, ii, 
 14, 18, 21, 34). 
 
 France and Spain were, by blood and by sympathies of 
 history and of Roman traditions, most nearly allied to Italy, 
 and most susceptible of a native and original continuance of 
 the Italian movement reviving the memory of Rome. But 
 of these two countries, France was geographically nearer 
 to Italy, and alone geographically in contact with it. 
 Moreover, the French population had a lively, vivacious, 
 and susceptible taste which most quickly responded to the 
 Italian influence. The castles and country-seats of the 
 French Renaissance are, taken in bulk, beyond any dispute 
 the most interesting monuments of the style outside ol 
 Italy. 
 
 An account of the more recent history of modern archi- 
 tecture is reserved for a later chapter. 
 
CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 RELATION OF PAINTING TO OTHER ARTS OF THE 
 RENAISSANCE. 
 
 According to a philosophic view of our subject, the art 
 of sculpture should for some reasons take precedence either 
 of architecture or of painting. The interest in physical 
 nature and the study of its forms and appearances from the 
 standpoint of nature (as distinct from the use of these forms 
 to teach the lessons of religion and to represent the stories 
 and events of the Bible narrative), were essential features of 
 the Renaissance. A corresponding fact was the interest in 
 the works of ancient sculpture, which also distinguished 
 the period. Sculpture was the earliest art to show that 
 scientific study of design in the cause of nature, which still 
 rules the modern time. The second pair of bronze doors 
 by Ghiberti, of the Baptistery in Florence, begun about 
 1425, will convey more clearly to the modern eye than any 
 other monument of art the epoch-making and really modern 
 character of the fifteenth century in Italy. 
 
 Our reasons for treating first of architecture, are first, 
 that the exterior antique coloring and enthusiasms which 
 have given the whole period its name are most visibly 
 shown in this art; second, that the historic continuity of the 
 movement between the fifteenth and nineteenth centuries is 
 most easily illustrated by this art; third, that the break 
 with the Middle Ages is most abrupt in architecture and 
 most easily illustrated by the overthrow of the Gothic style 
 in favor of Renaissance. 
 
 107 
 
io8 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Some reasons may now be offered for giving painting the 
 second place in our treatment. 
 
 Painting in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries was first 
 and foremost wall decoration ; that is, architectural decora- 
 tion, in its location, in its character, and in its purpose. 
 No adequate idea of the architecture of the time can 
 be formed without considering the adornment given by 
 
 Fig. 57. — Ceiling of a Room in the Chateau of Oyron, with Mythologic Paintings. 
 French Renaissance. Compare Fig. 11. 
 
 this sister art, and the magnificence of the interior apart- 
 ments as thus decorated. 
 
 A purely superficial and outside view of Renaissance ar- 
 chitecture, both in the literal and figurative sense, is obtained 
 when we confine ourselves to those traits of the ' ' Orders ' ' 
 which concern exteriors, or when we confine ourselves to 
 interior details as distinct from the great surfaces devoted 
 to the wall-paintings. The most important part of a build- 
 
Relation of Painting to other Arts. 109 
 
 However differ- 
 
 ing is the interior. The proper treatment of an interior 
 in color offers an even more difficult problem than that ol 
 exterior architecture. 
 
 As the painting of the Italian Renaissance was domi- 
 nantly architectural, we shall, therefore, do well to join our 
 account of the subject to that of architecture. 
 
 In the matter of the importance and general bearing of 
 our subject, we shall notice next, that the continuity of 
 history, as between the Middle Age and the Renaissance, is 
 best illustrated by painting, whereas the break with the 
 Middle Age is best shown by architecture, 
 ent these periods were, 
 both were Christian. 
 The Italian wall-paint- 
 ings of the Gothic 
 fourteenth century 
 were the direct prede- 
 cessors of those of the 
 fifteenth century. The 
 same series of types 
 and subjects was con- 
 tinued. 
 
 On the other hand, 
 it is admitted that the 
 Renaissance celebrated 
 its greatest and purest 
 triumph in the art of 
 'painting. The perfec- 
 tion of its productions 
 in this art is still 
 unattacked and unattackable. If in architecture we 
 especially strive to show how the early Renaissance 
 influenced later times — in painting we are able especially 
 
 Fig, 58— Loggie or Corridor of the Vatican. 
 Built by Bramante and decorated 
 by Raphael. 
 
no 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 to show how far, in some respects, it surpassed them. 
 
 As regards sculpture, we shall concede, however, that the 
 study of solid and concrete form must always logically pre- 
 cede successful representation on a flat surface; we shall 
 concede that these studies in soHd form actually did pre- 
 cede in point of time and preliminary importance, and we 
 shall subsequently be able to show that whereas the greatest 
 triumph of the sixteenth century was in painting, the great- 
 est triumph of the fifteenth century was in sculpture. 
 
CHAPTER XIV. 
 
 FIFTEENTH CENTURY RENAISSANCE PAINTING. 
 
 For a skeleton view of the subject, we shall lay down 
 the following preliminary outlines: 
 
 In the eighteenth century great Italian painting is con- 
 spicuous by its absence. The names of the Tiepoli (sin- 
 gular, Tiepolo) in Venice, or of Canaletto and of Guardi, 
 famed for their views of Venetian architecture, will hold a 
 very minor place in the perspective which places the six- 
 teenth century in the foreground. 
 
 In the seventeenth century the painters of Spain and the 
 Netherlands were at least the equals and often the superiors 
 of their Italian brethren of the same date, a fact which has 
 its analogies in the history of architecture. At this time 
 the Italian painting was still excellent in color, in design, 
 and in science; but it had come to have a more academic 
 and formal, less spirited and less genuine, quality in the 
 treatment and conception of subjects. Its color cannot 
 compare with that of the Venetians of the sixteenth cen- 
 tury. Its composition did not rival that of Raphael. Its 
 intellectual quality did not remotely approach the genius of 
 Michael Angelo or Da Vinci. Above all its scale and di- 
 mension of productions had fallen. Scarcely any great 
 architectural compositions were produced in the seventeenth 
 century; which was almost entirely confined to panel paint- 
 ing and canvas as distinct from frescoes. The impor- 
 tance of Guido's Aurora " makes it one of the rare ex- 
 ceptions to this statement. 
 
 Ill 
 
112 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 In turning to the sixteenth century painting we note its 
 most important monumental works as the decoration of the 
 Sistine Chapel of the Vatican, by Michael Angelo; the wall- 
 paintings of the Vatican by Raphael, and the decoration of 
 the Doge's Palace in Venice by a whole series of the great 
 Venetian artists. The forerunner and first great painter of 
 this period was Da Vinci, whose ' ' Last Supper ' ' in Milan 
 was finished about 1498. As leading up to this period we 
 begin with the fifteenth century. 
 
 To a comprehension at once of the limitations of this 
 time and of its remarkable advance over that which pre- 
 ceded, we must remember what this preceding time had 
 done and what its characteristics were. In my ' ' Roman 
 and Medieval Art ' ' I have given some illustrations of the 
 art of Giotto, its leading master, and s'ome account of the 
 art revolution accomplished in the fourteenth century and 
 best represented by his work. 
 
 This work was the overthrow of that stiff and formal 
 style of design which Byzantine art had practiced for nearly 
 a thousand years preceding;* but Italian painting was still 
 in its infancy during the fourteenth century and was still 
 controlled by the medieval point of view, in which nature 
 for its own sake played no part. 
 
 Italian Christian art was still satisfied during the four- 
 teenth century with the most primitive and summary indi- 
 cations of natural surroundings and backgrounds. Por- 
 traiture was not attempted, neither was perspective or the 
 realistic rendering of details. Its color scheme was, how- 
 ever, bright and decorative, its conception of the subject 
 matter serious and original. 
 
 In contrast with these traits the realistic point of view 
 was the ruling one for the fifteenth century. No figure but 
 
 * Compare the Byzantine mosaics — " Roman and Medieval Art." 
 
Fig. 59. — Detail from the Raising of Eutychus. By Masaccio. 
 Brancacci Chapel, Florence. About 1425. 
 
114 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 was drawn and colored from an actual model; no background 
 without a landscape (Fra Angelico is the sole exception 
 and only in some cases) ; no landscape that did not in effort 
 strive to show the facts of nature ; no face that was not a por- 
 trait; no expression that did not strive to reveal character. 
 
 More than this, the actual Italian life of the time was 
 represented in the disguise of scripture subjects. The 
 drunkenness of Noah takes place in an Italian vineyard 
 (Benozzo Gozzoli in Pisa). The building of the Tower of 
 Babel is done by Italian masons in an Italian landscape 
 (Benozzo Gozzoli in Pisa). The birth of the Savior is a 
 domestic scene in Florence (Ghirlandajo in Santa Maria 
 Novella). 
 
 We should hasten to add that the incongruities of these 
 representations soon cease to amuse, or even to draw the 
 attention of, a student as anachronisms. On the contrary, 
 it is the actual life of Italy which he delights to find, as the 
 time itself delighted to represent it. 
 
 There is a double point of view from which we learn to 
 understand that neither impiety nor indifference to the at- 
 tributed subject is in question in these pictures. The 
 literature of the Bible, as illustrated by art, was so far part 
 and parcel of the daily lives of the people that it was most 
 natural for them to see it represented through the medium 
 of their own actual surroundings. The subjects were 
 traditional, and although they had been represented in 
 earlier times with less matter-of-fact detail, they never had 
 been presented so as to represent the life of Palestine. 
 
 On the other hand, the literature of the Bible was valued 
 as a species of epitome of life and history at large, in which 
 all periods of civilization and all varieties of costume were 
 equally congenial to the heart and spirit of the matter. 
 The Madonna was not only the Virgin Mary, but a type 
 
Fifteenth Century Renaissance Painting, 115 
 
 and ideal of the purity of motherhood. The drunkenness 
 of Noah was the standard temperance sermon. In the do- 
 mestic Hfe of the Holy Family was found a type and ideal 
 of the domestic life of humanity at large. 
 
 What we should then mainly gather from those realistic 
 features of fifteenth century art which strike us as incon- 
 gruous, is that a dawning, or rather a reawakened, sense ol 
 the beauty of actual nature and interest in visible things for 
 their own sake led the artist to create their counterparts 
 and the people to delight in looking at them. The tra- 
 ditional subjects of Christian art were not less interesting, 
 but rather more so on this account. 
 
 The first development of fifteenth century art was Floren- 
 tine, and the artists of Florence became the masters and 
 teachers of all Italy. It is, therefore, by no means es- 
 pecially in Florence that their work is to be studied. On 
 the lower walls of the Sistine Chapel at Rome is a most 
 important series of frescoes by a number of Florentine 
 painters. In the Campo Santo at Pisa* there is another 
 series, the work of the Florentine Benozzo Gozzoli. Be- 
 sides these we may name as especially important the wall- 
 paintings of Ghirlandajo (Geerlandaio) in the Church ol 
 Santa Maria Novella in Florence. 
 
 The Florentine Masaccio (Masatcheo) was the first great 
 innovator of his time, and his name stands in fifteenth cen- 
 tury painting as does that of Giotto in the fourteenth. Not 
 only was he the first in time, but he was also distinctly the 
 greatest of his entire period, which lasted down to the 
 ^'Last Supper" of Da Vinci. This position is awarded him 
 not only on grounds of execution and technical improve- 
 ment of design, but also for the great dignity and power ot 
 his thoughtful paintings. 
 
 * " Roman and Medieval Art," Fig. 143, 
 
ii6 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 In the Brancacci (Brancatchy) Chapel of the Church ol 
 Santa Carmine (Carminy) at Florence are found the great 
 
 wall-paintings of this 
 master, who died so 
 young that we other- 
 wise can quote no really 
 important picture by 
 his hand. They were 
 executed between 1423 
 and 1428. 
 
 From the various 
 paintings of this chapel 
 I have selected a detail 
 from a small portion of 
 ' ' The Raising of Euty- 
 chus," in which the 
 strong realism and dif- 
 ferentiation of the por- 
 traits and of their facial 
 expressions are well il- 
 lustrated. These may 
 be compared with the 
 faces in Giotto's ''Dep- 
 osition, ' ' for a contrast 
 with the style preced- 
 ing.^ Supposed to be 
 from a design of Ma- 
 saccio, as executed by 
 his follower Filippino 
 Lippi, is the picture of 
 * ' St Peter in Prison, 
 Visited by St. Paul, ' ' another of the series in this chapel. 
 
 *Fig. 146, " Roman and Medieval Art." 
 
 Fig. 60— St. Paul Visiting St. Peter in Prison. 
 Design by Masaccio. Execution 
 by Filippino Lippi. 
 
Fifteenth Century Renaissance Painting, 117 
 
 According to the natural conditions of the large wall 
 spaces to be decorated (see for example the lower side 
 walls of the Sistine Chapel, Fig. 88, or the walls of the 
 Campo Santo at Pisa, Fig. 143, Roman and Medieval 
 Art the most usual shape of the wall-painting was that 
 of a large oblong panel, and this was filled with a multitude 
 of figures of life-size dimensions. The range and choice 
 of subjects covered the whole field of Bible history. There 
 
 Fig. 61. — "Christ giving the Keys to Peter." Fresco by Perugino. 
 Sistine Chapel, Rome. (Compare Fig. 87.) 
 
 are no similar pictures to be seen outside of Italy, and here 
 they can only be known on the plastered walls of the origi- 
 nal buildings. 
 
 Owing to the habit of the artists of introducing large 
 groups of accessory figures and spectators, who are not 
 active participants in the scene represented, and who 
 mainly fill the foreground of the painting, these works fre- 
 quently lack variety and interest of action. On the other 
 
ii8 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 hand, they always offer interesting studies of contemporary 
 Italian costume and individuality. As entire compositions 
 they are very important as illustrating, by contrast, the 
 great advance made after the time of the ' ' Last Supper. ' ' 
 
 It is in the draping, pose, action, and physiognomy ol 
 the individual figures, and in the realistic accessories and 
 background details that we notice their own epoch-making 
 importance in contrast with earlier times. Comparison 
 with contemporary paintings of northern Europe, among 
 which the Flemish and German would offer most accessible 
 illustration, is one good way to appreciate their value. But 
 however remarkable these pictures become in the history of 
 design, when compared with earlier Italian or northern 
 contemporary work, we shall fail of hitting the mark if we 
 consider them purely or mainly from the standpoint of the 
 artist in design. 
 
 The main point to be considered is that they represented 
 a public art, existing for the people at large, serving for 
 their education, edification, and instruction. We must bear 
 constantly in mind their individual large dimensions and the 
 fact that all chapels, churches, public halls, and civic build- 
 ings were habitually decorated with them. They existed 
 for every one, were accessible to every one and largely 
 took the place in the education of the time, now occupied 
 by printed books. These were just coming into use in the 
 later part of the fifteenth century, but had not yet usurped 
 the place hitherto filled by the pictures. 
 
 It is, moreover, to be constantly kept in view that the 
 subjects themselves were traditional and familiar to the 
 thought of the time. Thus they were popular in the best 
 sense. When we consider, finally, the nature of the sub- 
 jects treated, as reg-ards elevation of thought and wide 
 significancCj even apart from their sacred character, the 
 
Fifteenth Century Renaissance Painting. 119 
 
 position of Italian painting in the history ot culture begins 
 to dawn upon us. 
 
 There is, then, this threefold point of view for fifteenth 
 century Italian paintings. First, considering the arts of 
 drawing and painting in their relation to visible nature and 
 in their ability to represent it, as important departments 
 of modern culture, we observe that fifteenth century Italy 
 first acquired and developed this knowledge and that our 
 own knowledge is a traditional inheritance from this period. 
 
 Second, considering the general interest of the early Re- 
 naissance for modern history, it is a great point that we are 
 able so closely to revive the memories of this time through 
 the medium of pictures which so faithfully portray the facts 
 of its own life, although generally Biblical in subject. 
 
 Third, we learn to appreciate the importance of Italian 
 art as a part of the intellectual and educational apparatus of 
 the nation at large, its large patronage for public purposes, 
 and the significance of its subjects as revealing the interests 
 and modes of thought of the common people. 
 
 As matter-of-fact history concerning the development ot 
 this earliest Renaissance style, we emphasize its wonder- 
 fully sudden first appearance in the art of Masaccio; con- 
 sidering that the fourteenth century period, headed by 
 Giotto, did not make any advances beyond the limits he 
 himself had reached and that the dates of Masaccio' s 
 pictures in the Brancacci Chapel are the very earliest dates 
 for anything in painting distinct from the style of Giotto. 
 
 Although the name of Masolino is generally known as 
 that of Masaccio' s teacher, and although his participation in 
 the execution of certain frescoes in this chapel has been 
 asserted by Vasari,* we should, admitting this participa- 
 tion, which is doubted by the great critic, Jacob Burck- 
 
 * Author of the ** Lives of the Artists," written in the sixteenth century. 
 
150 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 hardt, still have the same fact to emphasize regarding the 
 sudden development of the new style, for the paintings by 
 Masolino near Milan are later than those of the Florentine 
 Chapel. 
 
 As matter-of-fact history, we again emphasize the absence 
 
 of any important ad- 
 vance beyond the style 
 of Masaccio until the 
 very close of the fif- 
 teenth century. Many 
 of its later artists con- 
 tinued its traditions 
 into the sixteenth cen- 
 tury, in which they 
 overlap and post-date 
 the epoch-making 
 works of that time. 
 
 In the fifteenth cen- 
 tury, as related to the 
 fourteenth, we can only 
 quote one similar case 
 of an overlap of style, 
 that of the Florentine 
 artist, Fra Angelico of 
 Fiesole, who in many ways reminds us of the Giotto period. 
 For piety and simple purity of conception this artist monk 
 holds a place distinctly his own (Fig. 63). 
 
 We have so far made no mention of the altar pieces — the 
 Madonna pictures, pictures of saints, and Biblical painting 
 on panel. These were painted for shrines, chapels, and 
 churches, as devotional pictures. They consequently ex- 
 hibit a more traditional quality and resemble one another as 
 types more closely than the wall frescoes, in which con- 
 
 FiG. 62. — Detail from the Fresco of *' Peter and 
 Paul Curing the Sick and Lame." Probably 
 by Masaccio. Brancacci Chapel, Florence. 
 
Fifteenth Century Renaissance Painting, 121 
 
 temporary secular life was so largely used to convey Bibli- 
 cal subjects. The idea of fifteenth century art derived 
 from these latter pictures would, for this reason, be a 
 narrow one — and yet they are the only pictures which 
 foreign museums or galleries can display, because they are 
 the only ones which are transferable or portable. 
 
 We should remember, then, that such paintings represent 
 a minor field of the whole art of the time in spite of their 
 number, interest, and 
 frequent beauty. Their 
 destination for an altar 
 or shrine is to be con- 
 stantly kept in view, 
 and should not be 
 overlooked because the 
 picture has been trans- 
 ferred to a gallery of 
 paintings. This desti- 
 nation involved serious 
 devotional appearance 
 and was characterized 
 by traditional repeti- 
 tions of certain set 
 arrangements and 
 motives. As studied 
 in their details these oil 
 paintings will, however, 
 give interesting evi- 
 dence of the realistic tendencies of the age, especially when 
 compared with earlier works. 
 
 A point of much importance in the estimate of these 
 panel pictures is that painting in oil colors, then newly in- 
 troduced from Flanders, where the Van Eycks had first 
 
 Fig. 63. — Detail from the Framing of a Madonna. 
 By Fra Angelico. Uffizi Gallery, Florence. 
 
122 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 successfully practiced it, had not yet begun to treat the 
 lights and shadows, or to represent the figures, with that 
 soft modelling which Da Vinci was the first to practice 
 and teach. 
 
 In fresco (painting on walls) distinct outlines, without 
 shading, were the desideratum, because the balance of out- 
 lines and figures had to be considered for architectural results. 
 The oil paintings of this period show us in reality the meth- 
 ods usual in fresco and have consequently a certain hardness 
 
 Fig. 64. — Meeting of Mary and Elizabeth. By Ghirlandajo. Louvre. 
 
Fifteenth Century Renaissance Painting. 
 
 123 
 
 and formalism of outlines which rather obscure their really- 
 faithful studies of the human figure and of natural objects. 
 
 To this same appearance of formalism was also contrib- 
 utory the very anxiety and painstaking efforts of art to 
 represent that which was actual and real in nature. 
 
 As far as the names of the painters are concerned, and 
 aside from those already mentioned, we feel disposed to lay 
 stress on those who were related as teachers and masters to 
 the great artists of the next generation. 
 
 Michael Angelo, for instance, had been an apprentice in 
 the studio of Ghirlandajo (frescoes in Maria Novella, Flor- 
 ence) although his most direct predecessor as regards the 
 study of the nude and 
 fore-shortening of the 
 figure was Luca Si- 
 gn ore Hi (frescoes in 
 Orvieto). 
 
 Raphael's master is 
 generally said to have 
 been Perugino, but re- 
 cent researches of the 
 great Italian critic, 
 Giovanni Morelli, have 
 quite clearly proven 
 that Timoteo della Vite 
 was Raphael's first 
 teacher and that his 
 connection with Peru- 
 gino was of later date 
 than is usually sup- 
 posed. 
 
 Leonardo da Vinci's teacher in painting was Verocchio 
 (Verokyo), who was still more distinguished as a sculptor. 
 
 Fig. 65. — Detail from the Series of Paintings by 
 Carpaccio for the Story of St. Ursula. Re- 
 ception of the Enghsh Ambassadors. 
 
124 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 All of these names belong to the Florentine School. The 
 only great rival school of fifteenth century painting was that 
 of Padua, headed by Mantegna, whose specialties were 
 anatomy, perspective, and foreshortening. The effort of 
 the century to realize nature in art with scientific exactitude 
 reached its climax in Mantegna as far as painting is con- 
 cerned. The hardness and formalism then characteristic of 
 this effort are correspondingly prominent in his work. In 
 the late fifteenth century we observe the first activity of 
 Venetian painters under inspirations drawn from the School 
 of Padua. 
 
 Among these earlier Venetians, Carpaccio (Carpatchyo) 
 stands foremost in interest when the study of the con- 
 temporary Italian life is in question. His series of pictures 
 in the Academy of Venice for the life of Saint Ursula is a 
 famous authority for costumes and daily life in fifteenth cen- 
 tury Venice. The two brothers Bellini of Venice, like 
 Perugino, lived in both the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, 
 and according as earlier or later paintings are selected will 
 represent the style of one or the other century. The early 
 art of Giovanni Bellini, the more important of the two 
 brothers, will serve as an excellent illustration of the hard 
 effects ajid painstaking formalism of Mantegna and the 
 Paduan School, from which he was an oflfshoot. 
 
CHAPTER XV. 
 
 PHILOSOPHY OF THE PERFECTION OF ITALIAN PAINTING. 
 
 We may leave the fifteenth century style with some re- 
 marks regarding the frequency of the Madonna, saints, and 
 Biblical subjects, subsequently to continue^ 
 
 We occasionally hear complaints from modern travelers 
 as to the limited range of the old Italian subjects and their 
 constant repetitions. 
 Mark Twain's ''Inno- 
 cents Abroad' ' contains 
 many allusions of this 
 nature, jocose in them- 
 selves and well enough 
 in a professedly comic 
 book, but very signif- 
 icant reminders also of 
 remarks otherwise 
 made seriously. This 
 complaint overlooks 
 the point that the fact 
 of repetition was es- 
 sential to the greatness 
 of Italian art. The 
 repetition of subject 
 argues a popular de- 
 mand, and this demand 
 
 argues a popular interest. This popular interest is the 
 necessary support of all great art, which cannot exist with- 
 
 125 
 
 Fig. 66. — Detail of a Madonna by Filippo Lippi. 
 Pitti Palace, Florence. 
 
126 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 out it, and which can never become great simply by the 
 patronage of persons of wealth. The subject which can be 
 repeated is the subject which has general interest in the 
 
 time which called for it. 
 More than this, we 
 assert that the subjects 
 of Italian art were 
 worth repeating, and 
 that the later substi- 
 tution of literature for 
 art is our only excuse, 
 and possibly an insuf- 
 ficient one, for our own 
 modern lack of a cor- 
 responding Biblical art. 
 The fact of repetition 
 does not imply any- 
 thing but an absorption 
 of the public mind in a 
 certain range of sub- 
 jects, for the artist re- 
 flects his age. Our first 
 point of view with old 
 pictures is to ask what 
 they teach us about the people for whom they were made. 
 
 It may be said next that both with Greek statues and 
 Italian paintings, the repetition of subjects involved in the 
 national interest in those subjects is what led to the ultimate 
 great technical achievements of the men of great genius. 
 It was also the explanation of the great average perfection 
 of art during given generations, for average perfection 
 means, of course, that the artist of ordinary or inferior 
 capacity did comparatively better than would be naturally 
 
 Fig. 67.— Virgin Adoring the Infant Savior. 
 By Lorenzo di Credi. London. 
 
Philosophy of the Perfection of Italian Painting, 127 
 
 expected. On this last head it is clear that the artist ol 
 subordinate talent, working for a demand which repeats the 
 subject, is able to profit by the conceptions of his greater 
 predecessors or contemporaries. In other words, not only 
 the subject but also the treatment is to a large extent tra- 
 ditional. 
 
 Originality of conception was not forced upon an artist 
 who did not possess it. It was not even demanded of an 
 artist of genius or of 
 high rank. Raphael's 
 ''Betrothal of Mary 
 and Joseph," in Milan, 
 copies closely a picture 
 by Perugino. The 
 pose of the figures on 
 Ghiberti's doors was 
 borrowed by the same 
 painter. The paintings 
 of Leonardo's pupils 
 are with difficulty dis- 
 tinguished from those 
 of the master. Repe- 
 tition, not only of sub- 
 ject, but also of poses 
 and conceptions, was 
 the rule rather than the 
 
 FiG.e 
 
 .—The Virgin and Child with two Saints. 
 Perugino. London. 
 
 exception. 
 
 The evolution ol 
 scientific design was much assisted by these conditions, as 
 the artist of superior genius started with a fund of ready- 
 made and traditional knowledge for the given subject, to 
 which he was able to add something of his own. The 
 great watchword, ''cooperation," was appHed, practically, 
 
128 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 p'iG. 69,— Martyrdom of St. Sebastian. PoUajuolo. 
 Pitti Palace, Florence, 
 
 in Italian art long be- 
 fore theorists had 
 worked out its impor- 
 tance for social prob- 
 lems. We may point 
 this moral by allusion 
 to the St. Sebastian 
 subject. This was for 
 nearly two centuries 
 the one type in which 
 the nude form was con- 
 stantly studied (Fig. 
 
 69). 
 
 We must not forget 
 that both with the 
 Greeks and the Ital- 
 ians the repetition ol 
 subject means that art 
 existed to represent and 
 teach belief — in other 
 words, it means that 
 art was religious. 
 
 The first and main 
 advantage of Italian 
 painting over all which 
 has followed was that 
 the subject-matter itselt 
 was superior in im- 
 portance to any which 
 the art of painting has 
 since handled. It was 
 Christian art in the best 
 and highest sense, and 
 
Philosophy of the Perfection of Italian Painting, 129 
 
 in such a sense that all beliefs and all sects of our own time 
 unite in proclaiming its greatness. Just as we may, and 
 do, in a strictly literary sense, consider the Bible as great 
 and classic literature because its style is a living reflex of its 
 noble and inspired teaching, so may the Italian art of the 
 early sixteenth century be viewed as a translation of the 
 Bible into the language of forms, fully worthy of the great 
 original. The story of Genesis was told on the ceiling of 
 the Sistine Chapel in a way which revived the old Hebrew 
 simplicity and grandeur of Genesis itself The lives of the 
 Apostles live again in the cartoons and tapestries of Ra- 
 phael, and the treachery of Judas has gone down to history 
 in the great fresco of Da Vinci, as well as in the translation 
 of King James the First, or the Revised Version. 
 
 That only a highly refined and cultivated general taste 
 ind a generally high level of civilization could account for 
 ^ he great pictures of the sixteenth century is also apparent, 
 cfter slender knowledge of them. Whether we come to the 
 knowledge of this civilization first through the picture, as 
 many of us do, or whether we come to the picture through 
 a knowledge of the civilization, as some few of us do — 
 makes little difference. Each helps to explain and illustrate 
 the other. 
 
 We shall, then, at the outset abandon the idea that we 
 are dealing with a phenomenal existence of some five or six 
 ' ' Old Masters, ' ' who happened fortuitously and by some 
 strange accident to have been born within the limits of one 
 generation some four hundred years ago. We shall rather 
 consider these few artists as only the tallest among many 
 other giants — the waves which rise a little higher than the 
 ocean of their fellows. 
 
 The average excellence of Italian painting between 1500 
 and 1530 is a much more remarkable fact than the existence 
 
130 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 of its first-quoted and much-quoted phenomenal geniuses. 
 
