Renaissance Blog
Raphael: Vision of a Knight (1504)
Going through many of the works and artists of the renaissance era was very interesting. You can definitely see how similar the styles and works of arts are from this time. One artist I liked early on was Raphael. I browsed through many of his works and the one in particular I chose is called Vision of a Knight and is attached below. I am a sucker for a variety of bright colors and hidden messages. The piece has both and the message is something I try and find meaning in for myself. Many people can speculate and talk about a deeper metaphorical meaning that the artist meant, but I think artists want the viewers to interpret themselves. I think the message here is the soldier has a choice to follow a path of war and knowledge or a path of love as the two women in the painting are presenting him different objects. The women on the left has a sword and a book and the women on the right has flowers. The soldier is on the ground as he has not been able to choose a decision yet. In my research of this work I found what is truly depicted in the painting. An article from art in context is quoted saying that what is depicted is "Scipio, a youthful warrior, is relaxing in the shadow of a bay tree when he receives a vision of two females he must choose between, being Venus (passion) and Minerva (morals)." (Art in context, 2021). I love his use of symbols to portray a message combined with bright colors and a beautiful background scene to b ring it all together.
Analysis:
Raphael was an artist during the high renaissance period. His works show a great deal of humanism and many of his works depict humans next to god or gods. As we see in the painting above the soldier named Scipio is accompanied by Venus and Minerva. A definition of humanism I found comes from another article from art in context saying "The Humanism art definition can be described as art that spans painting, sculpture, and architecture during the Early and High Renaissance periods, underpinned by humanistic ideals." (Art in Context, 2022). The humanistic ideals in this painting come from the soldier having a choice to make between the two women and the paths they have to offer. Raphael has many works where he uses humanism and is one of the artists who helped popularize the use of humanism for many artists. Culture Matters has an article highlighting Raphael and humanism in his work and they stated "the progressive thinkers and artists of the 16th century all remained committed to the defense of the people and even democratized the philosophy of humanism, which had originally been limited to a small group of intellectuals." (Farrell, 2020). To see the part he had in popularizing this concept in art during this period and how it expanded the movement is very interesting to see. His works are very popular and without him and other artists humanism would not be the same in modern art we see today. I think it is cool to see how there inspiration was found and how that has changed but stayed similar to artists today.
Hi! This painting doesn't connect to me at all. I prefer art that appears seamless and as though every element of the painting belongs. When I analyze the painting, I see a beautifully crafted background, and two of the three people almost appear to be photoshopped. The color choices in the figure on the left and the one in the middle are bold, while the rest are more pastel and light, with your description of the painting with a soldier choosing from two women, one with a sword and another with flowers. Looking at the painting and the colors, I believe there isn't even a choice. The woman on the left is clad in colors that are practically the same as the soldier, while the woman on the right is in lighter, softer colors that don't fit the soldier's vibe. This makes me believe that although the soldier is facing a decision between the two, the decision has already been made.
ReplyDeleteAnother thing to add is the soldier's body language with the two women. He almost appears to be pushing himself to be closer to the woman on the left, and his legs in the painting seem to pull as far away as they can be from the woman on the right. This adds to my belief that a decision has already been made between the two women.
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