Throughout the centuries in which the Renaissance developed – approximately the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries – not only did the ideology spread throughout the European continent, but, as with the Gothic, a competition was unleashed between the countries in the performance of the arts that greatly promoted the cultural enrichment of each one and filled this period with famous personalities and wonders of art.

Being Italy the main stage of this movement, it can be a bit difficult to know how this artistic manifestation took place in other countries and who were its main representatives, as well as what are the characteristics that distinguish each region or school. That is why on this occasion we want to share some brief descriptions of how the Renaissance was in various parts of Europe, what was done and who stood out. .

Flemish Renaissance

Possibly the most different among the manifestations that were unleashed on the continent during the Renaissance period. While artists in Italy were experimenting with a conscious search for beauty from Humanism, in the Netherlands – where the Flemish style mainly developed – artists still conceived of art as a religious manifestation. The utmost elegance of the form and the correct expression of the message were the priorities, in turn, sobriety and cold atmospheres remained present.

But, although this art is often called "Flemish primitivism", the reality is that it enjoyed a rich development, being a descendant of movements that shone in northern Europe such as the Gothic. Flemish art obtained its growth from the hand of great artists who, although they did not have the same approach as the creative and ingenious Italians, shone from their own curiosity and ability to study, also developing a fruitful interest in perspective.

One of their main contributions was oil painting, although they were not the ones who created it, they played an essential role in the consolidation and diffusion of this technique throughout the continent, while, simultaneously, the techniques of tempera and fresh were still the main ones in Italy.

Some of its main representatives are:

Jan van Eyck, Rogier van der Weyden, Hugo van der Goes, Bosch, and Pieter Brueghel the Elder.

German Renaissance

With more Italian influence, the German or Northern Renaissance, was often confused with the Flemish art of the Low Countries, although in forms and treatises it was evidently close to Italian art.

Just as the Flemish contributed the oil technique, the Germans were also in charge of popularizing a technique that, although it was not their own invention, they did master successfully, this technique is known as engraving. Masterfully detailed engraved woodblocks brought talented artists such as Albert Dürer to international fame.

Unlike the Italian Renaissance, the German did not signify the rebirth of the old classical values, but they did share the idea of ​​the rebirth of the individual, this as the center of the universe and the discovery of the will. In this way, German art did not focus so much on the beauty of proportions, but on the search for expressiveness and depth in the message. This can be seen in the semiotic and psychological charge in some of Dürer's engravings, as well as in how moving Altdorfer's landscape theme became.

Some of its main representatives are:

Stefan Lochner, Albert Dürer, Grünewald, Lucas Cranach, and Albrecht Altdorfer.

Spanish Renaissance

In Spain the Renaissance was something different, beginning with its appearance. While in other countries this movement did not take long to spread the Italian influence from the fifteenth century, it reached the Iberian Peninsula in the sixteenth. Until then, the Flemish Gothic style continued to predominate in the country.

Religious painting was highly predominant in the Spanish Renaissance, being practically the only subject represented, and although portraits did exist, they mostly belonged to the court. The paintings of other themes such as history, mythology or allegories were rare and occasional.

The century in which this movement was in force is usually divided into three periods. The arrival of the Renaissance meant the integration of Italian influences in combination with the characteristics of the Flemish style already very well planted in the art of the country. In the first third of the century the main Italian influence is the painting of Leonardo da Vinci, but it is also found in the handling of perspective, light and forms. During the second third, the influence of Raphael replaced that of Leonardo, however, characteristics of early mannerism were already beginning to be seen, such as the elongation of the figures and certain tendencies that anticipated tenebrism. By the end of the century, the influence of Raphael changes for that of Michelangelo, but this creates more inclination towards mannerism, the figures are not only elongated, they also present more coldness and distance, then, during this last third, El Greco appears, one one of the best-known exponents of Mannerism.

Some of its main representatives are:

Pedro Berruguete, Juan de Juanes, Luis de Morales and Alonso Sánchez Coello.

French Renaissance

On the other hand, the Renaissance arrived in France a little earlier than in Spain, appearing in the last years of the fifteenth century and adopting Italian influences more quickly. Another difference between these neighbors would be the division of this period, with the French Renaissance having 4 stages.

The first stage was characterized as a transition between the Gothic and the Renaissance, although Italian models and forms were integrated, the Flemish influences of the Gothic such as the care for detail and thoroughness remained. They highlighted portraits and illuminated manuscripts with great skill and search for realism. There really isn't a big difference between the characteristics of this stage and the second, called the Initial Renaissance, where elements of International Gothic and Quattrocento also stood out.

Influenced by the art of the Italian Cinquecento, the High Renaissance stage in France also had more visions of Mannerism, however, religious painting was not as important as historical painting within the hierarchy of genres that influenced at that time. In turn, a group of artists emerged who dedicated themselves to making decorative art for the palace of King Francis I, this group was known as the School of Fontainebleau, ending its development in approximately 1570, its style would be resumed by the end of the century.

The fourth stage, known as the Low Renaissance, consisted in the formation of the Second School of Fontainebleau, whose artists King Henry IV met and commissioned the decoration of his palaces. The inclination for decoration began to take the art of the kingdom of France in a direction away from the Renaissance and Mannerism, although in the north of the country a Late Mannerism did develop.

Some of its main representatives are:

Jean Fouquet, Jean Clouet and Jean Perréal.

The spread of the Italian Renaissance influence throughout the European continent certainly reached various countries and artists. The Italian schools and their representatives were so famous that a single one could be studied for years by more than one country, therefore, we will soon dedicate an article to the most prolific schools of the most famous among the renaissances, the Italian.

If you enjoyed this article, we invite you to also read Basic Concepts of Renaissance Painting, in case you missed it.

Sources: My World History, Art History, HiSoUR.