Renaissance Architecture

by Christy Anderson

The Renaissance was a diverse phenomenon, marked by innovation and economic expansion, the rise of powerful rulers, religious reforms, and social change. Encompassing the entire continent, Renaissance Architecture examines the rich variety of buildings that emerged during these seminal centuries of European history.

Although marked by the rise of powerful individuals, both patrons and architects, the Renaissance was equally a time of growing group identities and communities -- and architecture provided the public face to these new identities. Religious reforms in northern Europe, spurred on by Martin Luther, rejected traditional church function and decoration, and proposed new models. Political ambitions required new buildings to satisfy court rituals. Territory, nature, and art intersected to shape new landscapes and building types. Classicism came to be the international language of an educated architect and an ambitious patron, drawing on the legacy of ancient Rome. Yet the richness of the medieval tradition continued to be used throughout Europe, often alongside classical buildings.

Examining each of these areas by turn, this book offers a broad cultural history of the period as well as a completely new approach to the history of Renaissance architecture. The work of well-known architects such as Michelangelo and Andrea Palladio is examined alongside lesser known though no less innovative designers such as Juan Guas in Portugal and Benedikt Ried in Prague and Eastern Europe. Drawing on the latest research, it also covers more recent areas of interest such as the story of women as patrons and the emotional effect of Renaissance buildings, as well as the impact of architectural publications and travel on the emerging new architectural culture across Europe. As such, it provides a compelling introduction to the subject for all those interested in the history of architecture, society, and culture in the Renaissance, and European culture in general.

Genres: Architecture, Art History, Art, Renaissance, History, Nonfiction

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Librarian note: There is more than one author with this name in the Goodreads database.

Reviews

[Caracalla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting account with great pictures. Very inclusive, dealing with much outside what would typically be considered 'Renaissance' architecture (i.e. Italian and Classical). This expands the account to traditions that were slower to abandon the Gothic tradition and to take up Classicism, with some particularly interesting results in Portugal, Germany and France, and Anderson concludes by questioning the perception of a discrete 'Renaissance' period within the Early Modern Era. As an engaging account for an intelligent outsider, it perhaps lacks something; there's little interest, say, in creating a narrative of development which would really provide explanatory depth in accounting for aesthetic change in the period. This perhaps reflects the work's expansion of scope from the traditional focus of certain architects (particularly Palladio) within the Italian trecento and quattrocento. I was vaguely tempted to knock off a star if it weren't for the academic virtue of an eclectic and inclusive account and for the occasional flashes of deep insight that are apparent when the ambitious breadth of focus gives a little and Anderson has some time for detail.

[Patricia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christy Anderson writes with clear and direct prose, and broadens the scope of typical Renaissance architecture surveys in both geographical extent and analytical framework. She looks beyond the Italian peninsula to look at simultaneous gothic architecture flourishings in Northern Europe and the incredible legacy and continuities of Istanbul of Ottoman empire; while also expanding a wider survey of building types and protagonists. The ambitious scope of her work inevitably leads to a lighter read of the many buildings she cover; and although she covers in more detail the interconnection of architectural though via architectural treatises, sometimes, the buildings she looks at seem like islands because the connection between historical past is not explicitly stated.

[Tineke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fresh approach with interesting themes, such as architecture and the natural world. With lots of advice for further reading.

[David Bisset · Rating 5 out of 5]

A stimulating study of Early Modern architecture. The book is well illustrated and has a lengthy bibliography.