“…the exhibition aims to provide the visitor with an opportunity to look at art from a cross-disciplinary perspective involving economists, politicians and diplomats. It examines the story of how the Florentine Renaissance grew from the supposedly open, but more often actually hidden, relationship between art, power and money.”
The most recent exhibition at the Palazzo Strozzi is thrilling in its academic and holistic approach to the art it displays. The historical context in Florence at the end of the Dark Ages is meaningful and influences the art we admire from this period, as well as the city we so enjoy. Florence is breath-taking
(my favorite destination in Italy) and much unlike Rome. Born of the Renaissance, its architecture is neoclassic without the dramatic influence of the baroque period. At the close of the Dark Ages, Florence was arising as a thriving metropolis, central to the banking system (the florin) in the whole of Europe and was learning the delicate and necessary interaction of the Church in developing commerce (the way around the sin of usury, while lending nonetheless). This exhibition explores the role the ruling family of Florence, the Medici’s, played in this intermingled development.
Read the provided exhibit’s text—its very intriguing. I found myself wishing for more content, but was so excited to learn more about this era and the intersection of art, commerce, and the Church.
Van Reymerswaele, Marinus Claeszoon. The Money Changer and His Wife. 1540. Oil on Panel. Palazzo Strozzi, Florence.
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