Renaissance Architecture Notes
Renaissance Architecture Notes
Renaissance Architecture Notes
ARCHT’L FEATURES
GEOGRAPHICAL
- This includes Italy, France, Germany, Holland, Spain, and England.
- The reintroduction of Classic Architecture all over Europe in the 15th and 16th
century.
DEVELOPMENT OF RENAISSANCE
- Proto-Baroque
= Evident in the works of Michelangelo & Bernini as not fully developed Baroque.
Churches are with wide naves, & low ceilings crowned by high cupolas [domes].
- Palladian
= Popularized by Andrea Palladio, marked with round arch flanked by 2 small
square-headed openings.
- Baroque
= Is opulent and dramatic with irregular shapes and extravagant ornamentation.
- Rococo
= Late Baroque where it is increasingly ornate, florid, and playful.
ARCHT’L CHARACTER
PLANS
- Towers are sparingly used while the dome is the predominant feature.
- Symmetrical in plan
WALLS
- Ashlar masonry laid in horizontal courses and materials were in large blocks and
rusticated to give an impression of dignity.
- Rusticated wall angles called quoins to give an appearance of strength.
OPENING
- Arcades, doors, and windows are spanned by semi-circular arches.
ROOFS
- Vaulting is developed by means of semi-circular vaults.
- Timber roofs are no longer left open.
COLUMNS
- Classic orders were used & their proportions standardized.
MOULDINGS
- Projecting horizontal cornices cast deep shadows.
ORNAMENTS
- Motifs:
= Classical mythology
= Pagan subjects
= Fresco Painting
- Characteristics
= Carefully executed
= Fine craftmanship
RENAISSANCE IN ITALY
ITALIAN RENAISSANCE
- Geographically considered the best in renaissance architecture under the three
distinctive cities of Florence, Rome, and Venice.
- Characteristics of Italian Renaissance:
= Stateliness
= Classical horizontality
ITALIAN FEATURES
- Symmetrical plan that is also compact, rectilinear, formal, and grand.
- Severe and rusticated walls.
- Arcades have arches supported on piers faced with columns.
- Astylar façade [wall treatment without columns]
- Low-pitched roofs hidden by balustrades
- Pilaster strips are also used and marble often appear as points of special interest.
- Orders are superimposed in tiers.
- Doric, Ionic, Corinthian, Tuscan, and Composite column orders.
- Domes are crowned with lanterns.
- Coffered ceilings
- In English sometimes called the Pitti Palace, is a vast, mainly Renaissance, palace in
Florence, Italy.
- Designed by Filippo Brunelleschi for Luca Pitti.
- It is astylar and the largest place in Italy except the Vatican.
- The palace was bought by the Medici family in 1549 and became the chief residence
of the ruling families of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany.
PALAZZO RICCARDI
- Also called the Palazzo Medici Riccardi after the later family that acquired and
expanded it, is a Renaissance palace located in Florence, Italy. It is the seat of the
Metropolitan City of Florence and a museum.
- Designed by Michelozzo Michellozzi in astylar design.
S. ANDREA
- Is a Roman Catholic co- cathedral and minor basilica in Mantua, Lombardy (Italy).
- Its mantua was by Leon Battista Alberti.
- It has a façade that looks like a Roman triumphal arch, Arch of Trajan at Ancona.
- One of the major works of 15th-century Renaissance architecture in Northern Italy.
FLORENCE, ITALY HIGH RENAISSANCE
PALAZZO MARINO
- Built in 1558 and Milan’s City Hall since 1861, on 2 June, to mark Italian Republic
Day.
- By Galeazzo Alessi.
- Has lavish enrichments and graceful arcades.
PALAZZO GENOA
- Once the home of the Doges of Genoa, it is now a museum and a centre for cultural
events and arts exhibitions.
- By Rocco Lurago
- It is situated in the heart of the city, with two different entrances and façades, the
main one on Piazza Matteotti, and the second one on Piazza De Ferrari.
S. MARIA ASSUNTA
- A main feature of the church and monastery complex is the 2-storey arcaded cloister
by Donato Bramante
- Carlo Maderno designed the high altar (1614) to enframe the venerable icon of the
Madonna and Child.
TEMPIETTO IN S. PIETRO
= PIETA
- Created from marble with the effect of dynamic, flowing lines and was made when
he was 23 years old.
- The highly realistic depiction of the limbs, the musculature evokes in a viewer a
deeply emotional response.