 This average excellence is one phase and one illustration 
 of a perfection of civilization and of that high degree of 
 material prosperity in the most modern sense, which I have 
 previously endeavored to describe in matter introductory to 
 the architecture of the Renaissance and tending to explain 
 its subsequent diffusion and still continuing traditional 
 power. 
 
 We have already seen that the * ' Last Supper, ' ' of Leo- 
 nardo da Vinci (Vinchy) in Milan, fixes the high-water 
 mark of Italian painting after which the tide stood at its 
 full till 1530. To comprehend the incredible industry, 
 activity, and ambition of the Italian painters in the inter- 
 vening time, we must remember the great patronage de- 
 voted to their art, the great wealth of the cities, princes, 
 popes, and prelates whom they served, the stirring life and 
 stirring rivalries of these small Italian States in which, for 
 the time being, all the vigor of later modern civilization 
 was bottled and confined. 
 
 Industries and pursuits were not specialized, as in later 
 times; the great painters were generally sculptors, archi- 
 tects, and engineers in the bargain. Many others were 
 jewelers and designers in metal. The architect Brunellesco 
 was a competitor for the commission of designing the first 
 set of bronze doors for the Florence Baptistery which were 
 done by Ghiberti, and otherwise ranked as one of the 
 leading sculptors of his day. The architect Michelozzo 
 was the greatest bronze-caster of his time, and actually cast 
 the famous bronze doors designed by Ghiberti. Fra Gio- 
 condo, who, after Bramante, was for some time employed 
 on St. Peter's Church, is thought, by Jacob Burckhardt, to 
 have been the greatest architect of his day, but he figures 
 in Vasari's '^Lives'' especially as a painter, and the most 
 
Philosophy of the Perfection of Italian Painting. 131 
 
 interesting story told of his life concerns his talent in nur- 
 sery gardening. He was also a civil engineer, and a man 
 of letters of such distinction that we owe to him the dis- 
 covery, in the Library at Paris, of the Letters of Pliny. 
 It was this same Fra Giocondo who first published in print 
 the announcement of the discovery of the New World.* 
 Michael Angelo was poet, engineer, military general, poli- 
 tician, architect, sculptor, and painter. Leonardo da Vinci 
 was an improvising poet, a musician who was able also to 
 make his own instruments, an athlete, an anatomist, an 
 author, a civil and military engineer, an expert in the con- 
 struction of canals, as well as architect, sculptor, and 
 painter. His accomplishments included also a knowledge 
 of botany, mathematics, and astronomy. He is the first 
 modern by whom hints for the later science of geology were 
 given. 
 
 * Fiske's " Discovery of America " — the other facts in Vasari. 
 
CHAPTER XVI. 
 
 LEONARDO DA VINCI. 
 
 To SAY that Leonardo da Vinci was foremost in time and 
 the equal of any sixteenth century painter, is to say that 
 he was the greatest, for this was a period when no new artist 
 failed to profit by everything which had been done up to 
 date. 
 
 This artist was born near Florence in the middle of the 
 
 fifteenth century 
 (1452). We must 
 therefore concede that 
 he had reached the 
 maturity of his powers 
 long before the open- 
 ing of the sixteenth 
 century. We cannot, 
 however, point to any 
 decisive revolution in 
 fifteenth century style, 
 owing to his influence 
 or otherwise, before 
 the close of the cen- 
 tury. This may be 
 attributed mainly to 
 the very small number 
 of paintings produced 
 by him before the time 
 of the ''Last Supper." This again would be explained 
 by his versatility of pursuits and occupations as ^bove 
 
 132 
 
 Fig. 70. — Portrait of Leonardo da Vinci. (Doubt- 
 fully ^scribed to himself as artist.) 
 Uffizi Gallery, Florence. 
 
Leonardo da Vinci, 
 
 133 
 
 described, and also by his long and arduous devotion to 
 self- training by technical experiments and technical studies, 
 as distinct from an activity devoted to the production of 
 completed paintings for sale and public inspection. 
 
 At present perhaps a dozen pictures or less would cover 
 the number definitely 
 known as his. The 
 wonderful quality of 
 these becomes still 
 more wonderful when 
 we compare the con- 
 temporary and just 
 preceding work. Hard 
 and distinct outline had 
 been the rule alike for 
 fresco and oil painting. 
 Da Vinci was the first 
 to differentiate these 
 arts and to distinguish 
 between the decorative 
 and architectural con- 
 ditions of the wall- 
 painting, and the pos- 
 sibilities of illusion in 
 oil painting attainable 
 by the use of lights and 
 
 shadows. He was the first to perceive that forms in nature 
 are rarely seen in hard outlines, but rather in masses of 
 color, and to realize that insistance on the outline in paint- 
 ing must be at the expense of realistic illusion, for we thus 
 become aware that the background is a surface and not a 
 background. In architectural painting it is desirable, how- 
 ever, that the background should appear as a surface ; nor 
 
 Fig. 71.—" La Gioconda." Portrait by Da Vinci, 
 Louvre, 
 
134 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 did Da Vinci or his followers depart from this point of 
 view in wall-painting, although he employed oil color for 
 the ' ' Last Supper. ' ' In panel painting, his great art in the 
 modeling of the figure was, however, to present it as 
 merging into the background, and yet as projected from it. 
 The sense of mystery inspired by his handling has such 
 effect on the imagination that we cease to say to ourselves : 
 ''This is only a picture.'' The picture itself becomes a 
 mysterious reality, something to be considered and thought 
 over, gradually coming nearer to us as we consider it, or re- 
 ceding as we abandon 
 serious contemplation 
 of it. It is, in fact, 
 itself a creation of in- 
 tellect and of thought. 
 
 His most famous oil 
 painting is the portrait 
 of a lady in the Louvre, 
 known as ''La Gio- 
 conda," a still world- 
 famous picture, which 
 was purchased for a 
 large sum by the 
 French king, Francis 
 I., during the lifetime 
 of the artist. 
 
 In this painting and 
 in the picture of the 
 Virgin and St. Anne 
 in the same Collection, we find a mastery of light and 
 shadow and of modeling which our earlier illustrations of 
 Italian painting have not revealed. The shadows of his 
 pictures as darkened by time, make them, however, diffi- 
 
 FiG. 72. — The Virgin and St. Anne. Da Vinci. 
 Louvre. 
 
Leonardo da Vinci. 
 
 135 
 
 cult subjects for photograph. In oil painting, Da Vinci 
 was undoubtedly the first modern artist who reached com- 
 plete success. 
 
 The type of face which he affected in female subjects has 
 a refined and subtle character. In the ^'Gioconda" we 
 find it difficult, for instance, to decide whether or no the 
 face be smiling. As regards the number of oil paintings 
 positively ascribed to him, the march of criticism in recent 
 years has more and more tended to reverse previous attri- 
 butions and assign works to his scholars which bear his 
 name. This is at least a credit to the capacities of his 
 pupils and to his profound influence on Italian painting. 
 
 Da Vinci's epoch-making work was the " Last Supper,'' 
 painted on the wall of the Refectory of the Convent ot 
 Santa Maria delle Grazie, in Milan; and no other wall- 
 painting now remains from his hand.* 
 
 In the year following its completion (or to be assumed as 
 year of completion, for we only know positively that it was 
 finished before 1499), the artist was driven from Milan by 
 the French invasion, which overthrew the rule of the duke 
 who was his patron and protector. His subsequent career 
 was much disturbed by the complications of Italian politics, 
 and his last years were spent in France, under the protec- 
 tion of the king, Francis I., whose personal friendship he 
 enjoyed. He died at Amboise in 1519. 
 
 In the **Last Supper," Italian painting reached its 
 climax. Although much damaged by flaking off", by re- 
 painting of the faces, .and other injuries (a door, for 
 instance, was broken through the wall beneath), the 
 picture still has an indescribable effect of mysterious power 
 over the spectator. This is attributable, in the first in- 
 
 * The fresco in the Convent of San Onofrio, at Rome, is now ascribed to Bel- 
 traffio. 
 
Leonardo da Vinci, 
 
 137 
 
 stance, to its dimensions; the individual figures being 
 nearly double life-size. The fine harmony of color, dra- 
 matic power, and psychologic insight into character 
 displayed by varied gesture and expression, the way in 
 which the action cumulates toward the figure of the 
 Savior, the dispersion into groups, each with its own 
 distinct story, are some of the elements contributing to this 
 effect. Nor should we underrate the influence of the 
 subject itself. There is no moment in the story of the 
 Passion of such far-reaching significance, and its portrayal 
 was a fitting subject for the crowning effort of Italian art. 
 
 All engravings of this painting fail to suggest its power 
 by virtue of a certain flatness in the outlined effect. In 
 the photograph we realize more clearly the varieties ol 
 plane in the grouping of the apostles. Finally, it is 
 apparent, in this picture above all others, how a profound 
 knowledge of human nature must underlie the talent of the 
 hand and eye when a great work of art is in question. 
 
 It will most easily define the relations of later Italian 
 painting to Da Vinci, to specify the ages of the great con- 
 temporary artists when this work was finished. Raphael, 
 for instance, was only fifteen years of age and Correggio 
 was but four years old. Michael Angelo was twenty-three 
 years old, Titian was twenty-one years old. 
 
 Knowing, as we do, the active rivalry at this time of the 
 Italian artists and their eagerness to learn from one another, 
 it would be clear, simply from this comparison of dates, 
 what Leonardo's influence must have been. His compe- 
 tition with Michael Angelo five years later for a commission 
 to decorate the Municipal Palace of Florence, shows the 
 rapidity with which the younger artists were pushing 
 forward. The cartoon drawings made for this competition 
 were never executed and were subsequently destroyed. 
 
138 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 All that is known of them is by the engravings from 
 fragments known as the ' ' Battle of the Standard ' ' by Da 
 Vinci and the ''Bathing Soldiers" by Michael Angelo. 
 
 Fig. 74.— Fresco by Luini at Lugano. The Virgin, 
 Infant Jesus, and Infant John. 
 
 To the influence ol these cartoons on contemporary art, 
 about and after 1504, is ascribed the final flower of Italian 
 painting. 
 
 The personal pupils and followers of Leonardo must be 
 distinguished from the mass of Italian painters, who were 
 ultimately and more indirectly influenced by him. Among 
 the former, Luini is the most distinguished in general 
 reputation as regards close connection with Da Vinci, but 
 the influence of Fra Bartolommeo of Florence was more 
 distinctly powerful as mediating between the great painter 
 and the artists of a contemporaneous but younger genera- 
 tion. On Raphael the influence of Fra Bartolommeo is espe- 
 cially apparent and very generally recognized. 
 
CHAPTER XVII. 
 
 RAPHAEL SANTI OF URBINO. 
 
 There are certain reasons for making a central figure of 
 this artist in a brief account of the zenith of ItaHan paint- 
 ing, aside from his undeniable distinction as a painter, and 
 without prejudice to the distinction of his great contempo- 
 raries. 
 
 Raphael was much more prolific in the production of 
 pictures than Da Vinci, 
 more intellectual and 
 more monumental in 
 his art than Titian or 
 Correggio, and in the 
 duration of his life and 
 in his style more strictly 
 confined to the greatest 
 period of Italian art 
 than Michael Angelo. 
 It was the fate of the 
 latter to live into the 
 time of the decadence, 
 and in some ways to 
 influence and deter- 
 mine its character. 
 
 It will be worth 
 while here, for a mo- 
 ment, to turn back to 
 the illustration of the 
 
 Fig. 75.-— House in Urbino where Raphael 
 was born. 
 
 palace built for the dukes of Ur- 
 139 
 
Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 bino, as reminder of the existence of the state which was 
 Raphael's home (Fig. 35). 
 
 Two facts in the history of the little state of Urbino are 
 
 significant for the re- 
 lation of Raphael to 
 general Italian history. 
 One is that its library, 
 as subsequently united 
 with the library of the 
 Vatican, was the most 
 important addition ever 
 made to the latter, and 
 the library of the Vati- 
 can is the most im- 
 portant historic library, 
 of the world. A state 
 whose dukes were thus 
 fond of books was natur- 
 ally fitted to be an im- 
 portant center of Italian 
 culture. What this im- 
 portance was may now 
 be argued from a curious 
 fact in the history of the 
 popes. 
 
 In the history of the Renaissance the court of Pope Leo 
 X. (1513-1521) is generally held up to admiration as the 
 center of art and learning, as the culmination of the glories 
 of the Renaissance. It is not so generally understood that 
 the artists and men of learning who surrounded Leo X. 
 were mainly inherited by him from the preceding pope, 
 Julius II., who was the first great patron of Bramante, of 
 Michael Angelo, and of Raphael; the projector of the 
 
 Fig. 76. — The Camera della Segnatura in the 
 Vatican as decorated by Raphael, and 
 showing a Portion of the " Phil- 
 osophy or *' School of Athens." 
 
Raphael Santi of Urbino. 
 
 141 
 
 Sistine Chapel and Vatican frescoes, of the Raphael car- 
 toons, and of St. Peter's Church. Now Julius II. be- 
 longed to the family of Rovere, which was connected by 
 marriage with the family of the dukes of Urbino. It was 
 from the connections and associates of the court of Urbino 
 that he drew together the circle of great men, which ulti- 
 mately made the reputation of the court of Leo X. 
 
 This fact has a double significance. It illustrates the in- 
 tellectual atmosphere which influenced Raphael's boyhood. 
 His own father was 
 court poet as well as 
 court painter. It also 
 explains how the trans- 
 fer of Raphael's activ- 
 ity to Rome, in 1508, 
 made when he was 
 only twenty-five years 
 old, placed him among 
 acquaintances to whom 
 he was already favor- 
 ably known. 
 
 In this center of in- 
 tellectual and personal 
 refinement Raphael's 
 engaging personality 
 and kindly nature 
 combined with his un- 
 tiring industry, great . 
 
 talents, and rapidly acquired fame to make him a leading 
 figure. 
 
 Both in the methods and subjects of his art he was des- 
 tined to become the representative painter of the classic 
 and literary enthusiasms of the Renaissance. These found 
 
 Fig, 77. — Plato and Aristotle. From the " School 
 of Athens." Vatican. By Raphael. 
 
142 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 their culmination in his great wall-paintings in the Vatican 
 known as ' ' Philosophy, " or ' ' The School of Athens ' ' ; 
 ' ' Poetry, "or The Parnassus " ; ^ * Jurisprudence ' ' ; and 
 ' ' Theology. ' ' All the knowledge that the science of de- 
 sign in Italy had mastered in ten years following the com- 
 pletion of the ' ' Last 
 Supper ^ ' was also at 
 his command. 
 
 To this hard-earned 
 knowledge, first won 
 by other artists, was 
 added his own distin- 
 guished talent as 
 painter and draughts- 
 man and a peculiar tact 
 in the arrangement, 
 balance, and spacing, 
 of his compositions. 
 
 As a composer of 
 designs in and for 
 architectural surround- 
 ing and on architec- 
 tural surfaces, Raphael 
 stands without a rival 
 in modern art. In Michael Angelo we admire the vol- 
 canic genius, the colossal power; in Raphael we find a 
 calmer, better balanced, and, so to speak, more architec- 
 tural spirit. 
 
 It is, then, in the relation of outlines to surrounding 
 space and framing that his distinctive mastery lies. This 
 most conspicuous quality of his oil paintings reflects his 
 architectural training and architectural point of view. To 
 this was added a perception for pure and spiritual beauty in 
 
 Fig. 78. — Apollo. Detail of the " Parnassus " by 
 Raphael. Vatican. 
 
Raphael Santi of Urbano. 
 
 143 
 
 women and in children, and for noble dignity in men. All 
 these qualities are revealed in that room of the Vatican, the 
 Camera della Segnatura ( ' ' Room of the Signature, ' ' that 
 is to say, the pope's office) which he began to decorate in 
 1508 with the frescoes whose subjects have been named 
 above. 
 
 At a later date Raphael executed the ten monumental 
 designs for tapestry pictures of the Lives of the Apostles 
 
 Fig. 79. — Detail from the "Jurisprudence." By Raphael. Vatican. 
 
 whose cartoons (as far as preserved) are now in the South 
 Kensington Museum of London, while the tapestries them- 
 selves are preserved in duplicate sets in Berlin and in the 
 Vatican (the latter formerly in the Sistine Chapel). 
 
 Between the dates of these two monumental sets of works 
 
144 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 he executed the fresco decoration of several Vatican rooms 
 adjoining the Camera della Segnatura, and a series of over 
 fifty designs from Old Testament history known as * ' Ra- 
 phael' s Bible." These last were executed by scholars on 
 
 the ceiling of the Vati- 
 can corridor designed 
 by Bramante, and 
 known as the ' ' Log- 
 gie" (lodgeay) of 
 Raphael (Fig. 58). 
 
 To this catalogue of 
 untiring activity we 
 must now add the fres- 
 coes from classic sub- 
 jects (the story ol 
 Cupid and Psyche) 
 executed by scholars 
 on the ceiling of the 
 Farnesina Villa and an 
 enormous number of 
 oil paintings; Madon- 
 nas, Biblical subjects, 
 and portraits. 
 
 Of his Madonnas the 
 ''Sistine," in Dresden, is the largest, most imposing, and 
 most famous. Of his other oil paintings the ' ' Transfigur- 
 ation ' ' of the Vatican Gallery is the most celebrated. 
 
 His portraits are marvels of character portrayal and a 
 perpetual monument to the intellectual refinement and cul- 
 tivation of his time. Here, as elsewhere, the quality of his 
 painting has a peculiar solidity and strength combined with 
 refinement of finish. When we consider the enormous 
 amount and the even quality of his personal work (as dis- 
 
 FiG. 80.— Detail of the "Madonna in the 
 Meadow." By Raphael. Vienna. 
 
Raphael Santi of Urbino, 
 
 H5 
 
 tinct from that of some frescoes on which scholars were em- 
 ployed) he appears as a miracle of industry as well as of 
 art. 
 
 We have already quoted Raphael's activity as the archi- 
 tect of several palaces in Rome and Florence and as succes- 
 sor of Bramante in the construction of St. Peter's. As a 
 
 Fig. 8i. — Detail from the " Betrothal of Mary and Joseph." 
 By Raphael. Milan. 
 
 sculptor, we are able to mention at least two statues from 
 his models, the ''Jonah" in Rome and the ''Cupid with 
 the Dolphin ' ' in St. Petersburg. 
 
 One of my illustrations has been chosen to show 
 Raphael's early relations to fifteenth century art (Fig. 8i). 
 The "Betrothal of Mary and Joseph" is closely copied 
 from a Perugino now at Caen, in northern France. The 
 
146 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 faces of Perugino's paintings (Fig. 68) are constantly 
 repeated in Raphael's early pictures. I do not bring this 
 up as a fact remarkable in itself, but as illustrating what I 
 have already said regarding cooperation, tradition, and the 
 repetition of subjects in Italian art (p. 127). This picture 
 is also interesting as illustrating (in a small oil painting) 
 the style of composition and arrangement of figures com- 
 mon to most frescoes of the fifteenth century. It would 
 
 serve, in fact, as an 
 excellent type of illus- 
 tration for that period 
 of fresco. 
 
 I am inclined to add 
 a word regarding the 
 point in which Raphael 
 must be considered as 
 the superior of all later 
 moderns who have so 
 far attempted similar 
 monumental deco- 
 rations. The number 
 of these is not large, 
 and in all modern art 
 Kaulbach' s frescoes on 
 the walls of the great 
 staircase of the Berlin 
 Museum are probably 
 the nearest approach to a similar scale and class of subjects. 
 
 Although Raphael's period was one of great proficiency 
 in drawing, of refinement in the harmonious use of colors, 
 and of a quick and spontaneous interest in seizing the 
 active motion of the body in moments and poses having 
 both dignity and beauty when arrested perpetually by 
 
 Fig. 82.— Detail of the Portrait of Angiolo Doni. 
 By Raphael. Pitti Palace. 
 
Raphael Santi of Urbino, 
 
 147 
 
 art — we cannot say that science in design is alone the 
 secret of its success. Were this the case, it would be hard 
 to understand why a modern as conscientious and as pro- 
 ficient as Kaulbach 
 should take a lower 
 rank. We must real- 
 ize, as one element of 
 superiority, the habit 
 of off-hand, bold, and 
 rapid work cultivated 
 by the art of painting 
 on plaster. Our mod- 
 ern art is not offered 
 sufficient practice in 
 wall decoration, and in 
 life-size figure compo- 
 sition, to cultivate in 
 the artist the same 
 security and self-confi- 
 dence in his own re- 
 sources. He may by 
 a great exertion of care 
 and personal effort 
 reach a comparable 
 stage of perfection in 
 his science, but he will have sacrificed in the very labor- 
 iousness of his effort the dash and spirit, the off-hand free- 
 dom of the old design. The key to the effect of a large 
 work of art lies in a relation of the parts to the whole, 
 in which an over-careful finish of details has not destroyed 
 the effect of concentration, the pow^er of the leading 
 thought. Elaboration of detail is suited to a small oil 
 painting, but not to a large one — certainly not to a wall- 
 
 FiG. 83.— Portrait of Maddalena Doni. By 
 Raphael. Pitti Palace, Florence. 
 
148 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 painting. Far apart as is the art of the modern Japanese 
 and the Itahan art, the former offers the best parallel when 
 the suggestiveness of an effect as attained by a limitation of 
 detail is in question. The photograph details of Raphael's 
 frescoes (shown in this chapter) will give valuable hints on 
 this point. 
 
 We may again suggest that the dignity, reserve, and 
 
 nobility of Raphael's 
 art are attainable only 
 when the artist is work- 
 ing for a public which 
 is certain to appreciate 
 his effort, because its 
 own best thoughts and 
 noblest ideas have been 
 translated for it into 
 form. In this element 
 of perfection we come 
 back to the point of 
 view that the greatest 
 art does not represent 
 simply the thought of 
 the artist, but that it 
 must also represent the 
 overflow and the reflex 
 of the best thought of 
 the age to which he belongs. The nineteenth century 
 more generally expects from the poet, the man of letters, 
 and the musical composer, what the Italian Renaissance 
 asked from the artist in design. 
 
 Raphael died in 1520, at the age of thirty-seven. He 
 was born in 1483 — the birth-year of Luther. The most 
 recent and exhaustive history of the artist's life is by 
 
 Fig. 84. — Detail of the "Transfiguration' 
 Raphael. Vatican Gallery. 
 
 by 
 
Raphael Santi of Urbino, 
 
 149 
 
 Muntz. The work of Passavant, though written eariier in 
 our century, is still valuable. The life by Vasari ("Lives 
 of the Artists " ) is short and readable, giving practically all 
 that is known of the person and social life of the artist. 
 Vasari' s book was written about the middle of the sixteenth 
 century, and is the main original authority for the lives of all 
 the Italian painters who lived before that time. Although 
 in matters of criticism, and in matters of detail, it is occa- 
 sionally open to correction and revision, the fact that its 
 writer lived in the same period with the subjects of his inter- 
 esting sketches, gives his book unique worth. The English 
 translation (Bohn Edition) successfully follows the quaint 
 style of the original. 
 
CHAPTER XVIII. 
 
 MICHAEL ANGELO BUONARROTI. 
 
 Where the element of character and personaHty is so 
 largely involved in our estimate of an artist's work, 
 as it is with this painter, we should do well to bear in 
 mind the importance of his statues (see forward) as assist- 
 ing us to comprehend and place him. Michael Angelo's 
 
 position as a painter is 
 fixed solely by his 
 works in the Sistine 
 Chapel. His few panel 
 pictures, three or four 
 in number, are not 
 much more than inter- 
 esting curiosities, when 
 large facts are in ques- 
 tion. 
 
 In this Chapel, where 
 his great triumph as a 
 painter was celebrated, 
 we must first distin- 
 guish between the 
 ^^Last Judgment," 
 painted late in life on 
 its end wall, and the 
 much earlier ceiling 
 frescoes for the ' ' Story of Genesis, ' ' with the attendant dec- 
 orative compositions. 
 
 150 
 
 Fig. 85.— Bust of Michael Angelo, dating 1570. 
 From his Tomb in Church of Santa Croce, 
 Florence. By Battista Lorenzi. 
 
Michael Angela Buonarroti. 
 
 The whole Chapel with its earlier fifteenth century frescoes 
 on the side walls, below which were once hung the tapes- 
 tries of Raphael, is a fine reminder of the ideals of the 
 
 Fig. 86.— Creation of the Sun and Moon. Detail from the CeiUng of 
 the Sistine Chapel. 
 
 Renaissance in the matter of interior decoration. This 
 apartment, which still serves as the papal chapel of the 
 Vatican, has its name from the pope, Sixtus IV., who 
 built it about 1473. 
 
 Michael Angelo's original profession was that of sculptor, 
 and as such he had already won his reputation before the 
 ceiling pictures were begun (in 1508). His "David" in 
 Florence had just been completed; his ''Bacchus" and 
 ''Pieta" are also earlier works. In this profession he was 
 already remarkable for colossal and grandiose conceptions, 
 and the tomb of Julius II., which was to have been the 
 
152 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 central feature of St. Peter's Church, was already one of 
 his commissions. Even in the later and diminishea propor- 
 tions of this tomb, as placed in another Roman church, the 
 statue of ' ' Moses ' ' is still the most imposing piece of 
 modern statuary, while' the ' ' Captives ' ' of the Louvre, 
 which were detached from the tomb after the changes in its 
 plans, made after the death of the pope, are counterparts 
 in importance of his Tombs of the Medici, subsequently 
 done in Florence. 
 
 In these various works of sculpture an imperious and 
 daring genius of conception is supported by profound 
 
 Fig. 87.— Detail from the Series representing the Forefathers of Christ. 
 Sistine Chapel Ceiling. 
 
 knowledge of the anatomy of the human figure, and by a 
 wonderful technical ability in the use of the chisel. But in 
 sculpture Michael Angelo expressed his own great person- 
 
Michael Angelo Buonarroti, 
 
 153 
 
 ality. In the ceiling frescoes of the Sistine Chapel, this 
 personality became the servant of Christian art in such a 
 way that the greatness of the man united with the greatness 
 of his time and of his subject to produce a most wonderful 
 work of Bible illustration. 
 
 To tell the story of the Creation in pictures worthily and 
 grandly, is a task which no other artist of any period has 
 accomplished. Even the mere physical execution of a 
 work of such vast extent was a miracle of personal forti- 
 tude and endurance. To calculate, while lying on his back 
 on a scaffold close to the ceiling, the proper proportions of 
 detail treatment for effect on the distant floor below, was 
 one of the least of his tasks. 
 
 Among these subjects of the ceiling the Creation of the 
 Sun and Moon," the ''Creation of Adam," the ''Cr-eation 
 of Eve," the ''Temptation and Expulsion from the Gar- 
 den of Eden," are the most remarkable. 
 
 In the angular recesses of the vaulting and in the arched 
 spaces above the windows were represented the ' ' Fore- 
 fathers of Christ." The ruling thought of these composi- 
 tions is to illustrate the expectant transition stage of history 
 waiting for the new dispensation of Christ. 
 
 Between the triangular recesses of the ceiling are ar- 
 ranged the "Prophets" and "Sibyls," representing 
 Hebrew and pagan inspiration according to an Italian 
 artistic method which conceived of inspired thought as 
 common to the classic and the Jewish literature. 
 
 The panels of the main ceiling, devoted to the ' ' Story of 
 Genesis," are alternately wide and narrow. At the angles 
 thus formed between the panels are placed the nude male 
 figures commonly called personifications of architectural 
 force. There can be no question but that these various 
 frescoes, when viewed in their combination and vast ex- 
 
Fig. 88— The Sistine Chapel. Vatican Palace. 
 
Michael Angela Buonarroti. 
 
 155 
 
 tent, are the most daring and successful effort of archi- 
 tectural decoration ever undertaken by man. 
 
 Twenty-two years after the completion of the ceiling 
 frescoes (finished 151 2) the Last Judgment " on the rear 
 wall of the chapel was begun. Its enormous dimensions, 
 sixty feet in height, and bold designs will always extort 
 the admiration of the beholder. At the same time we must 
 confess to a certain coldness of appreciation for this work 
 by contrast with our feeling for the ' ' Story of Genesis. ' ' As 
 far as this lies in the failure of the picture to correspond to 
 the imaginative demand made upon it, we must remember 
 that such a failure must be involved in any picture of the 
 subject, and this would have been conceded instantly by the 
 artist and by his time. 
 
