Lesson video

Hello everyone.

How are you today?

I hope you're doing really, really well.

My name is Ms. Afzal and I'll be a teacher for this lesson, which I'm feeling really pleased about because today we are looking at Renaissance art and architecture.

I wonder if you've ever seen any Renaissance art or architecture in images, or in real life even.

It's something I'm very fascinated by, so I'm really excited for our lesson.

Our lesson is called "The Italian Renaissance: Art and Architecture," and it comes from the unit of work, The Renaissance: what do the artifacts of the Renaissance tell us about it?

So if you're ready to dive into this subject, if you have energy, focus, and enthusiasm, we'll begin our lesson now.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can describe some examples of Renaissance art and architecture.

I hope that sounds interesting to you.

We have some keywords in our lesson.

I'd like us to go through them one at a time, saying them out loud.

My turn, your turn.

Sfumato.

Chiaroscuro.

Basilica.

Good to hear those keywords.

Now, I wonder, have you heard of any of these words before?

Do you have any idea what they mean?

Pause here and share with someone.

What do you think these words mean?

Thanks for sharing.

Let's find out the meanings of these keywords.

First of all, sfumato.

The artistic technique of allowing tones or colors to gradually shade into one another is called sfumato.

The use of light and shade in drawing and painting is called chiaroscuro.

A basilica is a church considered highly important by the Catholic Church.

So these are our keywords, sfumato, chiaroscuro, basilica.

I wonder if you're thinking about these keywords match up to the definitions we've just heard.

In any case, these keywords will be coming up in our lesson today, so let's look out for them, let's listen out for them, and let's think carefully about these keywords.

Our lesson today is called "The Italian Renaissance: Art and Architecture.

" And it has three learning cycles.

First of all, da Vinci and the Mona Lisa.

Next, new artistic techniques.

And finally, Renaissance architecture.

Let's begin by exploring da Vinci and the Mona Lisa.

Around the time that Erasmus was traveling around Europe, Leonardo da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa.

There we have it, perhaps one of the most famous paintings in the world, Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa.

Pause here and show with someone your impressions of this painting.

Thanks for sharing.

By looking closely at the Mona Lisa we can see the use of sfumato.

Pause here and share with someone, can you remember what our keyword "sfumato" means?

Thanks for sharing.

It's the artistic technique of gradually allowing colors and tones to shade into one another.

And if we look closely, we can see this use of sfumato in the Mona Lisa.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which of these best describes sfumato?

A, ensuring objects and people are accurately sized.

B, the use of rich and vivid colors.

C, extreme contrast between light and dark areas.

D, a soft change between colors or areas of light and dark.

Pause here while you decide which of these best describes sfumato.

Well done if you selected answer D.

Indeed, sfumato is a soft change between colors or areas of light and dark, as we could see in that closeup of the Mona Lisa.

Da Vinci and his followers applied scientific research to their painting techniques.

And here we can see a study of how muscles connect to bone made by da Vinci.

So intricate, so detailed.

So fascinating.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Why were Renaissance painters able to produce more realistic portraits and paintings?

Pause here and share with somebody what do you think.

Perhaps you said something like this.

Here's Izzy.

"Renaissance painters were able to produce more realistic portraits and paintings because they took advantage of better understanding of optics and the human eye.

" And now it's time for your first task.

I'd like you to write one short paragraph to explain what Leonardo da Vinci's portrait of the Mona Lisa tells us about the techniques used by Renaissance painters.

Your answer should include the following: sfumato, one of our keywords, and scientific research.

So pause here while you have a go at this task of writing your short paragraph explaining what Leonardo da Vinci's portrait of the Mona Lisa tells us about the techniques used by Renaissance painters.

Enjoy your task and I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

How did you get on with that task of writing a short paragraph to explain what Leonardo da Vinci's portrait of the Mona Lisa tells us about the techniques used by Renaissance painters.

Your paragraph might have looked like this.

"The Mona Lisa tells us a lot about the techniques used by Renaissance painters.

By looking closely at the details of the woman's face, we can see how da Vinci has used sfumato.

This was a technique that Renaissance painters started to use to blur the boundary between different colors.

They were able to do this because they had a greater understanding of how the human eye works, thanks to scientific research.

" Well done for having a go at this task.

And now we're onto our next learning cycle, new artistic techniques.

Da Vinci's The Virgin of the Rocks shows an example of chiaroscuro.

Pause here and share with someone, can you remember what this keyword "chiaroscuro" means?

Thanks for sharing.

Perhaps you said it's the use of light and shade in a drawing or painting.

Here's a closeup of The Virgin of the Rocks.

Take a good look at this closeup.

Let's have a check for understanding In which parts of The Virgin of the Rocks has da Vinci used chiaroscuro?

Well done if you identified in the faces of the people.

This is where da Vinci has used chiaroscuro.

Renaissance painters used mathematical principles to use proportion and perspective to create more accurate paintings.

Here we can see some perspective studies made by da Vinci.

Let's have a check for understanding.

True or false, sfumato and chiaroscuro were the only new painting techniques developed during the Renaissance.

Pause here while you decide, is this statement true or false?

Well done if you selected false.

And now I'd like you to justify your answer by choosing from one of these two statements.