DAVID
- By Michel Sanmichel
- It is certainly one of the most refined and detailed buildings in the city, with a façade
built in two orders, the lower one more massive, and the upper one more slender
and elegant
LIBRARY OF ST. MARK
RENAISSANCE IN FRANCE
ARCHIT’L CHARACTER
1. Picturesque
2. Gothic versatility
3. Civic Design
4. Garden planning
5. Dormer window
6. Mansard Roof
SECULAR BUILDINGS
CHATEAU DE BLOIS
- Was the residence of several French kings.
- During the Renaissance, 7 kings and 10 queens sojourned in the châ teau.
- From right to left: the Louis XII Gothic flamboyant wing, the medieval Gothic castle,
the Francois I Renaissance wing, and the Gaston d’Orleans classic wing.
CHATEAU DE CHAMBORD
- By Gilles Le Breton depends for its attraction on the courts, formal gardens, terraces,
lakes, and radiating vistas.
- Is one of the largest French royal chateau.
- Francis I and Napoleon were the monarchs who had the most influence on the
Palace as it stands today.
- The Gallery of Francis I, connecting the King's apartments with the chapel,
decorated between 1533 and 1539. It introduced the Italian Renaissance style to
France.
PALAIS DU LOUVRE
- One of the most imposing palaces in Europe.
- In 1546 Francis I commissioned the architect Pierre Lescot and sculptor Jean Goujon
to modernize the Louvre into a Renaissance style palace.
- Occupies 45-acre property.
- Many of the world’s greatest work of art are housed in its gallery like Leonardo da
Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
PALAIS DES TUILERIES
- Has the earliest wholly classical façade by Salomon de Brosse with 3 tiers of coupled
columns of doric, ionic, and Corinthian
- While the lower level of the nave is late gothic, the upper level of the nave shows the
influence of the Renaissance, with large semi-circular arches containing a series of
large stained glass windows, filling the church with light.
Has a 3-storey arcaded loggia, and is topped with a three- tower attic.
It now houses the Museum of history of Poznan.
Following major damage in the Battle of Poznań (1945), the Town Hall was again
rebuilt in 1945–1954, when the Renaissance character of the elevations was
restored (and extracts from the constitution of the Polish People's Republic were
added to the text displayed on the attic wall).
STADTRESIDENZ
By Augsburger Berhard Zwitzel .
It was inspired by Italian renaissance design.
It is also called as the Landshut Residence.
RESIDENZ
Is a former royal palace of the Bavarian monarchs and is the largest downtown
palace in Germany.
Behind the German building, close to the river Isar, the so- called "Italian building"
(in German: Italienischer Bau) was constructed from 1537 to 1543 in Italian
Renaissance style with a spacious courtyard and the palace chapel.
ANTIQUARIUM
Was built in 1568-1571 for the antique collection of Albert V.
Largest Renaissance hall north of Alps.
HEIDELBERG CASTLE
B. PORTUGAL
1. Manueline Style
- A peculiarly Portuguese phenomenon was taken from the name of King Manuel I.
It is decorative rather than structural in character. Patterns used are;
= Armilary Spheres
= Ropes
= Corals
= Cross of the Order of Christ
= Manueline Style
EXAMPLES IN SPAIN
THE ROYAL HOSPITAL
By Enrique Egas
Was commissioned in 1942 for the worn out pilgrims arriving in Santiago.
It is widely considered the oldest continuously operating hotel in the world, and has
also been called the "most beautiful hotel in Europe".
UNIVERSITY OF SALAMANCA
Is a masterpiece of Plateresque style.
Is a wealth of surface ornament of Moorish inspiration.
It is the world's third oldest university still in operation and the oldest university in
the Hispanic world. The formal title of "University" was granted by King Alfonso X in
1254 and recognized by Pope Alexander IV in 1255.
UNIVERSITY FAÇADE, ALCALA DE HENARES
By Narciso Tome has an articulated façade of giant orders filled with sculptural
details of the Plateresque style.
CASA DE AYUNTAMIENTO
By Diego de Riañ o
Has attached columns treated as candelabras.
The building has a large façade divided into five modules, decorated by Plateresque
reliefs; these include grotesque motifs inspired by Italian Florentine architecture,
heraldry symbols, allegories of Justice and Good Government and depictions of
mythological or historical characters such as Hercules, Julius Caesar and Charles V.
