The Bruce Cole Lectures is a twelve-part public lecture series gathering leading scholars, artists, curators, and cultural voices to spark new conversations around traditionalist representational art, connoisseurship, and the vital role of the classical tradition in modern life. Topics include the poetics of naturalism, Old Master artists, sacred architecture, and the future of the liberal arts education. These lectures are organized as part of the Bruce Cole Humanities Initiative, made possible by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Learn more.
Celebrating the life and work of Bruce Cole (1938–2018), this inaugural panel features opening remarks from NEH Chairman Michael McDonald and a discussion by leading scholars on the historian's enduring legacy.
Jacob Collins presents his manifesto on the school of traditional art taught at Grand Central Atelier.
Any views expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
The Bruce Cole Lectures are named in honor of the late Bruce Cole (1938–2018), distinguished art historian of the Italian Renaissance and the longest-serving Chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. A recipient of the Presidential Citizens Medal and the Knight of the Grand Cross of the Republic of Italy, Cole championed the humanities as essential tools for a self-governing citizenry. His signature initiatives, We the People and Picturing America, brought iconic American art to over 80,000 schools and libraries nationwide. A prolific scholar and Distinguished Professor of Fine Arts at Indiana University, Cole authored fifteen books, including seminal texts “The Renaissance Artist at Work: From Pisano to Titian” and “Art of the Western World.”
