Artists and writers of the Renaissance often portrayed the countryside

Transcription

1 PASTORAL th compltd sctions show th longatd lins and lgant poss typical of his work. In th lat 1530s, th church mmbrs who had commissiond th paintings for th Stccata church bcam frustratd with Parmigianino s lack of progrss. Thy had th paintr jaild brifly, and thn barrd him from working on th projct. Parmigianino fld to th narby town of Casalmaggior, whr h workd on various othr picturs. Still hoping to rturn to Parma and finish th Stccata altarpics, h did at ag 37. (S also Art; Art in Italy.) Pastoral * Flmish rlating to Flandrs, a rgion along th coasts of prsnt-day Blgium, Franc, and th Nthrlands * mdival rfrring to th Middl Ags, a priod that bgan around A.D. 400 and ndd around 1400 in Italy and 1500 in th rst of Europ * gnr litrary form Pastoral * romanc advntur story of th Middl Ags, th forrunnr of th modrn novl * pic long pom about th advnturs of a hro Artists and writrs of th Rnaissanc oftn portrayd th countrysid as a prfct plac, far from th corrupt lif of th city and th court. This styl, known as th pastoral, bcam on of th most popular forms for art and litratur. Such notd Rnaissanc figurs as English playwright William SHAKESPEARE, Spanish author Migul d CERVANTES SAAVEDRA, and Flmish* paintr Ptr Paul RUBENS all cratd works in a pastoral styl. Th pastoral dvlopd out of a varity of ancint and mdival* forms. In particular, it drw on th ancint Roman poms calld clogus, which focusd on convrsations btwn shphrds. In th 1200s and 1300s, th Italian pots Dant Alighiri, PETRARCH, and Giovanni BOCCACCIO cratd nw Latin works in this form. Latr writrs producd clogus in Italian, and in tim th pastoral form sprad throughout Europ. Artists also adoptd pastoral thms in thir works, oftn placing biblical storis in a country stting. Th Rnaissanc pastoral was not rally a singl distinct gnr*. Writrs usd pastoral thms in a varity of forms, including potry, pros, and drama. For xampl, Italian playwright Giovanni Battista Guarini usd th pastoral styl in his play Th Faithful Shphrd (1590). Guarini blivd that th pastoral s rural stting, far rmovd from th customs of city lif, mad it an idal form for social, political, and vn sxual xprimntation. Othr works, such as Crvants s Don Quixot, combind th pastoral styl with lmnts of th romanc* form. Th pastoral bcam xtrmly popular in England in th lat 1500s. English writrs producd many famous pastoral works in a varity of litrary forms. Edmund SPENSER cratd a book of clogus calld Th Shphards Calndr and also usd pastoral thms in his pic* Th Fari Qun. Philip SIDNEY producd Arcadia, a pastoral romanc, and Shakspar adoptd th pastoral styl in his comdy As You Lik It. (S also Drama, Frnch; Italian Languag and Litratur; Potry, English.) Patronag Patronag M uch of th glorious outpouring of art in th Rnaissanc was th rsult of patronag. Th trm traditionally rfrs to th support that popl of walth and influnc providd to artists, scholars, and writrs. Rulrs, pops, and prosprous mrchants hird artists to adorn 146 THE RENAISSANCE

