AHVS341ATheAscendancyoftheMediciBrunelleschiand.docx

AHVS 341A: The Ascendancy
of the Medici
Brunelleschi and the Building of San Lorenzo
The Decoration of the Medici Family Burial
Chapel and Sacristy
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San Lorenzo with its unfinished facade
Brunelleschi and the Medici

Not only did he solve the problem of the
Cathedral dome,
but Brunelleschi was also responsible for a
revolutionin the
plan of church building and interiors. He was asked
to build
San Lorenzo and he wanted to include a piazza
as part of the
rebuilding– although this never materialized.
San Lorenzo was patronized by the Medici family,
and the
architect was able to use more expensive materials and
elaborate details in his design – even though he
had to
struggle with preexisting structures on the site.
Lorenzo de’ Medici noted in his Diary that,
between 1434,
the year that Cosimo returned from exile, and 1471,
the year
that he was writing, his family spent an
impressive 663, 755
gold florins on charity, taxes, and public
buildings.
The founder: Giovanni di Bicci de’
Medici
� Giovanni di Bicci de'
Medici (c.1360 – February
20/28, 1429) was an Italian
banker and the founder of
theMedici Bank. His

children: Cosimo, and their
children, go on to become
the de factorulers of
Florence. They create an
oligarchical system of
rulership that is democratic
but run by elite men in the
same power network.
P r o c e s s i o n o f t h e M a g i , f r o m t h e P a l a z z o
M e d i c i : i m a g e o f
C o s i m o d e ’ M e d i c i : p a t r o n o f m a s t e r s l i k e
B r u n e l l e s c h i a n d
F r a A n g e l i c o
Portrait Bust of Piero di Cosimo de' Medici
(1416-1469), son of Giovanni Bicci
Piero is the father of
Lorenzo and Giuliano (most
famous of the 15th century
Medici people). He was not
as brilliant a banker as his
father, Cosimo. He paid for
the Procession of the Magi
frescoes in the Palazzo
Medici – Riccardi. He was
the de factoruler of
Florence between 1467-69.
This was a time of great
upheaval, with various non-

Florentineindividuals
helping to limit the family’s
power.
Bust of Lorenzo de' Medici (The
Magnificent)(1449-92)
Giuliano de' Medici (1453-78):
murdered in the Pazzi conspiracy
The Importance of Patronage:
For Religion, Honour and Renown
In this week’s lectures, we will be looking at
several case
studies: the Sacristy of San Lorenzo and the Medici,
in light
of two otherspaces created by rival families: the
chapel/sacristy of Santa Trinità and the Strozzi
family – and
the Brancacci chapel in the church of Santa
Maria del
Carmine, on the otherside of the Arno.
This fits with our idea of the period eye: these
families
commissioned works of art that expressed their
religious
hopes for eternal life – and they also had a
keen eye for their
reputation with one another.

We are very fortunate that they believed in beauty
and great
craftsmanship, so they were very aware of who were
the
most talented architects or sculptors or painters.
San Lorenzo: plan with the
cloister and library (left)
MA
Medici
Chapels
16thc
Old Sacristy
San Lorenzo: Old Sacristy, 1422-28
Giovanni di Bicci gave
Brunelleschi the commission for
the Sacristy, in the wakeof
seeing the dome of Florence
Cathedral successfully
completed. He also chose
Donatello to create the bronze
doors, the stucco figures over the
doors, the roundels of terracotta
in the corners of the vault. The
sacristy/chapel quickly set the
bar for being one of the most
innovative new spaces in the city.
It was part of a trendin this

period for families to create
private/public spaces that
contributed to the idea of ‘seeing
and being seen’.
San Lorenzo: The Old Sacristy, where
Giovanni and his wife are buried
When their father
died in 1429,
Cosimo and his
brother Lorenzo
assumed formal
responsibility for
the
embellishment of
the interior.
San Lorenzo: cross-section of the Old Sacristy
Buggiano, Tomb of Giovanni di Bicci de’Medici
and his wife Piccarda Bueri, Old Sacristy, San
Lorenzo, 1433
Vault of sacristy with roundels by Donatello

The main space has a dome; the a l tar area has a
smal ler dome with an astrological theme
C o s i m o d e ’ M e d i c i h a d a s t r o n g i n t e r e s t i n
a s t r o l o g y. T h e
c o n j u n c t i o n o f s t a r s s h o w n h e r e m a y r e l a
t e t o J u l y 6 , 1 4 3 9 . I t
m a y c o m m e m o r a t e t h e u n i o n o f W e s t e r n a
n d E a s t e r n C h r i s t i a n
c h u r c h e s .
This date in
1439 was
declared a
public
holiday; and
the pope
wrote a
special bull
entitled ‘Let
the heavens
rejoice..’
Dome
Chapel
area
Diagram of the astrological ceil ing

