Podcasts-2 - Rocky Ruggiero

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Rebuilding The Renaissance podcast will explore the development of the art, architecture, culture and history in Italy, from ancient Roman times through the Renaissance. Listeners will develop an understanding of Italy’s role in the development of Western civilization and an ability to appreciate and understand works of art in their historical context.

"No one brings the Renaissance to life better than Rocky"

- Historywrocky

"No one brings the Renaissance to life better than Rocky"

- Treskovich

"No one brings the Renaissance to life better than Rocky"

- Valoreev

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Episodes

Cities Artists Theory Answers to Open Questions Interviews

Florence Other Italian Cities Rome Venice

Episode 247 – Titian’s “Pietà” (Accademia Gallery, Venice)

Posted: October 11th, 2023

Left unfinished at this death in 1576, Titian’s “Pietà” was intended to serve as his funerary monument. Its extreme use of loose brushstroke and unconventional color combinations led one art historian to describe the painting as an example of “chromatic alchemy.” ...

Episode 244 – Paolo Veronese’s “Feast in the House of Levi” (Accademia Gallery, Venice)

Posted: September 20th, 2023

In 1573, Paolo Veronese was commissioned by the Dominicans at the church of Saints Giovanni and Paolo in Venice to paint a “Last Supper” to replace an earlier version by Titian that had been destroyed by fire. The result was a massive image full of numerous figures engaged in a hedonistic celebr...

Episode 242 – Paolo Veronese’s Church of San Sebastiano in Venice

Posted: September 6th, 2023

Paolo Veronese is the third member of the great Venetian late Renaissance trio that also includes Titian and Tintoretto. The church of San Sebastiano in Venice was decorated over 15 years with paintings exclusively by Veronese and is a veritable shrine to the genius of this great painter. ...

Episode 237 – Tintoretto’s Scuola of San Rocco (Venice)

Posted: August 3rd, 2023

The Scuola Grande of San Rocco in Venice, Italy, is the only active “scuola,” or confraternity, in the city. It has maintained its original appearance and magnificent decoration – nearly all of which was by Tintoretto - for the last five centuries. This podcast explores the history of the scuo...

Episode 223 – Tintoretto’s “Stealing of the Body of St. Mark” (Accademia Gallery, Venice)

Posted: April 26th, 2023

Fourteen years after exploding onto the art scene in Venice, Tintoretto produced another dramatic work for the Scuola Grande of San Marco. The intense painting depicts the legendary story of two Venetian merchants stealing the body of St. Mark away from Alexandria in the 9th century....

Episode 222 – Tintoretto’s “Miracle of the Slave” (Accademia Gallery, Venice)

Posted: April 19th, 2023

The Venetian painter Tintoretto exploded onto the art scene in his native city with this large canvas depicting St. Mark rescuing one of his devotees from a horrific death. With its dramatic proscenium characterized by strong foreshortening and dramatic spotlighting, as well as a surprising and dari...

Episode 163 – Venice – Titian’s “Assumption” and “Pesaro Altarpiece” in the church of the Frari

Posted: March 2nd, 2022

Titian's two great altarpieces in the great Franciscan basilica of Venice known as the "Frari" marked a turning point in the artist's career. These were his first two public commissions and allowed all of Venice to appreciate the extraordinary talent of a young artist who was still only in his twent...

Episode 161 – Venice: Giorgione’s “Tempest” and “La Vecchia”

Posted: February 16th, 2022

Notwithstanding that his life and artistic career were cut short by plague in 1510 while the artist was in his thirties, Giorgione revolutionized European painting by his introduction of enigmatic and unconventional iconography. This episode examines two of Giorgione's most important paintings, both...

Episode 160 – Venice – Vittore Carpaccio’s “The Legend of St. Ursula”

Posted: February 9th, 2022

Carpaccio's extraordinary visual narrative of the life of St. Ursula is one of the most celebrated examples of cyclical Venetian Renaissance painting. Recently restored, the nine large canvases are now on display in the Accademia Gallery of Venice and present a vivid snapshot of life in Venice at th...

Episode 159 – Venice: Gentile Bellini, Vittore Carpaccio and the Relic of the True Cross

Posted: February 2nd, 2022

At the end of the 15th century, large-scale-cyclical-narrative paintings became quite popular in Renaissance Venice. One of these cycles illustrates in spectacular fashion the legends of the relic of the True Cross that was owned by the Scuola Grande of St. John the Evangelist. This episode examines...

Episode 158 – Venice: Giovanni Bellini’s “St. Job Altarpiece”

Posted: January 26th, 2022

This episode examines the first great Venetian painting of the Renaissance. Although the Venetian school of painting appeared almost a full century after that of Florence, the extraordinary genius of Venetian painters such as Giovanni Bellini rapidly made it the major rival of central Italian Renais...

Episode 65 – Venice: The Grand Canal and Rialto Bridge

Posted: April 15th, 2020

Episode Info: This episode explores the history and architecture of Venice's most important thoroughfare and its surrounding churches and palaces, as well as one of the world's most celebrated bridges - the Rialto - that has spanned the Grand Canal for nearly the last 1,000 years....

Episode 64 – Venice: Basilica of St. Mark and Doge’s Palace

Posted: April 8th, 2020

Episode Info: This episode examines the history, architecture and importance of Italy's most unique church. An example of Italo-Byzantine architecture, St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, Italy, was built primarily to house the relics of the evangelist and to serve as the private chapel of the Doge. The...

Episode 59 – Venice: La Serenissma – The History of the Republic

Posted: March 4th, 2020

Episode Info: This episode explores the history of the world's most unique city and the organization of the longest lasting republic of all time. From the original refugees who settled on the islands in the ancient world, to the theft of the body of St. Mark, to the formation of a "perfect governmen...

"We recently traveled to Florence with our twin daughters and we wanted them to experience the rich art history of Florence in a more personalized basis. We were grateful that Rocky agreed to this assignment. His Knowledge, love and enthusiasm for the arts was contagious. It was the highlight of our trip!"

Alan L. Rivera

CFO and General Counsel, Millbrook Capital Management, Inc.

"I can say that Rocky Ruggiero is the best among the very best. I have yet to encounter a more precise, informative and commanding teacher or conductor through the beauty and magnificence of Florence and Italy"

Peter Weller

Actor, Director, Writer, Musician, Scholar

"Rocky is a favorite and one of the best art historians we’ve ever used. He has led our family on occasion where are high school and college kids praised how Rocky made art "interesting" and "relevant", while his interactive style held everyone’s attention"

Michael Chesser

President and Founder Chesser Group Inc., Los Angeles CA