Welcome to Horizon Studies:
Learning for the Third Stage of Life

Italian Renaissance:
The Exercise of Power
10:00 AM – 11:45 AM
September 29 – November 10, 2008
Bruce Elliott, Ph.D.

The governing theme of the Renaissance in Italy was empowerment. Inspired by Classical thought, the Renaissance rejected the dour medieval paradigm of Fallen Man and instead celebrated human dignity and human potential. A fresh spirit of confidence manifested in a variety of ways, notably in the Humanistic orientation of philosophers, the life-affirming creations of Renaissance artists and the assertive statecraft of political leaders. The sparkling constellation of city-states and princely courts in Northern Italy was a prototype for future European politics—a training ground for governance and diplomacy.

This course traces Renaissance exercise of power through successive stages: medieval communes, city-republics and territorial states, culminating in the opulent Papal court of Renaissance Rome. Rightly renowned are the Masters of art—here we will be highlighting the great Masters of Renaissance statecraft: Cosimo de’ Medici, Lorenzo the Magnificent, Niccolo Machiavelli and Pope Julius II. There was a critical connection in Italy between power and culture, since it was leading members of political elites who became the most prominent patrons of the new Renaissance art.

Class sessions will feature lecture, discussion, and extensive visuals. Short readings from the period will help to illustrate the blend of confidence and competence that characterized the Renaissance movement.

Bruce Elliott teaches courses in European history at UC Berkeley, Stanford Continuing Studies and Sonoma State OLLI. Dr. Elliott’s academic emphasis has been on studying the social forces that converge in the formation of important historical movements.

11:45 AM – 1:00 PM
Lunch break

Masterpieces of Renaissance Art
1:00–2:45 PM
September 29 – November 10, 2008
Heidi Chretien, Ph.D.

The Italian Renaissance was one of those remarkable times in Western Civilization when the output of creative genius was at its most glorious. Developments in the arts included
the invention of single-point perspective and
oil painting, along with striking new techniques for rendering naturalistic figures in life-like settings. Great merchant families like the Medici of Florence and the Pesaro of Venice lavished their enormous wealth on beautifying their cities while the Renaissance Popes undertook to rebuild Rome in the image of its ancient Imperial splendor.

In this course we will closely examine the outstanding Masterpieces of this Golden Age spanning the three main phases of the movement: the arising of the early Renaissance in Florence, the more sophisticated second-generation as the new artistic approach spread through Italy, and the magnificent High Renaissance, centered in Rome. Along with highlighting choice examples from the corpus of the giants: Botticelli, Leonardo, Raphael and Michelangelo, our study will also draw on prominent works from lesser-known masters. Painting and sculpture will be the primary focus; however, we will extend our consideration to patronage in order to ground the Renaissance in its social context.

Heidi Chretien is Professor of Art History and Graduate Humanities at Dominican University and also teaches for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Sonoma State. She lived and taught Renaissance Art in Florence for many years and continues to lecture there each summer.

Horizon Studies Lifelong Learning courses are presented at the following location:

Berkeley City Club
2315 Durant Ave.
Berkeley, California

Ample parking nearby. Discount vouchers are available for the Sather Gate Parking Garage,
2450 Durant Avenue (one block up from the Berkeley City Club).

Class size is limited — sign up soon to reserve your space!

If you have questions, please e-mail us:

info@horizonstudies.org