From Craftsman To "Divine" Genius

Italian Renaissance is one of the most important periods in the history of the western arts. It was not only a golden time of the three visual arts, but more importantly, the social status of the arts and artists has gone through great changes. In fact, it was not until this period that the "art" and "artist" of modern sense really emerged.During the Classical Antiquity and the Middle Ages, painting, sculpture and architecture were generally attributed to the "mechanical arts", that is, they were regarded as crafts and trade not "liberal arts'. Accordingly, the artists were also seen as manual labors and craftsmen and despised by the upper class. But during the Italian Renaissance, the views on arts and artists changed greatly which, in turn, led to the transformation of their social status.With the increasing importance of the arts in the social life, they attract more and more attention. On the other hand, the "rebirth" of the classical culture provides the important terms and theories to reevaluate the arts and artists. From the 14th Century, a new view on the arts began to rise and spread in the intellectual world. According to this view, the three visual arts were not "mechanical arts" but "liberal arts", and the artists were not manual labor but liberal intellectuals, just like the poets. When it came to the 15th Century, this view also affected many professional artists. They gradually realize the importance of their art and themselves, and try to obtain higher...