The Italian Renaissance Podcast
The Italian Renaissance Podcast takes you on an exciting journey into fifteenth and sixteenth century Italy, stepping beyond the bounds of general overviews of historical themes of the Renaissance, and diving deeply into interpreting how we understand the period today. Each episode provides an analysis of cultural giants, stories of drama and violence, masterworks of literature, but most importantly, the art. These discussions are curated for not only the adept history lover, but also the general audience, as an engaging and digestible source of information for those interested in enhancing their own understanding of Western history. Follow us on Instagram for images and updates: @italian_renaissance_podcast
Episodes
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. Additio...
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 Labo...
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 exlpores 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 ...
The Court of Lorenzo de' Medici Part 3: Large-Scale Mythological Painting
The 1480's in Florence was an age of relative prosperity under Lorenzo the Magnificent. During this period, the visual arts began to take a new shape. Influenced by both classical and contemporary literature and poetry, Lorenzo's court saw the introduction to large-scale mythological painting, ushered in by the famed Sandro Bottic...
The Court of Lorenzo de' Medici Part 2: Lucrezia Tornabuoni
Lucrezia Tornabuoni (1427-1482) was one of the key figures in both the political and cultural influence of the Medici family during the late 15th century. She served as a diplomat and stateswoman in the place of her ill husband, Piero the Gouty, and helped manage affairs for Lorenzo and Giuliano during their premature rise to power. In addition to her st...
The Court of Lorenzo de' Medici Part 1: Lorenzo the Magnificent
To engage Lorenzo de' Medici's court in Florence, there is no better topic to introduce the subject than the man himself. This episode takes a glance at the life of Lorenzo as the quintessential "Renaissance Man." In his lifetime, not only was he a devoted head of his family, but a clever statesman, a patron of art, literature, an...
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 peac...
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 w...
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 bu...
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 ...
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 I...
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...
The early 1400's in Italy saw the transition from the Gothic to the Renaissance style in painting. In major areas of patronage, be it for churches or wealthy patrons, a new style flourished that was representative of the interconnectivity between European cultures and the wider Mediterranean, one that bridges the Gothic and Renaissance styles - the International Gothic. Looking at two masterworks, one from Lorenz...
While the idea of an entirely joyous rise of Renaissance culture might sound apt for a period known for mesmerizing art and literature, history tells a different story, one of war, of plague, and of death. This episode discusses just a small amount of the social issues that contributed to the rise of Renaissance culture in Italy, from the multiple plagues that continued after the Black Death, to the banking crisis in ...
It is time to open the next chapter of our dive into Renaissance history, dialing back to look at the early Renaissance and the Proto-Renaissance. The terminology of periodization is loose and malleable, and brings to light of other renaissances that occurred throughout the Middle Ages. What is the difference between the way classical revival was exercised from the 8th and 12th centuries, and the world of Renaissance ...
I am joined by the Florence based artist and art historian Dr. Alan Pascuzzi for a thrilling interview about his career as an artist following the techniques of the Renaissance masters. We first discuss the process of becoming a sculptor and painter in the Renaissance techniques. He walks us through his technical process, looking closely at his recent allegorical bronze group for Florida State University in Florence. ...
Join me in conversation with Frank Nero, who takes us on a journey to a hidden gem in Florence, San Martino del Vescovo. This oratory serves as a fascinating case study of the intersections between Medici power and art patronage, as well as offering a glimpse into the everyday of Florentine life in the Quattrocento.
The oratory frescoes depict scenes of the deeds of the buonuomini, painted by Domenico Ghirla...
It is with great pleasure that I welcome Frank Nero to the podcast. Nero is an art historian, award-winning educator, and former director of Florida State University Florence. He specializes in on-site lectures, having taught and inspired thousands of students during his career, myself included.
The first part of this interview departs from our typical mode of discussion, and looks at the living legacy of Re...
Join me in the continuation of my conversation with ecocritical art historian and climate activist Esme Garlake. In the second part of our interview, we discuss the works of Raphael's pupil, Giovanni da Udine. Giovanni not only had an intense fascination with accurately depicting the natural world, which we discuss via his drawings, but had a substantial role in decorating Agostino Chigi's Villa Farnesina in...
Join me in conversation in two parts with Esme Garlake, an ecocritical art historian and climate activist who centers her research on the interaction between the artist and the natural world. We are talking about two artists who were trained under Raphael, Giulio Romano and Giovanni da Udine. How do animals manifest in their works, and what does it tell us about the social history of sixteenth century Italy?
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