Saints Lawrence and Stephen
Protector saints
of the Medici
family
Saints Cosmas and Damian: patron saints of
the Medici family
Protector
saints of
the
Medici
family
Sacristy Doors by Donatello: bronze – with
figures of saints, prophets and martyrs
Ascension of Saint John
Rilievo
Schiacciato
Flat
relief that is
very low
Ascension of Saint John

Martydom of Saint John
Saint John on Patmos
Saint John the Evangelist
San Lorenzo: Sacristy: A Space that Speak
to the Religious Interests of the Medici
Donatello created stucco
roundels depicting the 4
Evangelists, and scenes from the
life of St. John the Evangelist
appear in the pendentives (we
also see the Medici coat of arms).
The roundels of the life of John
appear to complement the theme
of death in the burial chapel.
The programme is said to be new,
in that thereis no focus on the
Virgin Mary – instead the focus
was on saints that were
particularly revered by the
Medici family.

A truly significant space:
the importance of family spaces
1. What makes this space so special is the
unusual level of
design and beautiful art production.
2. It speaks to us about how artists cooperated
(or not)/
competed to plan each part of the decorative
ensemble.
3. We can see that the best artists and materials
were used.
4. Each part of the chapel/sacristy works together to
communicate a clear message about Biblical heroes:
saints, prophets and martyrs.
5. We know that this space was created to
meet the
spiritual needs of the family, to provide burial
space for
the ancestors of the Medici lineage.
6. It also expressed the social aspirations of the
Medici –
and it created a sensation, with people coming
far and
wide to see it, once it opened.
San Lorenzo: interior with the nave looking

back towards the retrofacade:
supervised by Cosimo de’Medici in 1440’s
By the time the building was
done, many aspects of its
layout, not to mention the
detailing, no longer
corresponded to the original
plan created by
Brunelleschi. The principal
difference is that
Brunelleschi had envisioned
the chapels along the side
aisles to be deeper, and to be
much like the chapels in
the transept. The transept
area is the only part of the
building known to have
been designed by
Brunelleschi.
San Lorenzo: interior with the nave
arcade with columns (facing altar)
� Early Renaissance
architecture:
� Key features:
� 1) proportional
relationships between
nave and aisle (the aisle
bays are square whereas

the nave bays are in a 2x1
ratio).
� 2) the articulation of the
structure in pietra
serena (Italian: “serene
stone”).
� 3) the use of an integrated
system of column, arches,
entablatures.
San Lorenzo: plan with the
cloister and library (left)
Learning Resources
Required Readings
·
American Psychiatric Association. (2022).
Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental
disorders (5th ed., text
rev.). https://go.openathens.net/redirector/waldenu.edu?url=http
s://dsm.psychiatryonline.org/doi/book/10.1176/appi.books.9780
890425787
· “Culture and Psychiatric Diagnosis”

American Psychiatric Association. (2017).
Clinical practice guideline of PTSD.
https://www.apa.org/ptsd-guideline
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
(2014).
SAMHSA's concept of trauma and guidance for a
trauma-informed approach.
https://ncsacw.samhsa.gov/userfiles/files/SAMHSA_Trauma.pdf
Credit: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration. SAMHSA’s Concept of Trauma and Guidance
for a Trauma-Informed Approach. HHS Publication No. (SMA)
14-4884. Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Services Administration, 2014.
Tye, S., Van Voorhees, E., Hu, C., & Lineberry, T. (2015).
Preclinical perspectives on posttraumatic stress disorder criteria
in DSM-5.
Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 23(1), 51–58.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4542003/
Credit: Preclinical Perspectives on Posttraumatic Stress
Disorder Criteria in DSM-5 by Susannah Tye, PhD, Elizabeth
Van Voorhees, PhD, Chunling Hu, MD, PhD, and Timothy
Lineberry, MD, in HARVARD REVIEW OF PSYCHIATRY,
Vol. 23/Issue 1. Copyright 2015 by ROUTLEDGE. Reprinted by
permission of ROUTLEDGE via the Copyright Clearance

