The Renaissance, or "rebirth" in italy began in the late 14th century and lasted .
Many acient ideas were rediscovered in areas such as .
philosophy, literature, and science. People became became increasinly aware of classical .
knowledge and therefore resolved to learn by direct observation and study of the natural .
world. As a result, religious themes became increasingly important to artists, and with the .
revived interest in ancient ideas came a new variety of subjects which came from Greek .
and Roman history and mythology. The examples provided by acient buildings and works .
of art also inspired the development of new techniques in art and the desire to re-create the .
forms and styles of art that had existed in the classical age.
There were many artists in this time and the work they did was genius. Leonardo .
who is considered the ideal Renaissance thinker, engaged as he was in experiments of all .
kinds and having brought to his art a spirit of restless inquiry that sought to discover the .
laws governing diverse natural phenomena. Leonardo's works included the Adoration of .
the Magi and The Last Supper. Michelangelo who has come to represent the artist endowed .
with mysterious solitary genius. His universal talents are shown by the tomb of Julius II, .
The Medici Chapel, The Sistine Chapel and The Last Judgement.
.
Therefore efforts were made to discover the correct laws of proportion for architecture .
and for the representation of the human body and to organize the creation of space in a picture. .
Although these artists were very observant of natural phenomena, they also tended to invent .
general rules from specific observations. They made an effort to go beyond direct translation of.
nature into laws, and decided to give the word of art some ideal, intangible qualities, establishing .
a beauty and signifigance greater and more permanent than that actually found in nature. These .
characteristics- the rendering of ideal forms rather than literal appearance, and the concept of the .
