Middle English Renaissance Peer Reviews

Claire: I liked how she went into detail about the standards that Sir Christopher Wren made during this time period.

Madelyn: I liked how she went into detail more about Sir Christopher Wren's life then just talking about the architectural things he did.

Middle English Renaissance

There were new standards set during the Middle English Renaissance.  Sir Christopher Wren started setting new standards for wall thickness, floor heights, and materials. He was the most renowned English architect of all time.  One of his most known masterpieces was redesigning St. Paul's Cathedral.  It had been neglected for almost two decades.  He studied modern design and construction in Paris.  Wren's first project was the chapel of Pembroke College in Cambridge, which his uncle asked him to design.

  

Queen Anne was the golden age of cabinetwork.  Queen Anne was neither interested nor influential.  There were several developments in social living.  People socialized over tea, coffee, and parlor games.  The interiors became simpler.  Paper or silk were put on the walls.  Queen Anne influenced English trade with China because of these trades the English ended up with authentic Chinese furniture, lacquer, Chinese porcelain, and small tea tables.  Mahogany was big during this era.  It was easier to work with than wood, firmer, easier to carve, absorbs polish easier, and available in wider boards.  Some Queen Anne furniture characteristics are curved lines as a dominating motif, Chinese forms, lacquer as a finish, feminine, cabriole leg, stretchers were eliminated, and furniture was smaller, lighter, and more comfortable.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HimqzQQ93vA

English Renaissance Peer Reviews

Amanda: I liked how she went into detail about each design period and why houses were built in that style during that design period.

Erin: I like how she talked about Inigo Jones and what buildings he has designed.  She also did a good job of putting in pictures of all of the buildings he had designed.

English Renaissance

The English Renaissance all the design periods were named after rulers.  Oak was often used in the English Renaissance.  England was the last to fall to the Renaissance.  They were isolated from other parts of Europe, so their climate and materials influenced their architecture.  Their climate made them have Gothic cathedrals that shelter the nave and side aisles, french doors that open directly into the church, and the windows were larger for more light and warmth.  Their materials depended mostly on their location.  They had large oak forests in England so they had timbered roofs.  They were close to the sea so their woodworking skills were amazing due to them having to build boats.  One of the most famous styles is Tudor Style.  Tudor is associated with timber framed construction.  Tudor period marks the start of the English Renaissance.  The fireplace started to become more of a comfort thing to have in a home.  The furniture for the Tudor period was more gothic.  They had box-like chairs, chests, beds, trestle tables.  Furniture was not a big deal in the Tudor period, so it was very sparse.  Inigo Jones was one of the most famous architects in the English Renaissance.  He introduced Renaissance architecture to England.  His work correlates to the Palladio's work in the Italian Renaissance.  For residential housing smaller houses were built outside the walls of castle.  The simplest residential housing had one room; rooms were added if you were wealthier.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOYb7733aGk

French 2 Peer Review

Claire: I liked how she went into detail about Versailles.  It's amazing that Louis XIV became king at 5 years old.  I didn't know that.

Krista: She went into great detail about the Hall of Mirrors.  It really is one of the most amazing rooms in the whole world.

French 2

The Palace of Versailles is an excellent example of Baroque style.  It all began with Louis XII.  It started as a hunting lodge and then Louis XIV enlarged it into a palace.  The most famous room of the palace is the Hall of Mirrors.  During this time mirrors were the most expensive things to posses.  The Hall of Mirrors reflect the windows that overlook the garden.  It has a total of twenty-one mirrors.  Many of the other pieces of furniture in the Hall of Mirrors were lost in the war for financial purposes.

Palace of Versailles

Hall of Mirrors

The Rococo style of the French Renaissance came after the Baroque period.  The style was ornate, used light colors, asymmetrical designs, curves, and gold. The design was associated with Louis XV reign.  During the Rococo period the furniture was lighthearted.  Furniture now as comfortable and versatile.  Furniture could easily be moved around.  Furniture was now freestanding.  It didn't have to be anchored to the wall.  Mahogany was mainly used for furniture due to its strength.  Mirrors would hang above mantels due to the height of unblemished glass.  The architecture as different too.  There were city mansions and townhouses instead of chateaux and palaces.  The exteriors and gardens seemed less important.  Dwellings seemed smaller.  The interiors were more feminine due to Louis XV's mistress.  They had all the rooms we have today except bathrooms.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V6xX1pRYFNY

French Peer Review

Haley: She did a good job of organizing her information.  I liked how she talked about decorators and how they came about.

Holli: She did a good job of comparing French architecture with Italian architecture.

French

Most countries interior design depended on religion or political history.  France focused on what the Royals preferred.  France was centered around Romanesque and Gothic style.  The decorator's job wasn't always easy.  They had to design rooms that flowed well together.  This position required the person to be able to explain to the client what their design idea was.  The decorator had to supervise the others involved in the project to make sure their design idea was carried out correctly.

