History of Art visit Florence

4 March 2024

“A city complete in itself, having its own arts and edifices, lively and not too crowded, a capital and not too large, beautiful and gay - such is the first idea of Florence”, wrote Hippolyte Taine in his essay ‘Voyage en Italie’, published as a series of articles in the ‘Revue des deux mondes’ between 1864 and 1866. 

Around five years before Taine made his voyage to Italy, the Swiss Art Historian Jacob Burckhardt published his seminal essay on the Italian Renaissance ‘The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy’ (Die Cultur der Renaissance in Italien), which located the birthplace of the Renaissance in Florence. Burckhardt saw in the flourishing of this city’s arts in the 14th Century a reflection of the headstrong independence of its citizenry, the intellectual energies of a humanist culture, and the political will of an enlightened elite. His central thesis was repeated in a succession of important art-historical writings and the association has stuck. 

It is hard to believe from this vantage point that before Burckhardt and Taine, Florence - l’ovil di San Giovanni as its famous poet wrote of it - a city almost synonymous with tourism (think David keyrings and Botticelli fridge magnets), had long been Italy’s neglected daughter. The grand-touring gentle folk from Northern Europe passed through the city on their way to Rome or Naples. 18th Century travellers with business in the city complained constantly about its weather, people, food, and hospitality. 

Even the artistic treasures were passed over in silence. Goethe, an informed and prodigious aesthete omits to mention the city in his estimation of Italy’s contribution to the arts. In fact, he seems to have not visited the city at all, preferring the other Tuscan municipalities of Siena and Pisa. 

This low reputation may be a cause of its secrecy, and its relative obscurity from European cultural life. It was not until 1769 that the Uffizi was open to the public - upon request - not formally becoming a museum until 1865. This huge collection must have overwhelmed the casual tourist.  

The Stowe Art-History trip to Florence in the February break gave Stoics the opportunity to experience first-hand the city’s inimitable charms. 

The group left very early on Friday 16 February, no hiccoughs and no delays. The tram to the hotel passed through the unimpressive 20th Century housing developments of Florence’s outskirts, the route teasing us every so often with a glimpse of the towering majesty of the Cathedral’s dome and the grumbling of pupils with sore feet was punctuated by exhilarated gasps. The tram stopped at Santa Maria Novella, a strategically short walk from the hotel. Once the luggage was dumped, we went to meet Jeremy of the British Institute of Florence who was leading our cultural itinerary. Introductions made, revision booklets distributed, a short discussion of Alberti’s façade and the group made a proper acquaintance with the city on foot, with a whistle-stop tour of the palaces, bridges and the sites of events involving the most memorable personalities in its history. 

The evening’s well-earned supper was at Ristorante Lorenzo de Medici, eponymous with Florence’s best-known and beloved political son. The Head joined us there. The food was exceptional, the division of the bill exceptionally complicated! 

Saturday morning was less frantic. After breakfast and last-minute preparations, the group ambled, taking in the sites and snapping photos, to the British Institute HQ, located riverside in a 16th Century palazzo. Jeremy lectured on the history of the Institute and that of British art travel in Florence. The group then split into two, with each group taking it in turns to do an Italian language workshop and to tour the Brancacci Chapel. 

We were extremely fortunate to be given access to the Chapel because the frescoes were under renovation. This meant that we were limited to small groups. It also meant that we were able to get up on the scaffolding and see the pictures up close. The frescoes are very popular among the Sixth Form pupils, so having private access was even more special.  

Jeremy generously offered to take the tour of San Lorenzo, and the group was introduced in-person to more artworks by Donatello, Brunelleschi and Della Robbia - which it had previously known only in the abstract. 

The pupils returned from lunch waxing about the supremacy of Italian pizza; one or two venturing to try the peculiar delicacy of a Lampredotto sandwich. 

This was welcome sustenance before the introduction to the colossal David - always the most memorable of meetings. 

