Patrons of Tuscany - Finestre sull'Arte

The patronage of Pius II, the humanist pope

Building the ideal city at the height of the Renaissance was an ambitious project, to say the least, although the great passion for the arts and the high intellectual knowledge of one man, one of the greatest patrons of his time, had made this dream ...
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From Paolo Guinigi to Lorenzo Trenta: patronage in fifteenth-century Lucca

The ancient history of Lucca is closely linked to the Guinigi, one of the most important and influential families of merchants and bankers in the city. Consider, for example, the famous tower that bears their name, the Guinigi Tower, erected at the ...
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Macchiaioli patrons: who they were, how they supported the group

It is hard to imagine that the Macchiaioli would have been successful if there had not been a host of patrons behind them, not very numerous but nonetheless ready to support their art, either financially or through less direct support, for example by...
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Niccolo Puccini, an early 19th century patron: "the rich are the stewards of the poor"

In the heart of Pistoia's historic center, in Piazzetta Spirito Santo, just a stone's throw from the Cathedral, stands a 19th-century monument dedicated to Niccolò Forteguerri, a Pistoiese cardinal who lived in the 15th century and was known f...
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Banking foundations in Tuscany: what they do for art

Tuscany, with its rich and deep-rooted artistic traditions, has always attracted to its lands artists, scholars and art lovers from all over the world, who have always found fertile ground for their ideas here, given also the strong tradition of patr...
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How Pandolfo Petrucci's patronage changed the face of Siena in the Renaissance

A patron so splendid that he earned the appellation "Magnifico." Pandolfo Petrucci (Siena, 1452 - San Quirico d'Orcia, 1512) was one of the most powerful men in late 15th-century Siena , and his activities in the arts contributed substantially to sh...
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Entrepreneurs and art patrons of today's Tuscany: who they are and what they do

Tuscany is not only celebrated for its beautiful landscapes and unparalleled artistic heritage, but also for a tradition of patronage that has spanned the centuries. Today, this noble practice finds expression in modern business and professional patr...
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Portrait of a patron between Rome and the Apuan Alps: cardinal Alderano Cybo

Over the course of a long life (he died at age 87) and a very long cardinalate (he wore the purple for 55 years, beginning in 1645), Cardinal Alderano Cybo (Genoa, 1613 - Rome, 1700) translated a great interest in the arts - from music to literature,...
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