The Italian Renaissance Podcast (2025)

04/10/2025

New Patreon Exclusive Out Now!

Garofalo: Este Court Painter
https://www.patreon.com/posts/140432671?utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=android_share

One of the most exciting painters of Este Ferrara, Garofalo embodied the plurality in Renaissance Ferrarese painting. Looking at his strange work Two Couples with Cupid, this discussion traces Garofalo's style through the Roman art of Raphael, the Venetian influence of Titian, and the local style of Dosso Dossi (i.e his Mythological Scene).
Ultimately, Garofalo's painting produces a mysterious effect, akin to the poetic and pastoral painting that was trademark of the Venetian painter Giorgione. As you listen, look closely at the details, and try to figure out what you think is taking place in Garofalo's Two Couples with Cupid.
Works Discussed:

Garofalo, Two Couples with Cupid, ca. 1535 https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/garofalo-two-couples-with-cupid

Dosso Dossi, Mythological Scene, ca. 1524 https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/103RF6

29/09/2025

New podcast with the wonderful and our final look at Este Ferrara!

Join me and writer/translator Michael Curtotti on a discussion about the literary patronage of the Este court. Centered around Micheal's new translation of the playwright and novella author Cinzio, our discuss dives deep into the cultural moment of Duke Ercole d’Este’s Ferrara. Michael walks us through the history of Cinzio and his work, both in theater and prose.

Further, Michael leads us through his translation of the short story that would eventually influence Shakespeare's Othello, primarily investigatin notions of Renaissance misogyny and racism.

Acquire Michael Curtotti's "Cinthio's Desdemona: The Story that Inspired Othello": https://beyondforeignness.org/book/cinthios-desdemona-the-story-that-inspired-othello

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15/09/2025

New Podcast! Este Ferrara: Borso, Ercole, and Alfonso I.

We continue our journey through the Este court of Ferrara, moving from Borso’s decoration of the Palazzo Schifanoia to the ambitious reign of Ercole I. We explore his transformation of Ferrara with the Addizione Erculea and the dazzling Palazzo dei Diamanti, before turning to his son Alfonso and the overlooked brilliance of court painter Dosso Dossi. Finally, we trace how Este patronage shaped Renaissance literature through Ludovico Ariosto’s Orlando Furioso, a chivalric epic that fused fantasy, wit, and courtly ideals into one of the great masterpieces of the age, one that enabled further crosscurrents between the visual and written world.

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Works Discussed:

Palazzo Schifanoia Frescos: https://youtu.be/20FIWIDxEbg?si=_-6t4Iba48X0ozuK

Palazzo dei Diamanti: https://www.wga.hu/frames-e.html?/html/r/rossett/diamant.html

Dosso Dossi

Portrait of Alfonso I, ca. 1534, https://it.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Battista_Dossi,_ritratto_di_Alfonso_I_d%27Este_-_Modena.jpg

Triumph of Bacchus, ca. 1514: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dosso_dossi,_trionfo_di_bacco,_00,1.jpg

Apollo and Daphne, ca 1525: https://youtube.com/shorts/P3o367FdT_c?si=mwY2Z-7Rr0T2Pmyc

Circe/Melissa, ca 1524: https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melissa_(Dossi)

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01/09/2025

New podcast out now!
Este Farrara: Niccolò III, Leonello, and Borso.

In this episode, we explore the rise of the Este family and the transformation of Ferrara into a vibrant Renaissance court. From Niccolò III’s political maneuvering to Leonello’s humanist vision and groundbreaking artistic patronage, we trace how the Este shaped culture and power in northern Italy. We then turn to Borso d’Este’s reign, examining his use of art and spectacle to project authority, including his enthroned bronze statue. Along the way, we uncover surprising details—like a controversial monument restoration—and set the stage for Ercole I’s ambitious ducal legacy.

