The Italian Renaissance Podcast

05/11/2024

Season finale out now!
We close our treatment of the early Renaissance with Pope Nicholas V and the rebuilding of Rome.
https://linktr.ee/italian_renaissance_podcast?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=084e1fb7-ec9b-451d-a0fd-3a2df08952b4

Rome was a neglected swamp when Pope Nicholas V came to power. An extremely well-educated humanist, Medici ally, and frequenter of the classicist circles in Florence and Bologna, Nicholas was elected pope in 1447, arriving in a city whose former glory was buried in the mud.

The papacy he inherited was fragile, as it recently endured the relocation from Avignon and the infamous Papal Schism. A relatively peaceful man, Nicholas V was intent on dispelling further papal conflicts and focused on rebuilding the Eternal City. Only through his mass patronage of artists, architects, and bookmakers was Rome able to awake from its slumber, reborn with a new Renaissance skin. This episode looks into the history of Pope Nicholas V, his patronage, and the crucial groundwork he laid for the reconstruction of not only the Vatican and the Apostolic Library, but for all of Rome to prepare itself for the glory of the High Renaissance.

Primary Works Discussed:
Fra Angelico, Niccoline Chapel, 1447-49.

03/11/2024

New Renaissance Rush out on YouTube!
https://youtu.be/ABk8SWUrc2Q?si=pWjK3zAARscpBz-X

Titian's Sacred and Profane Love.

Join us over on YouTube with the second installment of Renaissance Rush. This time, the talk is Titian, and his enigmatic painting in Rome. Please consider jumping over to YouTube, giving the video a like and a comment, and subscribing so we can keep this momentum going and continue to grow ❤️

31/10/2024

Happy Halloween 🎃 How about a Renaissance ghost story?

Sandro Botticelli, The Story of Nastagio degli Onesti, ca. 1483

Upon the request of Lorenzo de' Medici, Botticelli painted these four scenes for a piece of furniture to be given as a wedding gift for Gianozzo Pucci and Lucrezia Bini. The four scenes tell a story directly from Boccaccio's Decameron, that of Nastagio degli Onesti.

In panel 1, our poor Nastagio wanders the woods lamenting his unrequited love. Suddenly, rushing through the woods is a woman being hunted by a knight and his hounds, destined to be ripped apart. In the second part, Nastagio flees in horror as the woman meets her grim fate, and the knight removes her heart to feed to the dogs. Nastagio learns that this is indeed an apparition 👻 a ghost, if you will, projecting the eternal damnation of another woman who refused to wed.

Nastagio had an idea. Knowing the apparition will continue to appear, he hosts a banquet in the woods, inviting his beloved. To his delight, as seen in the third panel, the ghost storms through the banquet to again be torn apart and devoured. Nastagio has demonstrated to his uninterested love what will happen to women who refuse to wed.

At last, in the fourth panel, Nastagio is triumphant, as his beloved had agreed to marry him. Such is the moralizing literature of the late middle ages, painted in the Renaissance by Botticelli to reinforce the patriarchal virtues of well-behaved women! (He said sarcastically).

A true scary story 😳
Happy Halloween 🎃

24/10/2024

Fra Angelico and Fra Filippo Lippi, Cook Tondo, ca. 1430-55, National Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.

A highly enigmatic work and a very appropriate one, given our recent focus on the two primary artists, the Cook Tondo has endured a fair amount of dispute and controversy. In the end, it has been deemed a work in several phases, including the hands of Fra Angelico and Lippi, but also their workshops to help explain some technical issues. The concensus appears that Fra Angelico started the work, and Lippi worked on it later. Still, there is room for dispute.

It is praised as a work that offers the best examples of the attributes of both the older Renaissance style (color, perspective, etc.) and Lippi's modernized attention to emotion, composition, and naturalism. This is the Adoration of the Magi, where the three kings from the east come to pay homage to the newborn Christ and the new age of Christianity.

A curious detail emerges (image 4). What are these rather bare looking people doing in the background? While it is not a typical convention, art historian James Saslow provides a clear interpretation: It is a condemnation of the common homosexual practices of Florentine life during the Renaissance. According to Saslow, the two monks have painted figures "as if they have just run out of a bathhouse... two link arms and stand together, one provocatively touches his groin: benighted souls still living out a superseded morality, they contrast graphically with the new age born in the foreground."