Center.
Wheeler, K. (Ed.). (2020).
Psychotherapy for the advanced practice psychiatric
nurse: A how-to guide for evidence-based practice (3rd ed.).
Springer Publishing.
· Chapter 3, “Assessment and Diagnosis” (Previously read in
Week 2)
· Chapter 7, “Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing
Therapy”
· Chapter 11, “Trauma Resiliency Model Therapy”
· Chapter 15, “Trauma-Informed Medication Management”
· Chapter 17, “Stabilization for Trauma and Dissociation”
· Chapter 18, “Dialectical Behavior Therapy for Complex
Trauma”
Required Media
Grande, T. (2019, August 21).
Presentation example: Posttraumatic stress disorder
(PTSD) [Video]. YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RkSv_zPH-M4
The above is the case study.
Gift from Within. (Producer). (2008). PTSD and veterans: A
conversation with Dr. Frank Ochberg
[Video]. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/waldenu.edu?url=h
ttps://video.alexanderstreet.com/watch/ptsd-and-veterans-a-
conversation-with-dr-frank-ochberg

Know & Grow with Dr. K. (2021, July 18).
Does your child suffer from post traumatic stress
disorder? (Strictly Medical-English Version). [Video].
YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o98ilXH5gto
The Assignment
Succinctly, in 1–2 pages, address the following:
· Briefly explain the neurobiological basis for PTSD illness.
· Discuss the
DSM-5-TR diagnostic criteria for PTSD and relate these
criteria to the symptomology presented in the case study. Does
the video case presentation provide sufficient information to
derive a PTSD diagnosis? Justify your reasoning. Do you agree
with the other diagnoses in the case presentation? Why or why
not?
· Discuss one other psychotherapy treatment option for the
client in this case study. Explain whether your treatment option
is considered a “gold standard treatment” from a clinical
practice guideline perspective, and why using gold standard,
evidence-based treatments from clinical practice guidelines is
important for psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners.
· Support your Assignment with specific examples from this
week’s media and at least three peer-reviewed, evidence-based
sources. Explain why each of your supporting sources is
considered scholarly. Attach the PDFs of your sources.
· Submit your Assignment. Also attach and submit PDFs of the
sources you used.

Gender, Giftsand Patronage in Renaissance
Florence
Pierade’Medici, Abbess
Female Power in the Convent

Surviving samples of her beautiful
handwrit ing; ski l led as a scribe
‘Sister Piera, born of the distinguished
Medici bloodline, has transcribed
this work of holy virtue’
Example of type of textiles made in
her convent of San Verdiana
Acquiring the arm of
Santa Verdiana
Women, Gender and Space
in Florence
Preparation for the reading by Natalie Tomas

Attributed Fi l ippo Lippi, Portrait of a Woman
and a Man at a Casement , 1435-45
Women at
windows
Women at
windows
Women on
the street
Women on display in the Tornabuoni

Chapel
The best example of a religious commission which
stresses
the importance of public display, while at
the same time
illustrating the difference of men’s and women’s
ideal roles
and behaviour in late 15th century Florence, belongs to
Domenico Ghirlandaio for the church of Santa
Maria
Novella, commissioned by Giovanni Tornabuoni in 1485-
90.
He was an influential man, involved with the Medici
family
banking interests. He became financial advisor to
Pope
Sixtus IV. Portraits of the family and the Medici
appear
throughout the cycles of frescoes created in
this location.
The Visitation of El izabeth and the Virgin
Mary (concept of embedded portraits)
The scene of the Visitation is
witnssed by Giovanna degli

Albizzi, the wife of Giovanni
Tornabuoni’s only son,
Lorenzo. Her dressis
embroidered with the
Tornabuoni diamond. She
appears as an icon of perfect
femininity. Her dressfalls in
stiff foldsheavily to the ground
as she walks. She looks
decorously in front of her, in a
measured manner.
Women appeared in public as
icons of perfect virtue and
decorum.
By the time this portrait was
painted, Giovanna was dead,
having died in childbirth.
G h i r l a n d a i o ,
P o r t r a i t o f G i o v a n n a
d e g l i A l b i z z i
To r n a b u o n i , 1 4 8 8 ( ? )
Niccolò Fiorentino, medal of Giovanna degli
Albizzi, c. 1486, National
Gallery of Art, Washington, DC
D o m e n i c o G h i r l a n d a i o , B i r t h o f t h e V i r g
i n , 1 4 8 5 / 6 - 9 0 .

Yo u n g L o d o v i c a To r n a b u o n i a t h e a d o f a
g r o u p o f w o m e n
D e t a i l o f f r e s c o ,
B i r t h o f t h e V i r g i n
This fresco also shows an image
of another important
Tornabuoni woman, Lodovica,
the only daughter of the
patron. She appears as the ideal
virginal young girl, modest and
beautiful. She wears a dressof
the same fabric as Giovanna.
Behind her, as seen in this
detail, you see an elderwoman
from the household, reminding
us of the idea that women
travelled in groups, as
chaperons and extended
groups of female members of a
household.
D o m e n i c o G h i r l a n d i o , B i r t h o f S t . J o h n t
h e B a p t i s t ,
1 4 8 5 / 6 - 9 0 .

