Tuesday September 8th, 2026 The Longing Languages of Love event explored the layers of language, art, and interpretation within the Renaissance text Hypnerotomachia Poliphili. Longing for Languages of Love, an event centered on the Renaissance text Hypnerotomachia Poliphili, attributed to Francesco Colonna. First published in Venice in 1499, the book follows Poliphilo through a dreamlike journey in search of his beloved, Polia. His journey unfolds through elaborate gardens, a

Francesca Alexander (1837-1917), originally known as Ester Frances Alexander was an accomplished Illustrator, author, painter and philanthropist. Born in Boston to Francis Alexander, a famous American portrait painter and Lucia Gray Swett, a wealthy heiress. When she was 16, Alexander moved to Florence where she would spend the rest of her life. Alexander, though not classically trained, was a gifted illustrator. Learning from her father, she would draw anything and everythi

Madame Thérèse Bentzon Marie-Thérèse Blanc (1840-1907), also known by her pseudonyms Thérèse Bentzon and Théodore Bentzon, was a French novelist, essayist, literary critic, and journalist. Blanc was born in Seine-Port, Seine-et-Marne (a small village outside Paris), and raised by her grandparents, received an education via tutors in German, English, Greek, and Latin. When Marie-Thérèse was 16 she was married off to a M. Blanc, a match rumored to occur to assist her family's

Mary Berenson (1864–1945), whose original name is Mary Whitall Smith, was born in Philadelphia. Having grown up in an intellectual environment, she encountered from an early age figures such as Walt Whitman and William James, both Americans – the former a poet, the latter a psychologist and philosopher. A brilliant student and passionate about literature alongside her brother Logan Pearsall Smith, she pursued studies in psychology and philosophy at Smith College from 1881 to

Virginia Woolf, born Adeline Virginia Steven, (1882 – 1941) was a British writer and essayist who is widely considered one of the most important 20th-century modernist authors. She was a pioneer in the use of stream of consciousness as a narrative device and also was a part of the Bloomsbury group. In addition to this, she was an activist in support of gender equality, and much of this she realized through her writing. Growing up, Virginia's parents' home was frequented by fa

Gaetano Salvemini (1873-1957) fu uno storico e politico antifascista italiano. Dopo essersi laureato in Lettere a Firenze, iniziò la...