Are our monks, Fra Angelico and Fra Filippo Lippi, making a claim about sexual morality? What do you all think?
❗️Comment your thoughts below❗️

22/10/2024

Episode 53 is out now, and it's all about Fra Filippo Lippi! (Linktree in bio 😀)

Lustful, unpredictable, and mischievous, Fra Filippo Lippi is a notorious figure of the Italian Renaissance. This episode surveys his life, looking primarily at three artworks: the San Lorenzo Annunciation, the Double Portrait at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and his famous Lippina.

Together, these works uncover a story about a skilled artist, but one who constantly upset his social structure. We use his work to glimpse into the world of Renaissance women, including the nun Lucrezia Buti, who he stole from her convent and eventually married. Beyond the works, we explore stories about his turbulent life. Was Fra Filippo really sold as a slave by Barbary pirates? Did Cosimo de' Medici truly lock him in the Palazzo Medici to stop him from womanizing Florence? All of these questions and more are answered.

Works Discussed:

Annunciation, San Lorenzo, ca. 1440
Portrait of a Woman with a Man at a Casement, Met NYC, ca. 1440
Lippina, Uffizi Gallery, ca. 1457-1465

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19/10/2024

New Patreon Exclusive Podcast!
San Marco Reflections: Savonarola Revered

https://www.patreon.com/TheItalianRenaissancePodcast?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator

After podcasting on the convent of San Marco, I decided to go for a visit last week in central Florence. Since it had been a long time since I had experienced the space, it came with a great deal of surprises and revelations that I feel are worthwhile to share. Among the many important figures associated with San Marco, the friar Savonarola was both a menacing and beloved preacher who eventually would secure power in Florence in the 1490s.

In this podcast, I loosely discuss the history of Savonarola, but especially how his history is treated in the museum of San Marco as a tragic and heroic figure, much like a saint. Further, I contrast my views of Savonarola with those proposed by the museum, considering his relationship to the powers that surrounded him, namely the Medici and the Pope.

Throughout this discussion, we look at some artworks associated with the friar, but primarily focus on the relationship between his controversial history and the manner in which he is presented to us today.

Pictured here the musuem painting of his ex*****on, a modern sculpture in front of the tomb of the Midicean court poet Angelo Poliziano, and the Della Robbia sculpture of Savonarola in front of a modern monument.

15/10/2024

I am very excited to share our first full length youtube video! Please check it out, give it a like, and subscribe to the channel.
https://youtu.be/MCa7DL9wgTo?si=bIoMO5ijNXzYGZZM

Allow me to introduce Renaissance Rush, a series of short videos that will dive into exciting topics of the Italian Renaissance. The first episode is a brief history of Sandro Botticelli. Enjoy!

Welcome to Renaissance Rush, a video series of short histories of people, events, and art of the Italian Renaissance. This pioneer episode looks at the life ...

09/10/2024

Learn all about the art, architecture, and history of the convent of San Marco in Florence on episode 52 of the podcast: https://linktr.ee/italian_renaissance_podcast?utm_source=linktree_profile_share<sid=084e1fb7-ec9b-451d-a0fd-3a2df08952b4

Michelozzo was commissioned by Cosimo de' Medici to residgn the desolate shell of a convent left by the evicted Sylvestrine monks. His design would include a cloister, the church, the monks cells, and most importantly, the public library to house all of Cosimo's manuscripts acquired by the humanist Niccolò Niccoli.

Cosimo's patronage of this space is presented as funding a religious structure for his personal penitence for the sinful amassing of unparalleled wealth. As such, Michelozzo's design includes a monastic double cell for Cosimo himself, painted by Fra Angelico and his workshop.

However, there is no mistake that this was not solely an act of religious grace, but a political move meant to proliferate and preserve the humanist agenda of propagating the virtues of antiquity, a cultural movement that Cosimo saw himself as a prime mover.

By the middle of the 1440s, the library and convent were open and serving the public with lavish manuscripts of the most celebrated writers of ancient Greece and Rome.

Marco

08/10/2024

Another podcast is out, and you won't want to miss this one. (Podcast linked in linktree)

San Marco, Florence: Nowhere else does the entirety of Renaissance social history converge in such a dynamic way. Upon returning from exile in 1434, Cosimo de' Medici found himself laden with guilt over the means in which his family had acquired their massive fortune. Certainly, with Pope Eugenius IV living in Florence with the Papal Curia, there was no better time for the wealthy banker to invest in religious buildings, namely the convent of San Marco.

On this site, Cosimo de' Medici would display the wide range of his patronage, extending to architecture, painting, and to establishing a public library for the Republic of Florence. This episode analyzes the social and visual components of the reconstruction of San Marco, unpacking the rich symbolism in Michelozzo's structure built to house the vast collection of manuscripts acquired by the humanist Niccolò Niccoli. Then, it looks at the painted decoration of San Marco by the famed Renaissance artist Fra Angelico, deeply considering how painting displays the social structures that enabled their very creation.

