Rebuilding The Renaissance

In 1545, the goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini was commissioned by Duke Cosimo I de' Medici to create a large bronze statue of the Greek hero Perseus and Medusa. The resulting work was one of the most beautiful and famous of the Renaissance. This episode examines the history, style, and importance of Cellini's bronze masterpiece.

From the type of snake that appears in Michelangelo's "Last Judgment," to the suspected poisoning of Pico dell Mirandola and Angelo Poliziano, to Lorenzo Lotto's unorthodox "Annunciation," to Brunelleschi's role in the development of linear perspective, and much, much more - this episode answers the very   questions   that you ask me about the great art, artists and history of the Italian Renaissa...

This episode analyzes the extraordinary reading room of Michelangelo's Laurentian Library in Florence, Italy. Faced with having to reduce the weight of the building, Michelangelo designed a type of structural cage into which he inserted layered walls, elegant architectural elements, and handsome furniture. His creative wood ceiling and terracotta floor designs also are part of the overall decorati...

This episode analyzes Michelangelo's visionary architectural design for the vestibule - better known as the "Ricetto" – of the Laurentian Library. Dominated by the famous staircase which Michelangelo claimed appeared to him in a dream, the space perfectly expresses Michelangelo's radical new vision for Renaissance architecture. 

In 1524, the Medici Pope Clement VII asked Michelangelo to design and build a new library to house the extraordinary collection of manuscripts and books owned by the family. The logical location was the Medici-sponsored complex of San Lorenzo. This episode analyzes the construction history of the library and how Michelangelo once again applied his innovative ideas to architecture. 

Although the commission was originally given to Michelangelo in 1508, the eventual carving of the sculpture fell into the lesser hands of Baccio Bandinelli. Symbolic of the new authoritative Medici regime and rule over the city, the sculpture was a strong man image intended to warn Florentines of the consequences of revolt. It is also a prime example of the new Mannerist style which dominated Flor...

This final episode dedicated to Michelangelo's great fresco on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel addresses the controversy surrounding the explicit nudity in the painting. When formal protests by high-ranking figures in the papal court were made, Michelangelo responded by including one of their portraits in hell. We also discuss the eventual alterations made to the painting after Michelangelo's...

This episode analyzes the majestic composition and singular iconography of Michelangelo's fresco on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. From the lack of any architectural elements to the use of ambiguous saint imagery, Michelangelo introduced a revolutionary and surprisingly modern way to represent a popular biblical subject.

To create a suitable surface for Michelangelo's "Last Judgment," major alterations were made to the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel. This episode examines those physical preparations, as well as the art that was lost in order to make way for Michelangelo's great fresco. It also surveys earlier versions of the subject by artists such as Giotto and Pisano.

Twenty-four years after completing its ceiling, Michelangelo returned to the Sistine Chapel to paint its altar wall. His gigantic "Last Judgment" took five years to complete and scandalized Rome as many of its holy characters were depicted in the nude.  This podcast examines the history of the commission of Michelangelo's great fresco.

In 1531, Titian painted the incredibly sensuous image of Mary Magdalene for Duke Federico II of Mantua who, in turn, gifted it to the celebrated poetess Vittoria Colonna. By combining the two best-known versions of Mary Magdalene – prostitute and penitent – Titian produced a profound image of spiritual sublimation of the physical. 

Titian was the greatest Venetian painter of his age. His reputation and achievements in 16 th -century Europe were rivaled only by Michelangelo. Venetian artists introduced their own particular style and vision into Renaissance art, as seen in the  Venus of Urbino . Suddenly, female nudity and eroticism exploded onto the scene in a type of soft-core Renaissance pornography. This episode explores t...

From the accuracy of Vasari's "Lives," the dark skin tones of medieval paintings, why Last Suppers appear where they do, whether Caravaggio can be considered a Renaissance artist, and much, much more - this episode answers the very   questions   that you ask me about the great art, artists and history of the Italian Renaissance.

