The Renaissance refers to an era when art, culture and philosophy underwent a revolutionary rebirth. New ideas progressed alongside new ways of communicating them, and nowhere is this more visible than in the world of Renaissance art. In "The Sensory World of Italian Renaissance Art", Francois Quiviger explores the ways in which sensation began to take on a new significance in the art of the sixteenth century. The book discusses the presence and function of sensation in Renaissance ideas and practices, investigating their link to mental imagery and shows how Renaissance artists made touch, sound and scent palpable to the minds of their audience. Quiviger points to the shifts in ideas and theories on representation, which were evolving throughout the sixteenth century, and explains how this shaped early-modern notions of art, spectatorship and artistic creation. By setting Renaissance art and ideas on representation side-by-side in the same intellectual environment, "The Sensory World of Italian Renaissance Art" presents a comprehensive study of Renaissance theories of art in the context of the actual works.
Beautifully illustrated and extensively researched, it will appeal to students and scholars of art history, and anyone interested in this fascinating cultural period.