With the Churches inaccessible but for worshippers, Sunday was the day to light a candle to the art masterpieces of Florence’s museums. This was also the 

busiest day of our itinerary: Bargello, Palazzo Medici, Uffizi. And how well the pupils coped! The Head, Miss Hope and I took a group each and led a tour of the great sculptures of the Bargello, connecting the history of Florence’s political life with the public meanings accruing to these works. This, and the tour of the quaint gardens and elegant rooms of the Palazzo Medici, was merely a warmup for the Uffizi tour, led by Jeremy and his colleague Agata. 

The tour lasted three hours. Its objective was to instruct the group in the development of the arts over the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in Florence, and how this cultural flourishing was connected to the city’s wealth and patronage. 

Everyone was exhausted - physically and mentally - only the promise of a Florentine supper gave relief and the knowledge that after Monday lunchtime, the Stoics would be given free time to explore the boutique shops they had made clear they were so eager to visit. 

Sunday’s supper was perhaps the most memorable. The Upper Sixth, shaking off their exhaustion, made a bid for the prize for the most Florentine steaks consumed in one evening. We were also the recipients of Italian hospitality at its warmest. With all the other customers having left, the owner invited the group into the kitchen. The owner’s Great Aunt joined in, telling us about her Jewish past, her attachment to Florence, and her grandfather-artist’s tomb to the poet Ugo Foscolo, located in the Santa Croce Basilica. 

A visit to see this pantheon of Florence’s favourite sons was on Monday’s agenda. Before getting there, we took the long and arduous journey to the Cathedral’s lantern. The city view atop the Dome gave us surely the most miraculous of all our moments. The Art Historians had looked forward to this view for months, and it was finally ours - in the cool blue hues of Leonardo’s mountains. This was a pause for the group to catch its breath, to be reminded how precious and permanent beauty is. 

Returning to the ground (from Dante’s skies to Bocaccio’s streets) the group made its way to Santa Croce to learn about what Florence thought about itself. Quite unexpectedly, we stumbled onto a sprawling raucous crowd, crying provincial songs, and shaking gleeful fists. An early-in-the-calendar match of medieval rough and tumble in the form of Calcio storico. 

From Medieval garb to Reformation facelifts, the group took its last tour around the renovated and much-expanded Basilica, with the teachers giving talks on the various personalities buried there, and then on the perfect geometry and the simple ideals of Early-Renaissance architecture through the example of Pazzi Chapel. 

With a promise to the pupils that the final evening would be spent admiring Florence’s sunset from the Southern hills, followed by the best gelato in the city, time was of the essence. Most keen to make this hasty pilgrimage to San Miniato, Stoics mustered all remaining energy to run up the mile-long hill, making it just in time to see the wonderful colours play in Fiorenza’s skies. The bells tolled for six-o-clock and the chanting of vespers sounded from the interior. This special trip could not have ended in any other way. We came, we saw, and were conquered. 

Pupil reflections: 

“My favourite moment was sprinting all the way up from the Uffizi to San Miniato to watch the (almost gone but still very pretty) sunset and the bells going off and then getting the best gelato of my life on the way back.” 

“The detail was so impressive, and I just loved the choice of colours and the way they depicted the scenes.” [On Benozzo Gozzoli’s Magi] 

“Viewing such an artistic and historical city with your own eyes, feels completely different, compared to when looking just at images of it. Understanding the architectural elements with the teachers, is much more fun and exciting. For me personally, it was more memorable, as well as helpful for some of the discussions in essays.” 

“The trip could be helpful as an introduction to History of Art for new pupils to gain interest, however I think it’s more fun when you’ve studied the things you’re going to see so you know what you’re looking at. I found that the things I had looked at in lessons or read about beforehand were more exciting to see.” 

“I found the architecture particularly captivating. What truly heightened my experience was being able to immerse myself in it physically. It’s not until you see the art or architecture in person that you notice subtle qualities such as the influence of lighting on Gentile da Fabriano’s Adoration of the Magi 1423. Additionally, being able to walk around sculptures gives you a greater impression of the intricate and meticulous detail that would not be easily visible when looking at an image.” 

“I highly recommend going on this trip, especially if you're a visual learner. It offers a fantastic opportunity to fully indulge yourself in the world of art and architecture.”