This course will focus on critical omissions in the traditional interpretations of the Italian Renaissance, which have dominated art historical scholarship. In particular we shall focus on those issues of gender and race, usually ignored until the last few years by art historians, that have had an impact on modes of representation or have produced a distinctive visual culture. We shall be concerned especially with the tension between documentary sources and visual representation, often idealized or obscured. Our sources will come from historical documents, Renaissance literature, and visual arts used together with critical secondary material.