EXCLUSIVE WEBINAR | “The Emperor, the Pope, and their Sculptor”
Presented by Susan Jaques
with Additional Commentary by Dr. Rocky Ruggiero

Pope Pius VII stayed at Fontainebleau twice: first as a guest at Napoleon’s 1804 coronation; then as his prisoner from 1812 to 1814. Their decade long confrontation reflects the tensions between the determined religious leader who insisted on political independence and the powerful emperor who renamed Rome the “second capital of the Empire.”  Throughout the fraught relationship, neoclassical sculptor Antonio Canova played conflicting roles as the Bonaparte family’s favorite portraitist and the pope’s loyal diplomatic envoy.  Back in Rome after Napoleon’s defeat, Pius VII dispatched Canova to Paris to negotiate the return of Italy’s looted art treasures. “The Emperor, the Pope, and their Sculptor” explores the struggle for supremacy between the two leaders and the role of art in this consequential conflict.

The webinar will include a 45-minute lecture followed by 15-minutes of Q&A.

Please note:

• Your participation is confirmed once you have purchased your ticket. You will receive the Zoom link to join the presentation circa 30 minutes before the start time.
• VIDEO RECORDING of the webinar will be available for unlimited streaming at your convenience for 7 days after the event.

Susan Jaques is an author specializing in art and architecture. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Stanford University and an MBA from UCLA.  Her books include The Caesar of Paris: Napoleon Bonaparte, Rome, and the Artistic Obsession that Shaped an Empire and The Empress of Art: Catherine the Great and the Transformation of Russia. She lives in Los Angeles, California where she’s a gallery docent at the J. Paul Getty Museum.