Art and Literature of Shakespeare's Time Period
The Elizabethan Age is known as the greatest time in history for English literature. Aside from William Shakespeare many other famous writers were very successful during this time such as, Christopher Marlowe, Ben Jonson, Edmund Spenser, and Sir Philip Sidney. Some of their most famous works include Marlowe's Doctor Faustus, Edmund Spenser's Faerie Queen, and Sir Philip Sidney's Defence of Poesie. Queen Elizabeth valued the arts and was very fond of theater. During her reign, theaters were built for the first time in England. They became very popular and attracted 15,000 people per week. At that time acting was not appropriate for women so all of the roles were played by men. The Globe Theater (top left picture) is one of the most popular theaters built around England. It was partly owned by Shakespeare.
Queen Elizabeth also enjoyed sitting for paintings. Portraits, miniature portraits, sculptures, and decorative art started to become very popular during this time. One of Queen Elizabeth's favorite artists was Nicholas Hilliard. He is most famous for his painting "A Man Among Roses". He also painted most of Queen Elizabeth's self portraits. Some other artists that lived during this time period are Isaac Oliver and Marcus Gheeraerts.