INT 231- Ruth Hernández

                             INT 231 History of Interiors, Art and Furnishings Spring 2025 Ruth Hernandez Silva Week 13 - English Late Renaissance Period- Neoclassical  The English Late Renaissance, which unfolded roughly between the late 16th and early 17th centuries, represents a transformative moment in England's cultural and architectural development. While England came late to the Renaissance compared to Italy and France, its own interpretation of Renaissance ideals began to materialize during this time, fusing classical inspiration with distinctly English traditions. Politically, this was an era shaped by the final years of Elizabeth I's reign and the rise of the Stuart monarchy-an environment in which artistic expression could hardly help intersecting with national identity, humanist learning, and the expanding global influence of the nation. The Late Renaissance in England is most often associated ar...

INT 231 History of Interiors, Art and Furnishings Spring 2025 Ruth Hernandez Silva Week 12- English Early Renaissance  This week, we learned about the English Early Renaissance, which developed more slowly and differently than those of Italy, France, and Spain. While the Italian Renaissance was well under way by the 1400s, England's Renaissance ideas were adopted later, influenced greatly by Henry VIII and the cultural changes brought on by the Reformation. For this reason, the English Renaissance is a combination of two major influences: late Gothic (Tudor style) and the more intellectual, humanist ideals of classical antiquity. One thing that makes the English Early Renaissance particularly unique is that England did not immediately take up with classical architecture the way Italy had. Instead, English designers integrated Renaissance motifs into their existing Gothic traditions. That's why many English Renaissance buildings retain Gothic elements like pointed arches, cluste...

INT 231 History of Interiors, Art and Furnishings Spring 2024 Ruth Hernandez Silva Week 11- French Neoclassical Period This week, I learned about the French Neoclassical period, a movement that unambiguously returned to the ideals of simplicity, order, and rationality. Following the opulent and playful Rococo style that dominated the early 18th century, France witnessed a cultural turn owing to Enlightenment thought and the rediscovery of ancient Greek and Roman art; the new style would be called Neoclassicism. It put great emphasis on restraint, symmetry, and moral clarity. In architecture, French Neoclassicism stressed harmony and proportion. Buildings started to display clean geometric forms, grand porticos, domes, and columns inspired by antiquity. The movement coincided with the reign of Louis XVI, who favored a more refined and cerebral aesthetic. That's one reason why the period is sometimes referred to as the Louis XVI style. Interiors became more formalized, and the decora...