 We will begin our estimate of the Last Judgment" by 
 acknowledging that this subject, which we could not 
 imagine a nineteenth century painter as even attempting, 
 had its proper place in art when the mission of art was to 
 illustrate Bible literature and to represent Christian belief. 
 Therefore, instead of approaching the ^ ' Last Judgment ' ^ 
 from the standpoint of the nineteenth century, which is really 
 that of imaginative literature, we must approach it from the 
 standpoint of the sixteenth century, which is that of im- 
 aginative painting. But when the picture is viewed from 
 the standpoint of its own period, as one more treatment of 
 a traditional religious subject which was inside the limits 
 of art because the whole Middle Age, and the early Renais- 
 sance as well, had represented its religious ideals, beliefs, 
 and teachings by means of art, we must still admit some 
 shortcomings in the ' ' Last Judgment ' ^ as compared with 
 other religious art of the time, for instance, as compared 
 with other works by the same man in the same place. 
 
 If we should attempt in one sentence to fix this short- 
 
156 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 coming, it would be by saying that the studies of the 
 anatomist and the zeal of the student in fore-shortened 
 figures have been carried to a point where we lose sight 
 of the subject in admiring the science of the painter. 
 It was the greatest virtue of the great time that its technical 
 science in details did not overpower its idea, and that the 
 whole was always greater than its parts, even when taken 
 
 Fig. 89.— Detail from the Last Judgment" by Michael Angelo. 
 Angels with the Pillar of Christ's Scourging. 
 
 together. In the ''Last Judgment" the parts taken 
 separately or together are perhaps more admirable than 
 the whole. 
 
 This much having been said in qualification, as against 
 an unconditionally enthusiastic attitude toward this great 
 picture, we are forced to admit that it is the largest and 
 
Michael Angela Buonarroti, 
 
 157 
 
 in many senses the most imposing, as it is the latest, of 
 the monumental works of Italian art (the decorations of the 
 Doge's Palace at Venice alone excepted). As an astound- 
 ing exhibition of power and science in drawing it is un- 
 doubtedly, when dimensions and number of figures are 
 considered, the superior of any other single work in the 
 whole world and in that sense the worthy climax in paint- 
 ing of the sculptor of the ' ' Moses, ' ' and the architect of 
 St. Peter's dome. 
 
 It was the mission of Michael Angelo to astound hu- 
 manity by a character 
 in which profound sci- 
 entific and technical 
 knowledge were com- 
 bined with capacity for 
 enthusiasm and with 
 exalted imaginative 
 power. It has thus 
 been his strange fate to 
 have been admired by 
 two distinct classes of 
 experts — those who 
 lay stress on purely 
 technical science of ex- 
 ecution in design with- 
 out reference to the 
 thought it may have 
 to convey, and those 
 who are captivated by 
 grandeur of thought without reference to the science of ex- 
 ecution. As the besetting sin of Italian art in its later 
 decadence was to lay undue stress on technique, without 
 reference to thought and conception, it was possible for 
 
 Fig. 90.— Decorative Figure from the Sistine 
 Chapel Ceiling. 
 
158 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Michael Angelo to satisfy the taste of that period and even 
 to serve as the model of many of its imitative efforts. On 
 the other hand, the most authoritative critics of our own 
 time class him as a man of mind with Shakespeare and 
 with the most exalted geniuses of all history in music and 
 in literature. 
 
 Considered as a painter pure and simple, Michael An- 
 gelo' s forte was the study of the human figure, both in its 
 anatomic form and in its action as represented by the art of 
 foreshortening. As a colorist he does not take high rank, 
 but it cannot be said that the quality of his art would have 
 been improved by a different scheme of color. Where 
 design considered as drawing is the force of the artist, color 
 must of necessity be subordinated to this force. For de- 
 sign emphasizes the outline, while color emphasizes the 
 surface and the mass. It must further be said that there is 
 no other artist whose work so absolutely requires a knowl- 
 edge of the personality and life as connected with the 
 history and political revolutions of his time. Grimm's 
 ''Life of Michael Angelo" treats of these matters in a 
 most satisfactory way. Vasari was personally acquainted 
 with Michael Angelo, and the life written by him is one of 
 his best, being full of interesting anecdotes and personal 
 details. 
 
CHAPTER XIX. 
 
 CORREGGIO AND TITIAN. 
 
 During the same time when Raphael was enchanting 
 the world with his dignified balance of beautifully varied 
 figures and while Michael Angelo was astounding it with 
 his prodigious illustrations of the old Hebrew literature, 
 another great painter was demonstrating that every kind of 
 talent was contained in 
 this one epoch by a 
 class of pictures which 
 charm and delight us 
 without appealing 
 either to the intellect 
 or to the standpoint of 
 architectural effect. 
 
 Antonio Allegri, 
 known as Correggio 
 (Corejyo), from his 
 birthplace near Parma, 
 was this painter. Cor- 
 reggio was, after Da 
 Vinci, the first great 
 master in lights and 
 shadows. His subjects 
 are as often mytho- 
 logical as religious, and 
 in both cases attractive by grace and beauty rather than 
 by power of thought. He was an artist of the senses 
 
 159 
 
 Fig. 
 
 91. — Detail from Correggio's "Virgin 
 \doring the Infant Savior." Uffizi 
 Gallery, Florence. 
 
Fig. 92.— Christ Appears to Mary Magdalen after the Resurrection. 
 Correggio. Madrid. 
 
Correggio and Titian, 
 
 i6i 
 
 rather than of the intellect, an oil painter rather than a 
 monumental decorator, rarely dignified but never common- 
 place. 
 
 In Correggio' s art the momentary effect in face and 
 gesture was the thing sought for, but this effort never 
 descended to affectation and never sinned by self-conscious- 
 ness. The greatest charm of Correggio' s painting is its 
 artless and innocent delight in sensuous beauty which 
 never sinks to sensuality. 
 
 My illustrations for this artist will probably place him 
 in his relations and contrasts to the great Florentines 
 more successfully than words. His tendencies as pursued 
 by a later generation with less simplicity had marked 
 influence on the seventeenth century and all later art. His 
 important pictures, as being oil paintings on canvas, have 
 been widely scattered through the galleries of Europe, 
 all of which can boast one or more of his masterpieces. 
 His ''Holy Night" in Dresden, is the most generally 
 known. The " Magdalen" in Dresden, so long attributed 
 to him, is now known to be by Van der Werff, an artist of 
 the seventeenth century school of Holland. 
 
 In face of his picture in Madrid of the meeting of Christ 
 and Mary Magdalen after the Resurrection, we cannot deny 
 that Correggio had his serious moments and great thoughts. 
 This is probably his greatest, certainly his most serious, 
 work. The wonderful mellowness of coloring and dark 
 richness of the shadows are seen even in the photograph. 
 
 In the execution of minor details Correggio showed the 
 same broad style of execution otherwise familiar to his time 
 but he went much farther in the realistic introduction and 
 treatment of clouds, landscape accessories, and other subor- 
 dinate features of his pictures. It would be more correct 
 and more exact to say that he habitually represented 
 
l62 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 these things in larger dimensions as compared with his 
 figure scheme, than did other contemporary painters. 
 Altogether his art is more mobile, more expressive in the 
 exterior sense, more vibratory in its relations of light 
 
 Fig. 93. — Hall of the Grand Council, Doge's Palace. 
 
 and shade, more nervous in its activity, in a word, more 
 modern than that of any of his contemporaries. He is a 
 marvelous anticipator of the effects which were sought by 
 all artists a century later, but which were then sought with- 
 out the same unaffected and ingenuous style. 
 
 We have still left for mention the School of the Venetians, 
 which outlived all other great art in Italy and continued 
 in bloom down to the close of the sixteenth century. The 
 relations of this survival to general Italian history have 
 
Correggio and Titian, 
 
 163 
 
 been pointed out (p. 36). As contrasted with the light 
 and shadow treatment of Correggio, the figure design of 
 Michael Angelo, or the decorative composition of Raphael, 
 the great excellence of Venetian painting was its harmony 
 and warmth of color. 
 
 Why the Venetians should have been so pre-eminent in 
 color is not immediately clear. We may suggest that their 
 commerce with the East and traffic in Oriental rugs and 
 fabrics may have had 
 much to do with it. 
 Certainly we can find 
 analogies between the 
 warm tones of their 
 pictures and their pros- 
 perous, luxurious lives 
 and pleasure-loving 
 tastes. 
 
 Oil colors and can- 
 vas surface were their 
 preference for interiors 
 as against fresco paint- 
 ing on plaster. Their 
 wall-paintings were 
 canvases fastened to 
 the walls after the work 
 
 was done. There is P'JG- 94.-Detail from Titian's Portrait ol " La 
 
 Bella." Pitti Palace, Florence. 
 
 not therefore in Ve- 
 netian art any question of the outline effects and archi- 
 tectural balance of Raphael and other Florentines or of the 
 anatomic enthusiasms of Michael Angelo. On the other 
 hand the contrasts and harmonies of flesh color and dra- 
 peries, the rich mellowness of backgrounds and skies are 
 absolutely unrivaled either in contemporary or later times. 
 
Fig. 95— Detail from Titian's "Assumption of the Virgin." Venice Academy. 
 
Correggio and Titian, 
 
 165 
 
 To such an art strong emotion or rapid action was gener- 
 ally foreign. Half-figure pieces were much affected and 
 here make their appearance for the first time in Italian 
 art. (In the seventeenth century they became general.) 
 A noble and dignified repose is a constant feature of these 
 paintings. Nowhere is the great refinement of Italian cul- 
 ture more apparent than in these faces and attitudes. The 
 poise and self-contained character of the portraits have been 
 
 Fig. 96.— St. Bridget offering Flowers to the Infant Savior. Titian. Madrid. 
 
 rarely if ever equaled in later times, and when they are 
 taken in bulk have never been subsequently rivaled. 
 What we admire later in Velasquez or in Van Dyck was the 
 everyday art of a sixteenth century Venetian portrait. 
 
 The development of Venetian art was tardy. Not till 
 the close of the fifteenth century does it figure, unless in 
 the studies of the specialist. We have devoted a word 
 
1 66 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 to Carpaccio and the Bellinis for this time (p. 124). 
 
 At the opening of the sixteenth century we are then con- 
 fronted by a genius in Giorgione (Jorjony), in whom 
 all the best qualities of Venetian art found their highest 
 
 Fig. 97. — Dcta.il from Titian's Presentation of the Virgin." Venice Academy. 
 
 pitch of perfection. To this perfection is added a touch of 
 aristocratic reticence and refinement which even in Venetian 
 art has scarcely had its parallel. The paintings of this 
 artist who died at the age cf thirty-four (151 1), are of 
 extreme rarity. The greatest painter of Venetian art be- 
 side and after him was his pupil. 
 
 To Titian (Tishyan) this place is awarded not because 
 Palma Vecchio, or Paris Bordone, Tintoretto, or Paul 
 Veronese, has not rivaled him in many pictures, but 
 
Fig. 98.— Portrait by Palma Vecchio, Vienna. 
 
1 68 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 because his constant evenness of perfection through a 
 long hfe of enormous industry and productivity has left 
 him without a rival when his works are summed together. 
 The Dresden Gallery will take the palm for Titians in 
 northern Europe. In Italy, outside of Venice, his finest 
 paintings are in Florence and in the Borghese Gallery 
 at Rome. His greatest picture is the Assumption of the 
 Virgin," in the Venice Academy. "Christ and the Trib- 
 ute Money," in Dresden, is his greatest work in northern 
 Europe. 
 
 The nearest rivals of Titian were Palma Vecchio and 
 Paris Bordone. The quality of their art is closely analogous 
 to his. In amount of production or in thoughtful concep- 
 tions of subject matter they cannot be said to have been his 
 
 Fig, 99, — Detail from the "Feast in the House of Levi." By Paul Veronese. 
 Venice Academy. 
 
Correggio and Titian. 
 
 169 
 
 equals. For pure Venetian coloring they cannot be called 
 inferiors. 
 
 On the other hand Tintoretto and Paul Veronese repre- 
 sent a later generation of Venetian art, in which the solidity 
 and body of the design were tending to become weaker. 
 Only in individual examples does Tintoretto rise to the 
 heights of his predecessors. 
 
 Paul Veronese, who closes in point of time the list of 
 great Venetians, was in brush work and in color one of the 
 greatest, but it would be difficult to quote works from his 
 hand of ideal and intellectual quality such as were produced 
 by Giorgione, Titian, and contemporaries. The colossal 
 canvases on which he depicted the ' ' Feast in the House of 
 Levi," the ''Marriage of Cana," etc., are purely pictures 
 of Venetian life disguised by their titles as scripture sub- 
 jects, and we are bound to confess that what had once 
 been the means to an end had now become the end itself 
 
 It is best, however, not to be looking either backward 
 or forward when we wish to be just to a work of art 
 and give it full value for its own sake. He who wishes 
 to do full justice to Veronese needs only to ask himself 
 the question, ''How can I best know the daily life of 
 the most opulent and cultivated city of Europe in the 
 days of Shakespeare and Elizabeth?" 
 
 We cannot close our brief account of the greatest Italian 
 painters without noting the multitude of artists of the first 
 rank flourishing in the same period, whose names have not 
 been mentioned. A mere catalogue of their names would 
 scarcely be worth making, and space would not allow more. 
 None the less their existence, at least, must be specified 
 and insisted on. It is this multitude of superior artists 
 which made possible the supreme perfection of the work of 
 certain individuals of rarest genius among their number. 
 
CHAPTER XX. 
 
 SEVENTEENTH CENTURY RENAISSANCE PAINTING. 
 
 To FIND the Renaissance art of the seventeenth century 
 at its best we must turn first to Spain or the Netherlands, 
 where the works of Velasquez and Murillo, Rubens, Van 
 
 Dyck and Rembrandt 
 continued in original 
 ways and with some 
 distinct national qual- 
 ities the traditions of 
 their Italian predeces- 
 sors. For the general 
 spread of Italian cul- 
 ture over northern 
 Europe, which carried 
 the Italian arts of de- 
 sign in its train, see my 
 matter on the general 
 history and architec- 
 ture of the Renaissance. 
 
 The art of painting 
 now becomes an art 
 like other arts, no 
 longer destined to bear 
 on its shoulders the 
 whole spiritual thought and mission of an epoch or to raise 
 to the highest pitch the monumental effect of magnificent 
 buildings; but in a more limited sphere, as the art still 
 
 Fig, 100. — Portrait of Henrietta of France, Queen 
 of Charles I. of England. Van Dyck, 
 Pitti Palace, Florence. 
 
Seventeenth Century Renaissance Painting. 17 x 
 
 exists for ourselves, a noble continuation and development 
 of the lessons of the earlier great masters. 
 
 The changed position of the art of painting is to be 
 ascribed ultimately to the introduction of printed books, 
 to the new methods of education and expression which were 
 consequently less dependent on the language of forms, and 
 to an enlargement of national boundaries in which the 
 direct relation of the artist to an entire civic community 
 as the banner-bearer of its pride and ambitions was neces- 
 sarily abandoned. 
 
 Perhaps we may add that as the study of nature and the 
 science of form had been the great triumph of Italy over 
 
 Fig. ioi— The Dead Savior in the Lap of the Virgin. Van Dyck. Antwerp. 
 
 the Middle Age, it was natural that this triumph should 
 have been announced and celebrated most enthusiastically 
 when it was first won. 
 
 The use of books affected Catholic as well as Protest- 
 ant countries, but in the former, religious pictorial subjects 
 were traditional and were not abandoned, whereas in the 
 
T72 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 latter they were for the time being formally offensive to the 
 religious standpoint of the day. These religious subjects, as 
 found in Catholic countries, were continued, however, on a 
 much diminished scale of magnitude and number. The 
 wall decoration of churches was practically abandoned. Not 
 
 Fig. 102. — "Jacob's Ladder." Ribera. Madrid. 
 
 much, at least, worth quoting was done in this line. Nor 
 could the Catholic artists avoid reflecting the tendency of 
 their time in which the representation of visible nature for 
 its own sake had begun to be the main thing. A closer 
 illusion as regards momentary reality, the imitation of 
 fabrics or of trappings, was now generally in vogue in re- 
 ligious art. In expression the sentimental rather than the 
 dignified was commonly sought. 
 
 If therefore we wish to place the time as a whole, we must 
 
Seventeenth Century Renaissance Painting, 
 
 173 
 
 remember that Shakespeare was still writing his later plays 
 (died 1 6 16), that Cervantes and Calderon produced in 
 it the great masterpieces of Spanish literature, that Cor- 
 
 FiG. 103,— Portrait of the Dwarf El Primo. Velasquez. Madrid. 
 
 neille and Moliere, during its lapse, raised the French 
 drama to its pinnacle of glory. The age of Cromwell and 
 of Richelieu did not lack great men or great artists, but the 
 
174 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 mission of the latter was not exactly what it had been. 
 What they accomplished in the way of painting considered 
 as an art for its own sake is best attested by the fact that 
 the painters of that day are still the models and teachers of 
 our own. 
 
 Among the names so far mentioned Velasquez stands 
 
 among the foremost as 
 the great student of 
 men and of character, as 
 shown by the medium 
 of art. In his masterly 
 subordination of de- 
 tails to essential facts 
 and his large power of 
 vision which carries 
 the man to the canvas 
 and fixes him there for 
 all posterity, he can in 
 general only find equals 
 or rivals in Rembrandt 
 and among the older 
 Venetians or the very 
 greatest names of the 
 early Renaissance. 
 
 Fig. 104— " The Divine Shepherd." Such art showS US 
 
 Murillo. Madrid. . . 
 
 agam and agam that 
 the pencil and brush are only means to an end, that tech- 
 nical facility in their use is admirable only when mind con- 
 trols the hand. 
 
 It was the fortune or tact of Velasquez as a great realist, 
 to steer clear of the religious subjects of his time. As 
 we find these latter treated by Murillo we can only say that 
 he rose to the highest level of his period and that this was 
 
Seventeenth Century Renaissance Painting. 175 
 
 not that of the sixteenth century. Our point of view for his 
 " Divine Shepherd," for example, does not so much relate 
 to the picture itself as to the fact that his period mainly 
 never was more serious than it is here. Taking this picture 
 as a picture, we find it charming; taking it as a conception 
 of the Christ subject, we find it admissible or tolerable; 
 taking it as an example of the tone of the period, we are 
 reminded that this century did not succeed equally well in 
 more intellectual or more serious conceptions. 
 
 The beauty of Murillo's pictures, their warmth, and 
 tender devotional spirit wall always find admirers. The 
 most inexperienced eye takes pleasure in a Murillo. No 
 higher praise could be paid this artist. We must also 
 give high rank to the somber power of Ribera, or Spa- 
 gnoletto, as he was also called. His "Jacob's Ladder" 
 is an excellent illustration of the semi-romantic spirit of the 
 time and of the class and style of scripture subject in which 
 this spirit was most successful. We could not wish that 
 this picture had another name, and yet it is doubtful if 
 it does not more successfully transfer us to the world of 
 dreams at large than to the world and days of Genesis. 
 
 Beside these Spaniards, the Flemings, Rubens and Van 
 Dyck, take in their own way an equal rank. In portraits, 
 landscapes, mythologic and religious subjects, Rubens was a 
 prolific and vigorous producer. Italian influences had been 
 long ascendant on the art of Flanders, but Rubens was the 
 first who knew how to graft the color and science of the 
 foreign art on a Flemish stock without sacrificing his 
 own native spontaneity and Flemish character. The * ' De- 
 scent from the Cross," in the Antwerp Cathedral, was 
 his greatest picture. 
 
 His pupil. Van Dyck, shows still more distinctly the reflex 
 of his Italian models. Like Rubens, the friend of courts 
 
176 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 and kings, his peculiar forte was to portray the aristocratic 
 and royal people of his day. In religious art he had not 
 the strength or earnestness of Rubens and only in special 
 cases, as in our illustration from Antwerp, did he rise to the 
 level of his master's religious pictures. As a colorist, how- 
 
 FiG. 105.— Detail from a Holy Family. By Rubens. Pitti Palace. 
 
 ever, he may be considered the superior of Rubens in re- 
 finement and in harmony. 
 
 In the Italian painting of this age the painters of Naples 
 and Bologna took the lead, displacing the civic centers 
 of earlier times. The former carried to the highest pitch a 
 bold realism which has caused them to be named the School 
 of the Naturalists, while the Bolognese are also known as 
 the "Eclectics," that is, universalists or imitators. As this 
 
Seventeenth Century Renaissance Painting, 177 
 
 designation would imply, their art was academic and ' ' cor- 
 rect, ' ' but lacking in spontaneity and in originality. 
 
 In the typical religious subjects of these Italians we 
 find the tide of taste turning toward those which favor 
 the ecstatic or the sentimental. The isolated Magdalens, 
 the Immaculate Conceptions, Ecce Homos (heads of the 
 Savior crowned with thorns), half-figures or heads of 
 saints and Madonnas are of this period. The same holds 
 of the isolated crucifixion scenes. 
 
 According to the ordinary presumptions of people who 
 have not studied the 
 topic, such pictures 
 were typical for all old 
 religious art, but the 
 contrary is the case. 
 In the early sixteenth 
 century the actual 
 crucifixion was rarely 
 rendered. The ' ' Dep- 
 osition from the Cross'' 
 replaced it. At that 
 time the Head of 
 Christ is unknown, 
 likewise the Head of 
 the Madonna. The 
 ''Immaculate Concep- 
 tion ' ' type is also un- 
 known to the great 
 period of Italian art, so 
 are the Magdalens as a half-figure type. One by Titian is a 
 solitary exception. His "Assumption of the Madonna" is 
 the only important case of its time. 
 
 In sixteenth century instances where the ecstatic ex- 
 
 FiG. 106. — Madonna, by Guido Reni. 
 Uffizi Gallery, Florence. 
 
Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 pression is attempted, as in Raphael' s ' ' Transfiguration ' * 
 (Fig. 84), and Titian's ^'Assumption" (Fig. 95), the 
 great dignity and reserve are to be noted and compared 
 
 with seventeenth cen- 
 tury types. In the 
 same sense the reserve 
 and dignity of the 
 ^'Sistine Madonna" 
 by Raphael may be 
 compared with the 
 Immaculate Concep- 
 tions. All these facts 
 point to the larger, 
 more general one, that 
 good taste and com- 
 mon sense have not 
 been confined to the 
 nineteenth century, 
 and that as far as re- 
 ligious painting is con- 
 cerned they have never 
 been so prominent 
 since as they were in 
 the sixteenth century Italian art. Good taste avoids the 
 painfully tragic; common sense avoids the ecstatic and the 
 sentimental, or handles it with great reserve. 
 
 The landscapes, mythologic scenes, and genre" pic- 
 tures (realistic subjects) are the most successful of this 
 time. In these the period announced its own tastes and 
 preferences most clearly, while the traditional religious 
 pictures were largely a cloak and disguise for a realistic art 
 lacking real sympathy with the heart of the subject and 
 consequently treating it without earnestness. 
 
 Fig, 107. — The Annunciation. Sassoferrato. 
 Louvre. 
 
Seventeenth Century Renaissance Painting. 179 
 
 In landscapes and classical subjects the Frenchmen, 
 Claude Lorrain and Nicholas Poussin, respectively took 
 first rank, both residents and students in Italy. 
 
 Among the Bolognese, headed by the three artists of the 
 Caracci family, we specify as specially important names 
 those of Guido Reni, Domenichino, and Guercino. Among 
 the ' ' Naturalists' ' we mention Salvator Rosa and Caravaggio 
 (to whom the Spaniard Ribera, long resident in Naples, is 
 also generally reckoned) . The leading picture of its century 
 is Guido' s fresco of the ''Dawn" or ''Aurora," on the 
 ceiling of the Rospigl- 
 iosi Villa at Rome. 
 The greatest work of 
 Domenichino is the 
 "Diana and Nymphs" 
 of the Borghese Gal- 
 lery. 
 
 Guido Reni on the 
 whole deserves first 
 place among the Ital- 
 ians of this age. He 
 was an industrious and 
 able manufacturer of all 
 the classes of pictures 
 which I have specified 
 as types. His Mag- 
 dalens, Ecce Homos, 
 Crucifixions, and Im- 
 maculate Conceptions 
 are very numerous. In the Crucifixion type he had an 
 active follower in Van Dyck. In the Immaculate Con- 
 ceptions Murillo carried off the palm. 
 
 The names of the Italians Sassoferrato and Carlo 
 
 Fig. 108,— Saint Cecilia. By Sassoferrato. 
 Venice Academy. 
 
i8o Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 Dolci represent a weaker art, which unhappily offers ex- 
 cellent subjects for photographs and engravings, tending by 
 their clearness and distinctness in copy to give an unduly 
 important place to the originals. 
 
 In treating of the seventeenth century we must always 
 keep two points in view; first, to be just to its own 
 
 great excellence and 
 achievements; second, 
 not to be unjust to its 
 great predecessor, and 
 to preserve a proper 
 perspective in our no- 
 tions of the two. 
 
 The difficulty in pre- 
 serving this perspective 
 lies partly in the fact 
 that the galleries of 
 northern Europe neces- 
 sarily exhibit a larger 
 number of the later pic- 
 tures, which are seen 
 by many to whom the 
 monumental works of 
 
 Fig. 109.— Detail from Diana's Chase. Domeni- Italy are not SO familiar, 
 chino. Borghese Gallery. Rome. ^j^^ ^^^^^^ r^^xo^ 
 
 ductions of these seventeenth century works are also more 
 in demand because they are better known, and because 
 being smaller in original they make relatively larger and 
 more decorative copies. 
 
 It is the universal experience of students that as be- 
 ginners they are first drawn to the art of the seventeenth 
 century. In external and momentary attractiveness it 
 undoubtedly holds its own. This should scarcely be 
 
Seventeenth Century Renaissance Painting. i8i 
 
 reckoned against it; but still waters run deep" and the 
 waters of the seventeenth century are rarely still, at least in 
 the religious art of Italy. For genuine and spontaneous 
 feeling in this century we shall fare best with the French, 
 the Spaniards, the Flemings, and the Dutch. The English 
 had as yet no painters of their own worth naming. (Sir 
 Peter Lely and Godfrey Kneller were Germans. ) 
 
Fio. no.— Portrait of Lucas Baumgartner. Albert Diirer. Munich. 
 
CHAPTER XXL 
 
 SIXTEENTH CENTURY GERMAN AND FLEMISH PAINTING. 
 
 Our most natural first attitude toward early northern 
 art is to use it as a foil for the contemporary Italian. 
 We can appreciate Masaccio and Da Vinci at their best 
 when we compare them with Van der Weyden or Albert 
 Diirer. But this attitude is followed by another, the recog- 
 nition of old German sincerity, honesty, and truth as at- 
 tested by old German pictures. There is also an imagi- 
 native quality in German art which the Italian lacked, 
 often disguised in fantastic and grotesque forms, but still 
 thoughtful and profound. 
 
 The German art of the early sixteenth century was also 
 Renaissance. It also shared, and succeeded in, the effort 
 to return to nature and to revive the science of design. 
 It also felt the influence of classic thought and literature 
 and experienced the influence of Italy. Albert Diirer 
 studied in Venice and the Renaissance traits are very clear 
 in Holbein. But German art was more tardy than Italian, 
 and in the early sixteenth century it is still so distinctly and 
 peculiarly national that we can only remotely relate it to 
 the larger movement. 
 
 These main things have to be said of German painting: 
 First, that in face of the stained-glass windows of the 
 northern Gothic its beginnings were much crippled by 
 their rivalry. That wall surface of the churches which 
 the Italian gave up to painting, the northerner gave up 
 to stained glass. Hence for the fifteenth century, German 
 
 183 
 
184 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 and Netherland art was confined to panels for altar pictures, 
 mostly of extremely small size. In general the medieval 
 and Gothic ignorance of form was still the rule in the 
 fifteenth century, though here we must distinguish in favor 
 of the Netherlands as against Germany. 
 
 In the early sixteenth century when the two great names 
 of Albert Diirer and Hans Holbein are in question for 
 South Germany, we must give them place more as phe- 
 nomenal geniuses for their given lime and surroundings, 
 
 less as highest rep- 
 resentatives of an 
 otherwise average ex- 
 cellence. Yet it is pos- 
 sible that a German 
 critic would not draw 
 this line. 
 
 In Diirer there was, 
 aside from his not 
 always successful strug- 
 gle to throw off* the 
 bondage of German 
 medieval tradition, a 
 peculiar fantastic 
 method and spirit in- 
 dividual to himself, and 
 this we need to under- 
 stand and discount. 
 He was at his best in 
 woodcuts and mainly 
 active in this branch of art. His comparatively rare oil 
 paintings are distinguished by marvelous painstaking 
 minuteness, strong sense of character, and highly trained 
 facility in use of the brush and pencil. 
 
 Fig. III. — Woodcut by Albert Diirer. 
 
German and Flemish Painting, 185 
 
 Hans Holbein belonged to a later generation, one more 
 familiar as a whole with the new science and art of Italy, 
 but he does not in any 
 sense deny his birth- 
 right. Obvious Italian 
 influence is confined to 
 the architectural details 
 of his paintings (for 
 instance the niche of 
 the famous Meier Ma- 
 donna in Dresden). 
 He was much more 
 successful than Diirer 
 in obtaining commis- 
 sions for oil paintings, 
 many of which are in 
 Basle, others in Hamp- 
 ton Court and other 
 English collections, 
 still others in various 
 galleries. The most 
 famous of all is the 
 large Madonna in Dresden, although this painting is 
 now thought to be a copy of its counterpart in Darm- 
 stadt. 
 
