Art in the Age of Lorenzo de’ Medici at the National Gallery

This talk will explore the role of Lorenzo de’ Medici as a patron of the arts in Renaissance Florence. Lorenzo’s reputation as the city’s benefactor was praised after his death in 1492 by none other than the Florentine historian Niccolò Machiavelli who wrote: “He was the greatest patron of literature and art that any prince has ever been. . . . He made of Florence the leading state, and the intellectual, artistic, and fashionable center of Italy.” Medici-related artists and works from the National Gallery of Art’s permanent collection will be illustrated and discussed.