New stage in the development of the Spanish Renaissance, the so-called high Renaissance, refers to the second half of the 16th - early 17th centuries. Acting in accordance with the strict principles of the Counter-Reformation (from 1545), Philip II (1527-1598) persecuted progressive thinkers while at the same time encouraging cultural development, founding a library at El Escorial and supporting many universities. Creative and thinking people, deprived of the opportunity to express themselves in philosophy and journalism, turned to art, as a result of which it survived in the second half of the 16th and 17th centuries. unprecedented flourishing, and this era was called the “golden age.” Some poets and writers intertwined secular ideas of humanism with religious motives.
In the second half of the 16th century. until the 30s of the 17th century. poetry predominates - lyrical and epic. In addition, pastoral novels were popular, and realistic novels and drama emerged. In Spanish lyric poetry there were two opposing poetic schools - Seville and Salamanca. Fernando de Herrera (1534-1597) and other poets of the Seville school gave preference love lyrics, earthly and sensual, in which civic motives often sounded and resonated.
The head of the Salamanca school was the Augustinian monk and professor of theology Luis de Leon (1527-1591), the founder of the poetry of the “mystics”. In contrast to the Catholic Church, mystics advocated an individual path of knowing God and merging with Him. The most prominent representatives of this movement are Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada (1515-1582), known under the name of Saint Teresa de Jesus, and Juan de la Cruz (1542-1591), who belonged to the Carmelite Order. The Dominican Luis de Granada (1504-1588), who wrote in Latin, Portuguese and Spanish.
Admiration for ancient poetry, which was considered a high example, aroused the desire to create works in the spirit of the epic poems of Homer and Virgil. The most successful attempt was made by Alonso de Ercilla y Zúñiga (1533-1594), who wrote Araucana.
Second half of the 16th century. marked by the flourishing of the pastoral romance. The founder of the genre in Spain was the Portuguese Jorge de Montemayor (c. 1520-1561), who wrote “The Seven Books of Diana” (1559), followed by many sequels, for example, Diana in Love (1564) by Gaspar Gil Polo (1585), as well as Galatea (1585) by Cervantes and Arcadia (1598) by Lope de Vega.
At the same time, “Moorish” novels appeared, dedicated to the life of the Moors: anonymous story Abencerrach and the beautiful Kharifa and Civil wars in Granada (part I - 1595, part II - 1604) by Gines Perez de Ita. Thanks to the work of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (1547-1616), who distinguished himself in different literary genres, Spanish literature acquired worldwide fame. His immortal work is a novel Cunning Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha, conceived as a parody of the chivalric romances of that time, became one of the most striking monuments in world literature.
During this era, the formation of Spanish national drama was completed. Its characteristic features were most fully embodied in the work of Lope F. de Vega Carpio (1562-1635). The worldview of Lope de Vega, an innovator in the field of drama, combined humanistic and patriarchal ideas. He outlined his views on drama in the treatise The New Art of Composing Comedies in Our Time (1609). Lope de Vega is the creator of the drama of honor; in his works, anticipating the classicism of the 17th century appears. the thought of a person’s lack of freedom, since honor for him turns out to be more important than passions. His comedies can be divided into three groups - “court comedies”, “comedies of cloak and sword” and “comedies of bad morals”. He influenced such playwrights as Guillen de Castro y Belvis (1569-1631), Antonio Mira de Amezcua (1574-1644), Luis Vélez de Guevara (1579-1644).
At the beginning of the 17th century. Spain maintained its position as a world leader, but the economic situation deteriorated sharply, despite the huge influx of gold from colonial America. In the final stage of the Renaissance, often identified as a special period of the Baroque, the prevailing tendency was to interpret what was happening in the country as a consequence of the evil principle in man, an idea consonant with Christian teaching about sinfulness. The solution was seen to be an appeal to reason, which helps a person find the way to God, which is reflected in literature, which pays special attention to the contrast between human nature and his mind, between beauty and ugliness, while the beautiful was perceived as something ephemeral and practically inaccessible.
Two styles dominated in poetry - “gongorism”, named after greatest poet of that time by Luis de Góngora y Argote (1561-1627), and “conceptism,” from the word concepto, which means “thought.” “Gongorism” was also called “culteranism”, from the word culto (“cultivated”), since this style was intended for a select, educated audience. Gongora was a secular poet and there was a folk motif in his work, an appeal to genres folk poetry(romances and letrillas) are combined with exquisite artistic techniques. “Conceptism,” the founder of which is considered to be A. de Ledesma, who published a collection of poems, Spiritual Thoughts (1600), opposed “Gongorism.” At the same time, in “conceptualism”, as in “gongorism”, great attention paid attention to form, the creation of complex concepts, wordplay, and wit.
