From Introduction: The ideal of femininity which developed in Renaissance painting, was a visual and psychological type which was to become the Western European Christian formula of the feminine. This type has survived until the present day, so a discussion of its origins can be revealing for us in the twentieth century, especially as it has been neglected in traditional art historical works. In this essay, the changes in the image of the feminine, in just under three hundred years of Florentine painting, starting with Giotto1. and ending with Raphael~ยท will be covered. The images will be taken from the wo rk of artists who were Florentine in training, who worked in the city or who were strongly influenced by the Florentine style of painting. I have divided the paintings I have studied into three sections. In the Religious section the paintings are mainly of Mary. The Mythological images refer to Greek and Roman myths and the humanistic interpretations of them. Finally, the Portrait and Genre images are selected on the following basis: In the genre paintings they are sometimes part of works related to religion or mythology, but, in their handling, the painters treat the figures as real human beings rather than holy or mythological figures. In others they are bona fide portrait representations. 3. I have made the above distinction because I expect that the gap between religio-mythological images and portraits will give some indication of the difference between the ideal and the reality for women of that time. The images will be analysed and changes noted in favoured types, gestures, expressions, movements, placing in the composition, relationships to others, favoured themes, costume, colour and symbols. I will point out as I proceed the effects that these elements had on the mood and tone of each image.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:rhodes/vital:2471 |
| Date | January 1985 |
| Creators | Crossley, Elizabeth Ellen |
| Publisher | Rhodes University, Faculty of Humanities, Fine Art |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Masters, MFA |
| Format | 133 leaves, pdf |
| Rights | Crossley, Elizabeth Ellen |
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