We d o n ’ t k n o w t h e n a m e o f t h e y o u n g w o m
a n s t a n d i n g a t
t h e h e a d o f t h e g r o u p , d r e s s e d i n t h e p i n k
g o w n . B u t t h e
o l d e r w o m a n s t a n d i n g b e h i n d h e r i s L u c r e
z i a M e d i c i –
( To r n a b u o n i ) , s i s t e r o f G i o v a n n i To r n a b u
o n i .
The world of men and women in the
Tornabuoni frescoes
The world of men and women seems to be
clearly
differentiated in the frescoes of the Tornabuoni
chapel. The
young women are put on display in relation to
Christian
stories that relate to themes of childbirth.
They stand as
witnesses to the sacred events.
The Tornabuoni women are presented as makers of
social
order and pedigree. They are presented in opulent,
expensive clothes, they wear exquisite jewels, and they
stand on display, marked by their measured steps
and
folded hands.

Images of Virtue & Beauty for
Women
Honour for Men
Later Fifteenth Century Portraits
of Men and Women in Florence
A new art form: portraits
Both in sculpture and in painting, Renaissance artists

produced living likenesses of men, women and
children.
Portraits refer to sitters in a real world. They
have to suggest
enough of their appearance to be believable.
The independent portrait was new to 15th century
Florence,
inspired in part by antique bustsand medals, as
well as the
traditional of Netherlandish portraits. Of course,
these
portraits have to be created within a continuum
of realism
but also idealization (only a few want their warts
and lumps
recorded).
The question remains: each work will offer a unique
insight
in a once living person: ideal or real? Florentine
artists were
‘on their mettle’ with this kind of commission for a
patron.
Fra Fi l ippo Lippi, Woman with a Man at a
Window , late 1430s or 40s
� Hewas experimenting
with a new type of
portrait.
� Became standard

pattern.
� She wears multiple rings
on her fingers
Fra Fi l ippo Lippi, Portrait of a Young Woman ,
1440 or 1455
Attributed to Paolo Uccello, A Young Lady of
Fashion , 1460s, Isabella Stewart Gardner
Museum, Boston
Attributed to Paolo Uccello, A Young Lady of
Fashion , 1460s, Isabella Stewart Gardner
Museum, Boston
The sitters’ facesare flatly
modelled with minimal
shading, and they hover
against dark backgrounds.
The desired hair colourwas
blonde, as we have seen.She
wears a head brooch, a pearl
choker with a jeweled
pendant, and a white cap
ornamented with pearls.
Her individuality is almost
entirely suppressed in

favour of the social ideals
that she stands for (beauty,
decorum, virtue)
Antonio del Pol la iuolo, Portra i t of a Young Woma n ,
1475, tempera and oi l on panel , Metropol i tan
Museum of Art
This artistmade about 5
surviving profile portraits of
Florentinewomen. The
women all wear brocade
dresses with a pomegranate
pattern, and similar
hairstyles. The 5 images are
so closely related that it
seems the artistwas
creating an ideal portrait of
a beautiful woman. Their
facesseembarely modelled
in light and shade. He uses
slightly raised (impasto)
brushstrokes to make the
heads seemmore real.
Antonio del Pol la iuolo, Portra i t of a Young Woma n ,
1475, tempera and oi l on panel
[L] Mi lan vers ion; [R]Uff iz i

Sandro Bott icel l i , Wo ma n a t a W i ndo w (Smera l da
B ra ndi ni ?) , inscr ibed, 1470-74, V ictor ia and Albert
Museum, London
This portrait represents an
individual and not an ideal
type. She has been identified
as Smeralda Brandini,
grandmother of a sculptor
Baccio Bandinelli. She wears a
transparent guarnello over her
red gown. You can study the
complex construction of space
between the shutter at her
back; this contrasts with the
column of the opening to the
left of the picture. She makes
direct contact with the viewer.
Botticelli’s approach is quite
experimental.
Sandro Bott icel l i , Gi u l i a no de’Medi c i , c . 1478-80,
Nat ional Gal lery of Art , Washington, tempera on
panel (murdered in the Pazzi conspiracy)
There are 3 exemplars of this
portrait, so it must have been
popular with people,
presumably members of the
Medici family. He seems very
idealized. The portrait includes

