Leon Battista Alberti
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THE HARVARD UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR ITALIAN RENAISSANCE STUDIES VILLA I TATTI Via di Vincigliata 26, 50135 Florence, Italy VOLUME 25 E-mail: [email protected] / Web: http://www.itatti.ita a a Tel: +39 055 603 251 / Fax: +39 055 603 383 AUTUMN 2005 From Joseph Connors: Letter from Florence From Katharine Park: he verve of every new Fellow who he last time I spent a full semester at walked into my office in September, I Tatti was in the spring of 2001. It T This year we have two T the abundant vendemmia, the large was as a Visiting Professor, and my Letters from Florence. number of families and children: all these husband Martin Brody and I spent a Director Joseph Connors was on were good omens. And indeed it has been splendid six months in the Villa Papiniana sabbatical for the second semester a year of extraordinary sparkle. The bonds composing a piano trio (in his case) and during which time Katharine Park, among Fellows were reinforced at the finishing up the research on a book on Zemurray Stone Radcliffe Professor outset by several trips, first to Orvieto, the medieval and Renaissance origins of of the History of Science and of the where we were guided by the great human dissection (in mine). Like so Studies of Women, Gender, and expert on the cathedral, Lucio Riccetti many who have worked at I Tatti, we Sexuality came to Florence from (VIT’91); and another to Milan, where were overwhelmed by the beauty of the Harvard as Acting Director. Matteo Ceriana guided us place, impressed by its through the exhibition on Fra scholarly resources, and Carnevale, which he had helped stimulated by the company to organize along with Keith and conversation. Christiansen of the When we returned this Metropolitan Museum. The spring, it was to live in the doors of the Uffizi were opened main villa during my semester to us on a closed Monday by as Acting Director, while Joe Alessandro Cecchi to study the was in Cambridge. The recently restored Adoration of experience was again the Magi by Gentile da memorable, but for somewhat Fabriano, while Fellow Machtelt different reasons. If last time Israels explained the Madonna Françoise & Joe Connors above – I Tatti was above all a place for della Neve by Sassetta in the Marty Brody & Katy Park at right us, this time it was above all a Contini Bonacossi Collection, a community of people. The little-visited enclave within the director’s quarters are in the Uffizi. In October the Sonatori della Harvard better, ideally through teaching. heart of the house, down the hall from Gioiosa Marca presented Folie all’italiana, So in January I set out for Cambridge for the library, overlooking the garden, with the fifth concert in the series, Early Music a semester of battling blizzards, teaching the kitchen below and the administrative at I Tatti. Also in October there was a the arcana of Italian architecture, and offices upstairs. Only living in this conference on Alberti, his architecture making friends for I Tatti. If Harvard, like environment do you truly begin to and its patrons, organized along with the Siena, had city gates with inscriptions understand the intricate rhythms of the Centro Studi Leon Battista Alberti, which (“Siena Opens Her Heart Wider to You” household and the close relationships continued with visits to Rimini and on the Porta di Camollia), one might read, between the academic activities of the Mantua. Finally in December, after years “Cor magis tibi Harvard pandit.” community and its domestic and of frustration, the gods smiled on I Tatti Cordiality was indeed the keynote in administrative life. All of the collective and permission finally arrived from many lunches and dinners with intellectual activities of the Center – Fiesole to build the Deborah Loeb Brice colleagues in literature, history, seminars, lectures, workshops, field trips, Loggiato. No finer Christmas present architecture, economics, and especially concerts, and conferences – as well as the could be imagined. music, and an unforgettable welcome was scholarly work of individual When I accepted the post of Director extended at Eliot House by Lino Pertile. Fellows and Visiting Professors, ultimately there were suggestions from many Continued on Continued on quarters that I should get to know page 3 page 3 CAMBRIDGE OFFICE: Villa I Tatti, Harvard University, 124 Mt. Auburn Street, Cambridge, MA 02138-5762 Tel: +1 617 496 8724 or +1 617 495 8042 / Fax: +1 617 495 8041 / Web: http://www.itatti.it VILLA I TATTI COMMUNITY 2004-2005 Fellows II Piccolomini’s FRANCES ANDREWS, Francesco De Patronage of Real Dombrowski Fellow, University of St. and Ephemeral Andrews, History. “The Employment of Architecture (1458- the ‘Religiosi’ by Governments of early 1464).” Renaissance Italy.” GUIDO