Marked by the Renaissance and Baroque, this era revived classical ideals while celebrating humanism, proportion, realism, and dramatic expression.

Late Renaissance

c. 1520–1600

Late Renaissance art shows increasing complexity and tension. Classical balance gives way to experimentation and expressive distortion. Artists pushed established rules to their limits. This period transitions toward Mannerism and Baroque.

Place des Vosges

Jacques Androuet du Cerceau (attributed)

1605–1612

One of Paris’s earliest planned squares, lined with elegant brick townhouses.

Il Gesù

Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola

1568–1584

The mother church of the Jesuits in Rome, setting the model for Baroque church design.

Villa Almerico Capra (La Rotonda)

Andrea Palladio

1566–1571

A villa with perfect symmetry and a central dome, one of Palladio’s most influential designs.

El Escorial

Juan Bautista de Toledo and Juan de Herrera

1563–1584

A vast royal monastery and palace near Madrid, symbolizing Spain’s power and Catholic faith.

Palazzo Farnese at Caprarola

Jacopo Barozzi da Vignola

1559–1573

A Renaissance palace with pentagonal design, richly decorated with frescoes and gardens.

Basilica Palladiana

Andrea Palladio

1549–1617

A civic building in Vicenza with a striking loggia, a hallmark of Palladio’s architecture.

Palazzo dei Conservatori

Michelangelo

Redesign 1536–1546

A Renaissance civic palace on Rome’s Capitoline Hill, redesigned by Michelangelo.

Library of St Mark

Jacopo Sansovino

1537–1554

A grand Renaissance library in Venice, richly decorated and facing the Piazza San Marco.