I learned something about art. Some might say there have been just two main art periods in human history. First, the period in which human began to express themselves through art. And the second period began the Renaissance. Alright. Here is a picture of cave art. It is unimpressive except that it shows human expression. It is flat. It is a shape only. Depth and context are missing.
Here is a typical pre-Renaissance painting. It is also flat, with no depth perception. It is, much like the cave art, basically a shape or group of shapes. It is made to depict or remind the viewer of things like Mary and Baby Jesus, but not to actually look like what a human or a baby looks like. Depictions of Baby Jesus showed the body of a baby and typically the face of a grown man. Gold lame’ was used for effect.
Here is what happened in the 14th and 15th centuries. Paintings suddenly became life-like, with depth and perspective and facial expressions. Baby Jesus looked like a baby. Paintings were more like photographs. I would say better than photographs, but you have to actually stand in front of one to see what I mean. There is more beauty and expression in these paintings than in any photograph. The Renaissance began in Florence, Italy.
Pouty teen girl. Look at this expression. We know exactly what she was thinking. Her parents made her sit for this stupid portrait. Heck, we even know what that fabric felt like to touch.
