The School Of Athens

How can art be a mirror of society?

During the Renaissance, people used art as a way to reflect the change and rebirth, happening in society at that time. “The School Of Athens”, by Raphael reflects all if the Rebirth, and reformation of knowledge that was happening during the Renaissance. Knowledge that had been lost from the Ancient Roman Times and Greek times was being reborn and rediscovered during the Renaissance time period. Also people were beginning to explore the world around them and develop their curious nature, which led to the discovery of new knowledge and theories. People became interested in varies subjects such as art, math, science and astronomy and began to run their own experiments and make their own inferences instead of just accepting what the church said. What Raphael did in his painting, was that he incorporated all of these ideas and subjects, and combining them so that they support and refine the whole idea of rebirth of knowledge during the Renaissance. He divided all the different guilds of people like mathematicians, scientists, and astronomers, to show the diversity of high Renaissance knowledge. Another interesting thing that Raphael did was that he incorporated both Ancient Roman Architecture, and Ancient Greek Architecture in the building. Roman archers, pillars and pediments are evident in the architecture, but the decoration on one of the high arches is a Greek inspired pattern. Also the two statues in the background are of Apollo and Athena, two Greek gods who represent music, art and wisdom. The Location of the Painting, Athens, is also a purpose full thing Raphael did, because he is connecting the rebirth of knowledge during the Renaissance to the Ancient Greek times, where they got all their knowledge and inspiration from. By bringing all of the greatest minds of the Renaissance together in one painting, and showing the progress of art, science, math, architecture and astronomy, Raphael managed to reflect society at the high point of the Renaissance.

Who Am I:

If I were part of the painting “The School of Athens” I would be the one of the figures standing in the scientists group. Like scientists at that time I am very curious about nature and the world around me. I like to make observations and later on inferences about what I see. In the painting, the groups of scientists are discussing a matter, and I think this also reflects me, because I like to share my ideas with others and have discussions where I learn about others and opinions on things. Also I think the fact that in the painting the scientists are interacting with each other and sharing ideas, is similar to me because I am a social person and I like to share and compare my ideas and thoughts in order to get a deeper understanding. The groups of scientists are placed on the same side as Athena goddess of wisdom, who is very practical and reasonable and this trait is evident in me because I like to be reasonable in my decisions and make the practical choice. Also like scientists of that time I like to use what I know in order to discover more about the world around me.