Michelangelo and Leonardo, the first modern gays?

Professor Andrew Lear is a world-renowned expert on sexuality in art and the author of the best-known book on sexuality in Greek vase-painting.  He is the founder of Oscar Wilde Tours, the gay history tour company, and Shady Ladies Tours, the woman's history tour company.

Andrew Lear

Join us for an exciting analysis of the complex sexual identity of two renaissance giants - creators of the most beautiful art in the world.

<h3><em>Can't make the live event? Buy a ticket for the recording and watch the event in your own time! See FAQs below for more info.</em></h3><p>Michelangelo Buonarotti and Leonardo Da Vinci are arguably the most famous artists of all time. We all know the Mona Lisa and the statue of David, but what is less known is that both men only ever had male lovers. While same sex love has existed since pre-history, homosexuality is a social construct of the last few hundred years. Were Michelangelo and Leonardo among the earliest ‘homosexuals’?</p><p>We examine the time and place in which they lived - The Italian Renaissance. Did you know that at the end of the 1400s, half (yes, half!) of the male population of Florence had come to the attention of the law for suspicion of sodomy before the age of 30?</p><p>We look at the influence of classical Greek ideals on the development of these artists personas and contrast it with the Catholic ideals of the time, investigating how this interplay affected their art. </p><p>We scrutinize what little we know about the private lives and loves of these virtuosos, including their liaisons with men several decades their junior, and consider this in the context of the period.</p><p>We inspect the artworks they have left behind, and see what clues (if any) can be garnered from these, including a look at the role of androgyny in the perception of beauty, and how it influenced the art of these two craftsmen in totally different ways.</p><p>And finally we consider the tampering of evidence, subsequent psychosexual analysis, and recent media portrayals, and consider how this has influenced our perception of them as individuals, on renaissance art, and artists as a whole.</p><p>This talk promises to transport you back in time to the High Renaissance, where we can peer deep into the psyches of these most memorable of artists, and aim to discover what made them tick....</p><h3><em>FYI If you buy a ticket for the live event, the Zoom invite will be in your confirmation email (scroll to the bottom of the email, it's there!). If you do not receive the confirmation email, check your spam folder first, but please message us IMMEDIATELY if you don't find it and we shall send it to you directly, DO NOT WAIT until the event starts!</em></h3>

<h3>About the speaker:</h3><p><strong>Nick Collinson</strong> works in the Interpretation and Learning Team at the English Heritage Trust. Here he is responsible for creating and maintaining a world-class visitor experience by delivering an exceptional standard of on-site interpretation through exhibitions, trails, interactives and guided tours at over 400 historic properties including Stonehenge, Hadrian's Wall and Tintagel Castle. </p><p>He formed the English Heritage Trust 'Queer History Hive' of like-minded individuals looking to increase the representation of LGBTQ+ individuals associated with English Heritage sites. He masterminded English Heritage's first queer event - “Queer Walls” at Eltham Palace in 2019 (returning after the pandemic), has recently completed a trail on Aelred - the 'gay saint (?)' of Rievaulx Abbey in North Yorkshire, and is currently developing a queer tour of the Wernher Collection at Ranger’s House in Greenwich.</p><p>An accredited City of London tour guide, Nick runs his own London tour business - The Urban Rambler - where he leads historical tours of the capital for private groups. He has most recently worked with the Museum of London, where he contributed to a series on the Lost Rivers of London, and a new walk to highlight the queer history of Vauxhall in south-west London.</p>

<h2>FAQs</h2><h3>When will the Zoom invite come?</h3><p>The Zoom invite will be in your confirmation email (scroll to the bottom of the email, it's there!). If you do not receive the confirmation email, check your spam folder first, but please message us IMMEDIATELY if you don't find it and we shall send it to you directly, DO NOT WAIT until the event starts! Subsequent to the confirmation email, the Zoom invite will be sent to your email address at 48hrs, 2hrs, and 10mins before the event. PLEASE CHECK YOUR SPAM AND SOCIAL FOLDERS IF YOU DO NOT SEE THE ZOOM INVITE IN YOUR INBOX.</p><h3>How do tickets for the recording work?</h3><p>The event will be recorded and you can buy a ticket for the recording above. If you buy a ticket for the recording you will be emailed automatically a couple of hours after the live event with a link to the recording and a password to access it. It will be available to view for 1 week after the live event. If you do not receive the link to the recording a couple of hours after the live event please email us—sometimes Eventbrite emails can get lost in spam/social folders. If you bought a ticket for the live event but couldn't make it please email us and we will send you the link to the recording.</p><h3>What time zone is the event scheduled in?</h3><p>The event is scheduled for 2pm EST (i.e. New York time). You can watch it in any time zone but please adjust to the time zone you are in.</p><h3>Refund policy?</h3><p>Refunds are available up to the start time of the event. After the start time, refunds are only available if you have been unable to access the event.</p>

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Michelangelo and Leonardo, the first modern gays?

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