 Holbein was also an active designer of woodcuts, which 
 just then were very popular in the North both for Bible 
 subjects and other illustrative purposes. He also figured 
 as a successful fresco painter both in London and in Basle, 
 but all his wall-paintings have gone to ruin or have 
 been destroyed. 
 
 A very slight acquaintance with these German painters 
 will show their value for history. The quality and charag- 
 
 FiG. 112, — ^The Flagellation. 
 
 Albert Diirer. 
 
 Woodcut by 
 
•186 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 ter of the people come to us through their art with 
 marvelous suggestiveness. 
 
 We cannot quote for the Netherland sixteenth century, 
 
 names of equal dis- 
 tinction with the great 
 South Germans. 
 Quentin Matsys is here 
 the leading name — an 
 artist sharing with 
 many of his country- 
 men the strange and 
 suggestive trait of 
 showing two entirely 
 distinct styles, an 
 earlier style of the old 
 Flemish and Germanic 
 quality and a later one 
 borrowed wholesale 
 from Italian models. 
 The Italian influence 
 was not, however, suc- 
 cessfully assimilated in 
 the sixteenth century, and we have seen that the dis- 
 tinction of Rubens lay in this assimilation. 
 
 Fig. 113. — Portrait of Hans Holbein by him- 
 self. Uffizi Gallery. Florence. 
 
CHAPTER XXII. 
 
 SEVENTEENTH CENTURY DUTCH PAINTING, 
 
 Passing by the seventeenth century Flemings already 
 mentioned, we now turn to the Dutch painters of the 
 same era. 
 
 In Holland, art at any earlier date is mainly conspicuous 
 by its absence or when rarely found is a repetition of that 
 common to early Flan- 
 ders and Germany; 
 but in the seventeenth 
 century this country 
 produced the most re- 
 markable school of 
 painting then known 
 in Europe. 
 
 Not only does Hol- 
 land boast in the per- 
 son of Rembrandt, an 
 artist who was at least 
 equal to the greatest 
 of his time, but a host 
 of other lights, among 
 whom Franz Hals, 
 
 Ruisdael, Jan Steen, I^ig. 114 -Franz van Mieris. Portrait of the 
 . Artist and his Wife. The Hague. 
 
 Brouwer, Adrian van 
 
 Ostade, Netscher, Metsu, Peter Hoogh, Franz and Willem 
 van Mieris, Paul Potter, Cuyp, Van Goyen, Terburg are 
 a few only out of many whose names may not be always 
 
Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 so familiar, but whose works in the Gallery of Amsterdam 
 show them the equals or rivals of these. 
 
 The phenomenal development of Dutch art has a historic 
 explanation which has best been given by an American 
 
 Fig. 115.— Cattle. Paul Potter. The Hague. 
 
 author.* The sum of this explanation is that Holland 
 led the world in science, industry, and commerce for the 
 given time and that her art is one reflex of this larger fact. 
 
 The character of this art is peculiarly original, in fact 
 absolutely phenomenal, when precedent and tradition are 
 considered. In the early days of the Protestants there was 
 a general prejudice against church paintings and religious 
 art decoration which we no longer share but which was 
 
 ♦Already quoted. Douglas Campbell, "The Puritan in Holland, England, and 
 America." See also Taine, " Art in the Netherlands." 
 
Seventeenth Century Dutch Painting, 189 
 
 long ascendant. Hence Protestantism led to the abjuring 
 of religious art but elsewhere had found no substitute for it. 
 Painting practically disappeared from Germany as a con- 
 sequence of this religious prejudice after the death of 
 Holbein and Lucas Cranach. In England it had no flower 
 till the eighteenth century. 
 
 In Holland only did the Protestant artist seek in the 
 life about him the subject matter which tradition could 
 no longer supply. The life of the house and farm, of 
 
 Fig. 116.— The Anatomy Lesson. Rembrandt. The Hague. 
 
 kitchen and parlor, of the village, the city, and the town, 
 of the sailor and the soldier, of the doctor, the tradesman, 
 and the tavern, of the animal and the flower, of the corpo- 
 ration, the guild, and the patrol — this was what the Dutch 
 
Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 artist carried to his canvas. In his pictures, conscience, 
 honesty, and truth to nature are the ever conspicuous 
 traits. 
 
 Among Dutch paintings the Corporation pictures" 
 claim our first notice. These give the associated portraits 
 
 Fig, 117.— Banquet of the Officers of the Archers' Corps of St, Adrian. 
 Franz Hals. Haarlem, 
 
 of the leaders of the various guilds, officers of the military- 
 companies, heads of the hospitals, charitable asylums and 
 the like, and often the portrait figures are full length and 
 united in some activity peculiar to the association. 
 
 Rembrandt's " Anatomy Lesson " at The Hague belongs 
 to a class of pictures representing the associations of the 
 doctors, to which this motive of an anatomical lecture and 
 demonstration was common. One entire room in the 
 Amsterdam Gallery is filled with similar pictures, all illus- 
 
Seventeenth Century Dutch Painting, 191 
 
 trating the transcendent genius of Rembrandt, who has 
 caused them to be forgotten. 
 
 To a Hke class of paintings belong Rembrandt's Cloth 
 Merchants" at Amsterdam, and the famous series by- 
 Franz Hals at Haarlem. Rembrandt's ''Night Watch" 
 at Amsterdam is one of hundreds of similar pictures of the 
 patrols and military bands. It represents Captain Franz 
 Banning Cocq's company of arquebusiers emerging from 
 their guild house. 
 
 These instances 
 have value as show- 
 ing a parallel to the 
 conditions of Italian 
 art, and a similar re- 
 lation of popularity 
 and public interest. 
 
 In a domestic art for 
 the home and the pri- 
 vate dwelling Holland 
 was also an innovator. 
 Earlier paintings had 
 existed for public build- 
 ings, churches, and 
 palaces. Domestic art 
 in the modern sense 
 had been previously 
 unknown. In Ger- 
 
 many woodcuts had p,^. „8.-Portrait. Rembrandt. Amsterdam. 
 
 taken its place. In 
 
 Italy the need of it had not been felt while churches and 
 public buildings were open to the people. 
 
 The trivial, anecdotal, and commonplace subjects of the 
 Dutch painters thus become an interesting turning point in 
 
Fig. 119— The Doctor's Visit. Jan Steen. The Hague. 
 
Seventeenth Century Dutch Painting. 193 
 
 the history of civiHzation. It is rarely, however, that we 
 do not find a point to the story or a permanent interest 
 attaching to the scenes from daily life. In fact these 
 pictures are better than an open book for the study of 
 old Dutch civilization. A large proportion of these paint- 
 ings are of small dimensions as befitting their trivial and 
 domestic subjects. In these small pictures the methods 
 of execution are refined and painstaking to the point of 
 
 Fig. 120.— Dutch Landscape. Ruisdael. Amsterdam. 
 
 nicety. In larger pictures, as for instance those of Hals 
 and Rembrandt, the method changes and becomes broad 
 and masterly. In color and design the old Dutch artists 
 
194 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 can still give points to most modern painters. Their 
 greatest works are still unrivaled. 
 
 Here again as in the earlier case of Italian art, we do not 
 concede that native genius is lacking to our own time. We 
 
 Fig, 121 .—Tavern Scene. David Teniers the Younger. The Hague. 
 
 only point to the fact that public national interest and 
 support create an art and essentially determine its char- 
 acter. No one could deny that for the given area and 
 number of people, the production of pictures in seven- 
 teenth century Holland was more active, their number 
 greater, their relation to the actual lives of everyday 
 people closer and more genuine, than in any country of 
 our own time. Whoever has conceded this has also con- 
 ceded that an average superiority of old Dutch art to our 
 own was a natural consequence. 
 
Seventeenth Century Dutch Painting, 195 
 
 On the other hand the range of Dutch subjects belonged 
 to that class which is most popular to-day, the domestic and 
 the anecdotal, the landscape and the scene from real life. 
 
 It is interesting to see that as early as the seventeenth 
 century the essential features of the nineteenth century 
 painting were thus anticipated and prefigured. 
 
 Many pictures analogous in subjects to those affected 
 by the Dutch were painted by the Flemings of the same 
 period. It is in the matter of religious art that the 
 two schools especially fell asunder. David Teniers the 
 Younger, whose tavern scenes are world-famous, is the 
 most obvious illustration of the close relations often ex- 
 isting between Dutch and Flemish art. 
 
CHAPTER XXIII. 
 
 RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE. 
 
 Relations to Modern History. 
 
 It may be regretted that a division of topics according to 
 different arts seems to detract from that general view of one 
 given century as a whole and of a series of sequent cen- 
 turies, each massed in contrast with the others, which it 
 should be our main effort to create. On the other hand, 
 there is a certain cumulative result in such a treatment, 
 which with each new art demonstrates the repetition of the 
 same essential facts for a given time. 
 
 Each art, whether sculpture, painting, or architecture, 
 exhibited in fifteenth century Italy the same simplicity, 
 the same reserve, the same faithful striving after proportion 
 and scientific accuracy. Each art in the early sixteenth 
 century showed the same transcendent mastery of means as 
 applied to ends, the same culmination of power and mass, 
 the same triumphant self-assertion of a new-born modern 
 civilization. Each art in the seventeenth century exhibited 
 a similar striving for effect, a similar exaggeration of the 
 picturesque quality, a similar disposition to exalt the means 
 above the end and the parts above the whole. 
 
 If our parallel breaks for this century when extended 
 to Dutch painting, it holds throughout the whole of Europe 
 otherwise, and will even hold for Dutch painting if we 
 stretch the limit into the eighteenth century when this 
 art lost every element of its earlier vitality and power. In 
 the eighteenth century England took the place in art, but 
 
 196 
 
Renaissance Sculpture. 
 
 197 
 
 not in the same high degree, which had in the sixteenth 
 century belonged to Italy, and which had in the seventeenth 
 century belonged to Holland, Spain, and Flanders. 
 
 In all these arts we take the same general point of view 
 regarding these gradual changes, that art as a whole filled a 
 larger place in daily use and thought before printing sub- 
 stituted a new means of expression, before modern national 
 states obliterated the rivalries and ambitions of civic com- 
 munities, before the enlargement of the general field of 
 science tended to specialize the individual, to dwarf the 
 symmetry of character and the wide personal experience 
 which are the best education for the artist in design. 
 
 In the large dimensions of our great modern countries it 
 may be possible for a musical composer or a great author to 
 keep in touch with an entire nation. Bret Harte, Dickens, 
 or Whittier, or the composers of those street ballads of our 
 day which we affect to despise and which will go down 
 to history as some of our greatest and purest efforts of art ; 
 Beethoven, Mozart, and Mendelssohn — such men may still 
 claim a hold over an entire nation or even an entire civiliza- 
 tion, for the power of music is not fettered by the bond of 
 language. But our numbers are too large and our dis- 
 tances too great for a painting, statue, or building to master 
 the admiration of a whole nation. The book or the musical 
 composition is susceptible of multiplication and diffusion; 
 not so the work of art which is seen. At first hand, it can 
 only be known in one example. 
 
 It may be added that our culture is too complex and the 
 eyes of most of us too dull. The artist is, and always will 
 be, the spokesman of his audience. His inspiration and 
 success will correspond to the enthusiasm and the interest 
 of that audience. It is only a World's Fair which is also a 
 Columbian celebration that can revive the conditions and 
 
198 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 results which we know in the early Renaissance for the arts 
 of design as regards work done for the admiration, enjoy- 
 ment, and appreciation of an enormous multitude of people. 
 
 Once more, then, it is our duty to say that the history 
 of Renaissance art has a double meaning for our time. 
 First and foremost it means and represents modern civiliza- 
 tion at large. In this sense it is representative for things 
 and facts which cannot be seen but which it may, neverthe- 
 less, imply — the science, industry, comforts, and manners 
 which have spread from Italy for all modern history. 
 
 In this sense Renaissance art has been perpetual. The 
 science of our builder will go back to it, however the 
 external form may change, and even this external form, 
 as we have seen, has been perpetuated in architecture. 
 A Rembrandt, a Reynolds, or a Rousseau may abjure 
 every outward trait of Italian art and still owe every stroke 
 of his brush to its inspiration. So likewise the modern 
 sculptor cannot sever his connection with the time which 
 revived the study of anatomy and the science of form. 
 
 On the other hand, when the arts of design are considered 
 in and for themselves we must still in each art confess the 
 general superiority of the early Renaissance to ourselves. 
 
 In certain cases it must be admitted that our modern 
 American sculptors push it hard. With adequate patron- 
 age it is difficult to say how far they might not go in rivalry 
 or in superiority; whereas in painting it is difficult to 
 see how later time can equal the Renaissance, unless the 
 same subject matter could be revived; for an art must 
 ultimately be judged by its subject matter, and no subject 
 matter can be imagined equal to that which the Bible sub- 
 jects once offered for painting. All, however, that can be 
 asked of any art or of any century is that it be true to itself 
 and to its opportunities. 
 
CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 EARLY RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE. 
 
 Critical Review, 
 
 As WE are dealing in comparisons and with a view to 
 understanding both ourselves and the past, let it be said 
 here what is the great- 
 est virtue of the early 
 Italian sculpture. 
 
 The first notion of 
 the novice in criticism 
 is that art is judged by 
 a certain amount of 
 technical perfection 
 and of positive science. 
 It is difficult or impos- 
 sible to imagine from 
 this point of view why 
 one artist possessing 
 the requisite positive 
 science might not al- 
 ways equal another 
 possessing the same 
 
 amount of science, and Fig. 122— Swathed infant in Enameled Terra 
 
 . , , Cotta. By Andrea della Robbia. From the 
 
 dimCUlt to see why the Architectural Decorations of the Loggia 
 , . - dei Innocenti. Florence. Fifteenth Cent. 
 
 same talent and the 
 
 same effort might not always reach the same point of 
 science. 
 
 To the first difficulty we answer, that technical science in 
 
 199 
 
200 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 art up to a point of comparative perfection is assumed to 
 start with, by the historic critic. The modern is supposed 
 to possess it before he could reach the distinction of making 
 a pubHcly exhibited work. That is the affair of the schools 
 and the exhibitions. The old artist must have possessed it 
 to have won a place in the estimation of centuries. The 
 historic critic does not worry himself over the slips in draw- 
 ing which a modern can point out in the ''Last Judg- 
 ment.'' He is satisfied with knowing that no modern 
 
 has drawn, could draw, 
 or can draw, a similar 
 number of variously 
 fore-shortened figures 
 without making more 
 mistakes. We do not 
 take the trouble to cor- 
 rect the grammar of 
 Shakespeare. 
 
 What is then in 
 question in our admi- 
 ration for Ghiberti or 
 Luca della Robbia if it 
 be not the technical 
 science ? 
 
 The answer is that 
 all classic art, whether 
 in music, literature, or 
 design, is conditioned 
 
 Fig. 123.— Equestrian Statue of Gattamelata. By K-.;- o cpn ti m pn t r»f r»f»r 
 Donatello. Padua. Fifteenth Century. uy a benumeni oi per- 
 sonal unconsciousness 
 or simplicity and of absorption in the subject matter. All 
 these arts exist to awaken or create ideas. The form exists 
 for the sake of a meaning. If then the ''Annunciation " of 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 20I 
 
 a Robbia relief, the ''Christ and Peter Walking on the 
 Water, ' ' on the first Ghiberti doors, or the equestrian por- 
 trait of ' ' Gattamelata ' ' by Donatello has that stamp of 
 unconsciousness and of simplicity, or of great power, which 
 art carries with it when 
 the meaning fills and 
 transcends the form, 
 we pronounce these 
 works classic because 
 the artist has made his 
 technical science the 
 means to an end and 
 has achieved it by 
 sinking his own per- 
 sonality in his subject 
 (Figs. 123, 125, 129). 
 
 Great art is generally 
 simple, the greatest art 
 invariably so. It is the 
 unconsciousness and 
 ease of good breeding 
 that we demand from 
 a work of art — and 
 just as good breeding 
 is the non-obtrusion and the unconsciousness of self so it 
 is in art. Its standard is the conquest of self in behalf of 
 the subject matter. Then comes the question, ''What is 
 that subject matter ? " and according to its value so ranks 
 the work of art. 
 
 Our standards are the same and our point of view the 
 same in the matter of early Italian painting, but it is much 
 more difficult to illustrate a painting, whereas we can fairly 
 reproduce the sculpture in a photograph, especially if the 
 
 Fig, 124.— Christ Healing the Sick. Architectural 
 Medallion in Enameled Terra Cotta. 
 By Andrea and Luca della Robbia. 
 Florence. Fifteenth Century. 
 
202 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 composition be simple. As far as pictures are concerned 
 as related to the actual text of my book, I cannot anywhere 
 make my meaning so clear or force the reader to admira- 
 tion and respect simply by illustration, as I can with the 
 statuary art of the Italian fifteenth century. Its charm of 
 unconsciousness is too palpable to be ignored, too evident 
 to be overlooked, and too beautiful to escape appreciation. 
 Let us choose our examples first where the point is 
 clearest; the ''Madonna with Angels," by Luca della 
 Robbia (Fig. 126), the ''Annunciation," by Andrea della 
 
 Fig. 125.— The Annunciation. Relief in Enameled Terra Cotta. By Andrea 
 della Robbia. Prato. Fifteenth Century. 
 
 Robbia (Fig. 125), "Christ Healing the Sick," by Luca 
 and Andrea della Robbia (Fig. 124), the Swathed In^ 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture. 
 
 203 
 
 fant," by Andrea della Robbia (Fig. 122), the ^'Madonna/' 
 probably by Mino da Fiesole (Fig. 139). 
 
 Now this trait of unconsciousness and simplicity does not 
 lie solely in the genius of the individual artist, it lies also in 
 
 Fig, 126,— 'Lunette in Enameled Terra Gotta. By Luca della Robbia. Still in 
 position over a Florentine Doorway. Madonna and Child 
 with Angels. Fifteenth Century, 
 
 the genius of a period. The whole Greek sculpture is 
 saturated with it until we reach the decadence of Greek 
 sculpture, and by the absence of that quality that decadence 
 is fixed and determined. This trait is the essential deter- 
 minant in our estimate of Dutch painting. Its absence 
 fixes the place of the Italian art of the seventeenth century. 
 Compare the ''Annunciation" by Sassoferrato (Fig. 107), 
 with the ' ' Annunciation ' ' by Andrea della Robbia. Com- 
 pare the Madonnas of Guido, or of Carlo Dolci with those 
 of the Robbias and of Mino da Fiesole. 
 
204 Renaissance and Modern Art 
 
 We will return now to the presumed case of the novice, 
 who supposes that scientific and technical perfection fixes 
 the place of a work of art, and declare that this perfection 
 has little to do with it. For wherever the mission exists 
 which needs to find an utterance in art, there will the tools 
 be found to make this utterance, and the conscience which 
 will learn the use of those tools up to the point required. 
 
 It is difficult to believe that hundreds on hundreds of 
 paintings, all in fact painted in the greatest time of Italian 
 art, bear this quality to view of unconsciousness, of in- 
 genuous sincerity, of absorption in the subject matter for its 
 own sake, but so it is. It long outlasted the time of Michael 
 Angelo's "Last Judgment" in Venetian paintings and 
 otherwise mainly disappeared from Italian art after 1530. 
 In fifteenth century Italian sculpture it is the conspicuous 
 and obvious charm. 
 
CHAPTER XXV. 
 
 EARLY RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE. 
 
 Historic Sketch. 
 
 The earliest dawn of modern feeling for nature and of 
 interest in ancient sculpture as an assistance to its study 
 is found with Nicolo of Pisa and in his pulpit made for 
 the Baptistery in Pisa 
 about the year 1260. 
 His son Giovanni car- 
 ried this feeling and 
 this interest into the 
 fourteenth century and 
 headed a school of 
 artists whose works are 
 found in many parts of 
 Italy.* Among these 
 one of the most im- 
 portant is the pair of 
 bronze doors made for 
 the Florence Baptistery 
 by Andrea Pisano with 
 panel compositions 
 from the life of John the 
 
 Baptist. The designs Fig. 127.— The Baptistery of Florence. The Doors 
 of Giotto for reliefs on ^^^^ t)y Andrea Pisano; those on the 
 
 right are the second pair by Ghiberti. 
 
 the Florence Cam- 
 panile (bell-tower of the Cathedral), are also works of great 
 
 *" Roman and Medieval Art," Figs. 126, 127, 12 
 
 205 
 
 , 131- 
 
2o6 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 power and interest.* In the main, however, fresco paint- 
 ing had absorbed the activity of fourteenth century Italian 
 art. The best comparison for the average ItaHan sculpture 
 in relief during the fourteenth century with that now to 
 be considered, is offered by an illustration quoted in foot- 
 note for the works of Giovanni Pisano and scholars at 
 Orvieto. For statues the Madonna" by Giovanni Pisano 
 at Prato, quoted in foot-note, offers a similar typical con- 
 trast which will hold good for other works. 
 
 In our detailed account of fifteenth century Italian sculp- 
 ture we begin with the 
 opening of the century 
 and the first pair of 
 bronze doors made by 
 Lorenzo Ghiberti for 
 the Baptistery in Flor- 
 ence (1403-1424). 
 
 The pictorial beauty 
 and more realistic de- 
 tails of the second pair 
 of doors by the same 
 artist, have tended to 
 obscure the importance 
 of these earlier ones. 
 They are often over- 
 looked by travelers 
 and by illustrators. 
 No cast of them can be 
 seen in this country; but the power of the compositions is 
 at least equal, if not superior, to those subsequently made. 
 The compositions are simpler, more circumscribed and 
 
 Fig. 128.— Christ and the Money Changers. 
 Bronze Relief Panel. From the first 
 pair of Doors by Ghiberti. 
 
 *" Roman ajid Medieval Art," Figs. 129, 130 — the execution of the latter is by 
 Luca della Robbia. 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 207 
 
 more concentrated. For the designs of ' ' Christ and the 
 Money Changers ' ' and ' ' Christ and Peter Walking on the 
 Water," our illustrations will speak, and speak eloquently. 
 It would be difficult to 
 mention more powerful 
 compositions in the 
 whole range of Chris- 
 tian art (Figs. 128, 
 129). 
 
 The commission for 
 the second and more 
 famous pair of bronze 
 doors was undertaken 
 in 1425 and completed 
 in 1452, so that fifty 
 years' labor was alto- 
 gether devoted to these 
 two works of art. 
 
 Should the question 
 arise as to a compari- 
 son between our mod- 
 ern artists and Ghiberti, it would be unfair to judge the 
 former until some modern city or national government is 
 willing to allot an equal amount of time and proportion- 
 ate payment for the creation of similar works of art. The 
 willingness to wait twenty-seven years for the completion of 
 one commission and to pay large yearly stipends for that 
 length of time both to Ghiberti and to his numerous assist- 
 ants tells the whole story of the perfection of early Renais- 
 sance art. 
 
 The general appearance of the panels and surrounding 
 borders of the second pair of bronze doors is best ex- 
 plained by the illustrations. In these panels are repre- 
 
 Fig. 129. — Christ and Peter Walking on the 
 Water." Bronze Relief Panel from the 
 first pair of Ghiberti's Doors. 
 
2o8 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 sented important events of Old Testament history — the 
 Creation, story of Cain and Abel, story of Noah, story 
 of Abraham, etc. For the great beauty of the composi- 
 tions in these panels, for instance in the story of Jacob 
 and Esau or the story of Joseph, we can scarcely find 
 parallels outside the much later works of Raphael. For 
 the pose and designs of single figures (story of Abraham, 
 story of Noah), we are not less at a loss for parallels 
 even when the sixteenth century is admitted to the com- 
 parison (Figs. 132, 133, 134, 135). 
 
 The marvel begins to fully reveal itself only when we 
 
 consider the dates and 
 look for parallels in the 
 art of Ghiberti's own 
 time. 
 
 The art of sculpture 
 logically precedes that 
 of painting, for the 
 form must be con- 
 ceived as a solid before 
 it can be transferred in 
 outline to a flat surface. 
 No doubt the whole 
 fifteenth century sculp- 
 ture is superior to the 
 contemporary paint- 
 
 30.— Design for a Bronze Door Panel by IHg, but again the mar- 
 Brunellesco. The Sacrifice of Isaac. Florence, ^j^^^ Ghibcrti 
 
 should, as the first among moderns, have reached a point 
 of perfection in his figure compositions which the nineteenth 
 century has not rivaled. 
 
 We have seen that the frescoes of Masaccio in the Bran- 
 cacci Chapel date between 1423 and 1428, but in the com- 
 
 FlG 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture. 
 
 209 
 
 positions for the first Ghiberti doors we go back to 1403. 
 The more we know of preceding fourteenth century art, the 
 more the wonder grows in spite of various connecting hnks 
 which here and there can be estabHshed. 
 
 We know, however, of a competition of designs as 
 having been held for 
 
 the of the ■■illll^K^^BBHH^^^H 
 
 of Isaac. The story goes that the judges were unable 
 to decide until Brunellesco himself gave judgment against 
 himself and retired from the competition (Figs. 130, 131). 
 
 Later criticism has universally conceded the superior 
 dignity and beauty of the panel by Ghiberti. Still we see 
 that he was by no means absolutely isolated in the perfec- 
 tion of his art at the beginning of the fifteenth century. 
 
 Remembering Brunellesco as the first great reviver of 
 ancient forms in architecture, it is interesting to notice 
 in Ghiberti' s designs (story of Joseph, story of Jacob and 
 Esau) the classic details of the buildings and to relate the 
 
 artist of the first 
 bronze doors in ques- 
 tion, and that three 
 artists besides Ghiberti 
 entered this contest. 
 The competitive de- 
 sign of Brunellesco, 
 whom we shall remem- 
 ber as the first great 
 architect of the Renais- 
 sance (p. 72), is still 
 preserved in Florence 
 beside the prize design 
 of Ghiberti; both sub- 
 jects from the Sacrifice 
 
 Fig. 131. — Design for a Bronze Door Panel by 
 Ghiberti. The Sacrifice of Isaac. Florence. 
 
Fig. 132.— Second pair of Bronze Doors by Ghiberti. Florence Baptistery. 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 211 
 
 spirit which copied them to that which had such perception 
 for nature and for beauty and such science in re-creating 
 them. The double character of the Renaissance, enthusi- 
 asm for antiquity and enthusiasm for visible nature, thus 
 appears in this one work. The influence of ancient art 
 is also seen in the pose and draping of the figures. Those 
 
 Fig. i;33.— The Story of Jacob and Esau. Detail from the secon4 pair of Bronze 
 Doors by Ghiberti. 
 
 especially of the allegorical figures of the borders, as being 
 of somewhat larger size than the figures of the panel com- 
 positions, offer clear illustration of this point (Figs. 133, 
 134, 135)- 
 
 Among the medallion heads of these borders are portraits 
 of leading Florentine artists, Ghiberti' s own among them. 
 
212 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 The outer framework of the door is a wonderful illustration 
 of realistic science, while the details as placed in combination 
 show an antique influence in arrangement. Casts of these 
 details are still frequently used in schools of art as models 
 for the modern student (Fig. 136). 
 
 It is habitual for critical writers to allude to the departure 
 from relief style which Ghiberti allowed himself in these 
 bronze doors. They undoubtedly show an amount of 
 pictorial detail which goes beyond the theoretic limits 
 
 Fig, 134,— Sacrifice of Isaac. Abraham and the Angels. Hagar and Ishmael in the 
 Desert. Detail from the second pair of Bronze Doors by Ghiberti, 
 
 proper for a solid material like bronze and for sculptured 
 relief as practiced by the Greeks. It is hardly worth while, 
 however, even to mention such a point. The significance 
 of the work is pictorial. It illustrates the realism of the 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 213 
 
 Renaissance and the precedence of Ghiberti in that realism. 
 Its main influence was undoubtedly pictorial, and we should 
 consider it the great landmark of the Renaissance art of 
 
 Fig. \I35,— The Story of Joseph and his Brethren. Detail from the second 
 pair of Bronze Doors by Ghiberti. 
 
 design in general rather than confine our point of view to 
 sculpture and the canons of Greek relief. 
 
 There is still something to be said of the Ghiberti doors. 
 We notice in their panels a combination of episodes in one 
 field. This is seen in the story of Joseph, the story of 
 Jacob and Esau, the story of Abraham, the story of Noah. 
 This combination occurs without indications of local di- 
 vision, although the localities are conceived in all these 
 cases, except the story of Joseph and story of Jacob, as 
 various and distinct. In these last cases the episodes 
 are also distinct in time, though not in place. 
 
