For our fourth event we invited Dr Alexander Lee to speak about the sixteenth-century Italian architect Andrea Palladio. In Alex's own words:"Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) is one of the most influential and widely imitated architects in history. Working amidst the ferment of late Renaissance Italy, he created a style which combined classical authority, calm, and convenience – and which placed harmony above all else. Such acclaim did it enjoy that, before long, his work was being emulated, not just throughout Europe, but around the world. Its influence can be felt in Bernini’s design for St. Peter’s Square in Rome; in Inigo Jones’ Banqueting House in London; in Thomas Jefferson’s home at Monticello – and in countless others besides.But who was Palladio? How did a provincial miller’s son rise to become an architect of such outstanding qualities? What was ‘new’ about his style? And why did it have such a lasting impact? Retracing his journey from humble stonemason to de facto architect of the Venetian Republic (and beyond), this talk will discuss how Palladio was, above all, a man rooted in his times. It will explore how his style was shaped by Roman and Renaissance models; by the tastes and interests of a small group of humanists; and by the shifting currents of Venetian politics and society."A specialist in the cultural and political history of the Renaissance in Italy, Alex’s current research into Palladio’s life and work follows several important books on the Italian Renaissance, including a biography of Machiavelli which was described by The Sunday Times as the ‘definitive’ account of the political thinker. Alex's ongoing research into Palladio promises to be just as significant for our understanding of the sixteenth century and the afterlives of Palladio’s work in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.You can find Alex’s full academic profile here.