Renaissance Tattoos

Renaissance art refers to the central-European creative rebirth circa 1400-1600, primarily in Italy. This movement is heavily influenced by Greco-Roman Classical art.

The Renaissance period emerged following the Middle Ages, or medieval period, in Europe. The Middle Ages lasted from the 5th to 15th century AD. It’s often called the “Dark Ages” because so few texts or pieces of art survived for historians to study. Once the printing press was invented, information and education started to spread, and the “rebirth” of classicism and intellectualism prevailed.

Renaissance artists were prolific, giving consistent and diverse contributions to their communities. Italian, Dutch and French artists ignited the movement by bringing back Classical motifs in paintings and sculptures. Relying on the geometric foundation of Classicism, and the anatomically precise figurative structures, Renaissance artists drew direct parallels to Ancient Greek and Roman empires. However, the Renaissance is characterized by having a more naturalist and humanist approach than their creative ancestors.

Religious themes are common in the later “High Renaissance” period, as the Catholic Church commissioned many masterpieces under Pope Julius II which are still on display to this day.

Renaissance tattoos are often direct adaptations of works by artists of this period, such as Michelangelo, Raphael and Leonardo da Vinci. Some tattooers put a contemporary spin on Renaissance works, adding their own voices to the masters of antiquity.