After watching the second part of Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance, how does the Botticelli’s Birth of Venus represent and reflect the attitude towards classical knowledge and culture in Florence during the time of Lorenzo de Medici (Lorenzo the Magnificent)?

Read Gombrichs discussion of the life and work of Sandro Botticelli (pp. 264-267). After watching the second part of Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance, how does the Botticelli’s Birth of Venus represent and reflect the attitude towards classical knowledge and culture in Florence during the time of Lorenzo de Medici (Lorenzo the Magnificent)? How does Botticelli’s career his late transition to religious paintings reflect the story of the Renaissance? Finally, how does the conflict in Botticelli’s artistic career reflect debates about the role of art in society wave previously explored in class?