One of the representatives of “conceptualism”, Quevedo tried himself in different genres, But greatest development this style was achieved in his satirical essays, Dreams, (1606-1622). An outstanding philosopher, moralist and writer was Baltasar Gracian y Morales (1601-1658), a member of the Jesuit order who spoke under pseudonyms. In his work Wit, or the Art of the Subtle Mind (1648), he formulates the principles of conceptualism.
So: the individual phases of the Renaissance in Spain did not coincide with the corresponding stages of the Renaissance in other countries.
- - The 15th century in Spanish art represents the period of the emergence of a new artistic worldview.
- - In the first decades of the 16th century, stylistic phenomena associated with the High Renaissance emerged, but early Renaissance traditions still prevailed.
- - The time of the highest achievements of Spanish culture is the second half of the 16th century. It is enough to mention the name of the great Cervantes to imagine what deep and multifaceted problems of reality were embodied in the literature of that era. Significant artistic achievements characterize architecture and painting.
The construction of such a majestic ensemble as the Escorial dates back to the second quarter of the 16th century; At this time, the Greek artist Domenico Theotokopouli, known as El Greco, was working in Spain. But unlike the Italian (in particular, Venetian) masters of the late Renaissance period, in whose work the connection and continuity with the range of artistic ideas of the previous stages of the Renaissance was clearly expressed, in spanish painting The features of the tragic crisis of the late Renaissance were more acutely embodied.
The most significant literature was French, English, German, Spanish, and Italian.
In England, in the 16th century, English humanism flourished, which arose later than in Italy. played a very important role in English literature Classic literature and Italian poetry. The sonnet form flourished, introduced by Thomas Whyatt and followed by a more talented development by the Earl of Surrey. Story English literature era of the Late Middle Ages and the Renaissance is in many ways similar to French literature, despite the minimal external resemblance. In both places, the medieval literary tradition retained its position until mid-16th century centuries, if not later. In England, as in France, the humanistic culture of Italy had a powerful influence on secular intellectuals. However, in England the humanistic tradition gave rise to a brilliant school of natural scientists. Moral philosophy, the strong point of French thinkers, in England was not as fundamentally important as natural philosophy. This was partly explained by the fact that England had long had its own theological tradition, originating from the theology of the early Middle Ages and having little connection with the orthodox currents of Catholic culture.
German literature is significant in that it began its inspiration for the Renaissance. The phenomenon in German literature of this and subsequent eras were the so-called schwanks, funny, entertaining stories, first in verse and later in prose. Schwanks arose in contrast to the exquisite knightly epic, which gravitated toward fantasy, and sometimes to the point of effeminacy, the sweet songs of the Minnesingers, followers of the Provençal troubadours. In Schwanks, just like in French fabliaux, they talked about everyday life, about everyday life ordinary people, and everything is light, joking, mischievous, silly.
In France, from the very beginning of the 16th century. The emergence of new trends is evident in literature. This desire for innovation was noted by the poet Gringoire: “The techniques of old scientists are abandoned,” he says, “old musicians are laughed at, old medicine has fallen into contempt, old architects are expelled.” The ideas of humanism and reformation found a high patron in the person of Margaret of Navarre, sister of Francis I. In the XIV - XVI centuries. The same processes took place in French literature as in the literature of Italy and Germany. Noble, courtly culture gradually lost its importance, and urban, folk literature. However, there was no open confrontation. Strictly speaking, in France, as in Germany and England, until the end of the 15th century. there were very strong trends medieval culture. French humanism took shape only at the beginning of the 16th century and developed primarily in the vein of court culture.
At the same time, in France already in the 14th century. the position of secular education was quite strong. Universities arose in many French cities, which, unlike the Sorbonne in Paris, had little connection with the scholastic tradition. Italian humanism of the late XIV - early XV centuries. had a great influence on these universities, where historical and philosophical thought and natural sciences were formed, which glorified French culture in the XVII - XVIII centuries.