2 thir homs and public spacs, and scholars to translat ancint Grk and Roman txts. Patronag can also apply to othr typs of social and political tis. Many aspcts of Rnaissanc lif involvd bonds of mutual support btwn individuals and groups. * mdival rfrring to th Middl Ags, a priod that bgan around A.D. 400 and ndd around 1400 in Italy and 1500 in th rst of Europ * classical in th tradition of ancint Grc and Rom * gntry popl of high birth or social status * rpublic form of Rnaissanc govrnmnt dominatd by lading mrchants with limitd participation by othrs * rgim govrnmnt in powr at a particular tim * faction party or intrst group within a largr group PATRONS AND CLIENTS Patrons, usually individuals or groups with powr and substanc, assistd thir clints thos who followd or srvd thm in various ways. Thy might provid clints with jobs in th church or govrnmnt or supply thm with a stady incom. Patrons also offrd protction and hlpd clints if thy wr in troubl with th law. Clints, in turn, gav patrons thir loyalty and support. Th sam prson could b a patron (providr of assistanc) in on situation and a clint (somon nding assistanc) in anothr. Th Rnaissanc systm of patronag volvd out of ancint and mdival* traditions. Th words patron and clint cam from th Latin trms patronus and clins, which dat back to ancint Rom. In th lat 1400s, som Italians with classical* training bgan using ths words to rfr to th patron-clint rlationships of thir day. In many cass, clint-patron rlations includd strong lmnts of frindship or vn kinship. Mmbrs of th English gntry* oftn rfrrd to thir clos associats as cousins, whil Italians spok of thir kinsmn, frinds, and nighbors. In som cass, patronag xtndd or mad formal th tis that alrady xistd among nighbors and rlativs. Although clints and patrons usually cam from diffrnt ranks of socity, thir rlationship could includ a dgr of quality. Patronag playd an important rol in th Italian rpublics* of Flornc, Vnic, and Gnoa, whr changs of govrnmnt or rgim* wr frqunt. To protct thir position in ths shifting socitis, popl attachd thmslvs to th gran mastri, or big shots, who dalt in political powr. Patron-clint rlations could bcom th basis for stabl political factions*. Ambitious party ladrs and rulrs usd thir patronag to draw powr to thmslvs. For xampl, th MEDICI family ruld th city-stat of Flornc by building on-party rgims mad up of thir frinds and clints. Bginning in th 1460s, Italians bgan to us th trm mastro dlla bottga (boss of th shop) to dscrib ladrs, including rulrs and privat citizns, who wr mastrs of th art of political patronag. As ths political figurs grw in powr, thir rlationships with thir clints bcam incrasingly unqual. Clints showd gratr dfrnc toward thm and spok of thm in mor rspctful, vn fawning, trms. Nonthlss, patronag rmaind a two-way rlationship. Grat lords frquntly wnt out of thir way to srv quit humbl frinds and supportrs, knowing that thy ndd thir clints dvotion to maintain thir rputations and prhaps thir armd support to dfnd thir rgims. Womn, who had littl formal powr in Rnaissanc politics, managd to xrt quit a bit of influnc through th informal workings of THE RENAISSANCE 147

3 patronag. Most fmal patrons focusd on hlping othr womn or th poor. Noblwomn, wivs and mothrs of party ladrs, and womn who hadd important convnts all usd th cultur of patronag to thir advantag. ARTISTIC Patronag of th arts took plac within th largr contxt of social and political patronag. Most patrons commissiond artworks not for th art itslf, but bcaus it contributd to th splndor of thir domains. Thy sought works that would proclaim thir walth and rank to th world. Patronag could rais th status of th artist as wll as th patron. Thos who srvd powrful patrons oftn acquird prosprity and fam. Patrons possssd considrabl influnc, vn control, ovr th artists thy hird. Bcaus thy wr paying, thy had th right to dictat th subjct mattr and styl of a pic. Patrons oftn rqustd works in thir honor. Howvr, patrons and artists could also influnc ach othr through shard idas, and th works producd undr such a partnrship ar somtims associatd with th nams of both patron and artist. Th politician Giorgio Trissino, for instanc, introducd th architct Andra PALLADIO to humanist* ducation and promotd his carr. Similarly, artists somtims functiond as patrons. Whn MICHELANGELO BUONARROTI workd on th church of San Lornzo in Flornc, h chos boyhood frinds, rlativs, and nighbors to assist him in th task. * humanist rfrring to a Rnaissanc cultural movmnt promoting th study of th humanitis (th languags, litratur, and history of ancint Grc and Rom) as a guid to living * princ Rnaissanc trm for th rulr of an indpndnt stat * Holy Roman Empror rulr of th Holy Roman Empir, a political body in cntral Europ composd of svral stats that xistd until 1806 Royal and Papal Patrons. Rulrs and pops wr th lading patrons of th arts during th Rnaissanc. Not only did thy hav th most walth at thir disposal, but thy also had th gratst nd for artworks. Thy rlid on th splndor of thir courts and thir possssions to display thir powr to thir subjcts and to othr princs*. To dmonstrat thir magnificnc, Rnaissanc rulrs commissiond and built grand palacs, churchs, and monumnts. Thy also purchasd costly dcorativ itms such as jwlry, dishs, luxurious tapstris, and richly mbllishd armor and wapons. Thy adornd thir cloths with parls, gms, and mbroidry, and thir homs with paintings, status, and manuscripts in lavish bindings. Among th gratst Rnaissanc patrons wr th duks of BURGUNDY, who ruld northrn Franc, Blgium, Luxmbourg, and th Nthrlands. Two of ths duks, Philip th Good (ruld ) and Charls th Bold (ruld ), gaind fam for thir magnificnt courts and crmonis. Many mastrs of arts and crafts srvd th duks, including paintr Jan Van EYCK. Th duks also collctd books and assmbld an xcptionally fin choir of musicians. Svral Holy Roman Emprors* of th HABSBURG DYNASTY wr notd patrons of th arts. Empror MAXIMILIAN I (ruld ) sought to glorify his family through art. H plannd a vast monumnt that was to fatur mor than 40 lif-siz status of his ancstors, including Julius Casar, as wll as 100 status of Habsburg family saints. Maximilian also 148 THE RENAISSANCE

