2 Audley Square
Mayfair, London W1K
UK
Founded in 1994, THE COURSE offers art history lectures, opera and literature courses, guided museum visits and London walks.
In this series of 10 lectures, Leslie Primo asks what do all the signs and symbols in paintings mean, if indeed they are there, and why is there an enduring fascination with Greek mythology in the visual arts? It can all seem somewhat impenetrable. This course will delve into what these hidden meanings really are. You will see how the iconography of mythology can reveal the hidden codes and identify the seemingly mysterious figures in great works of art. It aims to look at the stories which are often re-told in secular Italian and Northern Renaissance painting around, 1400-1600, and also in French Baroque painting. Most often the stories came from antique literary sources which have survived through the middle ages and were the preserve of the rich and cultured.
PATRONAGE AND PRIVILEGE
Finally, we will examine the use of symbolism, mythology and patronage in art by the ruling families such as the d’Este, Gonzaga, Sassetti, Tournabouni and Medici.