With and Without the Medici : Studies in Tuscan Art and Patronage 1434-1530

The six studies in this volume investigate the evidence for patronal interests expressed in a variety of commissions by different social groups and consider how far Medici acrtivity as patrons can be considered paradigmatic.

The text explores the way in which the work was commissioned and received, and new evidence is presented of aspects of the relationship between the patron and the artists.

Topics covered include commissions for the religious and secular decorations of Florentine villas, the activities and aspirations of Florentine nuns, the early practice of collecting, and the artist's response to the patron's needs through the formal qualities of the works of rat.