Schedule

LECTURE 1 -The Tudors and Torrigiano

-Friday, May 19

In the 15th and 16th centuries, the Tudors needed sculptors and artists to promote their family after Henry VII ascended the throne. Pietro Torrigiano needed an escape route after punching Michelangelo in the nose in Florence. The sculptor saw his opportunity and moved to England to work at the royal court and met other foreign artists. This talk explores how Italian artists brought Renaissance style to England.

LECTURE 2 – King Charles I, Charles II and Collecting

-Friday, May 26

In the 17th century Charles I brought Italian artists such as Orazio Gentileschi and Artemisia Gentileschi to his court. After he was executed by Oliver Cromwell’s New Model Army, his son Charles II fled to the courts of Europe, where the rest of his family was protected. But upon the restoration of the monarchy, the English court was again filled with art and artists, and in this talk we’ll explore royal collecting.

LECTURE 3 – Making museums: How the V&A and National Gallery Built their collections of Italian Art

-Friday, June 2

While Italians reshaped their country during the Risorgimento, the need for money and modernity meant many nobles sold family heirlooms. At the same time, the British were forming national museums and seeking treasures from across the world. This session will explore how curators and directors built the collections at the Victoria and Albert Museum the National Gallery in London.