The Importance Of Science In The Art Of Art

Dissection of human bodies became popular during the Renaissance time as people started to redraw and disprove previous beliefs about human anatomy. Interest in anatomy grew for artistic and medical purposes. Artists such as Raphael and Michelangelo began

They began to paint and sculpt human bodies which needed specific techniques of scaling and math. Historian William J. Connell, La Motta Chair in Seton Hall University, describes the common artistic features between Classical age and Renaissance. He explains, “Freestanding, larger-than-life-size statues of human beings were sculpted for the first time since antiquity” (3). During the Classical age, huge statues of human could be found in the history in which scientific ideas were required to design and to sculpt it appropriately. Artists of Renaissance revived the way of sculpting as well as painting of Greek and Roman culture where they used techniques from math as well as science. The influence of classical culture transformed the art and the way of making it by using scientific knowledge of drawing and sculpting, and provided it a sense human importance on the artistic works.

During this painting, Michelangelo didn’t have the drive he usually did, but when his greatest enemy, Perugino started to work on it with him, that drove him to another level. Michelangelo’s interest in portraying the human body, reflected how the people in this time period felt, and that made the people who viewed his art interested in his work. Also, his sculptures reflect how dramatic of a shift it was to the Renaissance Period from the Middle Ages, and shows how the

Leonardo's early study of anatomy was very unfocused because he was trying to explain not only the structure but also conception, growth, emotions, senses, etc. He made a plan of what he was going to study in 1489. Sadly, he did not get very far with his research for he was young and unable to dissect real human corpses. Leonardo's early observations of the human anatomy were based on wisdom that he had received, animal dissection, and just looking at the human form. Around twenty years later, Leonardo was able to perform an autopsy on an old man, later discovering that he died because of a heart attack. He began to evolve as he studied the human form more and more. Eventually, he came to believe that dissecting bodies gave him the ability to obtain true and perfect knowledge. “Leonardo compiled a series of 18 mostly double-sided sheets exploding with more than 240 individual drawings and over 13,000 words of notes... these sheets are full of lucid insights into the functioning anatomy of the human body.” (bbc.com). Leonardo carried out as many as 30 dissections, also known as autopsies, throughout his life which really helped his other studies. da Vinci wrote extensively on the topic of human anatomy and it is still recognized today by being placed in the Royal Collection. Later in his life, Leonardo made the first accurate representation of the human spine. This was revolutionary and it had never

With new developments in the world of science, both everyday life and art during the Baroque period would change accordingly. The theory of gravity, the laws of mechanics, calculus, and the inventions of the microscope and telescope are a only few of the momentous advancements in technology as well as philosophy. Not only in the minds of the great thinkers of the time, but in the ordinary individual there was a definite shift towards contemplating life from a more scientific viewpoint. This mindset affected everyone, including Baroque musicians, who, while striving for magnificence and extravagance, exercised control and calculation over their art at the same time, thus creating an interesting duality within their music. This fascinating combination

Dissection of human bodies became popular during the Renaissance time as people started to redraw and disprove previous beliefs about human anatomy. Interest in anatomy grew for artistic and medicinal purposes. Artists such as Raphael and Michelangelo began “integrating their knowledge of surface and deeper anatomy into their paintings” (Wear). However, the majority of anatomical knowledge at this time was based on Greek and Medieval Italian dissection of animals (Ghosh). Comparing animal bodies to the human body provided its’ inconsistencies, and anatomists like Andreas Vesalius pointed them out and disproved what was considered factual. His studies inspired scientists years to come to venture into anatomy and dissection as well.

David is extremely buff, a quality that was highly revered during the Greek and Roman eras, and he shows off the male body very well. He is in a slight contraposto stance, where the artist illustrates the natural counterbalance of the body through the bending of the hips in one direction and the legs in another direction.

