Gods, Glory & Spirituality exhibition lecture series

The commemorative medal has its origins in 15th-century Italy. Several aspects of Italian Renaissance culture led to the rise of the medal: the advancement of casting techniques, the humanist cult of the individual, the revival of classical antiquity, and the related desire to perpetuate personal fame in emulation of the great persons of the ancient world. Through a skillful combination of text and image, the medal celebrates an individual's unique qualities, power, accomplishments, family status, dynastic links, aspirations, beliefs, and significant life events. In this lecture Davide Gasparotto will explore how women were memorialized in Renaissance medals but also how, as patrons, they exploited the medium to foster their personal agendas.

Davide Gasparotto is Senior Curator of Paintings, and Chair, Curatorial Affairs at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles. 

Free and open to the public. For more information, please visit the event page: https://museum.ucsb.edu/news/event/1022