Conventionally, the Renaissance in Spain can be divided into three periods: the early Renaissance (until the mid-16th century), the high Renaissance (until the 30s of the 17th century) and the so-called Baroque period (until the end of the 17th century). During early Renaissance Interest in science and culture increased in the country, which was greatly facilitated by universities, especially the ancient University of Salaman and the university founded in 1506 by Cardinal Jimenez de Cisneros in Alcalá de Henares. In 1473-1474, book printing appeared in Spain, and journalism developed, dominated by ideas consonant with the ideas of the Reformation and the renewal of the Catholic Church on the model of Protestant countries. Significant influence The ideas of Erasmus of Rotterdam influenced the formation of new ideas. A new stage in the development of the Spanish Renaissance, the so-called high Renaissance, dates back to the second half of the 16th - early 17th centuries. Acting in accordance with the strict principles of the Counter-Reformation (from 1545), Philip II (1527-1598) persecuted progressive thinkers while encouraging cultural development, founding a library at El Escorial and supporting many universities. Creative and thinking people, deprived of the opportunity to express themselves in philosophy and journalism, turned to art, as a result of which it survived in the second half of the 16th and 17th centuries. unprecedented flourishing, and this era was called the “golden age.” Some poets and writers intertwined secular ideas of humanism with religious motives. Baroque dramaturgy reached perfection in the work of Pedro Calderon de la Barca (1600-1680). Like Tirso de Molina, he belongs to the national dramatic school of Lope de Vega. In the work of this last great representative spanish literature The “golden age” reflects the pessimistic view of man characteristic of the era. Central work Calderona - philosophical drama Life is a Dream (1635), main idea which, already alien to the Renaissance, is that for the sake of earthly life one should not give up eternal life. Calderon - for the illusory nature of our ideas about life, since it is incomprehensible. In the play Himself in His Custody (1636) he gives a comic interpretation of the same theme.
Representatives of early Italian humanism - Giovanni Boccaccio, Francesco Petrarca - were the first to turn to openly “common” language to present sublime thoughts and images. The experience turned out to be extremely successful, and educated people in other countries followed suit. European countries ah began to contact folk culture. In each country, this process took place differently, and unique trends arose everywhere, leading to the 16th - 17th centuries. to the final formation of national literatures of Western European countries.
The most important milestone in the history of European literature was 1455. In this year, the German Johannes Gutenberg published in his printing house the first book produced in a new way, which made it possible to make many copies in a short time. The printing press, which Gutenberg worked on improving for several years, lived up to the inventor's hopes. Before Guttenberg, books were mostly copied by hand, which made them incredibly expensive. In addition, making a copy of the book took a lot of time and was very expensive. In the 15th century tried to find a way to reduce the cost of this process. At first, printers cut out the text of a page in a mirror image on a wooden board. Then the raised letters were smeared with paint and the cliche was pressed onto a sheet of paper. But with such a cliché one could only do limited quantity copies Moreover, this process was not much different from manual rewriting. As soon as the carver made a mistake, he had to redo the entire cliche.
Gutenberg's innovation was that he began to cut out sets of individual letters, which were compiled into words on a special frame. Typing a page now took a few minutes, and the danger of a typo was reduced to a minimum. The production of cliche letters itself was much simpler than the page cliche. Gutenberg's invention quickly came into use throughout Europe, and the printed book almost replaced the handwritten book within two or three decades. Subsequently, this made the work of researchers somewhat more difficult. For example, all that remains of William Shakespeare are printed publications of his works - not a single sheet of manuscript, which has given some historians reason to doubt the authenticity of Shakespeare as a “literary” figure.
literature humanism typography short story
The political and economic rise of Spain at the end of the 15th - first half of the 16th century. Unification of the country and formation absolute monarchy. Geographical discoveries and colonization of the New World. The short duration and inconsistency of the Renaissance in Spain. A turning point in art at the turn of the 15th – 16th centuries. Combination of various artistic trends in art (Gothic, early Renaissance tradition, mannerism). The second half of the 16th century was the time of greatest achievements.
Architecture of Spain of the 16th century.
Architecture at the turn of the century, its leading role. Plateresque style. Features of the style are carpet filling the wall with sculptural decoration. Mature style - a combination of the artistic principles of Moorish culture (ornamentation) and the Italian Renaissance (elements of order, floral ornament, statues of ancient deities, etc.). Facade compositions are the main achievements of the style. Western facade of the University of Salamanca (1515-1535), town hall in Seville (n.1527, architect Diego del Rianho). XVI century - architecture retained its leading role. An appeal to the tradition of the Italian High Renaissance and the creation of a new, monumental style. Palace of Charles V in Granada (d.1526, architect Pedro Maciuna). The architectural complex of El Escorial, the residence of Philip II, as a figurative embodiment of the idea of centralized absolute power. Project (1563) by Juan da Toledo. After his death, construction was led by Juan de Erera (1530-1597).
16th century sculpture.
The gradual displacement of Gothic by Renaissance elements. The alienness of the figurative concept of the High Renaissance. The desire of Spanish masters for increased figurative expression and an appeal to the style of mannerism. Alonso Burrguete(c.1490-1561), one of the largest sculptors in Spain. Mastered the language of classical forms. He used the artistic principles of mannerism. Dramatic images. He worked in the field of wooden polychrome sculpture. Reliefs of the seats of the choir of the Cathedral of Toledo (1539-1549, Valladolid Museum).
