Opening the Door to the Renaissance
Selected by ART Driven Tokyo
The Moment Painting Began to “Speak”
13th century, Italy.
The world was still flat.
Painting was a symbol—
a sign of faith.
God was wrapped in gold,
and people’s feet never touched the earth.
The Byzantine style:
rigid expressions,
ground without shadow,
a sky that never moved.
Then, a young man appeared.
Giotto di Bondone—
a man born in the countryside.
He looked at the sky.
He looked at the earth.
He looked at people’s faces.
And he painted:
light and shadow,
depth and space,
emotion and body warmth.
There was no theory.
Perspective didn’t yet exist in books.
But he saw it.
Assisi.
The Basilica of Saint Francis.
On its sacred walls, a real space unfolded.
The sky rose high,
the earth stretched into the distance,
and people lived there, in that space.
The little birds in the painting do not flee.
The saint, before speaking of God,
breathes together with nature.
Painting began to speak—
to show the world through a human gaze.
Giotto sparked a revolution.
He drew lines, cast shadows, opened up space.
It was more than technique.
It was a shift in perspective.
He brought human light into God’s realm.
He found reality within prayer.
That one step led to the Renaissance.
A man who painted the future.
Giotto.
Everything began with his art.
Art Driven Tokyo’s selection: 5 Masterpieces in ART History
In our second article: the famous Mona Lisa.
Why has this gaze become a “symbol of civilization,” even though it’s more subdued than Raphael’s work?
Be sure to read and find out!
