During the sixteenth century a style of art was developed almost by accident. It was developed mainly in Italy, in the city of Florence. It was different than all the other styles, and this intrigued many. It had not had a real name until about 1921, it was called Mannerism. Mannerism is the best art form that came out of the Renaissance.

             During the sixteenth century while the High Renaissance was evolving two definite styles of artwork developed. The first, which was Mannerism and is also sometimes called anti-classical style, and the second was Classicism, also known as anti-mannerism. This is some sort of hint that the two were almost opposites.1 .

             "One response that was provoked by the upheavals of the sixteenth century was the attempt to escape reality, an effort that was echoed by some of the painters of the age, known as Mannerists. The Mannerists and their patrons cultivated artificial and esoteric images of the world; they undermined perspective, distorted human figures, and devised unnatural colors and lighting to create startling effects."2.

             Mannerism broke all of the unwritten rules of painting. It created darker paintings and showed more emotion. Mannerism can be quite easily recognized. Art was no longer boring, it was more creative; this is not to say that art before then was not creative. The artists mixed colors, creating new shades. Classicism however was almost totally different.

             "Classicism, attempted to recapture the aesthetic values and the strict forms that had been favored in ancient Greece and Rome. Classicism aimed for grandiose effects, through restraint and discipline within a formal structure."3.

             A classicist painter was restricted in the ways that he painted. There were unwritten and written codes on how to paint in the classic style. There was not as much creativity in the painting. The classicist painters used traditional shades and lighting effects, while mannerists experimented with them.