The revolution in art and society that began in the fifteenth century continues in the sixteenth century. This is the century that many people first think of when they think "Renaissance." Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, Dürer--these are but a few of the famous figures who forever left their mark on the shape of European art history. While the Renaissance of the fifteenth century could be organized by geography, the Renaissance of the sixteenth century becomes a bit more complex. Not only are there different flavors of development in different areas of the continent, there is also the beginnings of the major religious crisis of post-Medieval Europe. The Reformation altered the map as well as the religion of Europe for all time. Theological ferment was joined by scientific ferment, and worldwide exploration. The world of the European was growing, changing, and in upheaval. The arts both participated in important developments, and helped people grapple with, understand, and order the great changes of their "new world."

Your goals for this chapter are as follows:

• Grasp the artistic developments that have led to calling the first quarter of the sixteenth century in Italy the "High Renaissance."

• Know what the great figures of the High Renaissance shared, and what distinguished them from one another.

• Appreciate the changing social status of the artist.

• Understand how the arts reflect and participate in the great changes of the century.

• Appreciate the stylistic characteristics associated with the successor of the High Renaissance, "Mannerism."