Reading from Walter Pater's Essay on the Renaissance.
Books to Consult—Luebke: History of Art. J. A. Symonds: The Renaissance in Italy. Vasari: Lives of the Painters.
A brief introductory paper might take up the influence of Roman classical literature and history on Italian art, and also the effect of Greek culture after the Crusades. The childlike subjects and methods of the early painters are also of great interest, and what they took from Byzantine art, and how they were influenced by the study of anatomy. The luxury of the times and its demands for pictures and statues, the influence of the extravagance of court life, the Popes as art patrons, all can be discussed. One entire paper might be given to St. Peter's at Rome, and another to Da Vinci's great picture "Mona Lisa," and what art critics have said of it. See also Ruskin's estimates of the Primitives.
II—THE ITALIANS (PART II)
1. Life of Raphael—His family and his father's influence; change in his style through his instructors. His patrons, and what he did for them. His personal disposition, and its effect on his style.
2. Raphael as a Painter—Give the impressions of famous travelers, authors and art critics. Where his paintings are, their number, their subjects. The Madonna, his favorite subject. Various ways in which he treated it.
3. Michelangelo—The story of his life and training as a painter. Versatility (as architect, painter, sculptor and poet). Brief description of his works and their location. Readings from his sonnets.
4. A Comparison of Raphael and Michelangelo—Their relations in life, their difference of temperament, and the contrast in the spirit of their work.
5. Titian—History of his personal experience. Description of his most famous paintings. His effect on the history of painting, as a colorist.
Books to Consult—Muentz: Raphael. C. C. Black: Michelangelo Buonarotti. Crowe and Cavalcaselle: Titian. C. C. Perkins: Raphael and Michelangelo.