Florence ushered in the 15th-century with what we'd now refer to as a "juried" competition in sculpture. There was - and is - an enormous cathedral in Florence known as the Duomo, whose construction was begun in 1296 and continued for nearly six centuries. Adjacent to the cathedral was/is a separate structure called the Baptistery, whose purpose, obviously, was for baptisms. In the 14th-century, the Proto-Renaissance artist Andrea Pisano executed a pair of immense bronze doors for the east side of the Baptistery. These were modern wonders at the time, and became quite famous.
So successful were Pisano's original bronze doors, the Florentines decided it would be a great thing entirely to add another pair to the Baptistery. To that end, they created a competition for sculptors (of any medium) and painters. Any talented soul was welcome to try his hand at the assigned subject (a scene depicting the sacrifice of Isaac), and many did.
In the end, though, it came down to a competition of two: Filippo Brunelleschi and Lorenzo Ghiberti. Both had similar styles and skills, but the judges chose Ghiberti. Ghiberti got the commission, Florence got more impressive bronze doors and Brunelleschi turned his formidable talents to architecture. It was truly one of those "win-win-win" situations, a great new development in art, and another feather in Florence's metaphoric cap.
Here, then, were five competitions that thrust Florence to the forefront of the "cultured" world, which subsequently launched the Renaissance to the point of no return. Looking at each in turn, the five impacted Renaissance art in the following ways:
1. The Church, stabilized and unified once again under one Pope, provided artists and architects with a seemingly endless supply of subject material. Cities and towns always needed new or improved churches, and churches were always on the lookout for better works of art with which to adorn themselves. Important persons were forever passing on, and they required the appropriate Final Resting Places (elaborate tombs). Florence coveted the finest of these churches and tombs, so it was a great time to be an artist in Florence.
2. Florence, having proven itself at least equal to its neighbors, was not content to rest upon its laurels. No, Florence was determined to out-do everyone. This meant building, decorating and embellishing what was already there, which meant plenty of gainful employment, which meant it was a great time to be an artist in Florence.
3. Humanism, which found a welcoming home in Florence, gave some major gifts to the arts. First, nudes were once again acceptable subject matter. Secondly, portraits no longer had to be of saints or other Biblical figures. Portraits, beginning in the Early Renaissance, could be painted of actual people. Finally, the landscape, too, crept into fashion - again, due to the fact that humanist thought was more broad than strictly religious thought. Between the new intellectual crowd and the ideas they introduced to the artistic community, it was a great time to be an artist in Florence.
4. The Medici, who literally could not spend all of their money, funded all sorts of artists' academies and workshops. The better artists that came (and taught) attracted even more talent, until you could hardly swing a cat, as they say, without whacking an artist. And, since the Medici were keen on glorifying Florence, artists were kept busy, paid, fed and appreciated (ask any artist what a happy situation this is!). If one could maneuver oneself into being sponsored by the Medici, which in all honesty wasn't a difficult task, it was a great time to be an artist in Florence.
5. Finally, the "door" contest made it possible, for the first time, for artists to enjoy fame. That is, the heady, dizzying personal sort of fame we usually reserve for actors or sports figures in the present day. Artists went from being glorified craftsmen to celebrities. All in all, it was a great time to be an artist in Florence!
Small wonder that Florence launched the careers of Brunelleschi, Ghiberti, Donatello, Masaccio, della Francesca, and Fra Angelico (to name but a few) in the first half of the 15th-century.
The second half of the century produced even bigger names. Alberti, Verrocchio, Ghirlandaio, Botticelli, Signorelli and Mantegna were all of the Florentine school and found lasting fame in the Early Renaissance. Their students, and students' students, found the greatest Renaissance fame of all (although we'll have to visit with Leonardo, Michelangelo and Raphael during the next article).
So, we'll wrap up the Early Renaissance with this thought: always remember - if the Early Renaissance comes up in conversation or, say, on a test - to paste a small (not too self-satisfied) smile on and confidently mention/write something along the lines of "Ah! Fifteenth-century Florence - what a glorious period for art!"
