Old Masters in Context Lecture with Dr. Sarah McPhee

Consumed by a burning passion for Costanza Piccolomini, Gianlorenzo Bernini—one of 17th-century Italy’s most important sculptors, architects and painters—immortalized his lover’s beauty in a lifelike marble portrait bust. Bernini’s ardor also led him to permanently disfigure Piccolomini herself, commissioning one of his servants to razor her face in an act of jealous retribution. For centuries, the salacious nature of this violent love affair has eclipsed the compelling biography of Bernini’s victim, a story brought to life by Dr. McPhee through her impeccable research on a pioneering female art collector and dealer in Baroque Rome.