The document summarizes how the Italian Renaissance began in northern Italian city-states like Florence in the 14th-15th centuries. Increased trade and wealth of merchants weakened feudal systems and supported artistic patronage by families like the Medici. The Renaissance was characterized by a focus on classical learning, secular themes in art and literature, and new techniques like linear perspective that made images more realistic.

1. Italy: Birthplace of the Renaissance Created by Daniel Ewert, used with his permission

6. Florence is the city-state in which the Renaissance was most prominent.

23. You also start to see the use of light and shade (chiaroscuro) and blurring outlines so it seems that tones imperceptibly meld in to each other (thereby creating volume: this is sfumato).

24. Carvaggio’s Crucifixion of St. Peter . An example of Chiaroscuro.

27. Close-up of Mona Lisa’s face. Notice the sfumato blurring, especially around the eyes, and how it creates a 3D illusion.