A, painters developed perspective, foreshortening, and proportion.

B, painters develop new pigments and styles of paint, which produced more realistic paintings.

Pause here while you decide which of these statements justifies your earlier answer.

Well done if you selected statement A.

Indeed, painters developed perspective, foreshortening, and proportion.

This statement justifies your earlier answer.

And now it's time for your next task.

I would like you to complete the sentences below to provide greater detail about the subject of each sentence.

One has been completed for you.

Leonardo da Vinci, a Renaissance artist, painted the Mona Lisa.

And here are our next sentences, sfumato, fill in the blank, made paintings more realistic.

Chiaroscuro, fill in the blank, was used by da Vinci in The Virgin of the Rocks.

And finally, new painting techniques, fill in the blank, made use of rediscovered mathematical principles.

So pause here while you have a go at this task of completing the sentences to provide greater detail about the subject of each sentence.

Enjoy your task and I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

So how did you get on with that task of completing the sentences to provide greater detail about the subject of each sentence?

Your sentences might have looked like this.

Sfumato, a soft change between different colors or shades, made paintings more realistic.

Chiaroscuro, the use of a wide range of light and dark tones, was used by da Vinci in The Virgin of the Rocks.

New painting techniques, such as proportion and perspective, made use of rediscovered mathematical principles.

Well done, everyone, for completing the sentences and giving us greater detail about the subject of each sentence in this way.

Well done for having a go at this task.

And now we come to our final learning cycle, Renaissance architecture.

St.

Peters Basilica has stood in Rome for almost 1,200 years.

And here we can see an illustration of St.

Peter's Basilica around the year 1450.

Pause here and share with someone some details that stand out from you from this illustration of St.

Peter's Basilica.

Thanks for sharing.

And also, can you tell someone nearby what does our keyword "basilica" mean?

Can you remember?

Thanks for sharing.

Perhaps you said a basilica is a church considered highly important by the Catholic Church.

Let's have a check for understanding.

True or false, Pope Julius III ordered the rebuilding of St.

Peter's Basilica.

Pause here and share with someone.

Is this statement true or false?

Well done if you selected true.

And now I'd like you to justify your answer by choosing from one of these two statements.

A, he did so because the old church was almost 1,200 years old and had fallen into disrepair.

Or B, he did so because he thought it would strengthen his position as Pope.

Pause here while you decide.

Which of these statements justifies your earlier answer?

Well done if you selected statement A.

Indeed, he did so because the old church was almost 1,200 years old and had fallen into disrepair.

This statement justifies your earlier answer.

Michelangelo was an influential contributor to the new St.

Peter's Basilica.

And here we can see a portrait of Michelangelo.

Pause here and share with someone a detail of this portrait that you find particularly interesting.

Thanks for sharing.

I'm really drawn to his eyes.

The new St.

Peter's Basilica was inspired by classical architecture like the Pantheon.

And here's a photo of the Pantheon in Rome.

The new St.

Peters Basilica was inspired by classical architecture like the Parthenon.

Here's a photo of the Parthenon in Athens.

I would love to visit this someday.

The New St.

Peter's Basilica was inspired by classical architecture.

And here we see a photo of St.

Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which parts of St.

Peter's Basilica are clearly inspired by classical architecture?

Take a good look at this image of the Basilica and share with someone nearby.

Thanks for sharing.

Perhaps you said the columns at the front and the dome.

These are clearly inspired by classical architecture.

And now it's time for your final task.

Here's a statement for you.

"Renaissance art and architecture was only focused on new ways of doing things.

" This is an incorrect statement.

Correct the statement using the information you have learned to explain your answer.

Try and include the following words: sfumato, chiaroscuro, mathematical principles, and classical.

So pause here while you have a go at this task of correcting this statement using the information you've learned to explain your answer, including the suggested words.

Enjoy your task and I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

How did you get on with that task of correcting the statement and using the information you've learned to explain your answer?

You might have said the following.

"Renaissance art and architecture was not just focused on new ways of doing things.

In painting, many new techniques were used such as sfumato and chiaroscuro.

Painters also used mathematical principles to create paintings with proportion and perspective.

However, Renaissance architecture was focused on classical buildings.

The new St.

Peter's Basilica took inspiration from the Pantheon and the Parthenon.

" Well done for correcting the statement.

Well done for having a go at this task.

In our lesson, "The Italian Renaissance: Art and Architecture," we've covered the following.

During the Renaissance, da Vinci and other painters used new painting methods such as sfumato and chiaroscuro to make their paintings more detailed and realistic.

These methods, and others, were based on growing scientific understanding.

We discovered mathematical knowledge was used to create new architecture in a style of classical buildings, such as St.

Peter's Basilica in Rome.

Well done everyone for joining in with this lesson.

I thought it was so interesting to dive into some of the details of new techniques used during the Italian Renaissance, as well as the influence of classical buildings in some of the architecture.

I'm feeling very inspired to take a look at some of this Renaissance art and architecture and hope to travel to do so someday.

And perhaps you feel inspired to do so as well.

I really enjoyed teaching you.

I hope you enjoyed this lesson too.

I look forward seeing you at another lesson soon.

Bye for now.