Stradano’s Nova Reperta and the Renaissance Representation of Invention and Globalization

Lia Markey, The Newberry Library

This paper examines Giovanni Stradano’s Nova Reperta, a renowned print series of engravings (c. 1588) representing nineteen post-classical novelties. Through analysis of the prints’ iconography, Latin captions, preparatory drawings, visual and textual sources, as well as the interests of patron Luigi Alamanni, the study examines how the series depicts invention as both global and yet specifically Florentine and investigates the relationship between innovation and cross-cultural exchange in the late sixteenth century.

The Roman Tomb of Alfonsina Orsini de' Medici: Contexts, Patronage, and Artistic Innovation

Sheryl E. Reiss, Italian Art Society

This paper considers the polychrome marble floor tomb of Alfonsina Orsini de' Medici (1472-1520) in the Roman church of Santa Maria del Popolo. Extraordinarily, the tomb employs perspectival illusion to suggest an open grave. Topics addressed include the highly unusual representational scheme and self-referential nature of the tomb; rituals and artistic practices associated with the burial, mourning, and commemoration of women; and the relative paucity of monumental women's tombs in Renaissance Italy - especially in Medicean Florence. Particular emphasis will be placed on the now-lost inscriptions, which expressed the grief and gendered identity of the patron, Alfonsina's daughter Clarice Medici Strozzi.

Seminar coordinators: Diane Dillon, The Newberry Library; Walter Melion, Emory University; Suzanne Karr Schmidt, The Newberry Library; and Lia Markey, The Newberry Library. Sponsored by the Samuel H. Kress Foundation.

Related Program

The Newberry Center for Renaissance Studies' Symposium on Sites and Soundscapes in the Italian Renaissance will take place on Saturday, April 29. Seminar participants are invited to register for this free program and attend.