The Chateau de Chambord is one of the most famous chateaux in the world because of its French Renaissance design.  It is the largest chateau in the Loire Valley.  It was built to be a hunting lodge for Francis I.  It was altered many times during its construction.  Francis showed off his wealth by hosting his old archrival, Emperor Charles V.  During the French Revolution some of the furnishings were sold and timber was removed.  The building was abandoned for a long period of time.  During the 19th century attempts were made at restoring the chateau.  During WWII art works from the Louvre and Chateau de Compiegne were moved to the Chateau de Chambord.  To this day the chateau is open to the public for viewing.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te8u5B2vLts 

Spanish Renaissance Peer Review

Madelyn: I think she did a very good job describing the interiors and the furniture from this time period and her pictures tied well with her information.

Lisa: She did a good job of talking about who/what influenced the design of the interiors and furniture.

Spanish Renaissance

The Alhambra is located in Granada, Spain.  It was originally constructed as a small fortress in 889 on the remains of Roman fortifications.  It was ignored until the ruins were renovated and rebuilt in the mid 13th century by the Moorish emir Mohammad be Al-Ahmar.  It was later converted in 1333 into a royal palace by Yusuf I, Sultan of Granada.  In 1492 in became the Royal Court of Ferdinand and Isabella and the palaces were decorated with a Renaissance taste.  Then in 1526 Charles I and V converted it to a better fitting Renaissance palace for the Holy Roman Empire.

The La Mota Castle is a reconstructed medieval castle.  Its may have gotten its name because of its location on an elevated hill.  It was a castle built by noble Christian families.  The foundation is based off of the Moorish.  It has more castles in Spain than any other European country.  It was built out of concrete faced with brick.  The castle has a trapezoid floor plan.  

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O6p3DyjBXw

Italian Renaissance Peer Review

Angie: I thought your videos were great and they really went into good detail about what kind of furniture they had.

Katie: I thought she did a good job of explaining in detail every aspect of the Italian Renaissance and how architecture influenced art.

India Peer Review

Rachael: I like how one of your videos showed that tips on how to design Indian interiors.

 Alex: I liked how you described the stone temples and how some of them were built in caves.

Italian Renaissance

The Renaissance began in Florence, Italy.  There was an increased attention to buildings that were open to the public.  They started to move away from absolute rule to democracies.  The city and buildings started to move towards participatory government.  The Palazzo Davanzati was a transitional house between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.  It supports the first Renaissance interior.  The roof has an ope gallery.  A string course delineate each floor.  The ground floor is shops.  The residential floors are above the ground floor.  The most important floor is the piano nobile.  The floors then start to decrease in height.

 Santa Maria della Consolazione is the closest incarnation of the Renaissance.  Leonardo da Vinci was an architect, painter, and inventor.  He was the painter of the Mona Lisa.  He painted several fresco cycles throughout his life.  Donato Bramante was the architect of St. Peter's.  Some works are included in the Renaissance because they are transitioning into the Renaissance.  Many artists encountered design problems and then came up with brilliant answers.  Michelangelo did this on every single of his projects including his work in the Campidoglio.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEE3B8Fsuc0

India

The stupa is a facing mound of earth with permanent material.  Some stupas are more elaborate like the one in Sanchi.  Visiting a stupa relates to a diagram that tells followers of Buddhism understand themselves, their place on Earth, and Earth's place in cosmos.  Stupas have been built throughout India for centuries.  Throughout the centuries they have become more elaborate.  The dome is sometimes emphasized with a pole at its apex, further the thrust of the structure.  One way for them to do their rituals was attaching a banner to the chattri, which draws more attention to the stupa's highest point.

One if the more elaborate stupas is the caves at Ajanta.  The caves of Ajanta provided a larger space to house multiple devotees and formed the basis of Buddhist temples with rectangular halls.  Some caves are a combination of found configuration and carved architectural compositions.  Over time statues of Buddha were placed in front of the stupa.  A mandala is a circle within a square.  The circle is the heavenly realm and connection of Earth to cosmos.  The square represents the domain of humanity.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws8Ox8tqzbk

China Peer Review

Katie: I liked how you compared China and India to each other.  It was nice seeing the similarities and differences.

Savannah: I liked how you went into detail about The Great Wall and why it was made.

The Americas Peer Review

Haley: I really liked how she touched on all of the main groups instead of just talking about one.  It was cool seeing the similarities and differences between each group.

Holli: It was cool, yet gross that you described why they did human sacrifice.  It makes them seem a little less crazy for doing that.

