Bath’s Royal Literary and Scientific Institution is also hitting 2026 running with a year-long programme of talks and events exploring the many joys and revelations of The Renaissance – including something of the broader legacy of a cultural movement still making waves in the 21st century.
Renaissance: Journeys of Discovery gets underway at Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution on Queen Square gets underway on Wednesday, January 7th.
Shakespeare, Brunelleschi, Michelangelo, Da Vinci, Martin Luther, Cervantes, Chaucer, Machiavelli, Hieronymus Bosch… if you love arts and culture, you’ll love this BRLSI talks series.
If you’ve ever been interested in uncovering how the Renaissance transformed the worlds of art, literature, technology, science, politics, philosophy, cartography, theatre, printing, news, or exploration, there is guaranteed to be something on the BRLSI programme to pique your interest.
If you missed out on the first season of Renaissance: Journeys of Discovery, titles on the way include:
l How Renaissance influences shaped Buildings
l The Wife of Bath’s prologue and tale
l Utopia- A voyage of Discovery
l The Birth of News
l Elizabethan Gardens and the art of courtship
l How the Renaissance came to Bath
l The Academies of Renaissance Italy
l Science in the Global Renaissance
l The making of Cervantes’ Don Quijote
l Renaissance Maps: Myths and Memories
l Shakespeare, Bath & the Plague
l Johannes Kepler 1571-1630: his life & work
l The birth of the celebrity couple in Renaissance Italy
And if you think you like the sound of the talks but are embarrassed to say you feel a little in the dark about what the Renaissance was exactly, the series promises to deliver a comprehensive overview, covering the years 1350 to 1650 and encompassing the period from the early Renaissance in Florence to the end of the religious wars in Europe.
Those starting afresh can swot up on some basic facts or learn a little about the biography of key Renaissance figures by exploring the timeline on BRLSI’s Renaissance: Journeys of Discovery webpage.
Renaissance: Journeys of Discovery places its focus firmly on the notion of there being multiple ‘Renaissances’ in existence and explores the global picture beyond Florence. Most importantly, the series investigates how the movement had its roots in the classical texts and a rich source of ideas that came in as a result of migration from the east following the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453.
And that’s just the spring programme.
Later in the series, The New Statesman’s John Gray examines the philosophical impacts of the period, and a multitude of first-rate speakers continue to explore an epoch that led to a world of art and knowledge people are still engaging with in 2026.
The series runs until June, and the really great news is that even if you can’t get to Queen Square, all BRLSI talks can be livestreamed from the comfort of your own home.
Ready to embark? Begin on the next leg of your learning journey by following the link below:
