Over six weeks, we travel to some of Italy’s most famous Renaissance cities—three republics and three courts—to explore their unique physical landscapes and visual cultures. Historically, throughout the Italian peninsula, self-definition was tied to participation in urban life. One’s native city was the centre and measure of the world; beyond its walls, all were foreigners, potential subject territories, allies, rivals or enemies.

Each week, lecturer Dr Louise Marshall will investigate how built form and painted programs shaped urban experience, articulating civic ideals and serving as powerfully effective tools of political propaganda and social prestige. From the republican communes of Siena, Venice and Florence to the princely states of Ferrara, Mantua and Venice, art played multiple vital roles in Renaissance cities and continues to shape these cities today.

Dr Louise Marshall taught medieval and Renaissance art as a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Art History at the University of Sydney. She has published widely on her chief area of research - Renaissance plague imagery. Her research has been supported by the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, the Renaissance Society of America, and the Australian Research Council Centre for the History of Emotions.

Each session will be from 10.30am to 12.30pm with a short water/stretch break at intermission.

Proudly sponsored by Arab Bank Australia and Sir William Dobell Art Foundation

1-Jul Siena: City of the Virgin

8-Jul Venice: Mundus Alter

15-Jul Florence: Mercantile powerhouse

22-Jul Ferrara: Courtly magnificence

29-Jul Mantua: From frogs to palaces

5-Aug Urbino: A palace in the form of the city