Renaissance Portraits: European Portrait-Painting in the 14th, 15th and 16th Centuries - Hardcover

Campbell, Lorne

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0300046758 ISBN 13: 9780300046755

Publisher: Yale University Press, 1990

Synopsis

What kinds of portrait were produced during the Renaissance? Who produced them and for whom? How were they painted? Why were they wanted and how were they used? in this beautiful book, Lorne Campbell addresses these fundamental questions by exploring the aesthetic, technical, social and economic aspects of Renaissance portrait-painting and by offering a close examination of the works of artists such as Jan van Eyck, Leonardo, Durer, Raphael, Holbein, and Titian. Drawing the writings and private correspondence of the painters and their patrons, and describing and analysing the ways in which sitters were individualised, idealised and characterised, Campbell shows what can be deduced about the painters intentions and the patrons requirements. Detail by detail, he builds up an understanding of the role of portrait-painting and the methods used by artists to achieve their goal. Sharply focussed, meticulously researched and sensitively presented, this handsomely illustrated book is a major contribution to the study of Renaissance art and will provide enlightenment for scholar, student and general reader alike.

About this title

Reviews

Sprinkling this selected survey with enjoyable anecdotes and historical details, Campbell describes and categorizes portrait painting of the Renaissance, illustrated in 140 black-and-white and 80 color reproductions of good quality featuring such artists as Durer, Holbein, Van Eyck, Raphael, and Titian. In the final chapter, he advocates the supremacy of "Northern" as opposed to Italian Renaissance portraiture because its influences can be seen in the Italians, but he is not convincing. His argument excludes any mention of Alberti, Masaccio, and scores of other artists whose works represent the pursuit of ideal beauty, as important to the Italians as the depiction of the individual, and specifically omits the exquisite devotional paintings of the early Renaissance, which contain many Italian portraits. All told, however, the book presents some valuable material by a knowledgeable source for people studying portrait painting. Recommended for special collections.
- Ellen Bates, New York
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Publication date: 1990
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0300046758
• ISBN 13: 9780300046755
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 290