Mannerism

Lore & Background

By the end of the High Renaissance, young artists experienced a crisis: it seemed that everything that could be achieved was already achieved. The detailed knowledge of anatomy, light, physiognomy, and the subtle gradation of tone had reached near perfection. The young artists needed to find a new goal, and they sought new approaches. The competitive spirit was cultivated by patrons who encouraged sponsored artists to emphasize virtuosic technique and to compete with one another for commissions. Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo were each given a commission by Gonfaloniere Piero Soderini to decorate a wall in the Hall of Five Hundred in Florence, fueling the incentive to be as innovative as possible. The early Mannerists in Florence—especially the students of Andrea del Sarto such as Jacopo da Pontormo and Rosso Fiorentino—are notable for elongated forms, precariously balanced poses, a collapsed perspective, irrational settings, and theatrical lighting. Parmigianino and Giulio Romano were moving in similarly stylized aesthetic directions in Rome. The second period of Mannerism, often called High Maniera, stressed intellectual conceits and artistic virtuosity. Maniera artists looked to their older contemporary Michelangelo as their principal model; theirs was an art imitating art, rather than an art imitating nature.

Reader's Guide

Mannerism is significant as a transitional style that reacted against the balanced, harmonious ideals of the High Renaissance, introducing artificiality, compositional tension, and instability. It privileged intellectual conceits and virtuosic technique, with artists imitating and synthesizing earlier masters rather than nature directly. The term 'Mannerism' derives from the Italian maniera, meaning 'style' or 'manner', and was popularized by German art historians in the early 20th century to categorize the seemingly uncategorizable art of the Italian 16th century. Historians differ as to whether Mannerism is a style, a movement, or a period; some have called it the 'Late Renaissance'. Although the term remains controversial, it is still commonly used to identify European art and culture in the 16th century. Mannerism also appears in literature and music, noted for its highly florid style and intellectual sophistication, and has been applied by analogy to the Silver Age of Latin literature. The definition and phases within Mannerism continue to be debated among art historians.

Did You Know?

• The word 'Mannerism' derives from the Italian maniera, meaning 'style' or 'manner'.
• Some scholars have applied the label 'Mannerism' to certain early modern forms of literature and music of the 16th and 17th centuries.