Painting of Spain of the 16th century.
Stylistic connection with Italian art. Lack of major masters in the first half of the 16th century. Main trends in Spanish painting of the second half of the century. The direction of Romanism. Appeal to the works of artists of the Roman School as role models. The influence of mannerism. The emergence of a national school of portrait painters at the court of Philip II. Alonso Sanchez Coelho(c.1532-1588), his students and followers. The composition of the type of portrait based on traditional class ideas and court etiquette (stiffness, static, careful elaboration of costume details). Borrowing techniques from the manneristic style. Alonso Sanchez Coelho “Portrait of Philip II” (c.1575, Madrid, Prado). Mystical trends in Spanish painting - Luis Morales(c.1509-1586), “The Virgin and Child” (c.1570, Madrid, Prado).
Domenico Theotocopouli. Nicknamed El Greco(1541-1614), a major Spanish artist of the 16th century. Line of spiritualistic perception. The visionary nature of painting. Native of Crete. The origins of the style are Byzantine icon painting, late Michelangelo, Tintoretto. The activity is connected with Toledo, the city of old aristocracy and spiritual sophistication. Features of the style are the elongated proportions of the figures, endless space, its surreal character, the irrational nature of light. The special role of color. Color glow effect. “Burial of Count Orgaz” (1586, Toledo, Church of San Toma), “St. Martin and the Beggar" (after 1604, Washington, National Gallery), "Annunciation" (1509-1603, Budapest, Museum fine arts), “Apostles Peter and Paul” (1614, St. Petersburg, Hermitage). Strengthening the mystical principle in the works late period: “The Descent of St. Spirit" (after 1610, Madrid Prado), "View of Toledo" (1610-1614, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art), etc. Portraits of El Greco, the closeness of their figurative structure plot compositions masters: “Portrait of the Inquisitor Niño de Guevara” (1601, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art), “Portrait of Ortensio Paravicino” (1609, Boston, Museum), etc.
Literature of the Renaissance. Conventionally, the Renaissance in Spain can be divided into three periods: the early Renaissance (until the mid-16th century), the high Renaissance (until the 30s of the 17th century) and the so-called Baroque period (until the end of the 17th century).
During the early Renaissance, interest in science and culture increased in the country, which was greatly facilitated by universities, especially the ancient University of Salaman and the university founded in 1506 by Cardinal Jimenez de Cisneros in Alcalá de Henares.
In 1473–1474, book printing appeared in Spain, and journalism developed, dominated by ideas consonant with the ideas of the Reformation and the renewal of the Catholic Church on the model of Protestant countries. The ideas of Erasmus of Rotterdam had a significant influence on the formation of new ideas.
One of the first Spanish “freethinkers” was Alfonso de Vades (c. 1490–1532), who criticized the church. His brother Juan de Valdez (1500–1541) headed a circle of aristocrats involved in religious issues. He outlined his ideas in the essay 110 Divine Judgments (published in 1550). Along with Antonio de Nebrija (1441? - 1522), who wrote the Grammar of the Castilian language on behalf of Isabella of Castile, Juan de Valdez became one of the first researchers of the Spanish language (Dialogue on Language, 1535-1536). Their opponents are also known, for example, an ardent supporter of Catholicism, an outstanding orator and historiographer at the court of Charles I, Antonio de Guevara (1441?–1522), who later became an inquisitor.
The reformers of Spanish literature were Juan Boscan Almogaver (late 15th century–1542) and Garcilaso de la Vega (1501–1536), who introduced motifs and forms borrowed from the Italian Renaissance into literary use. They were joined by Hernando de Acuña (1520?–1580?), famous for his sonnet to Our Lord the King, the master of court poetry and love madrigal Gutierre de Setina (1520–1557), the Portuguese Sa de Miranda (1485–1558), Diego Hurtado de Mendoza (1503–1575), author of the chronicle of the War in Granada (published in 1627). Cristobal de Castillejo (1409–1450?) expressed his disapproval of the new poetics in the satire Against those who abandoned Castilian meters and followed Italian meters.
At the beginning of the 16th century. the heyday of the chivalric romance began. The models for the authors were the chivalric romances of England and France, which developed several centuries earlier. Novels of this genre were translated into Spanish as early as the 15th century. The first and most famous Spanish romance of chivalry, Amadis of Gali, was published in 1508.