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Images Discussed

Pisanello, Portrait of Leonello d'Este, 1441-44 https://www.wga.hu/html_m/p/pisanell/1paintin/este.html

Pisanello, Medal of John VIII, 1438 https://www.wga.hu/html_m/p/pisanell/2medals/palaeol.html

Pisanello, Medal of Leonello d'Este, ca. 1444 https://www.wga.hu/html_m/p/pisanell/2medals/leonell1.html

Antonio di Cristoforo, Niccolo Baroncelli, and Leon Battista Alberti, Equestrian Monument to Niccolo III, 1441 https://equestrianstatue.org/nicolo-lll/

Niccolo Barroncelli, Monument to Borso d'Este, ca. 1452 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Monument_to_Borso_d%27Este_(Ferrara)

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29/08/2025

New Patreon Exclusive: The Death of Parisina Malatesta

https://www.patreon.com/posts/137640245?utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=android_share

New podcasts will be released in September covering the Este court of Ferrara. Join us on Patreon for a head start, including additional topics on Renaissance Ferrara.

Looking at one of the most heartbreaking dramas of early Este rulers, this episode explores the death of Parisina Malatesta, second wife of the Marquis Niccolò III d'Este of Ferrara. The Marquis had a long history of lascivious habits, but when his wife dared to fall in love with his son and heir Ugo, his wrath and hypocrisy were exposed.

01/07/2025

https://linktr.ee/italian_renaissance_podcast

Tune in to the complete series on the Magnificent Lorenzo, 6 full podcasts with 3 accompanying Patreon episodes, for a total of 9 conversations on the life and court of Lorenzo de' Medici.

In this journey, we explore Lorenzo and the cultural forces that moved around him, including Lucrezia Tornabuoni, Sandro Botticelli, Poliziano, the Pollaiuolo, Lucrezia Donati, Giuliano da Sangallo and more.

Did you enjoy this series? What interested you the most?

29/06/2025

New podcast on Patreon: King Charles VIII Entering Into Florence
https://www.patreon.com/posts/132730892?utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=android_share

This extraordinary painting by Francesco Granacci shows the triumphal procession of the French King Charles VIII as he enters Florence at the start of the Italian Wars, on his way to put the Kingdom of Naples under siege. He entered the city thanks to Piero the Unfortunate, the son of Lorenzo the Magnificent, much to the dissatisfaction of the Florentines. As a result, the Medici were exiled once again, allowing the Dominican friar Savonarola to fill the power gap.

Granacci was a painter who trained under Domenico Ghirlandaio and grew up in proximity to the Medici circle. This striking image, painted decades later, recalls that critical moment in Florentine history. It also gives us a glimpse at Michelozzo's Palazzo Medici before Michelangelo restructured it, and before the Riccardi family expanded it. Yet reading Granacci's political intentions remains elusive. The question is, does this painting harbor pro-Medici or anti-Medici sentiment?

Francesco Granacci, Entry of Charles VIII into Florence, 1518 (1527?) https://www.wga.hu/html_m/g/granacci/entry_ch.html

23/06/2025

The Court of Lorenzo the Magnificent Part 6 of 6: Architecture

This episode looks at the most significant works of Lorenzo's court architect and dear friend, Giuliano da Sangallo. Among his most important designs, Sangallo was the chief architect and designer behind the Medici Villa at Poggio a Caiano, a countryside escape for Lorenzo that would serve as a prototype for Renaissance villas that came after. Additionally, Lorenzo and Sangallo were involved in the design and creation of the splendid church of Santa Maria delle Carceri in Prato.

Overall, this podcast addresses the way Sangallo served as Lorenzo's chief architect, as well as the way in which he remains an essential figure in understanding Renaissance architecture as a whole. Sangallo was a dedicated follower of Filippo Brunelleschi and Leon Battista Alberti, as well as an expert on the rules of classical architecture.

Works Discussed:

Giuliano da Sangallo, Medici Villa at Poggio a Caiano, begun 1485. http://www.museumsinflorence.com/musei/villa-poggio-a-caiano.html

Giuliano da Sangallo, Santa Maria delle Carceri, Prato, 1495. https://www.cittadiprato.it/en/Sezioni/content.aspx?XRI=186

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30/05/2025

New Patreon Exclusive Out Now! Consider supporting this project by becoming a Patron and get access to over 20 additional podcast episodes: https://www.patreon.com/TheItalianRenaissancePodcast?utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator

Episode 59 of the main podcast covers the complicated history linking the Pollaiuolo brothers to Lorenzo de' Medici's court, looking primarily at their many works featuring Hercules. This episode continues that conversation by taking a glance at another mythological work by Piero del Pollaiuolo, Apollo and Daphne.

