Italy and the Renaissance 295 most famous painters and architects of the time either were natives of Florence or did their best work in that city. 1 With the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent (1492), who was a devoted patron of all the arts, the preeminence of Florence as an art center passed to Rome, which was fast becoming, as we have seen, one of the great capitals of Europe. 494. Height of Renaissance Art Da Vinci, Michael An- gelo, Raphael. During the sixteenth century the art of the Renaissance reached its highest development. Among all the great artists of this period three stand out prominently Leo- nardo da Vinci, Michael Angelo, and Raphael. The first two not only practiced but achieved distinction in the three arts of archi- tecture, sculpture, and painting. It is impossible to give in a few lines any idea of the beauty and significance of the work of these great geniuses. Both Raphael and Michael Angelo left be- hind them so many magnificent frescoes and paintings, and in the case of Michael Angelo statues as well, that it is easy to ap- preciate their importance. Leonardo, on the other hand, left but little completed work. His influence on the art of his time, which was probably greater than that of either of the. others, came from his versatility, originality, and application of new methods. While Florence could no longer boast of being the art center of Italy, it still produced great artists, among whom Andrea del Sarto may be especially mentioned. But the most important center of artistic activity outside of Rome in the sixteenth century was Venice. The distinguishing characteristic of the Venetian pictures is their glowing color. This is strikingly exemplified in the paintings of Titian, the most famous of all the Venetian painters. 495. Painting in Northern Europe. It was natural that art- ists from the northern countries should be attracted by the renown of the Italian masters and, after learning all that Italy could teach them, should return home to practice their art in 1 Opposite the cathedral at Florence stands the ancient baptistery. Its northern bronze doors, with ten scenes from the Bible, surrounded by a very lovely border of foliage, birds, and animals, were completed by Lorenzo Ghiberti in 1452, after many years of labor. Michael Angelo declared them worthy to be the gates of heaven.