In the middle of the 16th century. One of the main genres of Spanish Renaissance literature is being formed - the picaresque novel (a novel about the adventures of rogues and scoundrels), the appearance of which is associated with the collapse of old patriarchal ties, the decomposition of class relations, the development of trade and the accompanying trickery and deception. The author of one of the most striking works of this genre - the Tragicomedy of Calisto and Melibey (1499) - Fernando de Rojas (about 1465–1541). The tragicomedy is better known as Celestine, named after bright character- Celestina's pimp, whom the author simultaneously condemns and pays tribute to her intelligence and resourcefulness. In the novel, the glorification of love is combined with a satire on Spanish society and the characteristic features of the genre clearly appear - an autobiographical form of narration, the hero's service with different masters, allowing him to notice the shortcomings of people of different classes and professions.
During the same period, the Spanish national drama took shape, which was based on church traditions and at the same time the genre of folk performances, as well as the experience of Italian Renaissance drama. The creator of Spanish humanistic drama was Juan del Encina (1469?–1529), who is called the “patriarch of the Spanish theater.” He called his plays from the lives of shepherds, religious and secular, eclogues. Bartolomé Torres Naaro (? –1531?), author of the first treatise on drama in Spanish, Gil (Gil) Vicente (1465–1536?), a Portuguese by birth who wrote in Portuguese and Spanish, contributed to the formation of Spanish national drama. and Juan de la Cueva (1543? – 1610), who drew his plots from chronicles and romances. The most interesting part of the literary heritage of Lope de Rueda (1510–1565) is his posos - small plays based on funny incidents from the life of the lower classes.
A new stage in the development of the Spanish Renaissance, the so-called high Renaissance, dates back to the second half of the 16th - early 17th centuries. Acting under the strict principles of the Counter-Reformation (from 1545), Philip II (1527–1598) persecuted progressive thinkers while encouraging cultural development, founding a library at El Escorial and supporting many universities. Creative and thinking people, deprived of the opportunity to express themselves in philosophy and journalism, turned to art, as a result of which it survived in the second half of the 16th and 17th centuries. unprecedented flourishing, and this era was called the “golden age.” Some poets and writers intertwined secular ideas of humanism with religious motives.
In the second half of the 16th century. until the 30s of the 17th century. poetry predominates - lyrical and epic. In addition, pastoral novels were popular, and realistic novels and drama emerged.
In Spanish lyric poetry, there were two opposing poetic schools - Seville and Salamanca. Fernando de Herrera (1534–1597) and other poets of the Seville school gave preference to love lyrics, earthly and sensual, in which civic motives were often heard and heard.
The head of the Salamanca school was the Augustinian monk and professor of theology Luis de Leon (1527–1591), the founder of the poetry of the “mystics.” In contrast to the Catholic Church, mystics advocated an individual path of knowing God and merging with Him. The most prominent representatives of this movement are Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada (1515–1582), known under the name of Saint Teresa de Jesus, and Juan de la Cruz (1542–1591), who belonged to the Carmelite Order. The Dominican Luis de Granada (1504–1588), who wrote in Latin, Portuguese and Spanish, also joined the “mystics.”
Admiration for ancient poetry, which was considered a high example, aroused the desire to create works in the spirit of the epic poems of Homer and Virgil. The most successful attempt was made by Alonso de Ercilla y Zúñiga (1533–1594), who wrote Araucana.
Second half of the 16th century. marked by the flourishing of the pastoral romance. The founder of the genre in Spain was the Portuguese Jorge de Montemayor (c. 1520–1561), who wrote the Seven Books of Diana (1559), followed by many sequels, for example, Diana in Love (1564) by Gaspar Gil Polo (?–1585), as well as Galatea (1585) by Cervantes and Arcadia (1598) by Lope de Vega.
At the same time, “Moorish” novels appeared, dedicated to the life of the Moors: the anonymous History of Abencerrach and the beautiful Harifa and the Civil Wars in Granada (Part I - 1595, Part II - 1604) by Gines Perez de Ita (c. 15 - c. 1619).
The features of a picaresque novel were most clearly expressed in the novel by an unknown author, The Life of Lazarillo from Tormes, His Fortunes and Misadventures, which became widely known. In 1559, the Inquisition added it to the list of prohibited books due to its anti-clerical content. First volume of the Life of Guzmán de Alfarace, watchtower human life Mateo Alemana (1547–1614?) was published in 1599, the second in 1604. Along with a realistic story about the antics of the picaro, philosophical and moral reasoning in the spirit of Catholicism occupies an important place in the novel.
Peru Francisco Quevedo y Villegas (1580–1645) owns the novel The Life Story of the Rogue Pablos, an example of vagabonds and the mirror of swindlers (1626), perhaps the best example of a picaresque Spanish novel, which combines an amusing narrative about rogues and rascals and the search for a stoic moral ideal. In Spanish literature of the era high Renaissance Imitations of Italian short stories also appeared.