Works Discussed:
Michelozzo, San Marco, Florence, 1429-44
Fra Angelico, San Marco Altarpiece, 1438-43

30/09/2024

Renaissance People,

I realized that after all this time, I have yet to put out any information about myself, as a content creator and podcast host. Maybe it's because writing an About Me is uncomfortable, but here we go.

My name is Lawrence, and I grew up in both Ohio and Florida in the United States. My interest in Italy started with the Italian American culture I grew up in, but that became a professional fascination. I study Italy, its culture, history, and art rigorously. I earned a degree in French and Italian studies from Florida State University (B.A.), a graduate degree in the same field from the Ohio State University (M.A.), then another in art history from University of Massachusetts Amherst (M.A. #2).

Throughout all of these pursuits, I primarily focused on social history and eroticism. I continue to be particularly drawn to two very different research areas, the first being homoeroticsm in Renaissance art, the second having to do with Renaissance interactions with western Mediterranean societies such as the Byzantines, Mamluks and Ottomans. This interest comes from traveling and first-hand observation of the way the Mediterranean visual culture shares a common language.

I am the host of The Italian Renaissance Podcast. I created this podcast as a way of combining my training of cultural history with art history, making my specialization something accessible to a general audience. A brilliant audience, I might add. And I want to do so much more.

I currently live (with my darling husband) and work in Florence, Italy as a university educator and administrator, and on top of that I work consistently to provide the most realistic glimpse into the world of the Italian Renaissance. I am so thankful to have the company of such dedicated supporters. I hope you will stick with me as we continue to build this project and community.

25/09/2024

Check out the latest episode of The Italian Renaissance Podcast, featuring Jacopo della Quercia's tomb monument for Ilaria del Carretto. (Linktree in bio).

I visited this amazing work of sculpture in Lucca, housed in the cathedral dedicated to San Martino. Ilaria wed the powerful Lord of Lucca Paolo Guinigi, but died young in childbirth. The tomb reinforces her role as a Renaissance woman, one of loyalty and fidelity, through the emphasis of the dog at her feet. Yet, she lays in beautified dignity, an emblem of her wealth and status. Indeed, her family coat of arms joins that of her husband on the back of the tomb, a political display that emphasizes her dual function as a tool in uniting powerful houses and ensuring their endurance through producing an heir.

Stylistically, this is among the earliest known uses of the putti-garland motif from antiquity in monumental sculpture, a mark of a new Renaissance modernity.

24/09/2024

New podcast out now! Episode 51: Renaissance Modernity - Michelozzo, Jacopo della Quercia, and Domenico Venziano.(Linktree in bio)

What does it look like across three mediums when a new style harmonizes, and the conventions of the Middle Ages take a new form? Looking at three diverse artists and three different patrons, as well as an example of painting, sculpture, and architecture, this episode argues for the legibility of new stylistic concepts that constitute the modernity of the 15th century. Ultimately, this interaction gives insight to the intentions of the patrons in question, Cosimo de' Medici, Paolo Guinigi, and the Uzzano family.

In doing so, works like Michelozzo's Palazzo Medici can be seen in conjunction with Domenico Veneziano's Saint Lucy Altarpiece, or with Jacopo della Quercia's sculptural works. With radical innovation and antique revival at the center, this episode evaluates the artist-patron relationship and the effects of multi-medium stylistic solidification against the Quattrocento public eye.

Works Discussed:
Michelozzo, Palazzo Medici, ca. 1446.
Jacopo della Quercia, Monument to Ilaria del Carretto, 1406.
Domenico Veneziano, Saint Lucy Altarpiece, ca. 1446.

20/09/2024

New Podcast out now! Patreon Exclusive: Donatello's Saint Louis of Toulouse and Verrocchio's Christ and Saint Thomas
https://www.patreon.com/TheItalianRenaissancePodcast?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator

One of the most prominent niches of Orsanmichele was once occupied by a full-scale, gilded bronze sculpture of Saint Louis of Toulouse by the early hand of Donatello. This discussion takes a close look at that sculpture, now in Santa Croce, along with the history of its migration, ultimately yielding the space to Andrea del Verrocchio's Christ and Saint Thomas.

Not only do we look at the social and political history of how and why Donatello's work was moved, but we examine the formal qualities of Donatello's early work. Further, what happens when another sculptor has to adapt two figures to the space designed for only one? Comparing the way in which both Donatello and Verrocchio conceive space and invention permits a remarkable contrast between the early and mature style of the Florentine Renaissance.