214 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 We have here a method which also constantly occurs 
 in Italian fresco and which is an inheritance from the 
 earliest Christian art — an illustration of its ideal standpoint 
 and of its independence of illusion even when realism had 
 become a controlling interest. Such arrangement was 
 obviously conducive to balanced composition in large 
 panels, whether of frescoed walls or otherwise. It ad- 
 mitted brief and simple characterization of each special 
 story and gave the work of art a comprehensive effect. 
 
 We find this method continuing in the sixteenth century 
 art. Raphael's ''Transfiguration" includes the double 
 
 story of the possessed 
 boy and of the Trans- 
 figuration itself, events 
 locally separate but 
 spiritually related, 
 since the disciples could 
 not cast out the devil 
 in the absence of the 
 Savior. Michael An- 
 gelo represented the 
 * * Temptation and Ex- 
 pulsion from Eden ' ' 
 on one panel of the 
 Sistine Chapel ceiling. 
 Countless parallel cases 
 could be instanced. 
 For example, in the 
 Sistine Madonna, by 
 Raphael, we have 
 actually represented 
 the dream or vision of the pope who is kneeling in the 
 picture. 
 
 Fig. 136.— Decorative Details from the outer 
 Framework of the second pair of 
 Bronze Doors by Ghiberti. 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture. 
 
 215 
 
 Fig. 137. — Equestrian Statue of Colleoni. 
 Verocchio. Venice. Fifteenth Century. 
 
 Before leaving the bronze doors of Ghiberti we must 
 
 allude to the curious 
 
 fate which has given 
 not only precedence in 
 time, but an actually 
 unique importance in 
 the matter of parallel 
 works to this single 
 one. It did not hap- 
 pen that any similar 
 commission was under- 
 taken in any other Ital- 
 ian city within the 
 limits of the great 
 By period. Other bronze 
 doors, for instance of 
 the Pisa Cathedral, belong to a time when overcrowded 
 compositions and ex- 
 cess of small details 
 had quite overpowered 
 the sentiment for sim- 
 plicity of effect. The 
 doors of Ghiberti not 
 only stand first, but 
 they stand alone in 
 their perfection for the 
 given class of works. 
 
 We must place as 
 next in time and im- 
 portance to these 
 works the colossal 
 equestrian portrait 
 statues executed by Donatello and Verocchio, both Floren- 
 
 FiG, 138. — Bust of Nicole da Uzzano. 
 atello. Fifteenth Century. 
 
 By Don- 
 
21 6 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 tines, and later contemporaries of Ghiberti and Brunellesco. 
 Donatello's statue of the Venetian mercenary captain, Gat- 
 tamelata, is in Padua (1453). Verocchio's statue of the 
 Venetian captain, CoUeoni, is in Venice (1476). These 
 two equestrian figures are not only the first but also 
 undoubtedly the greatest of modern history and are so 
 generally considered; that of Verocchio is the inimitable 
 masterpiece of all equestrian statues. For Donatello's own 
 masculine and sturdy character as well as for the noble 
 quality of his art, the bust illustrated by Fig. 138 will also 
 
 serve as an example. 
 
 Donatello ranks in 
 time and general sig- 
 nificance as the most 
 important sculptor pre- 
 ceding Michael An- 
 gelo, but the position 
 claimed by the Floren- 
 tine, Luca della Robbia 
 and his nephew, An- 
 drea, would seem to 
 make them more fairly 
 the subjects for repre- 
 sentative illustration of 
 Italian art at large 
 during the same period. 
 
 Luca della Robbia 
 was a successful artist 
 both in bronze and 
 marble. In the latter 
 material are his well-known reliefs for the balustrade of 
 the organ-loft of the Florence Cathedral which are now in 
 Florence as museum exhibits. But it was in the glazed or 
 
 Fig. 139.— Marble Shrine Relief of the Madonna 
 and Child in Vienna. Florentine Work. Fif- 
 teenth Century. School of Mino da Fiesole. 
 
Early Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 217 
 
 enameled terra cotta reliefs in color, which he was the first 
 to execute, that he won especial renown. 
 
 This art was practiced by several and successive mem- 
 bers of his family and flourished till about 1525. It then 
 died out and has never been rediscovered or revived. The 
 peculiarly unpretentious and simple style of these works 
 is beyond all praise. They were used for decoration of ex- 
 terior brick architecture, as medallions between arches, 
 as lunettes in the arched spaces over doorways, etc., and 
 also for altar-pieces, tombs, and votive tablets. Con- 
 sidering the inadequate effect of photographs from paint- 
 ings, there is no access to a knowledge of early Italian art 
 like that conveyed by photographs of these reliefs (Figs. 
 122, 124, 125, 126). 
 
 In marble reliefs, mainly of Madonnas, a peculiarly 
 lovely phase of early Florentine art is also illustrated. 
 Mino da Fiesole, Desiderio da Settignano, and Benedetto da 
 Majano were the representative artists for this class of 
 work. 
 
CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE. 
 
 Philosophy of its Decline. 
 
 We have still a thought to offer regarding the sculpture 
 of the early Renaissance, one which suggests itself through 
 the illustrations of Donatello's ''St. George" and of the 
 
 ''Davids'' by Dona- 
 tello and Verocchio 
 (Figs. 141, 142), all 
 of which are works 
 held in high estimation 
 by students of this 
 period. This thought 
 concerns the distinction 
 between the statues of 
 this period as w^orks 
 of art considered for 
 themselves, as illus- 
 trations of its science 
 of design and great 
 advance over ages pre- 
 ceding, and the same 
 statues considered in 
 their historic relation 
 to the whole art of the 
 period and in their relation to the later position of sculpture 
 among the arts of the Renaissance. 
 
 It is apparent that the subjects of Christian art do not 
 
 218 
 
 Fig. 140.— St. George. By Donatello. Florence. 
 Fifteenth Century. 
 
Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 219 
 
 offer a large field for statues. As concerns close relation to 
 Christian art it will be readily felt that the reliefs of the 
 fifteenth century are most interesting and most distinctly 
 related to their ostensible subject matter. In Donatello's 
 ''David^' or ''St. 
 George^* we have a 
 class of subjects which 
 soon exhausts itself and 
 one where the appear- 
 ance of the statue is 
 but dimly related to 
 our sympathies with 
 the ostensible subject. 
 
 The number of such 
 works is not large in 
 the whole amount of 
 the art of the Renais- 
 sance. Isolated statues 
 of the Apostles or the 
 Savior are not so in- 
 teresting as a painting 
 of the ' ' Last Supper ' ' 
 or the cartoons of Ra- 
 phael from the lives of 
 the Apostles. The 
 pictorial reliefs of Ghiberti from the story of Joseph are 
 more interesting in their relation to subject matter than 
 statues of David. Christian art has always found its most 
 sympathetic field in painting or pictorial sculpture, that is 
 in relief 
 
 Sculpture offers the readiest illustration of Renaissance 
 science. It preceded painting in the matter of high perfec- 
 tion. (On the other hand let us not forget that many of the 
 
 Fig. 141. — David, by Verocchio. Florence. 
 Fifteenth Century. 
 
220 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 great sculptors of the fifteenth century were also painters. 
 This holds of Verocchio and PoUajuolo (Fig. 69), for 
 instance. ) The sculptors' studies were the basis of all the 
 progress that painting made at this time and of the per- 
 fection which it reached a generation later, because they 
 conditioned the scientific study of form ; but in the later 
 Renaissance we detect a greater and greater ascendancy 
 of the art of painting and the subjection of statuary to pic- 
 torial influence. 
 
 Statuary more and more became the work of isolated 
 
 patronage and was ulti- 
 mately rather the reflex 
 of pictorial tendencies 
 than an art for its own 
 sake. This at least was 
 its fate in the seven- 
 teenth and eighteenth 
 centuries, when it sank 
 to a condition of medi- 
 ocrity and weakness far 
 below the level of the 
 contemporary pictures. 
 
 I should be inclined, 
 therefore, to say that the 
 paintings of the fifteenth 
 century offer most mat- 
 ter for the historian; 
 the statues rather appeal 
 
 Fig. i42.-David, by Donatello. Florence. |_o the special taStCS of 
 Fifteenth Century. ^ 
 
 the art critic and the 
 student of design. They are certainly far less numerous, 
 and it would be hard to find many parallels for the dis- 
 tinction of those which are illustrated, whereas in pictures 
 
Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 221 
 
 or in reliefs what one can offer in illustration is an infin- 
 itesimal suggestion of the actual production. 
 
 All this may serve as introduction to the topic of Michael 
 Angelo's sculpture and the sudden decline not only in 
 quality but also in productivity which followed his pro- 
 digious creations. The tomb monuments of the churches 
 supplied the main field of later activity for this art. In the 
 seventeenth century there was a revival in the amount of 
 production related to the general extravagance and luxury 
 of Catholic church decoration at this time, but the heart 
 and soul had then gone from the art. It was mostly 
 empty display and theatrical posturing. 
 
CHAPTER XXVIL 
 
 RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE. 
 
 Michael Angelo. 
 
 As A sculptor Michael Angelo stood on the shoulders 
 of Donatello and Verocchio and added to their supreme 
 science the passion, frenzy, and explosive power of his own 
 
 volcanic nature. His 
 peculiar quality is best 
 appreciated from his 
 later works, the Mo- 
 ses of San Pietro in 
 Vinculi at Rome and 
 the Tombs of the 
 Medici in Florence. 
 
 The Moses is the 
 most important figure 
 and feature of the tomb 
 of Pope Julius n., who 
 was the artist's great- 
 est patron and warmest 
 appreciator. The 
 whole character of 
 Michael Angelo is re- 
 vealed by his concep- 
 
 FiG. 143.— Detail of the David by Michael tion of MoSCS aS 
 Angelo. Florence. . . , . 
 
 Witnessing the worship 
 of the golden calf; as about to spring from his seat and 
 
Renaissance Sculpture. 
 
 223 
 
 dash to fragments the tablets of the law which had been 
 revealed to him. 
 
 There is a closer relation to the history of his own 
 time and his own life in this statue than we might suspect. 
 In political life Michael Angelo had been a warm partisan 
 
 Fig. 144. — Moses, by Michael Angelo. Rome. 
 
 and the military commander for the Commonwealth of 
 Florence in its final struggle and downfall (p. 36). He 
 belonged then to the party of the old Republic and 
 hated the party of foreign despotism and success. Com- 
 mercial and money-making interests played no small part 
 
224 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 in this revolution. The Medici who were credited with 
 having overthrown the liberties of Florence, belonged to 
 the richest and most prominent banking family of that 
 state. Spain and the Hapsburg dynasty of Austria were 
 working in their interest. 
 
 What Michael Angelo saw as an Italian patriot was 
 
 Fig. 145.— Detail of the Tomb of Lorenzo Medici. By Michael Angelo, 
 
 the fast coming decadence of his country and a social revo- 
 lution which had brought the meaner and more grasping 
 tendencies of life to the front. His Moses" was the pro- 
 test against a worship of the golden calf which he saw in his 
 own time and which had embittered his own life. 
 
Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 225 
 
 In the same way his Tombs of the Medici are well 
 known to have been in his own view and that of his 
 time, the tombs of the Florentine Republic. Made in the 
 service and for the glory of a family which he hated, 
 he disguised in these works the sorrow of the patriot 
 and the regrets of the lost cause. 
 
 The tombs are those of the last two legitimate members 
 of the Medici family, Giuliano and Lorenzo. Their seated 
 figures are placed in niches, beneath which are the sar- 
 cophagi supporting respectively figures of ' ' Dawn ' ' and 
 
 Twilight," ^'Day and Night." ^^Dawn" and Twi- 
 light" are allegories of 
 the twilight of the ex- 
 piring moments of life 
 on earth and of the 
 dawn of the spirit life. 
 *^Day" and '^Night" 
 are conceived as the 
 antitheses of life and 
 death. These tombs 
 are in a chapel of the 
 Florentine Church of 
 San Lorenzo, whose 
 erection by Brunellesco 
 has been mentioned 
 (p. 73), and were fin- 
 ished about 1534. 
 
 Of earlier date, about Fig. 146.— Tomb of Lorenzo Medici. Florence. 
 I513 are the two Allegorical Figures of Twilight and Dawn. 
 
 Captives" now in the Louvre. An entire series of these 
 figures was to have surrounded the tomb of Julius IL, 
 emblematic of the arts and sciences held captive by Julius 
 n. and dying with him. After the death of the pope the 
 
226 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 diminished plan of his tomb made it impossible to connect 
 these finished figures with it, and they found their way 
 to France. 
 
 Here again the prophetic misanthropy of Michael Angelo 
 has its own inner meaning. We have seen how the court 
 
 foresight of the artist had its part in this allegory of the 
 Captives. Certainly their prophecy was fulfilled. 
 
 Contortions and twistings of the human figure are the 
 sign manual of the artist's mood in most of these various 
 works, a reflex of his own irritability and unhappiness. 
 No doubt his anatomic studies and desire to produce 
 new and startling effects are also accountable for this 
 manner. At all events he is the first artist in whom we 
 detect the disappearance of early Renaissance unconscious- 
 
 FiG. 147. — Allegorical Figure of the Day, from 
 the Tomb of Giuliano Medici by 
 Michael Angelo. 
 
 of Leo X. was one of 
 mainly borrowed 
 glories (p. 140), and 
 how the invasions of 
 Milan and Naples at 
 the close of the fifteenth 
 century had already in- 
 dicated the approach- 
 ing downfall of Italy. 
 The pontificate of Julius 
 II. was devoted to the 
 expulsion of the foreign 
 invaders of Italy. His 
 death was the signal 
 for new invasions whose 
 results after 1520 we 
 have described (pp. 
 35-41). There is no 
 doubt that the political 
 
Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 227 
 
 ness and simplicity. (See also notes on the ''Last Judg- 
 ment," p. 155.) The grandeur of his thought and con- 
 ception makes it impossible to reckon this mannerism 
 against him, but it infected the imitators and weaker 
 followers of his greatness. 
 
 The inflated style of the decadence found its type in 
 Michael Angelo. In his very protest against the coming 
 epoch he was fated to influence its forms. 
 
 In the two greatest early works of this sculptor we find a 
 more dignified and serener art. These are his colossal 
 David in Florence and the Dead Savior in the lap of 
 the Virgin* in St. 
 Peter's at Rome. His 
 earliest youthful work, 
 the mask of a Faun, is 
 still preserved in Flor- 
 ence. Here also are 
 his statues of Bacchus 
 and Adonis. The 
 list of his important 
 works also includes 
 the Cupid at South 
 Kensington in Lon- 
 don, a Madonna in 
 Bruges, and the 
 Christ of the Church 
 of Santa Maria Sopra 
 Minerva in Rome. 
 
 The story of Michael 
 
 Angelo' S life as told by Fig. i48.-Captive, by Michael Angelo. 
 
 Vasari, who personally Louvre. 
 
 knew him, is an almost essential thing to the compre- 
 
 * This typical subject is called by the Italians a ** Piet^." 
 
228 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 hension of his art. Deep piety and warm kindness of 
 heart were cloaked by surly manners and concealed by 
 solitude. I have already mentioned Grimm's ''Life of 
 Michael Angelo" as giving not only the artist's life, but 
 also the political history of Italy as connected with it. It 
 also contains a summary of the whole Italian art history 
 of the time. 
 
CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 
 RENAISSANCE SCULPTURE. 
 
 Later Styles and Decadence. 
 
 No SKETCH of Italian art could pass, without mention, 
 the name of Benvenuto Cellini, the goldsmith and sculptor, 
 whose greatest surviving work is the Perseus in Flor- 
 ence. Cellini was born in 
 1500, a quarter of a century 
 after Michael Angelo. His 
 statue dates from the middle of 
 the sixteenth century, but the 
 traditions and style of the great 
 period still survive in this work. 
 The art of sculpture in Italy at 
 this time had otherwise gener- 
 ally sunk into relative affec- 
 tation and mannerism. 
 
 In France we can quote 
 serious and beautiful work from 
 the hands of Goujon, Pilon, and 
 others. A certain elongation 
 of the figure and somewhat 
 dainty elegance of conception 
 which are visible in their works reflect the Italian style ol 
 the same day (Fig. 150). 
 
 We also notice the twisting of the figure as a trait con- 
 stantly repeated in later art and borrowed originally from 
 Michael Angelo. To an illustration of some of Goujon' s 
 
 Fig. 
 
 149. — Perseus, by Benvenuto 
 Cellini. Florence. 
 
 229 
 
230 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 ■J 
 
 beautiful relief designs for a fountain in Paris, we must add 
 a renewed reference to some preceding pictures of French 
 Renaissance tomb sculpture and architectural statuary, all 
 of which will assist the reader to understand the Italian 
 quality, and origin of French and other modern sculpture 
 (Figs. 3, 10, 18). 
 
 It is difficult in a rapid summary to avoid oversights of 
 
 fine survivals of the 
 better and earlier 
 Italian Renaissance 
 style in later north 
 European Renaissance 
 art, but we must not 
 entirely forget the fine 
 Renaissance wood 
 carvings of Belgium 
 (Fig. 153). The tomb 
 of Queen Elizabeth in 
 Westminster Abbey 
 would also show how 
 far the Italian style had 
 traveled and how uni- 
 versal it had become. 
 
 In the early sixteenth 
 century Germany 
 boasted the important 
 names of Adam Krafft, 
 whose most famous works are the reliefs known as the 
 Seven Stations of the Cross, at Nuremberg, and Peter 
 Vischer, whose magnificent bronze tomb of St. Sebaldus is 
 in the church of the same name, also at Nuremberg. Out- 
 side of Nuremberg the most important works of German 
 Renaissance sculpture are at Innspruck, where the tomb 
 
 Fig. 150.— Figures from the Reliefs of the " Foun 
 tain of the Innocents." Paris. By Jean 
 Goujon. Middle of Sixteenth Century. 
 
Fig. 151.— Mary of Burgundy (wife of Emperor Maximilian). From the series of 
 Bronze Statues belonging to Maximilian's Monumental Tomb at 
 Innspruck. By Gilg. Early Sixteenth Century. 
 
232 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 of the Emperor Maximilian fills an entire church with the 
 bronze figures of his ancestors and of the legendary heroes 
 of medieval history. Many German sculptors were em- 
 ployed on this colossal monument whose execution was in 
 process during the whole sixteenth century. One of the 
 statues illustrated was probably a work by Peter Vischer. 
 For the later sculpture of Renaissance Europe down to 
 
 the middle of the eigh- 
 teenth century, I have 
 selected five examples, 
 not suggesting that 
 anything but the broad- 
 est facts are indicated 
 by them. One of the 
 latest of these, being 
 the most obviously ex- 
 aggerated and over- 
 strained conception, 
 may be first considered 
 (Fig.^ 157). 
 
 It is a general rule 
 of art criticism — first 
 distinctly formulated 
 and explained by the 
 German critic Lessing, 
 in his ' ' Essay on Lao- 
 coon" — that a work 
 of art should not ex- 
 haust its subject or so 
 treat it that the ex- 
 treme and ultimate 
 pitch of emotion is made visible to the eye. 
 
 Moments of extreme tension are not lasting in their 
 
 Peter 
 
 Fig. 152. — King Arthur. Bronze ; by 
 Vischer. From the Maximilian Monument 
 at Innspruck. Early Sixteenth Century. 
 
Renaissance Sculpture. 
 
 233 
 
 nature, and when perpetuated in solid form they finally 
 become tedious; for the double reason that they present a 
 contradiction between the momentary duration in nature 
 and the permanence in art, and for the reason that in ex- 
 
 FiG. 153. — Wood-carved Confessionals at Antwerp. Church of St. Paul. 
 Late Sixteenth Century. 
 
 hausting the subject they leave nothing to the imagination. 
 
 In the myth of Prometheus, for instance, we are told the 
 story of a perpetual torture, but there is no existing Greek 
 statue of this subject, nor would any resembling our illus- 
 tration have been possible for Greek views of art. The 
 given statue violates every rule of good taste, according to 
 our present training in criticism. It is vulgar, theatrical, 
 tawdry, and weak; but this is the style of sculpture which 
 ruled Europe down to the middle of the eighteenth century, 
 as an inheritance from the seventeenth century — and this 
 
234 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 again had been led toward the downward road through the 
 influence of the later sixteenth century. 
 
 From Michael Angelo on we become aware of an ever- 
 increasing straining of attitudes, an ever-increasing choice 
 of theatrical motives and sentimental subjects. The great 
 master of this style was the seventeenth century Italian, 
 Bernini, a man of great genius and great science, but a 
 thorough man of his time; that is to say, absolutely desti- 
 tute of the sentiment of the statuesque. 
 
 Let us also choose our next illustration from the eighteenth 
 
 century, and consider 
 its lessons (Fig. 156). 
 
 It is a fundamental 
 rule of art that its tools 
 are means to an end. 
 Whatever exalts the 
 instrument belittles the 
 aim. Hence works of 
 art which are made for 
 the sake of conquering 
 those difficulties which 
 affect the use of tools 
 have no real cause of 
 being. 
 
 In our given illus- 
 tration from a work in 
 Naples, the subject was 
 chosen because it gave 
 
 Fig. 154.— iEneas and Anchises, by Bernini, the SCulptor an Oppor- 
 Borghese Villa, Rome. Seventeenth Century. ^^^j^^ making a net 
 
 in marble — an exceedingly difficult thing to do, but not 
 worth doing. Probably this group offers the most remark- 
 able example in statuary of the conquest of a technical 
 
Fig. 155.— Pulpit of the Brussels Cathedral. Wood-carving by Verbruggen, 
 about 1700. The Expulsion from Paradise. 
 
236 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 difficulty, yet we feel that the entire subject has been 
 manufactured in order to create this difficulty. As re- 
 gards the ostensible subject matter, an allegory repre- 
 senting the ' ' Escape from Error, ' ' it does not touch either 
 
 our interests, our sym- 
 pathies, or our con- 
 victions. Its only 
 possible claim to in- 
 terest is the dexterity 
 displayed in the use of 
 a chisel, and in artistic 
 value it is comparable 
 to the Chinese carvings 
 of ivory balls, con- 
 tained one within the 
 other. 
 
 This work, then, 
 may once more illus- 
 trate a general defect 
 of taste in statuary in 
 the seventeenth and 
 eighteenth centuries, 
 
 Fig. i56.-The Escape from Error, by Queirolo. the tendency tO CXalt 
 Naples. Eighteenth Century. ^j^^ mcchauics of art 
 
 while serious thought and conception were deficient. 
 
 In our illustration from the Cathedral of Brussels we have 
 an indication of the prodigality and luxury of sculpture 
 decoration in the important Catholic churches of the seven- 
 teenth century (Fig. 155). It was a time when the multi- 
 plication of statues and carvings had no end; in many cases, 
 as here in the case of the pulpit, extorting our admiration 
 in spite of our better judgment; or, as also here, with re- 
 deeming traits when we consider the material used — for we 
 
Fig, 157.— Prometheus, by Adam. Louvre. Eighteenth Century. 
 
238 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 cannot ask of wood carving the severity and simplicity 
 which are demanded by the intractabiHty, weight, and 
 hardness of stone. We could not say that the Fall of 
 Man has been seriously conceived in this pulpit, or that 
 clouds and drapery hangings are a proper matter even for 
 wood carving, and still the ingenuity and thought with 
 which the subject has been wrought out stand for a great 
 deal. 
 
 Conceding much merit and interest to this work, we 
 shall also conclude from it and from its surroundings that 
 the pompous display of material wealth in art was a ruling 
 
 trait of the time. The 
 affected style and at- 
 titudes of the statues 
 on the adjacent col- 
 umns of the church are 
 characteristic for the 
 whole Renaissance 
 sculpture of the seven- 
 teenth century. 
 
 Finally we have an 
 illustration (Fig. 154) 
 to represent the ex- 
 istence of the artist, 
 viz., Bernini, who of 
 all men of his cen- 
 tury combined the 
 greatest genius and 
 talent with the most 
 pronounced display of 
 the traits we have enumerated, over-wrought or compli- 
 cated subjects, the substitution of mechanical dexterity for 
 thought, and the exaltation of costly material at the ex- 
 
 FiG. 158.— Statue of Louis XV., by Nicolas 
 Coustou. Louvre. 
 
Renaissance Sculpture, 
 
 239 
 
 pense of subject matter. Bernini was also a decorator and 
 architect of distinction, the designer of the colonnade sur- 
 rounding the large oval place in front of St. Peter's, of its 
 interior colossal bronze shrine, and of many churches. 
 
 The whole later Renaissance was at its best in portrait 
 sculpture, especially of busts. Both French and Italian 
 sculptors were eminent in this specialty. Puget was the 
 greatest French sculptor of this era, the age of Louis XIV., 
 who himself employed Bernini in Paris while Puget was also 
 active in Italy and at Rome. 
 
 As an illustration of the portrait sculpture of the late Re- 
 naissance and of the eighteenth century, I have chosen a 
 statue of the French king, Louis XV. , whose pose.^hibits 
 the theatrical quality characteristic of the tirne. — — ^ 
 
CHAPTER XXIX. 
 
 THE GREEK REVIVAL OF THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. 
 
 According to our account so far, throughout this whole 
 book, either of architecture, painting, or sculpture, it will 
 appear that the earlier eighteenth century represents the 
 foot of a hill whose gradual descent began about 1530. 
 
 We shall not, however, be entirely just to our subject 
 without remarking that to the simile of decline, which has 
 been used above, we must add one which indicates an ever 
 widening expansion of Italian culture and of the original 
 force and attainments of early modern Italian civilization; 
 an expansion which would justify and explain a gradual loss 
 of original quality and strength as far as exterior and 
 borrowed forms of art are concerned. Such a simile may 
 be found in those expanding circles of waves or ripples 
 which we notice when a stone has been thrown into a 
 pool of water. Corresponding to the suggestions of this 
 simile, we find the civilization of Russia or of Scandinavia 
 beginning to show more modern tendencies in the eigh- 
 teenth century and that England and Prussia became the 
 most powerful and active factors in its political history, 
 as compared with an earlier political inferiority to the 
 Netherlands, Spain, and France, which in their turn had 
 been the superiors of seventeenth century Italy, although 
 originally borrowers from her greatness. It is undoubtedly 
 from this point of view that we must explain the great 
 perfection of English painting in the eighteenth century; 
 the time of Wilson in landscape, of Gainsborough and 
 
 240 
 
Fig. 159.— Portrait of Col. Epes Sargent, by John Singleton Copley. Photo- 
 graphed for this work at the Columbian Exposition, by permission 
 of Mrs. George H. Clements. 
 
2^2 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Reynolds, Lawrence and Romney in portraits, of Hogarth 
 in caricature, of George Morland in farm scenes and the 
 like, as compared with earlier English obscurity in the 
 matter of great painters (p. i8i). So again it is at the 
 close of the eighteenth century that we find the dawning 
 genius of early American painters, like Copley and Gil- 
 bert Stuart, again in dependence on an inspiration and 
 style of earlier English origin. The revival of art in 
 England belongs, however, to a time, that of the later 
 eighteenth century, when northern Europe in general was 
 beginning to assert its independence of Italian Renaissance 
 influences in a way which I must now describe. The 
 sketch of the later course of the history of art, after the 
 middle of the eighteenth century, moves properly from the 
 history of Renaissance sculpture as just concluded in my 
 last chapter, because it was in sculpture that the art de- 
 cadence of the early eighteenth century was most clearly 
 visible, and because it was in the study of ancient Greek 
 sculpture as contrasted with this decadence that modern 
 art began its new career. 
 
 Sculpture had been the art in which decadence was most 
 apparent because the picturesque and sentimental tastes of 
 the later Renaissance were least adapted to its proper 
 conditions of dignity and repose. Architecture was re- 
 strained by its dimensions and serious practical problems 
 from sinning invariably as it did frequently, but we have 
 given examples of its mistakes of profusion of ornament, 
 and of lack of sense for construction (Fig. 51 and pp. 97- 
 102). 
 
 We have also found that the seventeenth century pro- 
 duced its greatest school of painting in a country (Hol- 
 land) whose religion, location, and history were most 
 remote to that of Renaissance Italy. Still, Renaissance 
 
The Greek Revival of the Eighteenth Century, 243 
 
 painting was the art which held to its best for the longest 
 time and which never entirely sacrificed its greatness. Its 
 ascendency and relative perfection as compared with later 
 Renaissance architecture and sculpture are marked, and we 
 should not be far from the heart of the matter in saying 
 that the defects of thesfe arts for the given time were largely 
 due to a pictorial influence and tendency not befitting their 
 necessary dignity. 
 
