Filippo Brunelleschi

Filippo Brunelleschi Many people before I have said that Filippo is the father of Renaissance architecture. During his lifetime, he was indisputably the most prominent architect in Italy. Filippo, the second of three children, was born in Florence, Italy in 1377, to a lawyer and father, Brunellesco Di Lippo and his mother, Giuliana Spini. In 1392, he began his apprenticeship in a small workshop in Florence. After only 6 years, he passed his examination and became a guild master goldsmith.

An important influence on him at this time was Paolo dal Toscanelli, a merchant and medical doctor. Paolo had an interest in science and mathematics and eventually taught Filippo the principles of geometry. He also brought out Brunelleschi interest in technology. In 1401, Brunelleschi entered a competition with seven other esteemed artists to design the bronze doors of the Florence Baptistery. Though his work was amazing, another artist was the victor in the competition. Therefore, he was given the job as the assistant to the artist in control of the commission.

After this setback, Brunelleschi turned more towards to architecture. He then stayed 7 years in Rome working beside his friend, Donatello. In 1415, Filippo made an important achievement in the mathematics field. He rediscovered the principles of linear perspective, only using mirrors. With this discovery, he now understood that there should be a single vanishing point to which all parallel lines in a plane, other that the plane of the canvas. During this time, he also made the time to understand the scale and other mathematical principles.

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From the year 1409 and onward Filippo became fascinated by the uncompleted Duomo Santa Maria del Fiore, the Cathedral in Florence. Work on this cathedral began in 1296 but problems persisted on the huge engineering problem of how to place the dome on the octagonal Baptistery. After another competition, Filippo won and was give the commission to finish the cathedral with machines and a unique design that he came up with. The cathedral was a prolonged process in which it was almost finished when Filippo died in 1446.

All that was left to do was add a lantern that Filippo had already designed. Although the dome of this astounding cathedral was Brunelleschi’s most famous architectural achievements, he has created much more works of art. For example, he redesigned and created the Church of San Lorenzo in the early 1400’s. Another famous work was the Pazzi Chapel. Filippo has even more claims to fame. During 1421, he became the first person to attain an industrial patent. This patent gave him a three-year domination on the manufacture of a barge with hoisting gear.

In 1477, Filippo Brunelleschi died. He was buried in the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore. Remarkably, his tomb was only found in 1972 after it was lost for hundreds of years. Filippo Brunelleschi was an intelligent man who suits the title ‘ideal man’ perfectly. He was one the men who lived during the renaissance that had it all. Filippo had brains and the will to educate himself further. He was an exceptional artist and architect. He also conquered the fields of mathematics and science. All of this was shown in his architectural works and his works as a goldsmith.

If Filippo weren’t inspired to be an architect, landmarks all throughout Florence, Italy would not be the same. The Church of San Lorenzo and the dome of the cathedral in Duomo would not be such magnificent feats. The idea of counterweights would have been discovered much later in time along with many other principles. In Conclusion, Filippo Brunelleschi was a man who set higher standards for the rest of the men during his time period. Discovering new ideas and conquering more feats, Brunelleschi is one of the few men that can truly be called a Renaissance man.

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