Botticelli was a Renaissance artist that was considered by some to be as good or better than Michelangelo. He made famous artworks such as the Birth of Venus and St. Augustine in his Study. Finished in the year 1486, the Birth of Venus, was contributing to the humanist movement because it showed off the wonders of the human body. The piece was centered around Venus, a mythological figure from Ancient Greece. Botticelli painted her naked, aiming to show off how great the human body is. In Botticelli's mind, it was a tribute to god because god created the human body and he was showing off how great it was in his artwork. However, when the church saw his work, they disagreed with him painting her naked and saw it as disrespectful to God. The massive 6'9" painting was the first work on canvas in all of Tuscany, seeing as at the time, people were using mostly wood to paint on. Although it is centered on the goddess of love, Venus, there are actually two other gods surrounding Venus as well as nymphs. There is Zephyr, the god of the west wind, Horae, the goddess of the seasons portrayed around Venus who is standing on a seashell.

Girolamo Savonarola was an Italian friar and preacher who hated the renaissance. Savonarola started a movement in Florence, Italy to fight back against the renaissance because he thought the art, performances, and writings were all going against God. He believed that it corrupted people and they would compel as a result of it. He started a group that would go around destroying art and attacking people. Their most famous moment was the bonfire of the vanities which happened in 1497. Something that is in vanity is something you might consider luxurious such as jewelry, fancy clothes, or paintings like Botticelli’s. Botticelli followed him because he thought that he’d compel for what he had painted. During the Bonfire of the Vanities, people would throw stuff onto the Bonfire that they thought they would compel for. Botticelli took part in this act by throwing some of his paintings into the Bonfire, including his great work, "The Birth of Venus," which miraculously survived the fire.

Another famous piece was St. Augustine in his Study. WBUR did an interview with brother David, a Franciscan friar. David described Botticelli’s piece as, “One of the most famous paintings of Botticelli. It represents St. Augustine in his room where he studies.” When referring to the globe, he says, “The symbol means the Catholic theology wants to speak with science.” Something interesting about his beautiful work of art was that an Italian explorer, named Amerigo Vespucci, commissioned the painting in the year 1480. In the Italian Renaissance, people who commissioned paintings usually asked to be included in the painting to show their power and beliefs. Vespucci asked to be included in this painting, so Botticelli painted a wasp insidecoated arms. The wasp represents Vespucci because Vespa, which is the surname of the family, means wasp. St. Augustine in his Study was painted in the French church of Ognissanti. This painting also contributes to Botticelli’s mindset of humanistic beliefs. Surrounding St. Augustine are bookshelves and globes which are all human achievements. Human achievements are a big part of the entire humanistic movement and Botticelli made sure to include it in his famous art.