Classical Style

Classicism refers to a high regard for classical antiquity, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. Classical art typically seeks to be formal and restrained, and the Italian Renaissance period exemplifies its highest achievements, when the fall of Byzantium and rising trade with Islamic cultures brought a flood of knowledge regarding the antiquity of Europe. Renaissance classicism introduced a host of elements into European culture, including the application of mathematics and empiricism into art, humanism, literary and depictive realism, and formalism. Importantly it also introduced paganism (e.g. Botticelli) and the juxtaposition of the ancient and modern of its day. The Renaissance also explicitly returned to architectural models and techniques associated with Greek and Roman antiquity, including the golden section as a key proportion for buildings.

Classical Painters