Classic art is characteristic of the high art of the Greek and Roman eras according to World Wide Art Resources. Artists during the Renaissance, such as Michelangelo and Raphael, began painting with the intention of imitating more ancient works. This art style and its modern counterpart, neoclassic art, are defined by clarity, order, balance, unity and symmetry. This title is not only applicable to painting but also literature, sculpture and architecture.
The mannerism style developed in Rome and Italy between 1520 and 1600. The Italian meaning of the word "mannerism" is "style," and it is described as being self-conscious in depiction rather than realistic. According to the National Gallery of Art, the Renaissance artist Vasari was a notable mannerist. He was one of the first to begin thinking about how the artists' interpretation and beautification of reality lends further value to the art.
This is a technical style and a signature of "the Renaissance man" Leonardo da Vinci. Chiaroscuro refers to an artist taking a mathematical approach to how a painting depicts light and light sources. Sources of light and their reflective points can be defined mathematically. How they fade from light to shadow as light wraps around an object can also be calculated.
The term sfumato was coined by Leonardo da Vinci, according to Review Painting. This technique involves adding layers of thinned paint on top of an existing painting to give color unity and portray mood. "The Mona Lisa" is one of the world's most famous examples of da Vinci's sfumato technique. The colors blend seamlessly and seem to match the smoky background. According to Review Painting, sfumato was a main pillar of 14th to 17th century painting.