Thanks to the work of Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra (1547–1616), who distinguished himself in various literary genres, Spanish literature gained worldwide fame. His immortal work, the novel The Cunning Hidalgo Don Quixote of La Mancha, conceived as a parody of the chivalric romances of that time, became one of the most striking monuments in world literature.
During this era, the formation of Spanish national drama was completed. Its characteristic features were most fully embodied in the work of Lope F. de Vega Carpio (1562–1635). The worldview of Lope de Vega, an innovator in the field of drama, combined humanistic and patriarchal ideas. He outlined his views on drama in the treatise The New Art of Composing Comedies in Our Time (1609). Lope de Vega is the creator of the drama of honor; in his works, anticipating the classicism of the 17th century appears. the thought of a person’s lack of freedom, since honor for him turns out to be more important than passions. His comedies can be divided into three groups - “court comedies”, “comedies of cloak and sword” and “comedies of bad morals”. He influenced such playwrights as Guillen de Castro y Belvis (1569–1631), Antonio Mira de Amezcua (1574–1644), Luis Vélez de Guevara (1579–1644).
Juan Ruiza de Alarcón y Mendoza (1581–1639) was the first outstanding moralist of the Spanish theater. His famous comedy is The Doubtful Truth (published in 1621). He is brought closer to Baroque philosophy by the idea of the relativity of truth and lies, the conventionality of all things.
The famous student of Lope de Vega, Tirso de Molina (1584–1648), defended the principles of Spanish drama in the book The Villas of Toledo, reminiscent of Boccaccio's Decameron in composition. Tirso de Molina is the author of religious plays, which, like his secular plays, reflected the social contradictions of the time. His philosophical plays treat the theme of sin and heavenly mercy - The Mischief of Seville, or The Stone Guest (1610), the first dramatic adaptation of the legend of Don Juan, and Condemned for Lack of Faith. In his secular plays he turned to dramatic genres developed by Lope de Vega.
At the beginning of the 17th century. Spain maintained its position as a world leader, but the economic situation deteriorated sharply, despite the huge influx of gold from colonial America. In the final stage of the Renaissance, often identified as a special period of the Baroque, the prevailing tendency was to interpret what was happening in the country as a consequence of the evil principle in man, an idea consonant with the Christian doctrine of sinfulness. The solution was seen to be an appeal to reason, which helps a person find the way to God, which is reflected in literature, which pays special attention to the contrast between human nature and his mind, between beauty and ugliness, while the beautiful was perceived as ephemeral and practically inaccessible.
Two styles dominated in poetry: “Gongorism,” named after the greatest poet of the time, Luis de Gongora y Argote (1561–1627), and “conceptism,” from the word concepto, which means “thought.” "Gongorism" was also called "culteranism", from the word culto ("cultivated"), since this style was intended for a select, educated audience. Gongora was a secular poet and the folk motif in his work, an appeal to the genres of folk poetry (romances and letrilles) are combined with refined artistic techniques.
“Conceptism,” the founder of which is considered to be A. de Ledesma, who published a collection of poems, Spiritual Thoughts (1600), opposed “Gongorism.” At the same time, in “conceptualism,” as in “gongorism,” much attention was paid to form, the creation of complex concepts, wordplay, and wit.
One of the representatives of “conceptism,” Quevedo tried himself in various genres, but this style reached its greatest development in his satirical essays, Dreams (1606–1622). An outstanding philosopher, moralist and writer was Baltasar Gracian y Morales (1601–1658), a member of the Jesuit order who spoke under pseudonyms. In his work Wit, or the Art of the Subtle Mind (1648), he formulates the principles of conceptualism.
Some poets, such as Juan de Tassis y Peralta, Comte de Villamediana (1582–1621) and Salvador Jacinto Polo de Medina (1603–1683), tried to combine the traditions of Góngora and Quevedo in their work.
Baroque dramaturgy reached perfection in the work of Pedro Calderon de la Barca (1600–1680). Like Tirso de Molina, he belongs to the national dramatic school of Lope de Vega. The work of this last great representative of Spanish literature of the “golden age” reflects the pessimistic view of man characteristic of the era. Calderon's central work is the philosophical drama Life is a Dream (1635), the main idea of which, already alien to the Renaissance, is that for the sake of earthly life one should not give up eternal life. Calderon - for the illusory nature of our ideas about life, since it is incomprehensible. In the play Himself in His Custody (1636) he gives a comic interpretation of the same theme.
