In the north of Europe, the spirit of the Renaissance lagged somewhat behind as com pared with its development under the sky of Italy. Climatic conditions, the influence of the Gothic in making angular the forms and the draperies and in diminishing the wall spaces for mural painting, a neglect of the close study of the human body, of proportion, of perspective, a general empiricism in the sciences, the scarcity of examples of antique art, a lack of intelli gent and munificent patronage in Germany, even the Reformation itself,— all have been given as partial explanations of this inferiority. Notwithstanding his genius, his earnest re searches and his journey to Italy, Dfirer's art remained hampered throughout his life by his mediaeval limitations. The Italians, who fully appreciated his work, his imagination and intel lectual power, declared that he would have been as great as the greatest of their own artists if they had been born in Florence or Rome and had studied the antique. His great influence over his contemporaries was extended by his engravings. Diirer's chief rival among his contemporaries was Albrecht Altdorfer, the Ratisbon master. Lucas Cranach, the elder, so called from his natal town in Franconia, estab lished a school in Saxony, which survived for some years after his death, although unable to reproduce his strong individuality. In Upper Alsace, the renown of Martin Schongauer was continued by two painters, not natives of the province, Matthias Griinewald and Fans Bal dung, the latter, also, betraying strongly the in fluence of Diirer. 'The of Swabia, the most eminent and the most learned of the Ger man Renaissance, boasted, in addition to the Burckmairs and the Holbeins, of Martin Schaff ner, the so-called Master of Ulm and some other painters. In the Spanish peninsula, at the period of the gradual expulsion of the Moors, the demand for church pictures brought paint ers from both Italy and Flanders,— from the latter, among others, Jan van Eyck and Rogier van der Weyden.
Among the causes that contributed to the development of the full flower of the Renais sance in Italy,—in addition to those already mentioned,— may be cited the humanistic spirit, derived largely from the enthusiasm ansing from the study of the antique, a general aspira tion toward the noble and the beautiful, a new ideal of humanity. Contemporary with this was a revival of learning,— more complete than in Germany. The art of painting, however, it was necessary to reinvent; the study of the human figure, the all important subject in the art of the Renaissance, was undertaken scientifically. Church painting remained for a long time the principal feature and it was greatly favored by the abandonment of the old Gothic Type and the division of the field into panels'.-'which permitted of larger wall spaces, of pictures even longer than they were high. These were exe cuted in fresco, the method perfected in the school of Giotto,— bison fresco, painting on the last or smooth coating of plaster freshly ap plied to the wall and while still wet. That which could not be painted upon in the course of the day was cut out and replaced with fresh lime the next morning. In this manner the color becomes an integral part of the wall. The pigments were water colors, usually earths and minerals. Subsequent retouching was neces sarily done al secco, on the dry wall and this was generally considered regrettable and some what dangerous to the conservation of the painting. Sometimes in the contracts for deco
rative works we find this retouching insisted upon. Encaustic paintings seems also to have been known; tempera and oil painting were usually reserved for altar-screens and easel pic tures, these being generally panels covered with a thin layer of plaster. For their studies and drawings, the artist worked in monochrome or (irk ailk, called by the Italians painting in Ajar° oscura; their colors were ground by their apprentices under their own eyes and selected with great care. The art of painting, the most eloquent expression of the Renais sance, was destined to outstrip the other mani festations —sciences and letters, if not architec ture. Florence remained the chief seat of this' art in the 15th century as in the time of Giotto, though her authority was much less than in sculpture; the leaders were Masolino and his pupil Masaccio (q.v.), to the latter is attributed the honor of having invented a new style in Painting. Very 'different from his intelligent naturalism and fine sense of distinction was the sincere and naive piety of the work of the Dominican friar Fra Giovanni da Fiesole (q.v.), called Fra Angelico; and still more so the tasteless •realism* of Paolo di Dono, known as Paolo Uccello (q.v.). Foremost amongst the direct heirs of Masaccio were Fra Filippo Lippi (q.v.), and his son, called Filippino Lippi (q.v.) ; the paintings of the former betraying new qualities of color and of morbidessa With him originated a new type of the Ma donna, afterward given its highest expression by Leonardo and Raphael.— a presentation in which only the human idyl of motherly love and infantile innocence is sought. In the reli gious as in the allegorical and mythological sub jects of Sandro Botticelli (q.v.), something of the medixval awkwardness of expression re appears, redeemed by the grace and charm of the conception and the color. With him are associated as exponents of a modern, ingenious spirit, Benozzo Gozzoli, a pupil of Fra Angelico and Pinturicchio (q.v.). Andrea Ver rocchio (q.v.) is most popularly known as a sculptor, principally by his equestrian statue of Colleone, the Venetian general; Domenico Ghirlandaio (q.v.), less original than Masaccio but more finished in his expression of realism, was, next to him, the most important painter of the Florentine school of the 15th century and had for a pupil Michelangelo.
Of the Umbrian school, the chief seat was Perugia, though in this province painting was not centralized in the cities; the mystical and serene spirit of Perugino differed from the vivacious and investigating character of his predecessors in the school. The first artist to feel the influence of Florence was Piero degli Franceschi (q.v.), but a more skilful was Luca Signorclli (q.v.), his pupil, whose great paint ing of the 'End of the World,' in the chapel of the cathedral of Orvieto (which had been commenced by Fra Angelico), furnished themes and figures to Michelangelo for his 'Last Judg ment.' In the best works of the master of Raphael, Pietro Vanucci (q.v.), called Perugino, may be seen the same art, the same suavity and dignity, which characterize much of the early work of his famous pupil; he seems to have been the first in central Italy to master com pletely the new process of painting in oil.