In 1489 to 1515, Leonardo da Vinci, began to illustrate anatomical features. He is ordered to stop dissecting in 1515 by

Science had been silenced for so many years by the church that it exploded in The Renaissance. New inventions and discoveries were being made rapidly. The entire attitude of everyday people had changed. People wanted things out of life other than a trip to Heaven. People wanted to learn, to create, to grow as individuals. This attitude fueled artists to push themselves and in the end created so of the most well known pieces of art in all of history.

They did this by observation but that would and could only tell them what they see on the outside. They wanted to see how the body worked from the inside to fully understand the concept of how the body functioned and this is why they would dissect cadavers whenever they could. The more knowledge they had about how the body worked, then the more they could display that in their works of art. This can be seen in the work done by Michelangelo in the marble sculptures of “The Slaves” and “David”. However, because it was still early in the understanding of the body, many sculptures are still very straight and vertical. They won’t be seen twisting the limbs of the body that create movement in the art work. They don’t fully have that realistic emotional feel to the bodies yet. Later on as more understanding of the body is learned by dissecting cadavers these sculptures by other great artists will go into great

This essay looks at the time in history beginning in the 1400’s to the mid-1700’s which we identify in art history as The Renaissance, Baroque, and Rococo periods. Focusing on the influence new scientific knowledge had in the art produced during this time with specific examples from each period and artists of the time.

(Renaissance ? Science in the Renaissance) which led to the monumental change in art from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. These mathematical studies are responsible for the famous artwork of Michelangelo and Leonardo, without which the Renaissance would be much less admired by today?s society. The use of depth and perspective, paramount techniques in the art of the Renaissance and of later years, were brought about by the educational studies by artists ? studies that had not been done by artists of previous times (Renaissance ? Science in the Renaissance).

At the age of 38, Leonardo started to conduct extensive studies on the human eyes and it was also his early studies on optics that led him to pursue the field of anatomy. Being a successful artist earned him the right to dissect human corpses at various hospitals in Florence as well as Milan. With this advantage, Leonardo became the first anatomist to create anatomical portraits of the human body. His illustrations of human’s as well as other animals’ anatomy and physiology showed not only the appearance but also the functions of the parts that were illustrated. Most if not all of his sketches were incredibly accurate and identical to the ones that scientists use today.

Knowledge lies at the foundation of everything in society. While it may not always be noticed, it is always present. This knowledge is used in an array of processes such as creativity, experimentation, analysis, and so much more. From process to process, or area of knowledge to area of knowledge, all knowledge incorporates the processes of both transformation and description in order to evolve as justifiable beliefs. Transformative knowledge includes the product of an individual’s implementation of their personal cognitive processes to challenge traditional perspectives, while descriptive knowledge results when individuals utilize the new perspectives, allowing fresh outlooks to be perceived. While all areas of knowledge incorporate the use of both processes, some may primarily use one or the other. This can be seen in the areas of art and natural sciences. Knowledge in arts seems to primarily describe the world, while knowledge in natural sciences seeks to transform it through innovation and much more.

In Metaphysics 1.1 , Aristotle claims “All men by nature desire to know” (980a) and that this knowledge is freedom. Shortly after claiming man’s want to have knowledge, he begins to distinguish between man and animal; all animals have the knowledge of sense - feeling the cold of a snowflake, or the seeing the sun go down - this all beings have. Aristotle then goes on to describe additional types of knowledge that become more exclusive to the human experience as they go further. Memory knowledge, that only some animals have; the knowledge of experience even less animals have - although some might argue that animals don’t have this knowledge and in fact, this is where the types of knowledge become a privilege that only humans can possess - and finally, the knowledge of art and science, which is agreed that only humans have. It is this type of knowledge that Aristotle says is only allowed once we have the freedom from our most basic needs of survival. Knowledge of the arts and science is the highest level, “for it was when almost all the necessities of life and the things that make for comfort and recreation had been secured, that such knowledge began to be sought” (982b.22-24.) This freedom, the freedom of learning the most honorable of the levels of knowledge, is highly valued by Aristotle and according to Simonides, only “God alone can have this privilege” (982b.30). Knowledge of the arts and sciences if rather the knowledge of the what AND the why - take for example the