During the Renaissance, we see a shift in artwork's focus due to humanism. Which of these best describes this shift? (Hint: this can be seen in the subject matter of The Tempest, by Giorgione, and Giovanni Arnolfini and his Bride, by Jan van Eyck).

a. Artwork begins to include purely secular (non-religious) subject matter

b. Artwork begins to show animals

c. Artwork begins to show naked human figures

d. Artwork begins to show soldiers

The correct answer is A: artwork begins to include purely secular subject matter.

Explanation:

The Renaissance was a historical period that marked the transition from Middle Age to Modern Age. It represents the years between the 14th until the 17th century. The bases to this ideology concept are in the change that the humans experience in their way to see the world, mostly related to the humanism, the arts and sciences, where in this last one predominated the idea of Illustration that took over Europe.

This cultural movement was fundamentally marked by the change of thoughts. Basically, the humans started questioning the ideas spread by the church, and continuing with the Protestant Reformation by Martin Luther. In addition to this, most painters started to increase the number of secular paintings in their work, based on the opposite idea of theocentricism.

The answer is:

A. Artwork begins to include purely secular (non-religious) subject matter

Explanation:

When you look at The Tempest and Giovanni Arnolfini and his Bride paintings you can see that the focus is the human, or in many cases, the human interacting with nature. The Renaissance allowed the artists to explore their skills creating beautiful artworks, trying to connect the paganism of the Greek period, and the religious fervor of the medieval times. This mix created paintings that focus on the man but with religious tones. However, the arrogance and religious fanatism of the Middle Ages cannot be found here, because the Renaissance tried to explore the human condition in several aspects.