We explored the shift towards more realistic depictions in this class. The Master of Frankfurt’s Portrait of the Artist and His Wife attempts to represent real life closely, possibly through a mirror as a self-portrait. The artist’s use of flies to show off his skills represents an interesting emphasis on tricking the eye into believing what is painted is actually real. This example of mimesis led to our discussion of classical Greek art, particularly sculpture. The influence of the chiastic pose exemplified by many of the figures is clearly seen in many Renaissance works through the use of contrapposto. The change in focus between ancient realism and the more religious-focused Middle Ages art shows how “progress” is defined entirely from a certain point of view. People such as Vasari living in the Renaissance saw the art of their time as the pinnacle of a long development and a return to “better” art lost in the Middle Ages. However, for people in that period, their less-realistic, more idea-oriented art likely seemed to be the height of progress. The works of Dürer and Leonardo we examined show a split even in the way in which artists approached the shift back towards realistic representations. While Dürer sought to replicate the big picture in minute detail, Leonardo wanted to understand how all the small parts worked.