a turtledove perched on a dead
branch in the lower left corner.
The eyes seemto be lowered,
which may reflect the idea that
the likeness was based on a
death mask. Botticelli uses the
motif of the open shutters of a
window behind his body to
indicate death (a classical
tradition).
Sandro Bott icel l i , Young ma n hol di ng a meda l of
Co s i mo de’ Medi c i , 1470s , Uff iz i
Here the sittermakes
direct eye contact and
presents an inset medal of
Cosimo de’ Medici. This
detail of the medal is made
of gilt gesso. It is meant to
showthis young man’s
sense of connection as a
Medici familiar, although
this work cannot be
connected to any one
individual. Note the open
landscape beyond the
figure.
A new cultural influence: the transmission of
Northern portraits to Ital ian cities and towns

from mid-fifteenth century onwards
Botticell i , Portrait of a Young Man, National
Gallery London; Portrait of a Young Man,
National Gallery of Art, Washington; both
1480s
Lorne Campbell , Renaissance Portraits, Yale
University Press, 1990 , p. 12
the distortions of portraiture
‘Botticellidistorts the sitter’s
face in theseportraits. Though
the face, turned toward the
sitter’s right, is in proportion to
his torso, he has exaggerated the
eyes and compressed the skull.
Different parts of the face are
seen from different angles, for
the artistlooked straight into his
eyes,but looked up at other
parts of the face from below.
These devices of distortion
compel the viewer’s attention
and disturb slightly, making us
feel a strong sense of palpable
reality in the face’.

Sandro Botticell i , Portrait of a Young Woman
(Simonetta Vespucci), 1475, Stadelsches
Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main
This image belongs to a
group of images that feature
the idealized beauty of a
blonde woman, probably
Simonetta Vespucci, who
was a renowned beauty in
Florence, who died in 1476.
She facesright, which is an
unusual detail. She wears a
cameo pendant that features
the theme of Apollo and
Marysas. She wears a pearl
net woven through her hair.
Sandro Botticell i , Portrait of a Young Woman
(Simonetta Vespucci), 1475, Stadelsches
Kunstinstitut, Frankfurt am Main
This image is full of
iconographic complexity.
You can just see a shiny
metal corselet circling her
breasts. She may appear
here as a reference to
Pallas Athena, the great
Greek goddess. This is not
an individual but an
idealized image of a

beautiful young woman
mythologized as a goddess;
thereare 4 examples of her
likeness.
Cameos on sale in a shop in Florence
Domenico Ghir landaio, [L] Portra i t of a Young Gi r l ,
1490, Nat . Gal lery, London; [R] Portra i t of a La dy ,
1490 Ster l ing and Francine Clark Art Inst i tute,
Wi l l iamstown, Massachusetts
Domenico Ghir landaio, [L] Portra i t of a Young Gi r l ,
1490, Nat . Gal lery, LondonWil l iamstown,
Massachusetts
Ghirlandaio invented a
new type of portrait in the
1490s. He set the figures
before a neutral
background or a landscape
vista, and the women turn
¾ towards the viewer. The
artistwas able to capture
the delicacy and innocence
of a younger woman.
Domenico Ghir landaio, Portra i t o f a La dy , 1490

Ster l ing and Francine Clark Art Inst i tute
Wi l l iamstown, Massachusetts
This innovative portrait of a
lady probably reflects the
influence of Northern
Renaissance portraits, in
which figures appear before
a landscape and their hands
are included in the
composition. In this
example, this young woman
rests her hand on a window
ledge draped with a
Florentinetextile, and she
holds a flower, which may be
emblematic, in her hand.
Ghir landaio, Portra i t of a Young Ma n; Portra i t of a
Young Woma n , c . 1490, tempera on panel , The
Hunt ington L ibrary, San Marino
Domenico Ghir landaio, Portra i t of a n Ol d Ma n w i th
a young chi l d , 1490, Louvre
The picture portrays an older
man in a red robe,embracing
a young childwho is also
wearing red. They sit in an
interior, illuminated against a
darkened wall. Behind them

at right is a window through
which can be seen a
generalized landscape. The
poignancyof the image is
dramatized by the contrast
between the man's weathered,
olderand wise face, and the
child's delicate profile.
Ghir landaio, drawing of a man with rh inophyma,
done in metalpoint on pink paper,
Nat ionalmuseum, Stockholm
This drawing was once
owned by Giorgio Vasari,
who trimmed it and fit it
into the oval shape. It is
created using white
heightening, to make the
shapes stand out in relief.
The facial expression
suggests that it was made
as part of the process of
taking a death mask.

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