The Spanish Period Discussion

I looked at Jessica's blog for her discussion of the Spanish Renaissance.  Her blog was simple and easy to understand.  She focused on the main points of this time such as the largest cathedral of the 15th century as well as how castles were very important during this time.  She used a lot of pictures that I thought were great examples.  I also viewed Megan S's blog.  I liked how she was very detailed in her explanation and really captured the life during this time period.  Even though she did her presentation on the Spanish, I feel that I learned more by reading her blog.  I also enjoyed watching her video she posted. It was almost as if I was traveling through the streets myself!

You can view their blogs here:
Jessica:  http://history1jlj.blogspot.com/
Megan S:  http://www.history1mes.blogspot.com/

The Spanish Period

The Spanish Renaissance took place in the 16th century.  This was the most brilliant era in Spanish history.  Like the influence from Greece and Rome, the Italian Renaissance influenced the Spanish and French.  As stated in my Italian Renaissance post, Interior design began to become more of a focus and the Spanish definitely showed that.  Spanish design was very ornamental, colorful, fancy, many woods were used and were geometricians.  There are many famous Spanish palaces that show the Spanish style. 

The Alhambra had many fountains, reflecting pools and gardens. It is an example of Moorish architecture and decoration.

 

  

 



There are more castles in Spain then there are in any other European country.  An example of a castle is the La Mota Castle which was built with concrete walls all faced with brick. 

 

The Cathedral of Seville took inspiration from the Gothic era.  It was the largest cathedral in the world during the 15th century.  There were 80 chapels and they held 500 masses per day.

 

 

There were three styles of the Spanish Renaissance.  The first was the Plateresco Phase which resembled work of a silversmith.  The second phase was the Desornamentado Phase which was a powerful style and had carefully defined proportions.  The third was the Herrera Style.  This was influenced from Italian Renaissance architects and had classic forms, plain surfaces and sparse decorations.

 

Current Applications of Spanish Renaissance Style:

 

 

 

 

 

Italian Renaissance Discussion

I looked at Samantha's blog for this unit.  I like how she mentioned that she previously learned about the Medici family in her Art 156 class.  It shows how important this family actually was.  She also taught me that Brunelleschi didn't actually finish the Cupola dome himself, his acquaintance Michelozzo helped him.  I also looked at Katie D's blog.  I like how she talked about how Interior Design became important during this time because this is the first time that I learned that.   She was very descriptive in talking about flooring, furniture and decorative applications.  Her current application pictures are really good examples of these features. 

You can view their blogs here:
Samantha:  http://www.history1skf.blogspot.com/
Katie:  http://www.history1ked.blogspot.com/

Italian Renaissance

This was the period of REBIRTH.  The word Renaissance truly means "rebirth".  This era took place between the 24th century and the 16th century.  The rebirth originated in Tuscany and later spread to Florence, Siena and Venice.  They took inspiration from the Ancient Greeks and Romans.  Residential design became more prominent during this time and they became more focused on humanism. 

One of the greatest achievements of the Renaissance is the Palazzo. The Medici family had a lot of power and influence that helped progress the city.  The Palazzo Medici Riccardi in Florence Italy is one of the most well known Palazzos'.  (Pictured to the left)

Many Palazzos' could be found in a Piazza which is the town square during the Renaissance.  They are usually lined with cafes and shops and are where most people gather for festivals, political events and celebrations. 


The Piazza San Marco is pictured to the right.  Most Piazzas' were very centralized and had very distinctive facades. Most buildings had three levels and incorporated pillars, domes, arches, columns and entablatures. 

Italian Renaissance furniture was very similar to the Greeks and Romans.  Wood was very popular material to use.  The detail of the furniture was impeccable, incorporating carvings and beautiful fabrics just as previous centuries did.

This video is a great resource to see different examples of the Italian Renaissance architecture style.

 

 

Here are some current applications of Italian Renaissance design:

Living Room

 

Lobby

Palazzo Bontadosi Hotel, Italy

 



The Americas

The Americas took place between the periods of 2000 B.C and 1521 A.D. The Aztecs, Incas, Mayans-Toltecs and the Olmecs are just a few major civilizations that make up the Americas.  The Olmecs was the first major civilization in Mexico from 2000 B.C - 200 B.C. They developed the 1st calendar in the Western Hemisphere as well as hieroglyphics writing.  La Venta is one example of the Olmecs temple focused city type. Within this temple, the ceremony center was composed of burial grounds, giant stone heads, ball courts, small pyramids and the great pyramid of the earth.

Olmec art consisted of materials of jade, rock crystal and valuable stone.  Mural paintings, masks, pottery, ax heads and decorative objects are all common art pieces.  During this time, religion was commonly tied in with art.  Stone carvings, small ceramic figurines and some pits, were associated with religious beliefs.  Most people were polytheistic which is the belief in multiple gods.

Teotihaucan is also another city during this time period.  Its name means "Place of the Gods".  It was approximately 2 miles in length and the city was laid out in a grid system.  This allowed for no walls to separate the city which shows signs of a powerful city with no enemies. 

 

The Mayan era took place between 300 B.C. and 1521 A.D.  The Mayans flourished for 1,800 years and consisted of places such as Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador and part of Mexico.  Chichen Itza is a ceremonial cite that means " Mouth of the well of the Itza". There is a four sided pyramid that is 75 feet tall.  Chacmool, pictured below, was their ritualistic figure.


Current Applications:





 

Mayan and Incas Prints/Jewelry