Works Discussed:

Donatello, Saint Louis of Toulouse, ca. 1425 https://www.santacroceopera.it/en/catalogue-of-works/st-louis-of-toulouse-donatello/

Verrocchio, Christ and Saint Thomas, ca. 1483

14/09/2024

Some shots from a recent visit to the Palazzo Reale in Turin, seat of the Dukes of Savoy in the late Renaissance and into the Baroque era. While there is little trace of the original Renaissance structure, a magnificent palace stands that presents the developments of the Baroque through the Neoclassical. Pictured here is the Baroque Throne Room and Neoclassical Ballroom as well as the vaulting in the Chapel of the Holy Shroud, designed for the famous Shroud of Turin.

The highlight was that very chapel by Guarino Guarini, who so precisely demonstrates his learning from Boromini in Rome, a master architect always overshadowed by the Pope's favorite, Gian Lorenzo Bernini. Here in Turin, the echoes of Boromini stun and undulate through the city, a sight to behold!

Otherwise, see a gorgeous picture of the Langhe, where the magnificent Barolo wine is produced. Scroll to the last picture to see an unexpected guest from Renaissance Florence serving some wine 😄

10/09/2024

Episode 50 is out now, and it's all about Donatello! (Link in bio)

In this monumental 50th episode, join me in discussing a likewise monumental artist of the early Renaissance: Donatello.

This episode examines the landmark works of the Florentine sculptor, taking a close look at his early life, mature works, and cultural impact. Donatello skillfully navigated the practical world of civic sculpture, then became a sought-after court artist in the elite world of early modern Italy. Looking closely at three sculptures in three mediums, among others, this discussion details Donatello's vast innovations towards embedding life and sensation in his figures, an effect that would pulse through the veins of future Renaissance sculpture thanks to his departures from convention.

Works Discussed:

David, marble, ca. 1408.
Saint George, marble, 1415-17.
Penitent Magdalene, wood, ca. 1430-50.
Equestrian Monument of Gattamelata, bronze, 1453.
David, bronze, 1440-60.

09/09/2024

Book Review: "Leon Battista Alberti: The Chameleon's Eye," by Caspar Pearson

This is another of those beautiful books by Reaktion, with high-quality paper and stunning images. However, although Alberti is widely discussed in art history, this text does not depend on the imagery, looking much deeper at the Latin-loving, political, and authorial version of Alberti. Pearson explores the enormous breadth of Alberti's written oeuvre with delicate precision, linking his texts to an insightful exploration of his life. He offers an intriguing chronology that continues to thread Albert's literary concepts together, ultimately telling the story of a troubled, disadvantaged, and conflicted Renaissance Humanist.

That is not to say that Pearson excludes conversation about the art historical questions. He details the importance of Alberti's treatise on painting and architecture, as well as his practical application of architectural practice. He does this most effectively by linking them to his larger discussion of Alberti's written oeuvre, connecting the worlds of visual culture and literature in a compelling way, always returning to biographical elements.

The major shortcoming is Pearson's unwillingness to put stakes into ambiguous attribution of architectural works. He is sharp to present both sides, always veering towards "we don't know for sure who designed monument x," but then continues to write about Alberti as the architect. As a reader and one who has to sort through similar problems, I want to know why an author favors arguments for an attribution.

Still, this was a very thrilling read, and I highly recommend it for those who want to move beyond a rudimentary understanding of Leon Battista Alberti.

01/09/2024

Masaccio and Masolino, Madonna and Child with Saint Anne, ca. 1425, Uffizi Gallery

Leonardo da Vinci, Madonna and Child with Saint Anne, 1501-1519, Louvre

A celebrated early work by Masaccio, this painting was completed for the Florentine church of Sant'Ambrogio. The image shows three generations, starting with Saint Anne, the mother of Mary, Mary herself, and the Christ child.

Through this work, we can almost clearly discern the hand of Masaccio, who masters the manipulation of light upon the Madonna's face. Indeed, there is great concern with the diversity of age and appearance, as well as with the creation of recessed space through the figures who sit one in front of the other. As this work predates the Brancacci Chapel and Holy Trinity, we can see the young artist working through certain problems, such as the shadow on the ground or the chubby baby body of Christ.