REBECCHINI, VICTORIA AVERY, Rush H. Kress Fellow, Committee to University of Warwick, Art History. “The Rescue Italian Art Production of Bronze Objects in Fellow, Art History. Renaissance Venice.” “Between Rome and FLAMINIA BARDATI, Florence J. Gould Florence: Cardinal 2 Ippolito de’Medici Fellow, Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes, Paris, Art History. “Artisti toscani alla (1510-1535).” corte di Francia nel primo Rinascimento: MICHAEL WYATT, Domenico da Cortona, Girolamo Robert Lehman Pacherot e Antonio Juste.” Fellow, Stanford At the end of year party GIOVANNA BENADUSI, Ahmanson Fellow, University, Literature. University of South Florida, History. “Moccicone: Bernardo Dovizi da MARGARET HAINES, Opera di Santa Maria “The Last Wills of Women in Renais- Bibbiena and the Margins of Medici del Fiore, Art History. “Online Digital sance Tuscany.” Power.” Edition of the Sources of the Archive of MONICA CALABRITTO, Lila Wallace- Santa Maria del Fiore in the Cupola Reader’s Digest Fellow, Hunter College, Reader in Renassance Studies Period.” CUNY, Literature. “The Madness of PATRICK L. BAKER, Harvard University, MICHAEL ROCKE, Villa I Tatti, History. Paolo Barbieri of Bologna: A Comparison History. “Edition and Translation of Italian Texts of Social, Legal, and Medical related to Homoeroticism (14th-17th Perspectives.” Visiting Professors centuries).” st MAURIZIO CAMPANELLI, Andrew W. VICTOR COELHO (1 sem), Robert Mellon Fellow, Scuola Nazionale di Studi Lehman Visiting Professor, University of ORMER ELLOWS Medioevali, Roma, Literature. “Storia e Calgary, Musicology. “Renaissance F F fortuna della traduzione ficiniana del Instrumentalists and their Repertories, UPDATE Corpus Hermeticum.” 1420-1600.” nd MATTEO DUNI, Jean-François Malle CAROLINE ELAM (2 sem), Art History. “Roger Fry and Italian Art.” RALPH HEXTER (VIT’92) became Fellow, Syracuse University, Florence, nd History. “I giuristi scettici e la stregoneria ALINA PAYNE (2 sem), Harvard the fifth President of Hampshire nel rinascimento (1450-1600).” University Visiting Professor, Harvard College in August. Before moving University, Art History. “Relationship FEDERICA FAVINO, Jean-François Malle to Hampshire, which belongs to the between Architecture and the Figural Fellow, Centre A. Koyré, CNRS, Paris, Five College consortium in Amherst, History. “Le pratiche del sapere Arts and the ‘paragone’ Discussions in the Florentine Academic Environment.” Massachusetts, he was Professor of scientifico. Matematica, geometria e st cultura a Roma nell’età di Galileo.” PATRICIA RUBIN (1 sem), Courtauld Classics and Comparative Literature SILVIA FIASCHI, Francesco De Institute of Art, University of London, and Executive Dean of the College Dombrowski Fellow, Università di Pavia, Art History. “What’s in a Name? The of Letters and Science at the Literature. “Tradurre dal greco nel’400: Identification of Works of Art from the University of California at Berkeley. ricerche sulle versioni latine dell’umanista Renaissance.” A graduate of both Harvard and DAVID RUTHERFORD, Central Michigan Francesco Filelfo.” Oxford Universities, Hexter received GIUSEPPE GERBINO, Deborah Loeb Brice University, History. “The Reception of Lactantius and the History of the Book.” his Ph.D. from Yale University. His Fellow, Columbia University, Musicology. nd “Music and the Myth of Arcadia in RONALD WITT (2 sem), Robert books include A Guide to the Renaissance Italy.” Lehman Visiting Professor, Duke Odyssey: A Commentary on the MACHTELT ISRAËLS, Hanna Kiel Fellow, University, History. “The Intellectual English Translation of Robert Art History. “Sassetta and his Franciscan History of Western Europe 1450-1550.” Fitzgerald (New York: Vintage Books, Patrons.” 1993) and Ovid and Medieval Senior Research Associates CRAIG MARTIN, Hanna Kiel Fellow, Schooling: Studies in Medieval EVE BORSOOK, Villa I Tatti, Art History. Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, History. School Commentaries on Ovid’s Ars “Rethinking Averroism in the “Medieval Mosaic Technology.” Renaissance.” ALLEN GRIECO, Villa I Tatti, History. “A amatoria, Epistulae ex Ponto, and FABRIZIO NEVOLA, Deborah Loeb Brice Social and Cultural History of Alimentary Epistulae heroidum (Munich: Bei der Fellow, Università di Siena, Art History. Habits in Renaissance Italy.” Arbeo-Gesellschaft, 1986). “Imagining the Renaissance City: Pius VILLA I TATTI Letter from Joseph Connors continued Letter from Katharine Park continued Every encouragement was given by the Provost and Associate rest on the collaboration of the fifty-odd people who make up Provost, Steve Hyman and Sean Buffington, and by the Dean of the staff. The smoothness with which they work together is Arts and Sciences, Bill Kirby. Tom Lentz and I established a the product of much reflection, coordination, and commitment, program for the scientific