When considered alongside the revival of vernacular poetry, this painting can be used as a lens to read attitudes about the relationship between medieval Tuscan traditions and the rising appreciation of pagan antiquity. Along these lines, we can even glace over a century beyond the Pollaiuolo to the Baroque master Gian Lorenzo Bernini and his Apollo and Daphne for Cardinal Scipione Borghese.

Works Discussed:

Piero del Pollaiuolo, Apollo and Daphne, 1470's https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/piero-del-pollaiuolo-apollo-and-daphne

Bernini, Apollo and Daphne, 1625 https://www.collezionegalleriaborghese.it/en/opere/apollo-and-daphne

26/05/2025

New Podcast!
The Court of Lorenzo the Magnificent Part 5:
Antonio and Piero Pollaiuolo

Among the many artists who earned the attention of the Magnificent, the Pollaiuolo brothers left behind an artistic legacy closely tied with Medicean propaganda. This episode explores the role of the Pallaiuolo brothers in the development of Florentine Renaissance art, specifically through the works they completed for the Medici Palace: The Labors of Hercules.

Later reappropriated, this episode also dives into how Hercules was used as a Florentine political symbol and was adaptable as both a pro-Medici and an anti-Medici symbol, similar to function of the biblical heroes David and Judith.

Works Discussed

Antonio Pallaiuolo, Hercules and the Hydra, ca. 1475 https://www.uffizi.it/opere/pollaiolo-ercole-idra

Antonio Pallaiuolo, Hercules and Antaeus, ca. 1475 https://www.uffizi.it/opere/pollaiolo-ercole-anteo

Antonio Pallaiuolo, Hercules and Antaeus, ca. 1475, bronze Antonio https://www.wga.hu/html_m/p/pollaiol/antonio/sculptur/hercul2.html

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12/05/2025

New Podcast!
The Court of Lorenzo the Magnificent Part 4: Angelo Poliziano

Born Agnolo Ambrogini in Montepulciano in 1454, Poliziano rose to intellectual supremacy in Laurentian Florence as the premier Humanist and poet of the Medici court. This episode explores his education, life, and works in vernacular Italian, namely his Stanze and l'Orfeo.

Poliziano is inseparable from the larger history of the Medici court. His output is directly tied to Medici family. He was friends with Giuliano and witnessed his murder at the climax of the infamous Pazzi Conspiracy. He was loved by Lucrezia Tornabuoni, but greatly unfavorable in the eyes of Lorenzo's wife, Clarice Orsini. Then, he helped educate the young Michelangelo and even advised on subjects for his earliest works. This discussion looks at these relationships, ultimately arriving at the questionable circumstances of his premature death at the age of forty in 1494.

Works Discussed,

Michelangelo Buonarotti, Battle of the Centaurs, ca. 1492

https://www.casabuonarroti.it/en/museum/collections/michelangelos-works/battle-of-the-centaurs/

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09/05/2025

We have a new Pope, Pope Leo XIV, who shares his papal name and heritage with a long line of Leo's.

Of particular interest is Pope Leo X, that is, Giovanni de' Medici, the son of Lorenzo the Magnificent and Clarice Orsini. His portrait is among the most revered paintings by Raphael, who completed this masterwork in 1520, one year before his death in 1521.

Leo X is portrayed alongside two cardinals, including Giulio de' Medici, the illegitimate son of Giuliano, and the future Pope Clement VII.

When the new Pope was announced by the Vatican yesterday, I could not help but immediately reflect on the Renaissance heritage of his chosen name. It was power, manipulation, and excessive wealth that won the Medici the papacy. I am not a Catholic, but I do wish Pope Leo XIV a prosperous and just papacy, perhaps not in the manner of his Renaissance predecessors.

Welcome, Pope Leo XIV.

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