4 * papal rfrring to th offic and authority of th pop * facad front of a building; outward apparanc * diplomatic having to do with formal rlations btwn nations * villa luxurious country hom and th land surrounding it wrot litratur praising his own dds and had th works illustratd by major artists. In addition, h collctd tapstris, gold work, and armor h was probably th gratst patron of armor-makrs in his day. Maximilian s grandson, CHARLES V, prfrrd scinc and tchnology. H collctd globs and maps, scintific instrumnts, and illustratd books on astronomy and anatomy. Pops mrgd as powrful patrons of th arts in th 1500s, and th papal* court bcam a lading cntr of cultur. Prhaps th most ambitious was Pop JULIUS II (ruld ), who sought to rstor th lost gloris of ancint Rom. H hird architcts and artists to turn mdival Rom into a classical city, rbuilding ntir sctions of town and crating broad avnus bordrd with palacs. His succssor, LEO X (ruld ), was a mmbr of th Mdici family. Lo dvotd grat nrgy and rsourcs to rstoring his family s powr through artistic projcts. H commissiond Michlanglo to build a hug marbl facad* for th church of San Lornzo in Flornc and RAPHAEL to dcorat his privat dining room in th Vatican. Pops, lik worldly rulrs, commissiond artworks not only for prsonal us but also as diplomatic* gifts. Lo X snt th king of Franc two of Raphal s paintings. Othr notd patrons of th Rnaissanc includd th monarchs of England, Franc, Napls, and Spain, th duks of Milan, and th influntial ESTE and Mdici familis. HENRY VIII of England (ruld ) spnt grat sums on his palacs. His 55 rsidncs wr furnishd with mor than 2,000 tapstris, 2,028 itms platd in silvr or gold, and 1,800 books. FRANCIS I (ruld ) of Franc turnd an old hunting lodg into th glorious Rnaissanc châtau of Fontainblau. H bought many Italian artworks and attractd artists, such as LEONARDO DA VINCI and Bnvnuto CELLINI, to dcorat his flourishing court. Svral fmal rulrs also gaind fam as patrons. Th Spanish qun ISABELLA OF CASTILE (ruld ) supportd architctur, art, and litratur. MARGARET OF AUSTRIA, th daughtr of Maximilian I, collctd tapstris, gold work, manuscripts, and paintings by such artists as Hironymus BOSCH. Isablla d Est of Mantua commissiond a varity of pics, ranging from floral tapstris to musical instrumnts. Othr Patrons. Mmbrs of th nobility imitatd th grand rulrs by practicing artistic patronag on a smallr scal. Thy built mansions, dcoratd thir homs with artworks, and wor xpnsiv cloths and jwlry. Thy also assmbld libraris and sponsord rligious architctur, spcially privat chapls for thir familis. Many mrchants, bankrs, and court officials ros to walth and prominnc in th srvic of powrful rulrs and bcam patrons thmslvs. Agostino Chigi, a bankr in th Italian city of SIENA, providd funds to thr pops and managd businss for th papal court. H ownd a palac in th cntr of Rom and a lavish suburban rsidnc modld on th villas* of ancint Rom. Anothr notabl patron, Nicolas Rolin, ros from a middl-class background to normous powr in th srvic of th duks of Burgundy. H commissiond an laboratly adornd hospital in th city of Baun and Jan van Eyck s painting Virgin with Chancllor Rolin. THE RENAISSANCE 149

