Insects in Renaissance Culture:
Art, Science, Technology, Thought, and Literature
The second part of the Fourth Book (De Vermibus, or On Lowly Creatures) of Pier Candido Decembrio’s De animantium naturis (Vatican MS Urb. lat. 276, 1460, with the author's autograph corrections, but illustrated in the 1590s -- previously studied for the 1984 Facsimile edition) deals in large part with insects (along with snails, amphibians, etc.). This talk will look more broadly at the role of insects (and one or two other lowly creatures) in the art, science, technology, literature, thought and culture of the Renaissance. It will adduce evidence from the portrayal of lowly creatures in the work of the manuscript artist, Teodoro Ghisi, as well as by artists like the father and son, Joris and Jacob Hoefnagel, to discuss both the provenance of some of the Vatican manuscript's insect and other illustrations, as well as the interactions among artists and naturalists across Europe, broadly speaking. It will also address the technical and metaphorical uses and depictions of insects in the visual and the literary arts.
If you would like to attend the meeting, we kindly ask that you respond to this announcement by next Friday, December 4th so that our rapporteur, Matt Mazewski, can assemble a list of attendees. Those who respond will then receive an email Zoom invitation from Alan Stewart sometime before or on the 8h that will include a link and password to let you access the meeting.