 If we should go still deeper in attempting to explain 
 the gradual decline of art, it would be by saying that the 
 intellectual inspiration of the Renaissance had exhausted its 
 subject matter. Italy had risen from the study of Roman 
 history and Latin literature to greatness, but in the middle 
 of the eighteenth century Europe had subsisted on the fruits 
 of Italian thought and energy for at least two hundred 
 years. A new force and a new center of activity, new 
 thoughts and new interests were needed. 
 
 In the history of governments we see how the system 
 of early modern history had grown decrepit and weak, 
 how the despotic monarchies of the eighteenth century had 
 lost their former hold on popular favor and support. Just 
 as the French Revolution at the close of the eighteenth 
 century was an explosion of protest against a fossil stage of 
 government, so the intellectual thought of Europe had its 
 revival just preceding, which in fact resulted in this political 
 explosion. 
 
 The turning point in the history of Renaissance and 
 modern art is the revolution in taste caused by the revived 
 study of Greek literature after 1750. We have seen that 
 the Greek men of letters, driven into Italy by the Turkish 
 conquest of the Byzantine Empire in the fifteenth century, 
 spread and cultivated the study of Greek in Italy. But 
 these studies were crippled by the social and political dis- 
 
244 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 asters which came to notice in our account of Michael 
 Angelo (p. 223) and of the decHne of the historic Renais- 
 sance (p. 37). 
 
 The older social aristocracies of Italy which had culti- 
 vated these studies were now ruined and dispersed. The 
 Catholic Church Reformation, which accompanied the 
 Protestant reform, took alarm at the pagan and infidel 
 tendencies which the intellectual worship of paganism was 
 supposed to have caused, and it was in the Greek circles of 
 Italy that these tendencies had been manifest. 
 
 To the changed attitude of the Roman Church was 
 added a still more important cause — the natural tastes and 
 predispositions of the mass of Italians in favor of Latin, 
 and the ease with which they could learn it, through its 
 connection with their own tongue. To these various causes 
 we may attribute the decline in the estimation of the 
 Greek authors and the general indifference to them which 
 became the rule throughout Europe. 
 
 In spite of exceptions and some apparent contradictions, 
 Greek studies were mainly ignored in the seventeenth cen- 
 tury and during the first half of the eighteenth century. At 
 this time there was only one university in Germany having 
 a professorship in Greek — the University of Gottingen. 
 
 The father of the Greek Revival, John Winckelmann, 
 who was in early life too poor to buy many books, had not 
 been able up to the time when he was thirty years old 
 even to borrow a copy of Sophocles. No edition of Plato 
 had been published in Europe at this time since the year 
 1602. No Greek authors had been published in Germany 
 for one hundred and fifty years. No school books for 
 the study of Greek were available when Winckelmann, 
 as schoolmaster at Seehausen, introduced the study of 
 Greek into his school. He was obliged to write out texts 
 
The Greek Revival of the Eighteenth Century. 245 
 
 for his scholars — these manuscripts are still in existence. 
 
 Leading French critics did not hesitate to ridicule the 
 Greeks. One of them (P^rrault) compared Homer to the 
 ballads of the street singers of Paris, Voltaire declared 
 the ^neid to be superior to all the Greek authors taken 
 together. Such were the general results of the attitude of 
 the later Renaissance and of its enthusiasm for Roman 
 antiquity and Latin literature. The neglect of Greek may 
 possibly be less apparent in England, which country was 
 most exterior to the influence of the later Renaissance and 
 its prejudices, but Macaulay has contributed valuable hints 
 on this matter of English neglect of Greek, in his essay on 
 Addison.* 
 
 All this was changed by the epoch-making life of Winck- 
 elmann, who rose from a position of extreme poverty and 
 obscurity to be the leading antiquarian and art critic of 
 Europe. It was not till the year 1755, when he began 
 his residence at Rome that any indication of this distinction 
 became apparent, and he had already reached the age of 
 thirty-eight. In the following thirteen years he did work 
 which revolutionized the taste and art of Europe. 
 
 It was a time before the foundation of the later museums 
 of the North and when the antique statues were almost 
 exclusively confined to Rome. Here they were supposed 
 to be works representing Roman history and civilization 
 and explaining Latin literature. Strange as it may seem, 
 Winckelmann's announcement of the existence of a Greek 
 art as perpetuated by Roman copies was a complete 
 revelation to his age, which was quite ignorant of the 
 originals subsequently brought from Greece to northern 
 
 *The most important authority is the German author Carl Justi, "Das Leben 
 Winckelmannes." For the ultimate Renaissance neglect of Greek studies in Italy, 
 see also Jacob Burckhardt's " Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy." 
 
246 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 Europe like the Parthenon marbles of the British Museum. 
 
 This announcement was not made suddenly or ostenta- 
 tiously, but by a series of reversals of interpretations of the 
 ancient statues in Rome, which had been given interpreta- 
 tions based on Latin literature and Roman history. 
 
 To this reversal of the older Italian interpretations of 
 the statues Winckelmann added a new point of view in their 
 criticism. In the early Renaissance it had been the real- 
 istic study of natural form which had interested the Italian. 
 
 The ancient statues 
 which the Italian es- 
 pecially admired were 
 those few in which the 
 anatomic details were 
 most exaggerated. 
 These were shown by 
 Winckelmann to be 
 works of the Greek 
 decadence. 
 
 On the other hand, 
 the taste of the eigh- 
 teenth and seventeenth 
 centuries for exagger- 
 ated, ostentatious, and 
 theatrical art had en- 
 tirely overlooked the 
 virtues of repose and 
 simplicity in the works 
 which Winckelmann now proved to be simply Roman 
 copies of lost Greek originals. Still farther he specified 
 the various historic styles within the limits of Greek art 
 and gave their proper rank to the conceptions of the fifth 
 century before Christ, the period of Phidias. 
 
 Fig. 160. — Ganymede, by Thorwaldsen. 
 Copenhagen. 
 
The Greek Revival of the Eighteenth Century, 247 
 
 These points were first made known to the world in 
 Winckelmann's History of Art, pubhshed in 1764. The 
 effect of this pubHcation was electrical. In proving the 
 Roman statues to be copies of Greek originals a new 
 conception was involved of the general origin of Roman 
 civilization and Latin 
 literature. It was no 
 longer possible to es- 
 teem the Latin authors 
 above the Greeks when 
 these were seen to have 
 been the models fol- 
 lowed by the Romans. 
 
 Thus the study of 
 ancient sculpture re- 
 acted on the study of 
 ancient literature. The 
 Greek authors sud- 
 denly became fashion- 
 able. The impulse thus 
 given by Winckelmann 
 was aided by Lessing, 
 who published, in 
 
 1766, his Essay on Fig. 161— Detail from the Perseus, by Canova. 
 
 Laocoon/^ critically 
 
 establishing the superiority of Homer and lowering the 
 position which had been awarded the French critics and 
 dramatists of the eighteenth century. 
 
 Now came the influence, first on Germany, and then on all 
 Europe, of the German poets Goethe and Schiller and their 
 followers, who stood on the platform established by Winck- 
 elmann and Lessing and owed their own greatness to the 
 \nspiration drawn from the Greek literature. The whole of 
 
248 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Europe was now permeated by a new antique fever re- 
 sembling the Renaissance and known as the Greek Re- 
 vival, or Philhellenic movement. 
 
 The influence on modern art was phenomenal. Even in 
 clocks and furniture no style of design was now tolerated 
 but imitation of the Greeks. The Renaissance style of 
 architecture was combated by another which appealed to 
 the constructional principles of the Greek temples as con- 
 trasted with the ornamental and unstructural use of Greek 
 
 where copied and applied to modern buildings. Many 
 were even made in direct imitation of the shape of the 
 Greek temples, as numerous churches and public buildings 
 still attest. 
 
 By the last quarter of the eighteenth century the Greek 
 Revival was the most pronounced feature of European 
 history. Even politics showed this influence and the 
 revolutions in both France and America were largely in- 
 
 forms borrowed by 
 Italy from the Romans. 
 
 Fig. 162.— The Angel of Death. Detail of the 
 Tomb of Clement XIII. in St. Peter's. 
 By Canova. 
 
 In practice the two 
 styles were, however, 
 frequently amalga- 
 mated, for not all 
 architects were capable 
 of sharing the literary 
 enthusiasms of the new 
 movement. Still a 
 pronounced simplicity 
 in architectural forms 
 was a feature of the 
 Greek Revival, and the 
 Greek porticoes and 
 colonnades were every- 
 
The Greek Revival of the Eighteenth Century. 249 
 
 spired by an ideal of republican institutions drawn from 
 the study of Plutarch's ''Lives," which was the most 
 popular book of the time. In ladies' dress the style now 
 known as that of the ' ' Directory, ' ' and represented by the 
 short-waisted ladies' dress of the time of the American 
 Revolution, came into vogue as a copy of Greek simplicity. 
 In music the subjects of Gluck's Operas are a reminder of 
 the same enthusiasms. 
 
 In statuary the same movement was equally visible. 
 The theatrical and sentimental style of sculpture was aban- 
 doned and a new one was founded, based upon an external 
 imitation of Greek art. In this taste the Italian Canova 
 and the Dane Thorwaldsen, long resident at Rome, were 
 the first and most prominent lights, and the imitation of the 
 Greeks in sculpture is only in recent years beginning to 
 yield to a more original and truly modern style. In this 
 recent movement the sculptors of the United States are 
 among the foremost, and taken in mass have probably 
 achieved the best results of modern sculpture. 
 
 In painting the classical spirit also showed itself, and 
 its first leading light was the Frenchman David, a con- 
 temporary of the French Revolution and of the times of 
 Bonaparte. In this art, however, the first and most obvi- 
 ous result of the Greek Revival was a return of appreciation 
 for the period of Raphael, whose virtues of repose and 
 simplicity were parallel in painting to the same qualities 
 of the Greek sculpture. In other words, the results in 
 painting were more apparent in a changed standard of 
 appreciation toward old Italian art than in a new style of 
 modern painting. 
 
CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 ARCHITECTURE OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 
 
 The period of the Greek Revival, which continued in full 
 vigor through the first quarter of the nineteenth century, 
 was subsequently antagonized and partially displaced by a 
 new movement of historic studies and literary tastes which 
 turned once more to the appreciation of the Middle Age. 
 
 The prejudice against the art and culture of the Middle 
 Age, which had coined the word ' ' Gothic, ' ' was of Italian 
 origin — as we have seen (p. 56). No stronger illustration 
 could be given of the duration and ascendency throughout 
 Europe of the Renaissance than the contempt for the old 
 cathedrals, which lasted till the close of the eighteenth cen- 
 tury. 
 
 The Greek Revival continued to hold this attitude of in- 
 difference and contempt, but it developed, as we have seen, 
 a new school of German literature. In the great revolt of 
 Germany against the ascendency of Bonaparte, which 
 marked the first fifteen years of the nineteenth century, a 
 feeling of national patriotism, cultivated by this literature 
 and by this revolt, began to rise superior to the jealousies 
 which had so far divided and estranged the petty states and 
 principalities of Germany. Proud of their own great 
 authors, musical composers, and men of science, the 
 Germans turned to the study of their own past, and the 
 greatness of this past was found to lie in the period when 
 all Europe had been Germanized and conquered by Ger- 
 mans — when the feudal system had developed from Ger- 
 
 25Q 
 
Architecture of the Nineteenth Century. 251 
 
 manic institutions; when Charlemagne had reconsolidated 
 Europe; when the Saxon, Franconian, and Hohenstaufen 
 emperors had been the leaders of their day; when the 
 League of the Hansa had created the commerce and 
 fostered the industries of northeastern Europe. 
 
 Thus the German became the first historic student of the 
 long despised period of the Middle Ages. The Greek 
 Revival had given him the consciousness of national exist- 
 ence through its influence on the creation of a national 
 literature. This literature then turned the thoughts of the 
 people to the study of their own history and their own 
 past. 
 
 The Gothic Revival was thus as a literary and historic 
 study gathering force in Germany through the first quarter 
 of the nineteenth century. Then it burst its national 
 barriers and spread through Europe. France and Eng- 
 land, no less than Germany, turned attention to their own 
 medieval past. This movement is especially represented 
 for England by the romances of Sir Walter Scott, which 
 were the first works of English literature to draw attention 
 to the Middle Ages. 
 
 All this reacted on the exterior forms of modern art. 
 The cathedrals which the ^'Spectator" of Addison had 
 held up to ridicule, which the cultivated Evelyn had stigma- 
 tized as "only Gothic,"* which Winckelmann had con- 
 sidered unworthy of notice, and which even Lessing had 
 neglected, were now exalted at the expense of Roman 
 buildings and Greek temples as the models of all modern 
 architectural forms. 
 
 Meantime both Renaissance and Greek details continued 
 to hold their own in that traditional use which did not 
 readily yield to the new crusade of the historians and men 
 
 * See Evelyn's "Diary," time of Charles II. of England. 
 
252 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 of letters. The field of church architecture, at least, how- 
 ever, was fully conquered by the Gothic. It would be 
 difficult to specify a church built in Europe or America 
 about or after 1850 which did not exhibit the Gothic style. 
 
 To this style succeeded copies of the Romanesque* and 
 Italian Gothic. The Romanesque, as being earlier than 
 
 Gothic, and the Italian 
 
 Gothic, as more re- 
 mote from the first 
 modern students of 
 the Gothic in northern 
 Europe, had at first at- 
 tracted less attention. 
 As the knowledge of 
 medieval architecture 
 became wider and more 
 general, these remoter 
 or earlier styles were 
 also drawn upon as 
 models for copy. 
 
 Meantime the at- 
 tention of historic 
 students and critics 
 
 Fig. 163— Houses of Parliament, London. VCCrcd from an CU- 
 By Barry. Gothic Revival. thusiastic admiration 
 
 for the beauty of the old monuments to a critical appreci- 
 ation of their common sense in construction. This appre- 
 ciation again naturally called attention to the new problems 
 of construction in modern architecture and the inadvisa- 
 bility of thrusting a common-sense ancient mode of 
 construction on a modern building with different require- 
 ments and character. 
 
 ♦ Compare " Roman and Medieval Art." 
 
Architecture of the Nineteenth Century, 
 
 253 
 
 This new point of view was much assisted by the Decora- 
 tive Art movement which gradually developed in England 
 after the Crystal Palace Exposition of 1851. The leading 
 idea of this movement under its original leaders was to 
 make ornament the emphasis and exponent of construction. 
 This idea had again been evolved principally from the study 
 of the Gothic, but was seen to be equally supported by the 
 principles of the original Greek monuments. 
 
 Whereas the Greek Revival had insisted on the construc- 
 tional use of Greek forms as against the Renaissance, but 
 had continued to regard the classic details as the exclusive 
 models of imitation, the ultimate outcome of the Gothic 
 revival was the tendency to abjure any use of historic style 
 of any period which did not harmonize with the common- 
 sense uses and purposes of the modern time. But it was 
 difficult and impossible to create a modern style out of 
 nothing, with no antecedents and no traditions. Such an 
 out-and-out original creation was never known to history 
 where evolution has always been the mode of change. 
 
 In this dilemma between the theories of the professors, 
 who taught that constructive truth was the only standard of 
 taste as applied to form, and the habits of the modern 
 architect, who had never since 1500 done anything but 
 borrow his details from historic styles — the ' ' Italian Gothic" 
 and ' ' Romanesque, ' ' for the time being, offered an obvious 
 compromise. Both were styles in which the effects of 
 masonry surface had been undisturbed by projecting but- 
 tresses or projecting ''engaged columns." As far as 
 masonry construction was concerned, here were styles, so- 
 called, which were adapted to any modern building. The 
 decorative details were medieval, instead of classic — this 
 was a matter of indifference or of personal taste as long as 
 they were not allowed to determine constructional forms. 
 
254 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 In modern ''Italian Gothic" and "Romanesque" we 
 have had a compromise between the general dependence 
 of modern architecture on past models, and the reaction 
 against the purely literary and archaeologic imitation of 
 
 Gothic cathedrals, or 
 the expensive and gen- 
 erally worn-out forms 
 of the traditional Re- 
 naissance, or the ex- 
 pensive and frequently 
 unnecessary colon- 
 nades of the Greeks. 
 
 Side by side with this 
 movement and slightly 
 later in time came the 
 so-called ' 'Queen 
 Anne" and "Colonial" 
 styles, which were es- 
 pecially applied to 
 country houses and 
 suburban residences, 
 whereas the Italian 
 Gothic and Roman- 
 esque, as exclusively 
 masonry and not timber styles, had been more confined 
 to the cities. 
 
 In these last revivals we see partly the swinging back of 
 the pendulum toward the Renaissance under which ' ' Colo- 
 nial" and "Queen Anne" must be included, but Re- 
 naissance of a simpler class, less pretentious, and with 
 details of greater beauty than had survived in the purely 
 traditional forms of brownstone fronts and American gov- 
 ernment buildings. Recurrence to our remarks on Dutch 
 
 Fig. 164.— Courthouse and Jail of Pittsburg. 
 By H. H. Richardson. Romanesque 
 Revival. 
 
Architecture of the Nineteenth Century, 255 
 
 buildings of the seventeenth century will assist this explana- 
 tion (p. 104). Otherwise, ^'Queen Anne" and ''Colonial" 
 may be explained as an appreciation of fashion for the pictur- 
 esque and common-sense construction of the given periods, 
 and both styles, so-called, as well as Italian Gothic and 
 Romanesque, have been convenient cloaks for architects in- 
 tent on solving modern problems in their own way — without 
 caring to make martyrs of themselves by explaining to 
 their patrons that it makes very little difference what old 
 name may be given a modern building. In all these vary- 
 ing currents and eddies of the hour, we can still see in our 
 own country the steady movement of a great nation toward 
 the assertion of its own needs and character and the reali- 
 zation of its own opportunities. 
 
CHAPTER XXXI. 
 
 SCULPTURE IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. 
 
 Of all arts of the nineteenth century, sculpture is the 
 one which longest retained and exhibited the influences 
 dating from the later half of the eighteenth century. Only 
 
 in quite recent years 
 has it begun to shake 
 off the imitative quality 
 which the Greek Re- 
 vival had stamped upon 
 it. The reasons for 
 this are obvious. The 
 pre-eminence of the 
 Greeks in sculpture is 
 so unquestioned and 
 the fame of their works 
 so great, that all later 
 art must bow before it. 
 When the influences of 
 literary fashion and 
 historic interest were 
 added to the weight of 
 the technical superi- 
 ority and artistic value, 
 the inevitable result, for 
 the time being, was 
 imitation. This im- 
 
 FiG. 165.— Teucer, by Hamo Thornycroft. (See 
 Fig. 169.) Photographed, by permission, for 
 this work, at the Columbian Exposition. 
 
 itation being the rage in general, the art in which the 
 Greek was most admired experienced the result most 
 
 256 
 
Sculpture in the NiJieteenth Century, 257 
 
 sensibly. Thus, to the period of Thorwaldsen, the im- 
 itation of Greek sculpture appeared to be a necessary 
 consequence of its admitted superiority. The modern 
 copyists overlooked, however, the point that the Greeks 
 had not reached their 
 greatness in sculpture 
 by studying statues. 
 Although they had 
 idealized nature, they 
 had always based their 
 art upon it. One de- 
 fect of the Greek Re- 
 viva 1 statuary was , 
 consequently, a cold 
 and formal quality — 
 resulting from the habit 
 of studying statues as 
 distinct from the study 
 of living nature. It 
 should be added, too, 
 that little was known in 
 the late eighteenth and 
 early nineteenth cen- 
 turies of the vigor and 
 life of original Greek art. The models followed had been 
 mainly those of the Roman period. It was not till the 
 year 1816 that the British government agreed to purchase 
 the Elgin Marbles, although they had then been in London 
 for nine years. 
 
 After the time of Canova the Italian sculpture sank into 
 insignificance. The Greek School was meantime headed 
 for northern Europe by the names of the English John 
 Gibson and the German Dannecker. In both these artists 
 
 Fig, 166.— Bronze Equestrian Statue of Frederick 
 the Great. By Rauch. Berlin (1851). 
 
258 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 we notice the deficiency of vigorous modeling peculiar to 
 the imitative Greek School, Canova and Thorwaldsen in- 
 cluded. The lack of differentiation in execution between 
 details and bodily forms was also a weakness — a weakness 
 never found in the antique art which was supposed to be 
 imitated. An over-delicate finish of surface and refine- 
 ment in representing textures have not been confined to the 
 Greek Revival, and still impair the value of a great deal 
 of more recent sculpture, but this deficiency appears most 
 objectionable when the pretense of idealism is suggested. 
 We must concede, on the other hand, to the modern Greek 
 Revival, nobility of purpose, refinement of thought, and an 
 absence of those glaring offenses to good taste in the way 
 of extravagant and pretentious poses and conceptions which 
 
 had been the almost 
 universal rule in late 
 Renaissance sculpture. 
 This point will appear 
 if the reader will com- 
 pare its illustrations 
 with those for Thor- 
 waldsen and Canova. 
 
 On the whole, the 
 German sculptors 
 Ranch and Kiss repre- 
 sent the highest level 
 of success for the first 
 half of the nineteenth century. Both of these artists had 
 risen to independent mastery of form and independent rep- 
 resentation of it. Ranch's great monument of Frederick 
 the Great in Berlin is the finest of its kind in Europe. The 
 Amazon, by Kiss, fronting the entrance to the Berlin 
 Museum, is one of the most powerful of modern works. 
 
 Fig, 167. — Andromeda. Design for the Gates of 
 Hell. (Dante's Inferno.) By Rodin. Photo- 
 graphed, by permission, for this work, 
 at the Columbian Exposition. 
 
Sculpture in the Nineteenth Century, 
 
 259 
 
 In more recent years the credit of shaking off the tram- 
 mels of imitative Grecianizing sculpture belongs especially 
 to the artists of France, and in this movement the influence 
 of the early Renaissance, as nearer to our own time than 
 the Greek in its attitude toward nature, had no small share. 
 Among these French artists we may mention Carpeaux, 
 
 Fig. 168.— Cast of a Lion, by Barye. Trocadero Museum, Paris. 
 
 Falguiere, and the isolated and powerful genius of Rodin. 
 For uncompromising realism, sense of character, and pow- 
 erful and bold summary of the essentials of form (as dis- 
 tinct from minute and over-anxious specializing of details) 
 the French sculptor Barye has no superior in modern art. 
 His devotion to the field of animal sculpture may be con- 
 sidered a limitation when the element of thought in art is 
 given its place, but this colossal genius was able to find a 
 field in animals which did not expose him to the prejudices 
 and preoccupations of modern amateurs so long accus- 
 tomed in figure design to the imitation of classic art. The 
 
26o Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 name of Cain stands only second to Barye in the same field. 
 
 Among the most powerful and original English sculptors 
 of the new school are Hamo Thornycroft and Sir Frederick 
 Leighton. Sir Frederick Leighton's statue of The Slug- 
 gard," exhibited at the Columbian Exposition, must have 
 been a revelation to all who have known him simply as a 
 painter. It ranks among the very first works of modern 
 sculpture in the last four centuries. The same must be said 
 of Thornycroft' s * ' Teucer, ' ^ which is one of the treasures 
 of the Art Institute of Chicago, and one of the finest works 
 of foreign sculpture owned in this country. It is not, how- 
 ever, advisable to enlarge the catalogue of works even at the 
 risk of omitting those of men of genius. The main point is 
 to state the tendency which the last twenty-five years have 
 everywhere exhibited — the tendency to learn principles of 
 execution from the Greeks, without borrowing their subjects 
 or imitating the exterior appearance of their art. Modern 
 art for moderns, is the watchword at last. 
 
 To this tendency the younger sculptors of America have 
 been especially influenced by the teachings of the best 
 French masters, and under the inspiration of this tuition 
 have risen to a point of greatness where they have become 
 their worthy rivals. In fact, when we distinguish the tech- 
 nical ability in which the French have been especially 
 eminent, from the thought, conception, and purpose of the 
 art, the palm may even now be awarded to American 
 sculpture. In this distinction we do not wish to imply any 
 technical inferiority in the American School, but rather to 
 refrain from asserting for it a superiority of simple execution 
 and to claim for it by contrast the superiority of a more 
 genuine, original spirit, and of a fresher and purer Inspira- 
 tion. We can only say that no opportunity has ever been 
 offered modern sculpture like that assigned it in the statuary 
 
Sculpture in the Nineteenth Century, 261 
 
 for the buildings and grounds at the Columbian Exposition, 
 and that American artists rose to the occasion and were 
 equal to it. Nor should we overlook in this assertion the 
 foreign birth of some of the gentlemen who bore away great 
 honors, or appear to be ignorant of their share in the great 
 success achieved. We can at least lay claim to the honor 
 that they have made 
 America their second 
 and adopted home, and 
 that their genius found 
 its recognition here. 
 
 In the earlier years 
 of this century and the 
 earlier days of Ameri- 
 can sculpture, the name 
 of Hiram Powers long 
 held sway as the leading 
 one. To-day we must 
 confess that our interest 
 in him is historical and 
 that he is the weakest 
 of all Greek imitators 
 who have achieved a 
 name. That he was 
 the first of American 
 sculptors to make a 
 name must be con- 
 ceded. His ability did 
 not go farther than that 
 of making a weak imitation of the Medici Venus, with 
 deviations of pose and attitude sufficient to allow of a new 
 baptism. His Greek Slave," known in several copies, 
 had a world-wide reputation about the middle of this 
 
 Fig. 169. — Teucer, by Hamo Thornycroft. Prop- 
 erty of the Art Institute of Chicago. Pho- 
 tographed, by permission, for this work, 
 at the Columbian Exposition. 
 
262 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 century — when critics were less exacting than they are 
 to-day. The names of Crawford (bronze doors of the 
 Capitol at Washington) and Palmer, possibly less quoted 
 than Hiram Powers, will stand far higher. In the days 
 following the Civil War the statuette groups of John Rogers 
 had a popularity which they have not yet entirely lost. 
 They do not claim to be more than pictures in clay, but, 
 making all concessions to the humility of size and purpose, 
 we must still refrain from awarding praise to these groups. 
 Deficiency in dignity should not alone condemn a small and 
 unpretentious group or statuette, but these works are a 
 dangerous concession to the taste which looks to the imita- 
 tion of textures and the representation of anecdotes and 
 incidents by plastic art. The statue of Lincoln, by Rogers, 
 seen at the Columbian Exposition, is a serious and important 
 work of the first class. To judge from this statue, his little 
 groups have been one of those concessions of the bread- 
 winner to popular taste, of which modern art is, unhappily, 
 so full. It is useless to criticise an artist in such matters, 
 where only the public is to blame. 
 
 Toward the close of the third quarter of our century the 
 names of Launt Thompson and J. Q. A. Ward were prob- 
 ably the most important. The dignity, reserve, and sim- 
 plicity of Thompson's work have been universally recog- 
 nized. His portrait statues of Yale, at New Haven, and 
 of Bonaparte, in the Museum of New York, will long hold 
 their own. John Quincy Ward is the great father of recent 
 American sculpture, and his bronze statue of Henry Ward 
 Beecher, in Brooklyn, proves that his talent is still young 
 in these later years. All of Ward's works are careful, 
 exact, and conscientious studies. His Beecher is an in- 
 spiration. 
 
 We come then to the latest, best, and youngest gener- 
 
Fig. 170.— Bronze Group. Charles Dickens and Little Nell, by F. Edwin Elwell. 
 Published by permission of the Artist. 
 
264 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 ation of American sculptors, headed by Augustus St. 
 Gaudens, Olin Warner, and Daniel C. French, names of 
 such distinction that to praise them is superfluous and to 
 criticise them impossible or impertinent. What younger 
 artists will wrench their laurels from them is uncertain, but 
 Potter, Partridge, and Boyle, Taft, Rubisso, and Mac- 
 Monnies, Dalin, Proctor, and Kemeys, Adams, Kitson, and 
 
 Donoghue, Tilden, 
 Wesselhoeft, Barriett, 
 Grafly, and Elwell are 
 among the number of 
 their rivals. 
 
 Of all modern por- 
 trait statues of authors 
 the ^ ' Dickens and Lit- 
 tle Nell'' of Mr. Edwin 
 F. Elwell appears to 
 me the most inspired. 
 The thought of con- 
 necting an author with 
 his favorite creation, of 
 calling to life the phan- 
 tom of the brain, of 
 showing at once the 
 author and his work in 
 spiritual sympathy and 
 union is an original and 
 beautiful idea. Mr. Elwell' s colossal Hancock, designed for 
 the battlefield of Gettysburg, is one of the most important 
 equestrian monuments of modern history. 
 
 Among the portrait statues of American Colonial heroes 
 and statesmen there is surely none to rival the Hamilton of 
 Wm. Ordway Partridge, in Brooklyn. As the ideal of an 
 
 F:g. 171.— Bronze Statue of Henry Ward Beecher, 
 Brooklyn. By J. Q. A. Ward. 
 
