La passerelle en briques de reconnaissance GMM

From Empire to Humanism: Medieval Art and the Dawn of the Italian Renaissance

Professor Robert Geronimo
Email: rgeronimoart@gmail.com

Course Description:

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This five-lecture series traces the artistic journey from the Christian empire of Constantinople to the emergence of the Italian Renaissance, examining how medieval art laid the foundations for a new vision of humanity, space, and devotion. Beginning with the grandeur of Byzantium—the New Rome—the course explores how imperial power, sacred imagery, and architectural innovation shaped the medieval visual world.

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Following this legacy westward into Ravenna and Venice, the series then turns to the great artistic breakthroughs of Italy’s city-states. Through the work of Cimabue, Duccio, and Giotto, we witness the gradual reintroduction of volume, emotion, and narrative realism into sacred art. The course concludes with Donatello, whose revolutionary approach to sculpture signals the full emergence of Early Renaissance humanism and a renewed engagement with the classical past.

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Together, these lectures reveal medieval art not as a period of stagnation, but as a dynamic continuum—one that culminates in the rebirth of classical form and human experience.

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LECTURES WILL BE HELD AT THE MUSEUM ON TUESDAYS AT 11:30 AM

FEBRUARY 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th and March 10th