Welcome to the Renaissance! I'm your guide. Wherever you see my face, click it and I'll read the page to you. Pick a master below, or start with the Fresco tab to see how the great walls and ceilings were painted.
Renaissance means "rebirth." Starting in Italy in the 1400s, artists looked back to ancient Greece and Rome and gave us something new: paintings with real depth, bodies that look alive, and faces that show feeling. Six masters are waiting for you. Visit each one, then try the Study page before you take the Art Test.
How to Make a Fresco
Fresco Check: What did you see?
Fresco is Italian for "fresh." The painter works on wet plaster, so the color soaks in and becomes part of the wall. Watch for these steps in the video:
- Rough coat. The wall gets a first layer of coarse plaster.
- The cartoon. The artist draws the picture full size on heavy paper, called a cartoon.
- Pouncing. Tiny holes are pricked along the lines. Assistants dab charcoal dust through the holes so the outline appears on the wall.
- Just one day's patch. Fresh smooth plaster is spread over only as much as can be painted before it dries. Each patch is called a giornata, "a day's work."
- Paint fast! Colors mixed with water go onto the wet plaster. Once it dries, mistakes can only be fixed by chipping the plaster off and starting over.
Think about it: Leonardo's Last Supper is not a true fresco. Leonardo liked to work slowly, so he painted on a dry wall. The paint never bonded with the plaster, and it began flaking off during his own lifetime. Its restoration took 22 years.
Name of Painting
Artist
Point at a picture to see its name and artist. Click it to visit that work and read about it again.