French renaissance-Baroque

 Gina Christopher

When the French invades Italy, they took much of their architectural advancements and make they grander. The French Renaissance utilized strong gothic forms with the ornamentation we see in the Italian Renaissance. Francois, was the king of Chateau’s but he needed help. He persuaded Italian artists to come work for him in developing new grand ideas, one of these artists was Leonardo Da Vinci. These palaces and chateau’s were built because there was no need for new religious buildings, it was time to focus on luxury. The focus of this time was larger structures, landscape architecture, elaborate interiors and exterior's. The interesting thing about this period is that the exteriors and interiors were often reflecting different architectural styles.  

My favorite art/architecture/ furniture

Chateau de Chambord

This Chateau was built by Francois I. The building was originally a small hunting lodge in which Francois transformed into this grand castle-like building. Italian renaissance men such as Leonardo Da Vinci helped Francois design this Chateau. The facade is medieval style and the ornamentation is Italian Renaissance. The structure itself has huge chimneys ,dormer windows, a beautiful garden, and many ornamentation details. the double spiral staircase and garden stand out to me, because we haven’t seen these too aspects so far. 

 

Gallery of Henry II 

The Chateau de Fountainebleau holds around 30,000 works of art from this time period. I find the gallery of Henry II extra fascinating due to its composition. I’m obsessed with the massive coffered ceiling in the photos below. The Frescos are a plus. The real marvel here is that the coffered ceiling is reflected into the floor design, it’s absolutely timeless.

Amromoire a Deux Corps 

These cupboards were unique because they were divided into a top part and bottom part with separate doors. The lower part was often larger due to gravity reasons and the upper part was a little bit smaller. These were made of good quality wood, such as Walnut and often giving as a gift to families or people on special occasions. 

Current Applications 

Cupboards / Dressers

Cupboards today are sleek and are often made of painted plywood or painted wood. We see a lot more black and white cupboards than true wood grains. This is due to the modern style having minimal color palettes. I personally have white furniture in my room, but my grandmas house embodies pieces shown above and I think both are beautiful. 

Smart Museum of Art 

This art museum is just one example often modern day art gallery’s. The Smart museum of art is in Hyde Park, Chicago. The gallery offers many works, including European paintings all the way to modern art. My point in this is example is that today art gallery’s are very stark and usually white without much decor, to make the pieces stand out. This is completely different than the gallery’s seen in the French Renaissance where the interior was just as artistic as the actual art being showcased. 

Landscape architecture/ gardens 

Today, landscape architecture or garden like facades are more geometrical than they were in the French Renaissance. The designs made within the grass are not have intricate as they once were. With that being said, today we have more technology advancements when it comes to making landscape architecture pulp. The use of outdoor lighting, decor, and furniture make the space just as beautiful.

One step further 

Francois I

Francois I was king for some time and during his reign he made sure the arts thrived. He patronized mnay great artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci and Andrea del Sarto. He also put a lot of his money into structures, specially Chateaus. He designed these Chateaus to highlight t he wonderful art of his time and was inspired by the architectural styles of the Italian Renaissance to do so. Ultimately, he brought the beauty of architecture and art to France, and made sure everyone noticed.