A cultural symbiosis: patrician art patronage and medicean cultural politics in Florence (1530-1610)

Abstract

Contrary to general belief, the history of the Florentine patriciate did not end with the establishment of the State of Tuscany under de Medici in 1532. Proud and self-confident patricians did not become subservient courtiers overnight, but remained significantly influential for a long period. They retained their urban identity and longstanding family traditions, while acquiring noble titles, estates, and villas at the same time. The mark that these patricians continued to leave on the city's cultural and artistic life was not ignored by the Medici grand dukes; on the contrary, they embraced these manifestations by incorporating them into their own visual expressions of power and prestige. 'A Cultural Symbiosis' highlights these artistic expressions through eight specific case studies, focusing on the Valori, Pucci, Ridolfi, Vecchietti, Del Nero, Salviati, Guicciardini, and Niccolini families.