Italian Art for Travelers
Your passport to culture, history, and art

Gerriann Brower

Renaissance Hair

Renaissance hair served dual functions. Hair beautified the individual and indicated well-being and character. The length and style of hair

Gerriann Brower

From Renaissance Self-Portrait to Selfie

Are selfies an evolution of the self-portrait, or do they lack the cleverness and creativity of early modern self-images? The Italian Nation

Gerriann Brower

Saint Carlo's Relics

How did a piece of an Italian saint make it from Milan, Italy, to St. Paul, Minnesota, USA? I found answers to most of my questions, includi

Gerriann Brower

The Shroud of Turin

The relic of all relics is a linen sheet bearing faint blood stains of a Christ’s body. It has been venerated, debunked, and debated for cen

Gerriann Brower

Peacocks, Fetters, and other Signs and Symbols

A painting with a peacock, a wheel, a blue garment, a dead tree, and a woman holding pincers – what does it mean? If we could time travel ba

Gerriann Brower

Leonardo’s Last Supper: Why it’s Magnificent

Leonardo da Vinci’s Last Supper is one of his most admired and recognizable art works. It is iconic, has been reproduced endlessly, parodied

Gerriann Brower

The Meander Tattoo

A better title for this post is “How My Wife Ended up with a Fifth Century Mosaic Tattooed on Her Foot.” It’s an odd connection between...

Gerriann Brower

Mary's Miracles

A boy from Lombardy wanders into a river and falls in. His parents are desperate to locate him. Later he is found by his family standing...

Gerriann Brower

Plague and Pandemics

What does Covid-19 and plague in Italy have in common? A lot it turns out, including disagreements about what to do or not do, and what reme

Gerriann Brower

Trailblazing Women Artists

Welcome to the hidden history of women artists. Were there really women artists in the 1600s and 1700s? Yes, there were. White male...