Fig. 172— Bronze Statue of Hamilton, Brooklyn. By William Ordway Partridge 
 Published by permission of the Artist. 
 
266 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 orator it appears to me the most successful work in modern 
 art. It is the great fortune of Mr. Partridge to have a 
 practical knowledge of the art of the dramatist and of 
 elocution. The combination in his Hamilton of statuesque 
 reserve with the suggestion of the spirited effort of a great 
 spokesman is a marvelous success. The Shakespeare of 
 Mr. Partridge, in Lincoln Park, Chicago, is a refined and 
 dignified work of masterly detail. 
 
 In the preparations for the Columbian Exposition the su- 
 
 FiG. 173,— Landscape Group, by E. C. Potter and Daniel C. French, 
 Columbian Exposition. 
 
 preme task was assigned to Mr. Daniel C. French — a colos- 
 sal statue of the ' ' Republic. ' ' The failure would have been 
 colossal, the success must be equally rated. With every 
 increase of dimension in statuary its problem becomes 
 more difficult. To say that this problem was solved with 
 beauty, with originality, with simplicity, and with dignity 
 
Sculpture in the Nineteenth Century. 267 
 
 is saying what no one can deny. For the given place 
 and given architectural surroundings to which the equally 
 balanced and equally 
 uplifted arms exactly 
 corresponded, this has 
 proved the most suc- 
 cessful colossal work of 
 modern sculpture. Its 
 most obvious rivals 
 would be the ''Lib- 
 erty" of New York 
 harbor, the ''Bavaria" 
 in Munich, by Schwan- 
 thaler, and the ' ' Her- 
 mann's Denkmal,'* 
 or monument of Ar- 
 
 FlG. 
 
 174.— Statue of the Republic. 
 By Daniel C. French. 
 
 minius, near Detmold in Germany, and none of these can 
 be called its equal. Mr. French's relief for the tomb of a 
 
 sculptor, called ' ' The 
 Angel of Death and 
 the Sculptor," was ex- 
 hibited in the Art Pal- 
 ace at the Columbian 
 Exposition. Since the 
 tomb reliefs of ancient 
 Athens the works are 
 few indeed which could 
 compare with it. 
 
 For the statuary 
 groups of the Court of 
 Honor, Mr. French 
 and Mr. Potter have 
 already received a trib- 
 
 FlG. 175. — Sea Horses, 
 by MacMonnies. 
 
 Detail from the Fountain 
 Columbian Exposition. 
 
268 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 ute of appreciation to which I can only add my own. No 
 similar works of modern history are deserving of equal place, 
 and I can see no reason for suggesting that antiquity sur- 
 
 FiG. 176.— Mounted Indian, by Proctor. Facing the Transportation 
 Building, Columbian Exposition. 
 
 passed them. It should be added that their material, al- 
 though perishable, was contributory to this success. The 
 weakness of modern sculpture lies in its lack of constant 
 practice with the chisel. The manual labor of cutting the 
 block of marble has been so constantly assigned to subordi- 
 nate workmen that the mastery of chisel technique is more 
 or less wanting to the modern sculptor. It is when his own 
 model can be direcUy transferred to cast in a material like 
 ''staff," or actually worked up in this material, whose 
 
Sculpture in the Nineteenth Century. 
 
 269 
 
 rough surface is favorable to large effects, that the genius of 
 the modern artist best stands comparison with his rivals of 
 antiquity. 
 
 In the application of statuary to architectural decoration 
 the use of this material again allowed the artists of the 
 Columbian Exposition to achieve a scale and amount of 
 decoration hitherto unknown, at least since the time of the 
 Romans, and again they were equal to the occasion. No 
 works of the kind in modern art can be compared with those 
 achieved by Mr. Carl Bitter and Mr. Martiny for the Ad- 
 
 FiG. 177.— Aerial Navigation, by John J. Boyle. Transportation Building, 
 Columbian Exposition. 
 
 ministration and Agricultural buildings. The works of Mr. 
 Boyle and Mr. Taft on the Transportation and Horticul- 
 tural buildings are also deserving of great praise. The 
 
270 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 Indian of Mr. Boyle, in Lincoln Park, Chicago, is his great 
 masterpiece. 
 
 In our account of the artistic triumphs of the Columbian 
 Exposition we have also to mention the masterly animal 
 sculptures of Mr. Proctor and Mr. Kemeys with which the 
 grounds were filled. The Buffalo Hunt of Mr. Bush-Brown, 
 which was a central piece of the Art Palace, shows him a 
 
 finished master in the 
 
 same specialty. Men- 
 tion of the great foun- 
 tain of the Court of 
 Honor, by Frederick 
 MacMonnies, may close 
 our effort to do justice 
 to the almost inex- 
 haustible list of master- 
 pieces offered by the 
 Columbian Exposition. 
 The sea-horses sur- 
 rounding its ' 'triumph- 
 al barge" have never 
 had their superiors. 
 
 The most generally 
 quoted masterpiece of 
 Augustus St. Gaudens 
 is the bronze statue of 
 Abraham Lincoln in 
 Lincoln Park, Chicago. 
 Its uncompromising and honest realism appeals to every 
 eye. On the other hand, the reliefs of this master are of 
 ideal and classic beauty. In fact it is hard to see where 
 parallels can be found for the recent relief work of several 
 American sculptors short of the fifteenth century. Several 
 
 Fig. 178.— Bronze Statue of Abraham Lincoln. 
 By Augustus St. Gaudens. Lincoln 
 Park, Chicago. 
 
Sculpture in the Nineteenth Century. 271 
 
 of them are unquestionably superior to Thorwaldsen, as 
 being of fresher and more genuine spirit and not deficient 
 in equal beauty of composition. 
 
 In the application of color to works of sculpture, Mr. 
 Herbert Adams is foremost among American artists, as 
 known to me. Since the time of John Gibson no im- 
 portant work has previously been done in this direction. 
 That of Mr. Adams is tender and beautiful. In face of 
 such work the prejudice against colored sculpture is des- 
 tined to disappear rapidly. 
 
CHAPTER XXXII. 
 
 ENGLISH AND FRENCH PAINTING. 
 
 Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. 
 
 The painting of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth 
 centuries did not for Europe at large rise above a rather weak 
 reflex of the contemporary movement in literature and in 
 the sister arts. It threw off the last vestige of eighteenth 
 century traits, but did not rise above negative virtues in the 
 main. It was praiseworthy rather for what it did not do 
 than for what it did do. Its great progress was that it had 
 learned to reverence the best Italians, rather than the worst — 
 but the very greatness and unapproachable excellence of 
 the newly admired and greatest Old Masters exercised for 
 the time a crippling influence on its efforts. It could not 
 resurrect the Italian art, and it could not assimilate it to 
 modern uses. Modern painting was appreciative but not 
 creative. 
 
 The most important revival in the art of figure compo- 
 sition was that of the German Cornelius (frescoes in 
 Munich) and of Kaulbach (frescoes in the Berlin Museum), 
 but neither these artists nor any of their contemporary 
 countrymen were able to reach a corresponding success in 
 warmth or harmony of color. The later artists of Munich, 
 headed by Piloty, were the first among Germans to reach 
 relative success in color. These again were followed by the 
 first and only German who has approached the gorgeous 
 and sumptuous color of the old Venetians, the Viennese 
 Hans Makart. 
 
 272 
 
English and French Painting, 
 
 273 
 
 In France the elegant court life of the eighteenth century- 
 had furnished interesting subjects for the brush of Watteau. 
 At its close Greuze had represented a new school of realism, 
 in which one side of the social revolution was reflected, 
 
 Fig. 179. —Boy Fighting, by Gainsborough. Photographed for this work, 
 by permission of the owner, Mr. Henry T. Chapman, of Brooklyn. 
 
 while David represented the classical tendencies of the same 
 period. The portraits of Gerard have handed down to us 
 many of the great characters of this time in pictures worthy 
 of them. Gros and Gericault were later contemporaries of 
 
274 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 David, in whom a vigorous sense of reality asserts itself, 
 and to these again succeeded Eugene Delacroix, as the 
 artist of passion and of power. 
 
 Meantime a colder classical French School was apparently 
 in the ascendant, clinging to tradition and fearing to con- 
 cede the greatness of the true men of genius silently work- 
 
 Fig. i8o,— Landscape, by Diaz. Photographed for this work, by permission 
 of the owner, Mr. Henry T. Chapman, of Brooklyn. 
 
 ing in obscurity. To these, then more obscure French 
 painters of the years 1 825-1 850 and later, posterity has now 
 rendered full justice, and the names of Corot, of Millet, of 
 Decamps, of Michel, and of Rousseau are on every lip. 
 
 Of the same time, and following the same tendencies, 
 are Dupr6, Troyon, Monticelli, and Diaz. The special bias 
 
English and French Painting, 275 
 
 and excellence of this great French School, dating from the 
 second quarter of the nineteenth century, and the greatest 
 of recent times, are best explained by turning back to Eng- 
 
 FiG. 181— Peasant Woman, by Millet. Photographed for this work, by permission 
 of the owner, Mr. Henry T. Chapman, of Brooklyn. 
 
 land in the eighteenth century, where we shall find the con- 
 necting link between the older art of the Continent and the 
 greatest modern art of France. 
 
276 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 We have seen that England had no painters of renown 
 until the. eighteenth century, and that her two most quoted 
 painters of preceding time were foreigners (p. 181). To 
 her great artists of the eighteenth century, on the other 
 hand, Continental Europe can offer no contemporary rivals; 
 a fact which we can place in proper perspective of history 
 
 Fig. 182,— Landscape, by Corot. Photog^raphed for this work, by permission of 
 the owner, Mr. Henry T. Chapman, of Brooklyn. 
 
 only by understanding the backwardness of English culture 
 before this time, and also the way in which a movement of in- 
 tellect and art passes from one country to another; each fire, 
 as it expires, lighting a new spark for perpetuation elsewhere 
 of the same eternal principles of beauty, of color, and of form. 
 
English and French Painting, 277 
 
 The worthy perpetuators of the older traditions of Euro- 
 pean painting were the EngHsh artists, Wilson, Morland, 
 Reynolds, Gainsborough, and their school. Through these 
 men and their successors, of whom Constable and Etty were 
 closest in method to their great predecessors, these traditions 
 were handed over to the French School, headed by Rous- 
 seau, about 1830, at a time when English fashions were 
 ascendant in France and when these English artists were 
 highly valued and appreciated there. Intermediate in 
 time, between the eighteenth century English and the 1830 
 School of France, stand the English landscape artists. 
 Constable and Turner. It was the pictures and personal 
 influence of Constable which most powerfully and directly 
 influenced the French. 
 
 It is more especially in landscapes that the continuity of 
 influence between the art of Constable and of Rousseau is 
 seen, and in both painters we find the same disposition to 
 look at things in their effects and masses rather than in 
 their details. 
 
 To appreciate the greatness of these men of genius, we 
 must remember that some of the most elementary principles 
 are frequently overlooked by those inferior landscapists and 
 their admirers, whose numbers have been large in our 
 century. It is often forgotten that a picture is several or 
 many thousand times smaller than the nature which it 
 includes. To reduce each dimension and object of nature 
 to the proportionate fractional size, and to show it in the 
 same distinctness in which it might possibly, and when 
 separately examined, be seen in nature, is the effort of the 
 inferior landscapist. In this effort such an artist forgets 
 that simultaneous concentration of the eye on a multitude 
 of separate details is not possible in actual vision. 
 
 Persuasion, belief, and knowledge that these separate 
 
278 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 details have a distinct existence are present to us, but we 
 see a tree and not the leaves, a lake, but not its individual 
 waves, a human being, but not the various portions of the 
 raiment, that is when one glance takes in the whole. The 
 possibility exists, because time allows it, of uniting on a 
 
 Fig. 183. — Landscape, by Claude Lorrain. Photographed for this work by 
 permission of the Owner, Mr. Henry T. Chapman, of Brooklyn. 
 
 canvas surface a series of minimized replicas of the parts 
 which make up a whole in nature. The possibility exists, 
 because the eye can take in the canvas in a few glances or 
 in one, that the eye may take in the parts which make the 
 picture so as to affect the mind with the belief that it sees 
 the whole as it is seen in nature. But the person who 
 knows how he really sees will never be willing to call a 
 work of art in landscape anything which minimizes and 
 
English and French Painti7ig, 279 
 
 emphasizes all its details in fractional proportion and reduc- 
 tion. 
 
 In actuality our eye wanders from instant to instant in 
 order to include a whole. The artist who presents this whole 
 as though the eye were fixed on one point is bound, logically, 
 to present all others in the vague way best described by the 
 appearance of an object we are not looking at, as included 
 in the outer circle of view and as it strikes the outer corner 
 of the eye on the extreme edge of vision. But no artist 
 
 Fig. 184. — Landscape, by Homer Martin. Photographed for this work at 
 the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 could attempt this feat; therefore the problem of the land- 
 scape painter is to present in one view the imaginary 
 result of a series of glances and no one of these will have 
 included a microscopic catalogue of details. 
 
2&0 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 This effort to describe the philosophy of a Claude, a Con- 
 stable, or a Corot, leaves out the element of color, as being 
 mainly undebatable on paper or at least undebatable with- 
 out two definite examples of color in mind, one better and 
 one worse. 
 
 We may again take refuge in this difficulty by describing 
 an inferior art and an inferior taste in color as that which 
 prefers things in pictures more highly colored, or ' ' sweet- 
 ened,'^ than they actually are. For instance, we might 
 
 Fig. 185. — Maine Coast in Winter. Winslow Homer. Photographed for this work 
 at the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist and Owner. 
 
 like to see bootblacks with rosy cheeks or clean faces, but 
 we rarely do in nature, although they more frequently so 
 appear in pictures. One greatness of Millet is that he 
 does not over-color or highly color his peasant. A rough 
 skin and a rough dress cannot be represented by clear or 
 bright colors. 
 
English and French Painting, 281 
 
 The sin of the commonplace painter is dressing up in 
 bright hues and tints an imaginary picture of rose-colored 
 things or people. It does not follow that a color not 
 actually seen in nature is not admissible in a painting. The 
 colors of nature never can be and never are reproduced in 
 a painting either in mass or in details. In details it would 
 be absurd to attempt it, for reasons already given. In 
 mass the effort is simply beyond possibility when we are 
 speaking of absolute actualities. What the great painter 
 does with his colors is to throw us into the state of mind or 
 sentiment which the sight of nature produces on us, and 
 here it is that the affinities of temperament, which are 
 largely affected by the same colors in the same way, come 
 in play in our preference for one colorist over another. It 
 is at this point that the question of the ' ' low-toned picture' ' 
 presents itself Although there are marked distinctions on 
 this head among the French artists we have named, the 
 
 low tone " is a general trait of their work. 
 
 The ' ' low-toned picture ' ' appeals to a certain tempera- 
 ment. This temperament is the temperament of Rem- 
 brandt, of Ribot, or of Decamps, or of the American 
 Albert Ryder. This temperament prefers a certain mys- 
 tery of effect, a picture to which one can return without 
 having seen the whole of it the first time it has been looked 
 at. The painting of nature which lasts is the painting in 
 which nature is not revealed too suddenly or too entirely. 
 
 In other words, the mystery of nature, which in nature 
 may lie in its magnitude, in its unfathomable space or 
 incomputable variety or in our sense that we have seen it 
 differently yesterday and shall again see it differently to- 
 morrow, or the mystery of character or of an event or 
 episode whose causes are unknown, uncomprehended or 
 not thought out — all this may be suggested by the ' ' low- 
 
282 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 toned picture" of the given subject. Being a piece of 
 canvas taken in by one glance, on which the same Hues and 
 colors lie forever, the picture can only suggest the element 
 of the unknown or the infinite by this device. 
 
 In all these points which I have tried to suggest as virtues 
 of the greatest French artists of the nineteenth century or 
 of the English School of the eighteenth century, we have 
 applications of principles which are found as far back as Da 
 Vinci, and which were never subsequently abandoned by 
 the great painters of history. In such points lies the 
 supreme excellence of the Old Masters, when they are con- 
 sidered as painters rather than as historic illustrations of 
 general historic facts. 
 
 It is interesting to feel that between periods as distinct as 
 the nineteenth century and the sixteenth, there is still a 
 bond in the methods of the great artists, wide apart as is 
 their mission and historic place. In fact, when we consider 
 the deficiencies of patronage, of immediate appreciation, 
 and of adequate reward which the greatest modern artists 
 have labored under, their success and worth cannot be 
 rated below that of their more fortunate brethren of the 
 past — more fortunate as regards public support, an assured 
 livelihood, and a subject matter which was ready-made and 
 already at hand. 
 
 In what I have said of the philosophy of vision, I have 
 so far mainly confined myself to landscape because it is a 
 class of subject in which the enormous disparity of size be- 
 tween nature and copy is obvious, and in which the distinc- 
 tion between the infinite variety of nature and the amount 
 of that infinitude which can be suggested by a copy is also 
 obvious. It is easiest to show and feel for landscape that 
 some choice has to be made as to what shall be attempted, 
 easiest to show and feel for landscape that the effect of the 
 
English and French Painting, 283 
 
 whole is what must be attempted, and easiest to show and 
 feel that this can be done only by presenting an object in 
 mass or by presenting objects in masses, because the 
 dimensions of the work of art are so greatly minimized as 
 compared with the nature represented. 
 
 From this point it is not difficult to move to another. 
 Given the difficulty of relating art to this kind of nature, it 
 is clear that a choice of a point of view in a picture must 
 have much to do with its quality. The panoramic point of 
 view is the one to be avoided; the picturesque, that is, the 
 limited point of view, is the one to be sought. It also 
 follows that atmosphere should be used for contrast, and 
 not for the most important feature of the picture. It is 
 according to these principles, and on account of them, that 
 Claude, Constable, Rousseau and his school, almost in- 
 variably show a foreground composition. Given a fore- 
 ground composition, there again arises the problem of 
 balance of opposition in objects, and of contrast in colors. 
 Finally, the tone of the picture determines its standing. 
 The gaudily colored picture tires and strains the eye, the 
 low-toned picture rests it and also suggests more of the 
 mystery of nature. Admitting the varieties of individual 
 taste, of varieties of mood in the same taste, and the count- 
 less concessions which have to be made to individual genius 
 and to the surrounding conditions, we may add one more 
 and the most important trait. 
 
 The one first condition of all great painting is an honest 
 interest in the work or the theme for its own sake, without 
 reference to mercantile considerations. The mercantile 
 element ruins a painting. The instant we detect in it the 
 quality of being made to sell as opposed to the quality 
 which shows that the artist would rather starve than concede 
 one point of his convictions or even of his own individual 
 
284 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 preference in the choice of a subject, we have touched the 
 first downward round of the ladder which leads to the cor- 
 ruption of art. 
 
 We will now return to the French School of 1825-1850 
 
 Fig. 186.— Labor, by J. F. Millet. 
 
 to observe that what has been said is not only an effort to 
 explain its greatness, but also to bring to the front the 
 numerous artists of our own country who are following the 
 same path. Personal character is the only ultimate deter- 
 minant in art. The facility of the hand is a matter of 
 practice. It is the eye which controls the hand. But the 
 power of vision is not the only thing in question here. 
 Even in landscape we see that the question of choice is all- 
 important. In other subjects it is still more so. 
 
English and French Painting, 
 
 285 
 
 Let us select the artist Millet as a personality, from which 
 we may draw some lessons as to the choice of subject. 
 Millet's well-known greatness consists in the devotion of his 
 art to the life of the French peasantry — but observe that it is 
 always the serious side of the peasant life that he has given 
 us. It is not the peasant in holiday dress or making 
 merry. The life of toil, the dignity, the pathos, and the 
 humility of labor — that is the one theme of his pictures. 
 From the recognized standing of Millet in French art we 
 may determine, then, another point of view which may fix 
 
 Fig. 187.— a Great Gale. Winslow Homer. Photographed for this work at the 
 Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist and Owner. 
 
 the position of the modern artist, viz. , the point of view 
 which concerns his purpose and his thought. It is easiest 
 to illustrate this point of view when we are dealing with an 
 intensely serious purpose, such as Millet forces us to recog- 
 nize; but I should be far from wishing to confine the defi- 
 
286 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 nition of serious art to that which is serious in subject. Let 
 us note, however, that the sphere of modern art includes 
 among its most important specialties that of the student of 
 daily life in its humble avocations, seeking to exalt and 
 glorify the lowly and the poor in spirit. Why should we 
 hesitate to name our own Winslow Homer as another 
 instance of this same tendency, and one of the greatest of 
 our day? The stamp of the genuine, true, and sturdy 
 spirit is never lacking in his pictures. 
 
 In the study of character and human nature in contem- 
 
 FiG. i88. — "Sailors, Take Warning." By Winslow Homer. Photog-raphed for 
 this work at the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 porary life, modern art has produced much that is great. 
 Both England and Germany have affected this class of sub- 
 ject more than the French, although without reaching a 
 similar average of technical value, especially in color. The 
 English artists of our day have been foremost among Euro- 
 
English and French Painting, 287 
 
 pean painters in this class, and they have found their 
 worthy rivals and occasional superiors in this country. 
 Since the days of Wilkie, English art has reveled in the 
 subjects of everyday life as an inexhaustible storehouse of 
 humor, pathos, and interest — too often, however, with an 
 
 Fig. 189.— Greek Girls Playing at Ball. Sir Frederick Leighton. 
 
 over-anxious nicety of details and without due reference to 
 harmonies and tones of color. Color has been the weak 
 point of nineteenth century English, as well as of German, 
 art. The English School of our day cannot compare in 
 this sense either with its own art of the eighteenth century 
 or with the modern French. 
 
 To this rule the exceptions are mainly recent but con- 
 spicuous. Sir Frederick Leighton is one of the most 
 obvious, and Alma-Tadema another. Both of these 
 painters tend to the antiquarian, or the classic subject — 
 Alma-Tadema with a painstaking minuteness of execution 
 which leaves a somewhat frigid impression. To the same 
 
288 
 
 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 general class may be reckoned the excellent works of 
 Poynter. A far more powerful colorist than any of these 
 
 isJohnM. Swan, whose 
 paintings at the Colum- 
 bian Exposition were a 
 striking revelation of 
 the possibilities of mod- 
 ern and of English art. 
 
 In Burne-Jones we 
 find another stamp of 
 genius, imaginative like 
 Leighton, but even 
 more intent on effects 
 of outline and the bal- 
 ance of figures; as a 
 composer of designs, 
 according to architec- 
 tural schemes, basing 
 very distinctly on the 
 old Italians. The de- 
 ceased Albert Moore 
 had a similar bent and 
 talent. 
 
 In George F. Watts 
 we appreciate a greater 
 idealist than Burne- 
 Jones, or Rossetti — 
 almost Shakespearean 
 in his profound and 
 touching allegories. 
 The titles of his paint- 
 
 FiG. i9o.-Love and Death. By George F. il^gS are a key tO their 
 Watts. From the EngUsh Loans at /-Tnararl-pr and the rnn- 
 
 the Columbian Exposition. cnaracter , auQ ine con- 
 
English and French Painting, 
 
 289 
 
 ception never falls below the subject in suggestiveness and 
 poetic thought. * ' Love and Death ' ' and ' ' Love and Life ' * 
 were seen with other works, at the Columbian Exposition. 
 The latter has been presented by Mr. Watts ' ' to the Ameri- 
 can nation.'' Briton Riviere is another Englishman hold- 
 ing an important place by the suggestive treatment of 
 subjects like "Daniel in the Lions' Den" or ''Circe and the 
 Companions of Ulysses." In this latter picture the com- 
 panions of Ulysses are turned to swine and crowding about 
 
 Fig. 191. — Reading from Homer. By Alma-Tadema. From the American 
 Loans at the Columbian Exposition. 
 
 the enchantress. On the whole, we must give a high place 
 to modern English art for its lofty efforts, nobility of 
 purpose, and moral worth. It has produced, however, 
 much that is commonplace, very little that will take high 
 rank in point of view of color, and no recent landscapes 
 that can be compared with the best French or the best 
 American. Many of its highly quoted names of the middle 
 period of the century are almost distressing revelations of 
 the backwardness of English art at that time, after their 
 works have been examined. Among these the animal 
 
290 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 painter, Landseer, may be quoted as an instance; an artist 
 made widely known by engravings which are generally far 
 superior to his pictures. A very fine Landseer in the 
 
 Fig. 192.— Sea Nymph. By Burne-Jones. 
 
 possession of Mr. Jesse Haworth, near Manchester, is a 
 notable exception. 
 
 It seems worth while, in closing our notice of English 
 art, to return to Turner and the opening of the century for 
 a moment. Turner was undoubtedly a master of supreme 
 genius. It is only to be regretted that Mr. Ruskin's 
 
English and French Painting. 291 
 
 enthusiastic perception of his genius should have led to 
 an exaltation of the master, not objectionable in itself, 
 but tending to efface the greatness of other artists like 
 Constable who were less fortunate in the eloquence of 
 their spokesman or who had not any. Turner's work 
 occasionally showed, after 1845, a degeneration in color 
 quality, due to old age and possibly to his interest in 
 problems which are more or less beyond the capacities 
 of pictorial art. Several of his pictures exhibited in the 
 National Gallery belong to this period ; but as an artist 
 of creative and imaginative power he nevertheless stands 
 at the head of nineteenth century art. 
 
 Fig. 193— The Young Marsyas. By Elihu Vedder. Photoe:raphed for this work 
 at the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist and Owner. 
 
CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 
 RECENT AMERICAN ART. 
 
 Before turning to recent American art we shall do 
 well to guard our position in the matter of methods as so 
 far considered, aside from landscape, lest we appear to 
 
 exclude from appreci- 
 ation much meritorious 
 art in small figure com- 
 position. The dimi- 
 nution of the field of 
 view carries with itself 
 logically- the possibility 
 of greater insistence on 
 detail. There are even 
 paintings where this 
 detail may be conceded 
 the main interest. The 
 Dutch artist, Terburg, 
 was especially famous 
 for his satin dresses. 
 Notice, now, two 
 points. As regards the 
 dimension of the fig- 
 ure, Terburg did not 
 work in life-size; his figures may average perhaps a foot 
 high. As regards the number of figures, his pictures 
 limit them to two or three. Now the refinement of 
 execution in a satin dress which makes the charm of a 
 
 Fig. 194.— Design for an Illustration of Brown- 
 ing's "Men and Women" — "Childe Roland 
 to the Dark Tower Came." By John 
 La Farge. Drawing dated i860. 
 
 292 
 
Fig. 195.— Portrait, by J. S. Sargent. Photographed for this work at the 
 Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist and Owner. 
 
Recent American Art, 
 
 295 
 
 Terburg will create a nightmare of ugliness if applied to 
 a life-size portrait. Compare the method of Mr. Sargent 
 in life-size portraits (Fig. 195) for the execution which 
 revives the methods of Velasquez or of Gainsborough. 
 Conceive now of the method of Terburg applied not to 
 one but to twenty or thirty life-size figures, and you 
 produce the style of Brozik, whose colossal picture of 
 Columbus before Ferdinand and Isabella is in the New 
 York Museum. It would be unjust to stigmatize this one 
 painter for a method which has ruined the art of hundreds 
 of conscientious painters of our day. It is evident, then, 
 that not only the dimensions of the original subject, but also 
 the dimensions of the painting itself, outside of landscape 
 art, are or should be controlling elements in the matter of 
 method. In every landscape the actual dimensions of 
 nature may be considered as almost without limit. In 
 anecdotal figure composition on small sized panels and of 
 limited actual extent in original nature, our point of view as 
 to method, whether broad or more minute and literal, be- 
 comes largely one of personal preference. Where the eye 
 can take in within a foot or so an anecdote or episode, the 
 method, whether broad or minute in detail, is a matter of 
 choice at the discretion of the painter, and in both methods 
 good results may be obtained. The controlling question 
 concerns not the method but the matter in such cases, and 
 the ability of the artist within the limits of his chosen method. 
 Where life-size figures or large paintings are in question 
 there can be little question as to choice of methods as be- 
 tween the broad and the minutely detailed. The influence 
 of Mr. William M. Chase, and of his followers, has in this 
 sense been epoch-making for American art — especially for 
 the design of the figure; and as against the belittling in- 
 fluences which English art of the middle of the century or 
 
296 Renaissance and Modern Ari, 
 
 earlier had exercised on our own. At an earlier day than 
 that of Mr. Chase, William M. Hunt was one of the few 
 missionaries of the new idea in American art. One of its 
 very greatest exponents in all modern time has been, how- 
 ever, the deceased and long unappreciated George Fuller. 
 This artist was the Hawthorne of American painters, as 
 Wordsworth Thompson and Frederick James are among 
 its Fenimore Coopers. 
 