Baroque dramaturgy is also represented by the works of other writers, who are sometimes called the “Calderon school.” Among them is Francisco de Rojas Zorrilla (1607–1648). He used the material in his work ancient mythology, history and modernity, and in his drama the motif of the conflict between a person’s duty and his feeling, characteristic of the tragedies of classicism, already appears (Catalan Cain, 1645); Augustin Moreto y Cabana (1618–1669), who wrote religious plays, folk-heroic dramas, comedies, etc.
The flowering of Spanish culture was immediately preceded by the most celebrated period in the country's history. At the end of the 15th century, the previously fragmented Spain was united under the rule of Ferdinand of Aragon and Isabella of Castile. In 1492, Spain, united under central government, ended the reconquista - the centuries-long struggle of the Spaniards against the Arabs for the reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula. Characteristic feature Spanish art, in contrast to other European countries, is a tiny proportion of secular works created in this state for a very long period after the end of the Middle Ages and the onset of modern times. At a time when the Italians and Flemings happily used the wealth of stories from ancient history or mythology, as well as the everyday life surrounding them, field of activity spanish artists limited exclusively to Christian topics. At first, the only oasis among this hegemony of ideology was the images of royalty and their families - the court portrait, the first secular genre in Spanish painting, from which Spanish art critics sometimes derive further development non-religious painting.
The line of development of the court portrait ran separately from the main themes of Spanish art, and the masters of this direction had to solve special problems in their work, creating works that reflected their unique approach to the problem of depicting a person. The solution to this problem had to combine ideal performances about the model, and its realistic vision - without simplifying it. And the Spanish courtier portrait art based on several different components, it has created its own unique style. Consideration of the various impulses that influenced the Spanish portrait helps to better appreciate its specificity.
To form it distinctive features The actual local Spanish tastes, the influence of the Italian Renaissance, and also, to a large extent, the influence of the Northern Renaissance, in particular - Dutch school painting.
Artistic workshops of the Iberian Peninsula in a period of new awakening European art and the departure from the principles of the Middle Ages did not happen, unlike Italy and the cities of Northern Europe, to become powerful
Spanish painting is unique and unlike anything else. Spanish artists made a very great contribution to world culture. Spanish painting has its origins in the painting of church frescoes and altars, which were created by Italian, German and Dutch masters. True, the Spaniards adopted only the technique, and the passion and fanaticism that their works possess are their own, not borrowed from anyone. The name Domenikos Theotokopoulos (1541 - 1614) is known as the name of the first famous painter Spain, who studied in Italy with Titian and was invited to Spain by Philip II. The heyday of Spanish culture: literature and theater (sanctified by the names of Cervantes and Lope de Bega), and then painting, did not coincide with the period of the highest economic and political power of Spain and came somewhat later. The golden age of Spanish painting is the 17th century, or more precisely, the 80s of the 16th - 80s of the 17th century.
Spanish art of the 16th-18th centuries was characterized by the existence of not classical, but medieval, Gothic traditions. The role of Moorish art in connection with the centuries-old domination of the Arabs in Spain is undeniable for the entire Spanish culture, which managed to rework Moorish features in an unusually interesting way, merging them with the original national ones.
Spanish artists had two main customers: the first was the court, wealthy Spanish grandees, the aristocracy, and the second was the church. The role of the Catholic Church in the formation of the Spanish school of painting was also very great. The tastes of customers were shaped under her influence. But the severity of the fate of the Spanish people and the uniqueness of their life paths developed a specific worldview of the Spaniards. Religious ideas, which, in fact, sanctify all the art of Spain, are perceived very concretely in the images of real reality, the sensory world surprisingly coexists with religious idealism, and the folk, national element bursts into the mystical plot. In Spanish art, the ideal of a national hero is expressed primarily in the images of saints.
The concept of “court portrait” includes certain characteristic features that are unusual for other types of the portrait genre. This is primarily due to the special social status portrayed and related functions, including ideological ones. But although the range of models for court portraiture is not very narrow, including images of the retinue - high-ranking aristocrats, and portraits of the royal family, as well as - in the case of the Spanish court - images of dwarfs and freaks (los truhanes), the most significant subject of his image has always remained exclusively the monarch - and no one else but him. In this work, the topic was limited to images exclusively of kings, since it is their portraits that are the quintessence of the image and are executed at the highest level, and also serve as a typological and iconographic example.
The image of the supreme ruler, unlike other portraits created at court even by the same artists, was invariably filled with certain unique qualities. They were generated by an ideology that placed God's anointed one separately from all others, even those closest to him by blood. The portrait of the king, in contrast to the images of his relatives, concentrated in an even more exaggerated form all the qualities inherent in this courtly art, and also used certain techniques intended exclusively for him - associated with the special, unique position of the monarch on earth. The state of mind of subjects, including artists, is characterized, for example, by the well-known postulate of law “Imago regis, rex est” - the image of the king is the king himself, and crimes or oaths committed in the presence of this image are equivalent to those committed in the personal presence of the monarch.