China

When you think of China you think of the Great Wall.  Qin Shi Huangdi, declared himself emperor and decided to build the Great Wall.  The wall's length is about 3000 to 4000 miles. The wall follows the ridge lines of mountains and hills.  The wall is made up of two main things the defensive walls and the towers.  The walls and towers were built at two different times.  They were also remodeled at two different times.  The towers occur every hundred yards.  They have arrow slits for protection; they didn't just use arrows they also shot cannons.  The wall was built to keep Mongol and Turkic Raiders at bay.  The Great Wall was never meant to be such a great monument.

The Great Wall

Chinese first sat on mats on the ground.  Tables were also low to ground, this made furniture types very limited.  Then there were three major developments in furniture in China.  The first was a framework with an infill panel, the second was furniture played a key part in interior layouts, lastly the sitting on a tall chair with legs pendant became popular.  The reason why tall chairs became popular is still unclear.  It may be from several reason such as: function, comfort, and status.  Women needed to sit in high chairs because when they would weave needed their feet to be free.  

Yoke-Back Chair

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Extra Credit:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JldL56NgeF8

The Americas

The Americas contributed largely to society with their temples and pyramids.  The larges buildings in North America can be found in Teotihuacán.  Teotihuacán is a major place for agriculture and trade.  It was one of the largest cities with a population of approximately 200,000.  There are two pyramids that are surrounded by lower temples, platforms, and palaces.  These pyramids are the Pyramid of the Moon and the Pyramid of the Sun.  The Pyramid of the Sun is built on top of a cave.  The Pyramid of the Moon is not very big however it is constructed beautifully.

Pyramid of the Sun and Moon

The palaces they had were more like apartments than palaces.  They focused around a courtyard with rooms that were open to the sky.  In order to keep up with these amazing buildings they needed a lot of mason, carvers, painters, and potters.  The markets sold the goods that the artists made.  Artists were admired, but were on the lower end of the economic scale.  The stone walls of buildings were painted with bright colors, mainly red, but have faded over the years.

Apartments

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmFJyzFaLf8

Gothic Peer Review

Angie: I liked how she talked about the black plague because we didn't really cover it that much during class.  I liked all her images showing what kind of structures and techniques were popular at this time.

Becca: I liked how she listed all the characteristics of the gothic period.  She also did a good job of explaining this idea of 'new light.'

Gothic

In 1250 European design began to change drastically.  It all began in France.  The Gothic period grew out of the Romanesque period.  Gothic architecture relies on pointed arches.  It came from two adjacent, but separate circles.  Flying buttresses were also invented at this time.  They helped support structure that needed a little more support.  Many Early Christian and Romanesque churches fell because they did not have buttresses to give their churches extra support.

The Notre Dame de Paris is one of the most famous Gothic cathedrals.  It sits on an island in the middle of Paris.  It was one of the first buildings in the world to use the flying buttress.  Originally the cathedral was not going to use flying buttresses, but the walls started to put outward so they needed more support.  There were many statues around the outside of the cathedral.  They were put there to serve as column supports and water spouts.  Many of the statues were colored, but the paint wore off.  It took almost two hundred years to complete the cathedral.  During the French Revolution the cathedral was damaged.  Tombs and stained glass windows were destroyed.  The north and south rose windows were not damaged.  Many of the treasures in the cathedral were destroyed.  The statues of the kings of Judah were beheaded.  Later the heads were found and the statues were restored.  Surprisingly none of the bells were melted down.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4jzDkRYVJY

Romanesque Peer Review

Haley: I found it interesting that homes were made out of mud and twigs, when they had these magnificent churches.  It's also crazy to think that a lot of people died because of what their houses were made of.

Claire: I found it interesting that the Pisa Baptistery was made out of three building and not just the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Islamic Peer Review

Rachael: I think she did a good job on talking about several different mosques.  Although she should of put of pictures of the inside and outside of the mosques.  Overall, her information was helpful and insightful.

Savannah: I liked how she talked a lot about the Taj Mahl and the history of it.  I didn't know that much about Minbars so I liked how she went into detail about those.

Islamic

Islamic design is centered on religion.  The Great Mosque of Damascus, converted from a Roman temple, shows how repetitive mosques are.  Sometimes architects reused the ruins, but incorporated Roman columns and capitals.  Anatolia and the regions of the Middle East were under the Ottoman Empire.  The Hagia Sophia was designed by Justinian to outshine the Pantheon.  It was later converted from a Christian temple to a mosque in the fifteenth century.  Later on, lots of churches were turned into mosques.  Today, the Hagia Sophia is now a museum that you can visit and learn about the history of it and see other exhibits inside of it.

Moorish furniture shows the combination of western forms and Islamic decoration.  A typical piece from this time period was the vargueño.  It was a chest with a stand, which also served as a desk.  It was for writing and storing things.  It has a lot of carvings and decorations on the chest.  Moorish chairs usually resemble Italian and French chairs.  They had a chair called sillón frailero.  It was a highly decorated folding chair made out of wood and leather.

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Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccfSy6-Ljlo