 Among American painters we should give a foremost 
 
 Fig. 197.— The Deserted Inn. By Wordsworth Thompson. Photographed for 
 this work at the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 place to those who have faced that most national of all 
 subjects, when its interest for posterity is kept in view, the 
 American Indian. Mr. Brush' s picture of the ' ' The Sculptor 
 and the King" has even gone back to Aztec days, with rare 
 union of poetic thought and accurate historic suggestion, 
 and his Indian and the Lily," also seen at the Columbian 
 
Recent American Art, 
 
 297 
 
 Exposition, conveys, even by the mention of its subject 
 alone, a suggestion of its poetic and yet faithful picture of 
 the so-called American savage. The names of Farny and 
 Remington are familiar to all experts as other vivid por- 
 trayers of life on the borders of civilization; and R. A. 
 
 Fig. 198. — The Sculptor and the King. By George de Forest Brush. Photographed 
 tor this work at the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 Blakelock was also among the first to devote his great tal- 
 ents to these subjects. 
 
 In religious art, I noticed at the Columbian Exposition 
 the powerful ^'Christ and the Fishermen" of Mr. Du 
 Mond, and the noble and elevated paintings of La Farge 
 and of Poore. Mr. Thayer's ^'Virgin Enthroned" has 
 already achieved the national reputation which it deserves. 
 
 In this mention of individual names I am well aware 
 how far I am sinning by omissions — and by omissions 
 among the very greatest of our artists. One must publish 
 
298 Renaissance and Modern Art. 
 
 an entire catalogue in order to do justice to the genius 
 in American art. 
 
 In the United States the place of the artist has been 
 hitherto one of extreme difficulty and hard struggle. The 
 natural tendency of a new country to look up to its older 
 predecessors in art and science has led us to ignore or 
 overlook the general equality and frequent superiority of 
 our artists to those of the Old World, to which equality or 
 superiority they have attained in the last twenty years. 
 The art exhibits and sculptured decorative work of the 
 
 Fig. 199.— Christ and the Fishermen. By F. V. Du Mond. Photographed for 
 this work at the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 Columbian Exposition offered an excellent opportunity lor 
 the contrast of contemporary American art with that of 
 Europe, and in this contrast we had no cause to shun 
 the comparison. Among living artists it appears to 
 
Recent American Art, 
 
 299 
 
 me that our own take first rank for the following reasons: 
 In architectural sculpture and in open air sculpture the 
 modern world has seen nothing to compare with the 
 statuary at Chicago, and as illustrations of the possibilities 
 of sculpture in architectural decoration there are no build- 
 ings of modern time which could rival the Agricultural 
 Building and the Administration Building at the Columbian 
 Exposition. In the application of statuary to park or 
 landscape decoration and in its quality, the same superiority 
 
 Fig, 200.— 'Got Him." By Henry F. Farny. Photographed for this work at 
 the Columbian Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 may be asserted. The lesson that a work of art needs a 
 definite destination, a definite purpose, and a definite relation 
 to surroundings which demand it and call it into being, was 
 well taught us by the Exposition. No opportunity like it 
 had been offered in modern history. 
 
 In the painting exhibits of the Art Palace, American 
 
300 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 landscape was so superior to that of England, which made 
 an especially fine representative exhibit, that even compari- 
 son was out of question. To the French exhibit of land- 
 scape it was also far superior, in which statement it should 
 be remembered that the French exhibit was not representa- 
 tive to the same extent as that of other nations. 
 
 Fig. 201.— An Impromptu Affair in the Days of "The Code." By Frederick 
 James. Photographed for this work at the Columbian 
 Exposition, by permission of the Artist. 
 
 The American loans of contemporary French pictures 
 showed a finer quality than the French official display. 
 This is also significant for American taste. Among the 
 living French artists represented by American loans only 
 Monet and Raffaelli could be mentioned as having sur- 
 passed in landscape their American competitors. The 
 works of Monet are extremely unequal and many of them 
 distinctly inferior to contemporary American, some of 
 them superior as works of daring genius to anything that 
 
Recent American Art, 
 
 301 
 
 we have yet produced. The average superiority of Ameri- 
 can landscape to that of recent Germany and Italy is 
 incontestable. 
 
 When we come to ideal or suggestive art of the lofty and 
 ambitious type, I have no hesitation in placing Elihu Ved- 
 der as first among living moderns. He stands on surer 
 ground in his choice of subjects, as being closer to average 
 popular apprehension, than the Englishman George F. 
 Watts. He is more profound than Leighton, not less 
 suggestive and far more daring than Riviere, more prac- 
 tical and matter of fact than Burne-Jones, and there is 
 no living Frenchman who can be named beside him in his 
 peculiar . field. Beside the name of Vedder, that of John 
 La Farge must be mentioned as the worthy rival or 
 superior of any living European artist of our day, Watts 
 alone excepted, when the capacity of a poet and man of 
 thought working through brush and pencil is in question. 
 
 In our general estimate of recent American art, we can 
 affirm that only one thing is lacking to it: the appreciative 
 support and sympathy of its own nation, publicly declared 
 by critics, and, above all, attested by public patronage — for 
 this is the only test of approval and the only condition of 
 future existence and survival. 
 
 It would be absurd to allow patriotism to control or sug- 
 gest our preferences in art. No more foolish thing could 
 be suggested than to patronize American art simply be- 
 cause it is American. There is a better reason than 
 patriotism or national pride for the appreciation of Ameri- 
 can art, which is that it deserves appreciation. But all 
 good and genuine art presupposes a relationship between 
 buyer and seller, a community of interests and thoughts. 
 This relationship and this community are mainly dependent 
 upon local contact, upon affinities of literature and Ian- 
 
302 Renaissance and Modern Art, 
 
 guage and daily life, upon a common basis of education. 
 National art is not to be encouraged because it is national, 
 but because no other art can take its place. 
 
 In recent American architecture the progress affirmed 
 for sculpture and for painting has been fully equaled and 
 perhaps surpassed. 
 
 It is in decorative art that American pre-eminence has 
 asserted itself in the most distinct and emphatic way. Out- 
 
 FiG, 202 — The Fisherman and the Genl From "The Arabian Nights." 
 By Elihu Vedder. Photographed for this work at the Columbian 
 Exposition, by permission of the Artist and Owner. 
 
 side of Japan or China there is no such school of ceramic 
 decoration in modern art as can be found in the private 
 circles of Cincinnati. I do not speak of the Rookwood 
 pottery alone, which has originally developed from the style 
 and work of a single amateur. Cincinnati is full of original 
 talent in this direction. In its Museum the masterpieces of 
 these amateurs are exhibited, with their dates. The work of 
 Miss McLaughlin is possibly better known in Europe than 
 
Recent American Art. 
 
 303 
 
 it is here, although her name is a household word with all 
 experts in decoration. The wood-carvings of Cincinnati 
 have also wide renown, especially as connected with the 
 family name of Fry. In decorative needlework the New 
 York School of Mrs. Wheeler (Associated Artists) is dis- 
 tinctly superior to that of South Kensington in London. In 
 stained glass the names of John La Farge, of Crownin- 
 shield, and of Louis Tiffany, are of epoch-making signifi- 
 cance for all modern art. The architectural mosaics of the 
 latter are a revival of the best qualities of the Byzantine, 
 and it is doubtful if they have any rivals of importance in 
 modern Europe. 
 
 FiGr 203.— Delilah. By Elihu Vedder. Photographed for this work at the 
 Columbian Kxposition, by permission of the Artist and Owner. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 [A few pronunciations of foreign names have been en- 
 tered in the text. The larger number will be found in the 
 Index.] 
 
 Adams, Herbert, 271. 
 
 Allston, Washington, 39. 
 
 Alberti, Leon Battista, 83. 
 
 Alma-Tadema, 287. 
 
 American Art, see below. 
 
 American Architecture, 104, 105, 252, 
 254, 255, 302. 
 
 American Decorative Art, 302, 303. 
 
 American Painting, early, 39, 242 ; re- 
 cent, 292-303. 
 
 American Renaissance, 42, 68. 
 
 American Sculpture, 249, 260-271. 
 
 Amsterdam Gallery, 188, 190, 191. 
 
 Anatomy Lesson, by Rembrandt, 189. 
 
 Andrea Pisano (Pees'ahno), 205. 
 
 Annunciations of Different Centuries 
 Compared, 203. 
 
 Arch, round, revived by Renaissance, 48. 
 
 Architrave, significance of, 66. 
 
 Associated Artists (of New York), 303. 
 
 Aurora, by Guido Reni, iii, 179. 
 
 Bacchus, by Michael Angelo, 151. 
 
 Baptistery of Florence , 107, 105. 
 
 Baroque Style, 259. 
 
 Barye, 259. 
 
 Bathing Soldiers, cartoon, 138. 
 
 Battle of the Standard, cartoon, 138. 
 
 Benedetto da Majano, 217. 
 
 Bellini, Giovanni and Gentile, (Bel- 
 
 lee'ny, Jeeov'ahny, Jentee'ly) 124. 
 Bernini (Bernee'ny), 234, 238, 239. 
 Bitter, Carl, 269. 
 Blakelock, R. A., 297. 
 Bologna, University, 23, 25; School of 
 
 Painting, 176. 
 Boyle, John J., 269. 
 
 Bramante, 86, 144. 
 
 Brancacci (Brancatchy) Chapel, 116, 
 119. 
 
 Bronze Doors, Pisa Cathedral, ^15; 
 
 Florence Baptistery, 205-215. 
 Brouwer, 187. 
 Brownstone Fronts, 42. 
 Brozik, 295. 
 
 Brunellesco (or Brunelleschi), 72, 76, 77, 
 83, 130, 209. 
 
 Brush, George de F., 296. 
 
 Burckhardt, Jacob, 58, 119, 130. 
 
 Buonarroti, see Michael Angelo. 
 
 BiuTie-Jones, 288. 
 
 Bush-Brown, H. K., 270. 
 
 Byzantine, Empire overthrown, 39; art 
 displaced, 112 ; Greek studies in Italy, 
 243 ; Mosaic style revived, 303. 
 
 Cabots, the, 22. 
 
 Cain, Auguste, 260. 
 
 Camera della Segnatura (Senyahtoo'rah), 
 143. 
 
 Campo Santo, Pisa, 115, 117. 
 Campbell, Douglas, 31, 45, 105, 188. 
 Canaletto, iii. 
 Cancellaria Palace, 94. 
 Canova, 249, 257. 
 
 Castiglione, (Castilyo'ny) Count, 25. 
 Capital, significance in architecture, 66. 
 Captives, by Michael Angelo, 152. 
 Caracci, (Caratchy) the, 179. 
 Caravaggio (Caravajyo), 179. 
 Carpaccio (Carpatchyo), 124, 166. 
 Cartoons, by Raphael, 143. 
 Carpeaux (Carpo), 259. 
 Cellini, Benvenuto (Cheliny), 229. 
 
 305 
 
3o6 
 
 Index. 
 
 Certosa, Pavia, 76. 
 
 Chase, Wm. M., 295. ' 
 
 Church of, San Lorenzo, Florence, 73 : 
 San Spirito, Florence, 73 ; Santa Ma- 
 ria della Pace, Rome, 88; St. Peter's, 
 Rome, 88; St. Etienne du Mont, 
 Paris, 102 ; St. Paul's, London, 103. 
 
 Cincinnati, pottery, 302 ; wood-carving, 
 303- 
 
 Claude Lorrain, 179, 280, 283. 
 Cloth Merchants, by Rembrandt, 191. 
 Colleoni, equestrian statue, 216. 
 Colonial style, 104, 105, 254. 
 Columbian Exposition, 197, 261-269, 299, 
 300. 
 
 Columbus, 22, 40. 
 
 Composite Order, 64. 
 
 Constable, 279, 280, 283, 291. 
 
 Copernicus, 23. 
 
 Copley, 39, 242. 
 
 Corinthian Order, 64. 
 
 Corot, J. B. C. (Coro), 274, 280. 
 
 Cornelius, 272. 
 
 Corporation pictures, 189. 
 
 Correggio (Corejyo), Antonio Allegri 
 
 da, 36, 139, 159-162. 
 Cranach (Crahnahk), Lucas, 189. 
 Crawford, 162. 
 Cremona, 24. 
 Cronaca, 85. 
 Crowninshield, 303. 
 Crystal Palace Exposition, 253. 
 Cuyp, 187. 
 
 Da Laurana, Luciano, 82. 
 Da Majano, Benedetto, 85. 
 Dannecker, 257. 
 
 David, by Donatello, 218 ; by Verocchio, 
 
 218 ; by Michael Angelo, 151, 227. 
 David, J. L. (Dahveed), 272. 
 Da Vinci (Vinchy) Leonardo, 23, 36, 40, 
 
 41, 131, 132-139, 159, 282. 
 Decadence of the Renaissance, 37. 
 * Decamps, A. G., 274, 281. 
 
 * There is no exact way of indicating 
 in English spelling the French nasal 
 pronunciation of similar words. It can 
 be learned only from a French scholar. 
 Decorative Art Movement, 253. 
 Delacroix, Victor Eugene (Delakraw), 
 
 274. 
 
 Desiderio da Settignano (|Settin'nah'- 
 
 no), 217. 
 Directory, style of, 249. 
 Diaz de la Pena, 274. 
 Donatello, 201, 215, 216, 218. 
 Dolci, Carlo (Dolchy), 179, 203. 
 Domenichino (Domenikee'no) (Domen- 
 
 ico Zampieri), 179. 
 Doric, Tuscan, 64. 
 Dresden Gallery, 144, 161, 168, 185. 
 Du Mond, F. V., 297. 
 Dupre, Jules (Doopray), 274. 
 Diirer, Albert (Dewrer), 184. 
 Dutch Painting, 187-196. 
 Dutch Renaissance, 105. 
 Ecce Homo (Ekse) type, 171. 
 Eclectics, 176. 
 Elgin Marbles, 257. 
 Elwell, Edwin F., 264. 
 Engaged columns, criticism of their 
 
 use, 65. 
 
 England, tardy Renaissance, 44, 45. 
 English Painting, 196, 272-291. 
 Etty, 291. 
 
 Falgui^re (Falgyire), 259. 
 Farny, H. F., 298. 
 Ferrara, 21. 
 
 Florence, administrative system, 21 ; 
 siege of, 35, 223 ; Cathedral, 72 ; paint- 
 ing, 115; organ loft reliefs, 216; Bap- 
 tistery doors, 205-215. 
 
 Fountain, of Trevi, 103 ; of the Inno- 
 cents, Paris, 230. 
 
 Fra Angelico (da Fiesole) (Frah An- 
 jayliko dah Feea'ysoly), 113, 123. 
 
 Fra Bartolommeo (Bartoloma'yo), 138. 
 
 Fra Giocondo (Frah Jeeoc'ondo), 130, 
 131. 
 
 French, Painting, 179, 272-285 ; Sculp- 
 ture, 229, 230, 239, 259. For French 
 architecture, see in general all matter 
 for Renaissance architecture. 
 
 Frescoes, Italian, 121-158. 
 
 Fry, wood-carving, 303. 
 
 Fuller, George, 296. 
 
 Gainsborough, 39, 240, 277, 295. 
 
 Galileo, 24, 29. 
 
 Galleries. See Amsterdam, Dresden, 
 
 the Hague. 
 Gattamelata, equestrian statue, 216. 
 
Index. 
 
 307 
 
 Gerard, F. P. (Ja'yrar), 272. 
 
 Gericault (Ja'yreeco), 272. 
 
 German Art, 183-186. 
 
 Ghiberti, Lorenzo, 40, 107, 127, 200, 201, 
 
 205-215, 219. 
 Ghirlandajo (Geerlandiyo), 114, 115, 123. 
 Gibson, John, 257. 
 Gioconda portrait, 134. 
 Giorgione (Jorjony), 166. 
 Giotto (Jotto), 115, 205. 
 Giovanni Pisano (Jeeova'nny Peesah'no), 
 
 205, 206. 
 Gluck's Operas, 249. 
 Goethe, 247. 
 
 Gothic, Renaissance prejudice against, 
 
 44, 55, 250. 
 Gothic Revival, 251. 
 Goujon, Jean, 229. 
 
 Gozzoli, Benozzo (Gotso'ly, Beno'tso), 
 114, 115. 
 
 Greek Revival, 240-249, 256-258. 
 Greek Slave, by Hiram Powers, 261. 
 Greuze, 272. 
 
 Grimm's Life of Michael Angelo, 158, 
 228. 
 
 Gros, A.J,, (Gro), 272. 
 Guardi (Gooardy), iii. 
 Guercino (Gooertschee'no) (Francesco 
 
 Barbieri), 179. 
 Guido Reni (Gweedo Rayny), 179. 
 Hague, the, 190. 
 Hals, Franz, 187. 
 Heidelberg Castle, 106. 
 Hogarth, 242. 
 
 Holbein, Hans the Younger, 184. 
 Homer, Winslow, 286. 
 Hoogh, Peter, 187. 
 Immaculate Conception type, 177. 
 Industrial art, Figs, i, 2, and 4-9 inclu- 
 sive. 
 
 Innspruch, Maximilian monument, 230. 
 Ionic Order, 64. 
 
 Italian Gothic architecture, 44, 75, 253. 
 
 James, Frederick, 297. 
 
 JuHus II., Pope, 140. 
 
 Kaulbach (Kowlbakh), 147, 272. 
 
 Kemeys, Edward, 270. 
 
 Kiss, 258. 
 
 Kneller, Godfrey, 181. 
 Krafft, Adam, 230. 
 
 Lace, an Italian manufacture, 24. 
 
 La Farge, John, 297, 301, 303. 
 
 Landscape art, origin, 178. 
 
 Landseer, 290. 
 
 Laocoon Essay, 232, 247. 
 
 Last Judgment, by Michael Angelo, 36, 
 
 41, 150-158, 200, 204. 
 Last Supper, by Da Vinci, 40, 41, 112, 
 
 115, 118, 130-137. 
 Latin Studies of the Renaissance, 57. 
 Lawrence, 242. 
 
 Leighton, Sir Frederick, 260, 287. 
 Lely, Sir Peter, 181. 
 Leo X., Pope, 140, 226. 
 Leonardo, see Da Vinci. 
 Lessing, 232, 247. 
 Ley den, 104. 
 
 Lincoln, statue by Rogers, 262 ; by St. 
 
 Gaudens, 270. 
 Lippi, Filippino (Filipee'no Lippy), 116. 
 Literary culture of Renaissance, 58. 
 Low tone in painting, 281, 283. 
 Luini (Looee'ny), 138. 
 Macaulay, as critic, 245. 
 MacMonnies, Frederick, 270. 
 Madonna, types and paintings, 114, 120, 
 
 125, 177, 185, 203. 
 Makart, Hans, 272. 
 Mantegna (Mante'nyah). 124. 
 Manufactures of Renaissance Italy, 22. 
 Martiny, P., 269. 
 
 Masaccio (Masatchyo), 115, 116, 120, 
 208. 
 
 Masolino (Masolee'no), 119, 120. 
 
 Matsys, Quentin, 186. 
 
 Maximilian, tomb of, 232. 
 
 Meier Madonna, 185. 
 
 Metal work, Figs. 2, 6, 7, 9. 
 
 Medieval, architecture contrasted with 
 
 Renaissance, 51 ; culture opposed by 
 
 the Renaissaance, 56. 
 Medici (Ma'yditchy), Lorenzo, 60 ; tombs 
 
 of, 225. 
 Metsu, 187. 
 
 Michael Angelo, 36, 73, 89 123, 139, 141, 
 
 150-159, 162, 222-228, 234 
 Michel, C. H. (Meeshel), 274. 
 Michelozzo (Mikel'otso), 130. 
 Milan, history of, 33. 
 Millet, J. F. (Meelay), 274, 280, 285. 
 
3o8 
 
 Index, 
 
 Mino da Fiesole (Meeno dah Feeay- 
 
 soly;, 79, 203, 217. 
 Mona Lisa, see Gioconda. 
 Monet (Monay), 301. 
 Monticelli (Montichelly), 274, 291. 
 Moore, Albert, 288. 
 Morelli, Giovanni, 123. 
 Morland, George, 242, 277. 
 Moses, by Michael Angelo, 152, 222, 223. 
 Muntz, Eugene, 149. 
 Murcia, cathedral, 102. 
 Murillo (Moorilyo), 170-174. 
 Naples, School of, 176. 
 Naturalists, School of, 176. 
 Netscher, 187. 
 
 Nicolo of Pisa (Peesah), 205. 
 Night Watch, by Rembrandt, 191. 
 Nuremberg, 230. 
 
 Oil Painting, introduction in Italy, 121. 
 
 Orders, the, in Renaissance architec- 
 ture, 64, 69, 95, 96. 
 
 Padua, University 24, 60 ; School of, 
 124 ; statue of Gattamelata, 216. 
 
 Passavant, historian of Raphael, 149. 
 
 Paestum, temples of, 68. 
 
 Palaces, Pitti, 24, 83 ; Rucellai, 83 ; Ric- 
 cardi, 85 ; Strozzi, 85 ; Cancellaria, 
 86 ; Urbino, 87, 140 ; Massimi, 92 ; 
 Pandolfini, 93 ; Bartolini, 93 ; Poli, 103. 
 
 Palmer, the sculptor, 262. 
 
 Palladio, 95. 
 
 Palma Vecchio (Vekyo), 166-169. 
 
 Paris Bordone (Bordony), 166-169. 
 
 Paul Veronese (Paulo Cagliari), 166-169. 
 
 Partridge, Wm. Ordway, 264.. 
 
 Pavia, Certosa, 76. 
 
 Peale, Rembrandt, 39. 
 
 Pediments, 79. 
 
 Perugino (Peroojee'no), 123, 145, 146. 
 
 Philhellenic movement, 248. 
 
 Pieta, by Michael Angelo, 151. 
 
 Pilon, Germam, 229. 
 
 Piloty, 272. 
 
 Pitti Palace, 24, 83. 
 
 Plutarch, influence on Greek Revival, 
 249. 
 
 Pollajuolo (Polaiuo'lo), 220. 
 Poore, H. R., 298. 
 Potter, Paul, 187. 
 Potter, E. C, 267. 
 
 Poussin, Nicholas, 179. 
 
 Powers, Hiram, 261. 
 
 Poynter, E. J., 288. 
 
 Proctor, A. P., 270. 
 
 Prometheus, by Adam, 233. 
 
 Protestantism, influence on painting, t88. 
 
 Puget (Pewjay), 237. 
 
 Queen Anne Style, 105, 254. 
 
 Rauch (Rowckh), 258. 
 
 Raphael, 36, 41, 123, 127, I39-I49> I59. 
 
 163, 249. 
 Raffaelli, 301. 
 
 Rembrandt Van Ryn, 170, 187, 281. 
 
 Remington, F., 298. 
 
 Renaissance, see chapter headings. 
 
 Revivals, Greek, 240-250 ; Gothic, 251- 
 254 ; Romanesque, 252 ; Italian Gothic, 
 253 ; Queen Anne, 254 ; Colonial, 254. 
 
 Reynolds, Sir Joshua, 39, 242, 277. 
 
 Ribera (Reeba'yrah), 175. 
 
 Ribot (Reebo), 281. 
 
 Richardson, H. H., 84. 
 
 Riviere, Briton, 289. 
 
 Robbia (Ro'beeah), Andrea della, 202, 203. 
 Robbia, Luca della (Loo'kah), 200, 202, 
 
 216, 217. 
 Rodin, 259. 
 
 Roman ruins as models of Renaissance, 
 49, 50. 
 
 Rome, recent history, 34 ; Sack of, 35. 
 
 Rookwood pottery, 302. 
 
 Romney, 242. 
 
 Rosa, Salvator, 179. 
 
 Rogers, John, 262. 
 
 Rousseau, P. E. T., 274, 277, 283. 
 
 Rubens, Peter Paul, 170-176, 186. 
 
 Ruisdael, Jacob, 187. 
 
 Rustica Masonry, 84. 
 
 Ryder, Albert, 281. 
 
 Sardinia, Kingdom of, 33. 
 
 Sargent, John S., 295. 
 
 Sassoferrato, 179. 
 
 Schiller, 247. 
 
 Sculpture, Renaissance, 196-230. 
 
 Sforza, Ludovico, 40. 
 
 Sicily, recent history, 35. 
 
 Sistine Chapel, 40, 112, 115, 150-158. 
 
 Sistine Madonna, 144, 178, 214. 
 
 Sixtus IV., Pope, 151, 
 
 Slave Ship, by Turner, 291. 
 
Index. 
 
 309 
 
 South Kensington, 143, 303. 
 
 Spanish Painting, 170. 
 
 Squarcione (Squartcho'ny), 60. 
 
 St. Paul's Cathedral, London, 103. 
 
 St. Peter's Church, Rome, 76 ; the dome, 
 
 72, 73» 130, 152- 
 St. Gaudens, Augustus, 264. 
 St. Sebastian type, 127. 
 States of the Church, recent history, 35. 
 Steen, Jan, 187. 
 
 Stuart, Charles Gilbert, 39, 242. 
 Swan, John M., 288. 
 Taft, Lorado, 269. 
 Teniers, David the Younger, 195. 
 Terburg, 187, 292. 
 Thayer, A. H., 298. 
 Thorwaldsen, 249, 257, 271. 
 Thompson, Launt, 262. 
 Thompson, Wordsworth, 296. 
 Thornycroft, Hamo, 260. 
 Tiepoli (Teeaypoly) the, iii. 
 Tiffany, Louis, 303. 
 Timoteo della Vite, 123. 
 Tintoretto (Jacopo Robusti), 166-169. 
 Titian, 139, 166-169. 
 Torricelli, 24. 
 
 Tombs of the Medici, 222-226 ; tomb of 
 
 Julius IL, 151. 
 Transfiguration, by Raphael, 144, 214. 
 Troyon, 274. 
 
 Turner, J. M. W., 277, 290. 
 Tuscany, recent history, 34. 
 Tuscan Order, 92. 
 
 The following definitions of 
 text may be useful to readers 
 subject treated: 
 
 Buttress : A masonry abutment 
 strengthening a wall and placed at 
 right angles to its surface. 
 
 Capital: The decorative head of a 
 column or pier. 
 
 Cornice : Originally, in Greek architec- 
 ture, a decorative roof line in stone, or 
 the continuation of this roof line under 
 the pediment. As copied, together 
 with the entablature, by the Romans, 
 this cornice frequently appears with- 
 out relation to a roof line. 
 
 Urbino, palace, 82. 
 Van Dyck, 170-176. 
 Van Eycks, 121. 
 Van Goyen, 187. 
 
 Van Mieris, Franz and William, 187. 
 
 Van Ostade, Adrian, 187. 
 
 Vasari, Lives, 41, 119, 131, 149, 158, 227. 
 
 Vatican, frescoes, 40, 112, 142-149; li- 
 brary, 140. 
 
 Vedder, Elihu, 301. 
 
 Velasquez, 170-174, 295. 
 
 Venice, administrative system, 21 ; re- 
 cent history, 34 ; School of, 124, 162 ; 
 statue of Colleoni, 216. 
 
 Verocchio (Vero'kyo), 123, 215, 216, 
 218, 220. 
 
 Versailles Cathedral, 102. 
 
 Victor Emmanuel, 33. 
 
 Vicenza, 95. 
 
 Vignola (Vinyolah), 96. 
 
 Villafranca, peace of, 33. 
 
 Vitruvius, 94. 
 
 Vischer, Peter, 230. 
 
 Voltaire, as critic, 245. ^ 
 
 Ward, J. Q. A., 262. 
 
 Warner, Olin, 264. 
 
 Watts, George F., 288. 
 
 Wheeler, Mrs. Candace, 303. 
 
 Wilson, 240. 
 
 Winckelmann, John, 244, 247. 
 Wilkie, 287. 
 
 Woodcuts, German, 184, 185. 
 
 technical terms used in the 
 previously unfamiliar with the 
 
 Engaged Column : A column attached 
 to a wall surface and used simply for 
 decoration, not for support. 
 
 Entablature : The double lintel, with 
 cornice, originally used in Greek arch- 
 itecture, thence copied by the Romans, 
 and revived by the Italian Renaissance 
 from the Roman use. 
 
 Fresco : A painting on fresh or wet 
 plister, a term applied to wall-paint- 
 ings in general. 
 
 Impost : A cube-shaped member oc- 
 
Index, 
 
 casionally placed over the capital of a 
 column which supports an arch, in or- 
 der to enlarge the supporting surface. 
 Order : This word is used tradition- 
 ally and technically to specify {a) the 
 Greek columnar style of architecture 
 with its entablature, {b) any one of the 
 different styles in which the Greek 
 columns and entablature appear. 
 
 Pediment : (a) the gable of a Greek 
 temple, {b) the ornamental copy ot 
 such a gable form, {c) the ornamental 
 curved variant of the gable form. See 
 Fig. 20. 
 
 Pier : An architectural support con- 
 structed of aggregated masonry, not 
 limited as to shape, whereas a column 
 is always round. 
 
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