Thus, the king and his images, thanks to the faith of his subjects, became related in function to the celestials and their images, which was undoubtedly reflected in the portraits.
At the end of the 15th century. The Reconquista (the war for the liberation of the Iberian Peninsula from Arab rule, which lasted almost eight centuries) ended and a unified Spanish kingdom was formed. In the 16th century active military policy, and above all the seizure of vast territories in the recently open America, turned Spain into one of the richest European monarchies. However, prosperity did not last long - already at the end of the century the country experienced economic decline, and in the wars with England in the 16th and 17th centuries. she lost supremacy at sea.
In cultural development, it was precisely by the 17th century. Spain reached its greatest prosperity, primarily in literature and painting. Since Spain gained independence and unity quite late, the creation of a national artistic style seemed especially important. For a country that did not have firmly rooted traditions, this was not easy.
The development of Spanish painting and sculpture was also complicated by the position of the Catholic Church: the Inquisition established strict censorship of art. However, despite a number of strict restrictions, Spanish masters worked in almost all genres and covered the same range of topics in their work as their contemporaries from other European countries.
In architecture, the traditions of medieval European and Arab architecture (especially in the decorative design of buildings) were combined with the influence of the Italian Renaissance, and from the 17th century. - Baroque. As a result, Spanish architecture never completely freed itself from eclecticism - a combination of features in one work different styles. National identity was manifested much more clearly in sculpture, in particular in wooden sculpture. The painting combines European influence and national characteristics turned out to be the most harmonious and received a deeply original embodiment.
Speaking about the culture of Spain, it should be noted that with all the attention to art from the royal court, the most brilliant masters still worked in the provinces. It was their creativity that determined the main artistic trends of that time.
Inquisition (from Latin inquisitio - “search”) - in the Catholic Church in the 13th-19th centuries. courts independent from secular authorities, established to combat heresies (religious movements that deviated from the official provisions of the Church).
The Spanish painter, sculptor and architect El Greco (Theotokopouli Domenico) was born in Crete in 1541, hence his nickname - The Greek. He studied traditional icon painting in Crete, after 1560 he went to Venice, where he may have studied with Titian, and in 1570 to Rome.
The creative style was formed mainly under the influence of Tintoretto and Michelangelo. In 1577, El Greco moved to Spain and settled in Toledo, where he worked from 1577 until his death (April 7, 1614), creating a number of remarkable altars. His works are characterized by incredible emotionality, unexpected angles and unnaturally elongated proportions, creating the effect of rapid changes in the scale of figures and objects ("Martyrdom of St. Mauritius", 1580-1582). Masterfully painted by El Greco paintings on religious subjects with a large number The characters are akin to the poetry of Spanish mystics in their unreality. Such, for example, is the solemn and majestic composition “The Burial of Count Orgaz” (1586-1588).
Finding himself first in the orbit of influence of Titian and Michelangelo, and then embarking on the path of mannerism, El Greco became the herald of Baroque art. The desire to go beyond the limits of ordinary human experience makes him similar to the Spanish mystics - the poet Juan de la Cruz, St. Teresa and St. Ignatius of Loyola. That is why Spain became fertile ground for the work of El Greco, which, in turn, was readily adopted by Spanish art. Over time scientific knowledge and mathematics began to acquire increasing importance in his work.
Emotionality is also characteristic of El Greco’s portraits, which are sometimes marked by psychological and social insight. Features of unreality appear most clearly in the master's later works ("The Opening of the Fifth Seal", "Laocoon", 1610-1614). “View of Toledo” (1610-1614) is covered in a keen poetic perception of nature and a tragic worldview. El Greco's work was forgotten after the artist's death and rediscovered only at the beginning of the 20th century, with the advent of expressionism.
El Greco died in 1614.
Renaissance painting Vinci Raphael
Burial of Christ. 1560
Christ heals the blind. 1567
Dormition Holy Mother of God. 1567
Modena Triptych. 1568
Modena Triptych. 1568
Last Supper. 1568
Mount Sinai. 1570-72
Cleansing the temple. 1570
Christ heals a blind man.1570-75
Worship of the shepherds. 1570-72
Annunciation. 1570
Giulio Clovio. 1571-72
Vincenzo Anastaci. 1571-76
Pieta` (Lamentation of Christ). 1571-76
Annunciation. 1575
Portrait of a man. 1575
Portrait of a sculptor. 1576-78
Penitent Mary Magdoline. 1576-78
Tearing off Christ's clothes. 1577-79