Lecture "How Naples Undresses... From the Renaissance to Paolo Sorrentino"

"And where is Raimundo?" — "Can't you see, spring has arrived. They went to watch Naples undress." Layer by layer, the unnecessary disappears throughout spring and summer. Similarly, the Medieval era fades away when the next turn toward antiquity begins. The Renaissance did not just change a style. It changed the very way we look at the world. From the moment Brunelleschi figured out how to build the dome of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, man stepped out of God's shadow and became the measure of all things. Artists began to see light, depth, the body, ruins, and emotions as if they were seeing them for the first time. Perspective, chiaroscuro, ideal form — all these were not just techniques, but a new philosophy: the world is worth observing, loving, and transforming. Paolo Sorrentino continues this perspective in the 21st century. In his films, Rome and Naples appear as living, breathing creatures — majestic, luxurious, tragic, full of light and decay. From "The Great Beauty" to "Parthenope," he shows how the Renaissance spirit — a thirst for beauty, attention to detail, the drama of human existence — lives on in modern Italy, literally and metaphorically. So, we will talk about how a shift in perspective five hundred years ago continues to shape the atmosphere of Italian (and beyond) culture today.

Topics:

• How the Renaissance radically changed the European worldview through aesthetics and art.

• Patterns: from the sacred to the human, from symbol to observation, from static to dramatic.

• Naples and Rome as eternal backdrops: from Renaissance workshops to Baroque and contemporary cinema.

• What elements of the Renaissance (light, form, beauty, melancholy) live in Sorrentino's films.

• Why this Italian "atmosphere" continues to enchant the world.

After registration, you will be redirected to a Telegram group chat containing all necessary information.

Lecturer: Bohdana Nosenok — PhD in Philosophy, culturologist. A researcher of French cultural studies and the methodology of the "Annales" school of "New Historicism," as well as interdisciplinary approaches to cultural analysis. A translator of literary works from English, French, and Italian. Author of the travel novel "Distance."

Details:

• Meeting date: July 25, 2026, at 1:00 PM.

• Venue: offline (Plato's Cave) + online (Zoom).

• Duration: up to 2 hours.

• Recording: yes, provided for participants.

• Language: Ukrainian.

• If you only want to receive the recording, please register via "online participation."