The Italian Renaissance Podcast

Jacopo Bellini is one of the most influential figures in the  development of a Renaissance style in Venice. This discussion takes a close look at Jacopo as an innovator and teacher. What influences did he pass on to his sons Gentile and Giovanni, and where did they come from? This episode looks closely at Giovanni Bellini's Saint Giobbe Altarpiece, which serves as an example of Jacopo's lasting impact and the trajectory of future Venetian Renaissance Art. Instagram: italian_renaissance_podcast Support the show! https://www.paypal.com/donate/?business=4HTBBJSUX4BQN&no_recurring=0&currency_code=USD Support the show

The foundational myths and stories of Venice revolve around the importance of Saint Mark the Evangelist and Venetian relations to Alexandria. In this discussion, we sort through the stories about the theft of his body, the construction of his basilica, and how this influences art and society in Renaissance Venice - namely in painting. Through Gentile and Giovanni Bellini, and Tintoretto, paintings of the legend of Saint Mark and the link to Alexandria gives us a means to read Venetian identity, which is thoroughly explored in this episode. Instagram: italian_renaissance_podcast Support the show! https://www.paypal.com/donate/?business=4HTBBJSUX4BQN&no_recurring=0&currency_code=USD Support the show

Season 2 is all about Renaissance Venice! For this season premier, we are laying the foundations of the cultural forces that existed in Venice and how they interact with the revival of classical antiquity. This episode explores the geography of Venice and how it shaped a city that is wholly unique in landscape, artistic production and style. This discussion contains everything you need to know before diving into the lagoon, contextualizing Venice between empires, between religions, illuminating the inevitable visual culture that brewed in this unique space. Facebook/Instagram: italian_renaissance_podcastWant to donate to the show?: https://www.paypal.com/donate/?business=4HTBBJSUX4BQN&no_recurring=0&currency_code=USDSupport the show

This third and final installment on Filippo Brunelleschi  focuses on his architectural works beyond the Dome of Florence. Brunelleschi's style, in part, defines how we read Renaissance architecture, creating the baseline standard and influencing generations of architects to come. This episode principally explores the Ospedale degli Innocenti and the Medici church of San Lorenzo, contextualizing secular and religious architecture with larger themes of architectural design and Florentine society. Instagram/ FB: italian_renaissance_podcastYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@theitalianrenaissancepodca2915Support the show

How was the Dome of Florence built? What were the circumstances that helped Brunelleschi solve the greatest architectural mystery of the Renaissance? This episode talks about the predominant Gothic style, and how Brunelleschi adapted it through his sojourn in Rome. What was the role of the Roman Pantheon, and did an unnamed female architect influence the final design of the lantern of the Duomo? Follow us on instagram for images and updates about the show: @italian_renaissance_podcast Support the show

Kicking off this Interseason Trilogy, this episode discusses the early life of Filippo Brunelleschi, the early phases of the construction of the Duomo, and the famous competition against Lorenzo Ghiberti for the commission of the bronze doors of the Baptistry of Florence. All of this is meant as a prelude of how Brunelleschi came to be the architect who solved the mystery of how to construct the largest dome in the world. Support the show

The Magi, or the Three Wise Men who followed the star of Bethlehem to find the infant Christ, are essential components of understanding religious life in Florence. In the 1400's under Cosimo de' Medici, the culture around the Magi was appropriated to establish a parallel between local devotion and Medici power and patronage. This episode highlights how the Magi became a symbol for the Medici family, and how the use of a popular Christmas theme enabled a vivid propaganda based on establishing the Medici as a global dynastic entity. Instagram and Facebook: italian_renaissance_podcastSupport the show

The Season 1 finale brings you five tales from Italy of ghosts, witches, murder, and plague.  Story-telling and folklore are essential aspects of Renaissance history and society. Many of the stories told on this episode are grounded in truth. Whether or not the supernatural lays its cold, chill hands upon these moments or not, is up to you. Why is a disembodied head on the walls of Santa Maria Maggiore? How did the bones of 800 bodies come to decorate the Otranto Cathedral? What happened when the cruel culture of the Inquisition believed it found witches in Triora? All this, and more in this spine-tingling, hair-raising, heart-pounding Halloween special. Support the show

All across the United States debates are flaring up around the legacy of Christopher Columbus and social traditions that spawned from his journey across the Atlantic. In light of a developing history around Columbus, one that highlights his cruelty and questionable navigational ability, the call has been made: eliminate Columbus Day and replace it with a holiday that elevates those who fell victim to his imperial mode of 'discovery.' Based on thorough historical analysis, The Italian Renaissance Podcast supports this notion. This episode looks to lay out the argument, supported by contemporary, medieval, and renaissance sources, in order to exam the facts around Columbus. Additionally, it looks at the voice of the opposition, the stakes of cultural heritage, and the difficulties of nationalistic patriotism in light of this essential moment that bridges the Renaissance to the modern Americas. Intagram @italian_renaissance_podcast Support the show

The name Sandro Botticelli is inseparable from a rich visual vocabulary of mythological subjects, abstract bodies, and an achieved pictorial aesthetic that diverts the mind from the vast complexities of his work. Yet, when we dive deep and look close, his works demonstrate a series of compound interpretations that render them often puzzling and difficult. Looking at his Primavera, this discussion unpacks several interpretations of the painting, looking at the literature around the subjects, and trying to place them in a specific historical time and context that gives a series of possible meanings to the work.  We must also discuss questions of patronage, and how a work of art can give convincing clues as to its origin. All of this relates to cultural attitudes around paganism, Christianity, eroticism and marriage in Renaissance Italy.Support the show