PALACE OF CHARLES V. GRANADA
By Pedro Machucha
Has rusticated Doricpilasters and paired fluted hall columns.
he exterior of the building uses a typically Renaissance combination of rustication
on the lower level and ashlar on the upper.
ESCORIAL
Begun by Juan Bautista de Toledo and completed by Juan de Herrera
is a historical residence of the King of Spain, in the town of San Lorenzo de El
Escorial, about 45 kilometres (28 miles) northwest of the Spanish capital, Madrid.
CASA LONJA
Located in Seville and houses the General Archive of the Indies, a superb collection
of books, plans, manuscripts, & several million documents bearing in the history and
administration of Spain’s empire in the America and the Philippines.
EXAMPLES IN PORTUGAL
PALACIO DE MATEUS
By Nikolau Nasoni was patterned from Italian villas designed on several terraces.
Is a palace located in the civil parish of Mateus, municipality of Vila Real, Portugal.
The three primary buildings are the manor, the winery and the chapel.
RENAISSANCE IN ENGLAND
ARCHT’L CHARACTER
Early Renaissance
A. Elizabethan
- Reign of Queen Elizabeth
- Stately Elizabethan mansions
- Oriel and bay window
B. Jacobean
- Reign of James I
- More sober in character
- Oriel Window = Window corbelled out from a wall.
GRAND STAIRCASE
LONG GALLERY = Is designed as a connecting corridor, a covered promenade or a
picture gallery.
- By Robert Symthson
- Is widely regarded as the best example of High Elizabethan architecture in Britain.
- John Thynne, 4th Marquess of Bath (1831–1896) collected Italian fine arts. He
employed John Crace, whose prior work included Brighton Pavilion, Woburn Abbey,
Chatsworth House and the Palace of Westminster, to add Italian renaissance style
interiors.
KIRBY HALL
- Located in Northamptonshire by Thomas Thorpe
- Is one of England’s greatest Elizabethan mansions.
- Kirby was owned by Sir Christopher Hatton, Lord Chancellor to Queen Elizabeth I.
- It is a leading and early example of the Elizabethan prodigy house.
BURGHLEY HOUSE
- is a country house and former archbishop's palace situated within Knole Park.
- The house apparently ranks in the top five of England's largest houses, under any
measure used, occupying a total of four acres
- Located in Cambridge
- The college was founded in 1326 as University Hall, making it the second- oldest
surviving college of the University after Peterhouse.
- The college was founded in 1326 by the university's Chancellor, Richard Badew, and
was originally named University Hall.
STUART ARCHITECTURES
BANQUETING HALL
- The Banqueting House, Whitehall, is the grandest and best known survivor of the
architectural genre of banqueting house, which were constructed for elaborate
entertaining.
- By Iñ igo Jones, and was designed in a style influenced by y Palladio.
- It is the grandest of the banqueting house and the first building to be completed in
the neo-classic style.
QUEEN’S HOUSE
- Queen's House is a former royal residence built between 1616 and 1635 in
Greenwich, a few miles down-river from the then City of London and now a London
Borough.
- By Iñ igo Jones, and has an influence of the Palladian style.
- It was a crucial early commission, for Anne of Denmark, the queen of King James I.
YORKWATER GATE
- By Balthazar Gerbier executed by Nicholas Stone is a charming piece with rusticated
masonry and Tuscan order surmounted by pediment.
- York House (formerly Norwich Place or Norwich Palace) was one of a string of
mansion houses which formerly stood on the Strand, the principal route from the
City of London to the Palace of Westminster.
S. PAUL COVENT GARDEN
PRINTING PRESS
German goldsmith Johannes Gutenberg is credited with inventing the printing press
around 1436, although he was far from the first to automate the book-printing
process.
It was first used to printing bibles but considering that not many people were able
to read Latin, it was a dying business until the Renaissance period where it was
widely used when Italian city- states like Rome and Florence set out to revive the
Ancient Roman educational system that had produced giants like Caesar, Cicero and
Seneca.
“Suddenly, what had been a project to educate only the few wealthiest elite in this
society could now become a project to put a library in every medium-sized town,
and a library in the house of every reasonably wealthy merchant family,” says
Palmer.
PETRARCH
has been called the Father of Italian Humanism, and while modern historiography
plays down the role of individuals, his contribution was large.
He firmly believed that classical writings were not just relevant to his own age but
saw in them moral guidance that could reform humanity, a key principle of
Renaissance Humanism.
- Had Petrarch not lived, Humanism would have been seen as threatening
Christianity.