5 Lttrs of Rcommndation Many lttrs xist from on Rnaissanc patron to anothr rcommnding th srvics of a particular clint. Oftn clints brought such lttrs to potntial patrons by way of introduction. Lttrs of this typ oftn rfrrd to th rlationship btwn th patron and th clint in trms of kinship, with th two calling thmslvs loving brothrs or a gntlwoman dscribing hrslf as an ldr sistr. Rligious mtaphors wr also common in ths lttrs. A powrful patron might call his or hr clints obdint lambs, whil th clint might promis to honor th patron as Fathr, Son, and Holy Ghost. * guild association of craft and trad ownrs and workrs that st standards for and rprsntd th intrsts of its mmbrs * pic long pom about th advnturs of a hro * masqu dramatic ntrtainmnt prformd by maskd actors, or a ball or party at which all gusts war masks or costums Evn mmbrs of th middl class srvd as patrons of th arts on a modst scal. Popl with limitd mans bought artworks mad of inxpnsiv matrials, such as wood, pwtr, clay, papr, and brass. Most such itms, howvr, wr not commissiond but producd on spculation that is, to b sold at public markts or in th artist s workshop. As a rsult, th prsonal connction btwn patron and clint, so important at th highr lvls of artistic patronag, did not xist. Som patrons wr not individuals but groups. Local govrnmnts, guilds*, churchs, and various rligious groups commissiond a varity of artworks and buildings. Town officials wr rsponsibl for th construction of bll towrs, town halls, fountains, and city walls. Guilds and rligious organizations built mtinghouss and chapls and adornd thm with artworks. Michlanglo s colossal statu David, for xampl, was a commission from th board of dirctors of th Flornc cathdral. In addition, guilds and othr groups ordrd dcorations, floats, and ntrtainrs for public vnts. LITERARY IN ENGLAND A complx systm of litrary patronag dvlopd in Rnaissanc England, whr booksllrs paid vry small sums to th authors whos works thy publishd. As a rsult, most writrs who wr not indpndntly walthy had to sk a patron to support thm. Th luckist authors found positions as scrtaris or librarians, ithr with nobl patrons or with th govrnmnt, which allowd thm to pursu thir litrary fforts as part of thir job. Thos who could not obtain rgular mploymnt struggld along by writing poms or othr works on rqust for th walthy. Som authors ddicatd thir litrary works to prominnt figurs in th hop of bing rwardd with mony or work. English monarchs most notably ELIZABETH I and JAMES I oftn rcivd such ddications. This mthod somtims mt with succss. Aftr ddicating th first thr books of his pic* Th Fari Qun to Elizabth I, Edmund SPENSER rcivd a yarly pnsion of 50 pounds for lif. John DONNE was lss fortunat. Dismissd from his patron s srvic bcaus of a marriag rgardd as unsuitabl, Donn spnt 14 yars unabl to find stady work. H kd out a living by writing poms to or for various patrons. Anothr form of litrary patronag involvd th thatr. Bcaus authoritis in London oftn took a hostil attitud toward plays and th acting profssion, acting companis had to sk th aid of powrful nobls or vn monarchs. Royal and nobl patrons xtndd thir protction to th actors and somtims hird playwrights dirctly to provid ntrtainmnt for public occasions. Th bst xampl of this practic is th laborat court masqus* of th arly 1600s. Th patronag systm was on of th most important influncs on litrary production in Rnaissanc England. It affctd th typs of works that writrs producd, causing som of thm to concntrat on works most likly to flattr or plas possibl patrons. It also ld to firc comptition among authors. Patronag not only mad th profssion of 150 THE RENAISSANCE

6 PEASANTRY writing possibl but also hlpd dtrmin th form that profssion would tak. (S also Architctur; Art; Art in Italy; Books and Manuscripts; English Languag and Litratur; Litratur; Luxury; Parads and Pagants.) Pasantry Pasantry * artisan skilld workr or craftsprson About 90 prcnt of th popl in Rnaissanc Europ wr pasants rural laborrs who plantd crops and tndd animals. Agricultur was th most important conomic activity throughout Europ, and th pasantry producd th food consumd by popl living in citis. During th Middl Ags most Europan pasants wr srfs, lgally bound to th land thy workd. Srfdom bgan to dclin in wstrn Europ in th 1300s, and by th lat 1500s it had largly disappard. As a rsult, Rnaissanc pasants njoyd much gratr frdom. Many pasants movd to othr villags, to othr rgions, or to towns and citis in sarch of a bttr lif. Thos most likly to migrat wr th young and th landlss. Adult pasants oftn bcam sasonal migrants, hlping to harvst crops in aras far from thir own villags or vn in forign countris. Pasant villags srvd as th conomic and political foundation of Rnaissanc socity. Each villag had a local assmbly or council to govrn it. Outsid authoritis, such as nobls and th church, grantd villags a larg dgr of local slf-rul bcaus thy rcognizd th nd for local dcisions about som issus. In thory, all citizns could participat in villag govrnmnt on qual trms. Howvr, walthy landownrs or mrchants oftn dominatd local assmblis. Villag councils rgulatd th us of local rsourcs such as forsts, pasturs, and farmland. Thy also took charg of building and maintaining roads, wlls, and anything ls that would bnfit th community as a whol. Villag govrnmnts also playd a rol in th hundrds of pasant rbllions that took plac in th Rnaissanc. Ths rvolts oftn rsultd from th growing powr of nation-stats, which cut into tim-honord pasant rights. Rural socity during th Rnaissanc was quit varid. Many pasants not only workd in agricultur, but also labord as shopkprs, artisans*, or tradrs. Furthrmor, th boundaris btwn rural and urban socity wr oftn unclar. All towns and citis had rsidnts who workd in th surrounding countrysid. Th social and conomic lif of th villags oftn ovrlappd with that of narby citis. Bginning in th 1400s, many pasants startd growing cash crops for sal, rathr than mrly producing nough for thir own nds. A fw of ths pasants bcam walthy and bought up thir nighbors lands, whil othrs movd into trad and othr businsss. Ths changs mad rural socity mor divrs and waknd traditional pasant lif. (S also Agricultur; Artisans; Daily Lif; Economy and Trad; Nationstat; Pasants War; Population; Rvolts; Social Status.) THE RENAISSANCE 151