Giulio Romano's "Room of the Giants" in the Palazzo Te is one of the most dramatic and unique pictorial cycles in history. Depicting the fall of the Titans to the Olympian gods, the colossal-scale figures, rounded corners, and illusionistic architecture create a veritable sense of virtual reality. It is a painting cycle with no beginning or end, where the spectator becomes part of the action, and...

The Room of Psyche in the Palazzo Te in Mantua, Italy, is one of the most erotic pictorial cycles of the Renaissance. From the 9 ceiling paintings that depict the story of Cupid and Psyche, to the lunettes depicting the labors of Psyche, to the wall paintings depicting examples of divine and bestial love, as well as earthly and divine banquets celebrating the redemption of Psyche, the room is a ve...

This milestone celebrates the production of the 200th episode of the Rebuilding the Renaissance podcast. Looking back at the approximately two millennia that we have covered thus far, the various special guests who have appeared in the series, and the particularly important specific episodes, this episode not only retraces our steps, but also maps out the future of the podcast series. 

The pictorial decoration inside of the Palazzo Te in Mantua, Italy, is some of the most inventive and delightful imagery of the Italian Renaissance. From the Room of Ovid, with representations of episodes from the "Metamorphoses," to the Room of the Imprese, with its many coat of arms and playful supporting putti, to the Room of the Sun and Moon Chariots, with its exceptional  "di sotto in sù" per...

The Palazzo Te (1526-1535) was both designed and decorated by the great Mannerist artist and pupil of Raphael, Giulio Romano.  Built for the Marquis-turned-Duke of Mantua, Federico II Gonzaga, every detail of the building was intended to delight the visitor. This episode explores the history and architecture of this extraordinary pleasure palace.

Located in the Borghese Gallery in Rome, Correggio's sensual painting of the amorous relationship between Jupiter and the daughter of the King of Argos is sublime. Based on the account in Ovid's "Metamorphoses,'' Correggio is able to transform a literary metaphor into an equally powerful and erotic visual metaphor. In 1827, the painting was acquired by Cammillo IV Borghese, husband of Paulina Bona...

Correggio's breath-taking dome fresco in the dome of Parma cathedral depicts the  Assumption of the Virgin   (1526). Gigantic painted figures of the apostles stand below an explosion of heavenly clouds and hundreds of angels that create a celestial architecture upon which the Virgin Mary is assumed into heaven.  The dramatic energy of the painting is a clear harbinger of the great Baroque painting...

Parma's National Gallery of Painting houses one of Italy's most important collections of medieval and Renaissance paintings. Amongst its treasures are several altarpieces by the great Correggio. This episode examines these extraordinary paintings and their expressive emotional power, which has inspired some to describe Correggio's work as "proto-Baroque."   

After decorating the apartment of a Benedictine abbess, Correggio was called by the nearby Benedictine monks of Parma to decorate their church of San Giovanni Evangelista. The most spectacular of the paintings is the illusionist dome fresco depicting Jesus and the Apostles in dramatic di sotto in sù perspective.

The Camera di San Paolo (1519) was Correggio's first major commission in Parma. In the private quarters of a Benedictine abbess named Giovanna Piacenza, he executed a decorative fresco program filled with mythological and festive motifs. The particularly beautiful illusionistic ceiling decoration was a sort of a warm-up for the stunning domes he would paint in the following years. 

From medieval graffiti, Raphael suffering medical malpractice, Siena's many contrade, the damaged part of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, the four biblical rivers as symbols of the Evangelists, anatomical dissection in the ancient world - and much, much more - this episode answers the very questions that you asked me about the great art, artists and history of the Italian Renaissance.

Jacopo Pontormo's altarpiece for the Capponi Chapel in the church of Santa Felicità in Florence, Italy, is one of the most beautiful paintings of the Italian Renaissance. Yet, the subject matter of painting still confuses art historians as it does not fit in any traditional iconographic parameters. This episode unpacks Pontormo's great painting and the various theories that surround it.