Importantly, the same subject would be taken up by Leonardo da Vinci almost 100 years later, showing the full development of the Renaissance investigation into naturalism that starts with Masaccio and is mastered by Leonardo. Yet in both works, there is a strange composition of figures, where Siant Anne serves as a seat or throne for Mary, who would otherwise be shown as enthroned alone. Despite claims that Leonardo's painting is unprecedented, there is an overlap in the complicated composition with what we see by Masaccio and Masolino.

This comparison also shows the importance of oil painting for later artists, and expresses the limits of Masaccio's naturalism in his art historical moment, which was dominated still by egg tempera, yielding magnificent colors but limited tonal range.

30/08/2024

Masaccio and Masolino worked together on the Brancacci Chapel, and that is where we can witness Masaccio's true departure from convention. (Full podcast link in bio 😀)

Left: Masolino, Temptation in the Garden, ca. 1427
Right: Masaccio, Expulsion from Paradise, ca. 1427

Let's start by clarifying that Masolino does not lack in technical skill. His Adam and Eve follow in representation and pose the conventions of the courtly art that favored the Gothic style. Yes, his figures are naturalistic and beautifully modeled, but more so, they are symbolic, representative of a biblical moment that is easily read through their gesture and composition.

Masaccio continues the narrative from Masolino's Temptation but injects mood and atmosphere, one of intense grief and mourning. Adam and Eve do not neutrally represent a Biblical moment but are meant to evoke a strong emotional response to their suffering. As the sun of the mortal world rises for the first time, the deep shadows at their back highlight their gesture - Eve's is derived directly from classical antiquity, not Gothic convention.

Overall, we see Masaccio depart in expressive content and technical application of light, shadow, pose, and space. This is only one example of what can be demonstrated throughout the Brancacci Chapel.

27/08/2024

New Podcast out now: Masaccio (Link in bio)

Undoubtedly one of the most important painters of the Florentine Renaissance, Masaccio broke the barriers of convention, producing the first monumental works in the Renaissance style. This episode discusses Masaccio's life and works, focusing on the famous Brancacci Chapel and his Holy Trinity in Santa Maria Novella.

A close look at these works illuminates the effects of heightened naturalism and linear perspective as artists looked away from the conventions of Gothic painting, particularly in the Holy Trinity, which demonstrated a new mastery over perspectival techniques, paving the way for future Renaissance artists to expand upon Masaccio's genius.

Works Discussed:
Masaccio, Expulsion from Paradise, Brancacci Chapel, 1425-27
Masolino, Temptation in the Garden, Brancacci Chapel, 1425-27
Masaccio, Tribute Money, Brancacci Chapel, 1425-27
Masaccio, Holy Trinity, Santa Maria Novella, ca. 1427

20/08/2024

New Patreon Exclusive: Gentile da Fabriano: Documents and Sources

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https://www.patreon.com/TheItalianRenaissancePodcast?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator

This episode dives deeper into some of the source materials around the impact and work of Gentile da Fabriano. Looking at three documents, we consider the ways in which documentation enables a reading of an artists history.

Across these three documents, we ask:

Who was Jacopo of Venice, mentioned as a pupil of Gentile in Florence? Could it be Gentile's famed pupil, founder of the Bellini workshop in Venice, who was tried in Florence for a fist fight?

What did Giovanni Santi, Raphael's father, have to say about Gentile in his laudatory poetry for the Duke of Urbino?

What can we deduce about Gentile's afterlife when the Duke of Ferrara sent his court painter Cosmè Tura to observe Gentile's work in Brescia?

Parsing through these documents helps us look beyond the surface of the painting and into the cultural memory of an artist and his importance.

Image:

Cosmè Tura, Saint George and the Dragon. 1469, Ferrara Cathedral Museum

15/08/2024

Fra Angelico, Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin, 1424-34,

Today, August 15, is the celebration of the Dormition and Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Although there are theological debates about Mary's death or immortal ascension to heaven, the fact remains that this moment has a long history of representation in Renaissance art.

I present this stunning work by Fra Angelico, as it aligns with our latest focus on early Renaissance and Gothic style painting. Fra Angelico was an important innovator for space and composition in his works, of which the most celebrated are found in San Marco in Florence. In this scene, we see the Dormition below, showing Mary falling into a slumber before the Assumption, where she is raised to heaven to reign as Queen. Indeed, Lorenzo Monaco's Coronation, discussed on the podcast and in a previous post, depicts the moment after the Assumption, where Mary is crowned Queen of Paradise.

This scene is painted onto a gilded reliquary that was meant for Santa Maria Novella in Florence. The sculptural quality is owed to Fra Angelico referencing Orcagna's sculpture of the same subject from 1359 in Orsanmichele (last image).