Ross King Biography

Ross King is the bestselling author of books on Italian, French and Canadian art and history. Among his books are Brunelleschi’s Dome (2000), Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling (2002), The Judgment of Paris (Governor General’s Award, 2006), Leonardo and The Last Supper (Governor General’s Award, 2012), and Mad Enchantment: Claude Monet and the Painting of the Water Lilies (Charles Taylor Prize, 2017). He has also published two novels (Domino and Ex-Libris), a biography of Niccolò Machiavelli, and a collection of Leonardo da Vinci’s fables, jokes and riddles. He is the co-author with Anja Grebe of Florence: The Paintings & Frescoes, 1250-1743 (2015), the most comprehensive book ever undertaken on the art of Florence.

Ross’s newest book, published in April 2024, is The Shortest History of Italy. Covering 3,000 years of Italian history and culture from Ancient Rome to COVID-19, it has been praised as a ‘miracle of compression’, a ‘densely packed volume of tantalizing details’, and ‘a splendid companion to a holiday in the bel paese’.

In tandem with his writing, Ross is an active fundraiser for the arts and a passionate lecturer and tour guide. He serves on the Council of Academic Advisors for Friends of Florence (FoF), the fundraising charity that ensures the survival of Florence’s art and architectural treasures. He has participated in numerous FoF study tours throughout Italy, including in Rome, Assisi and Milan. He is a regular participant in the Italian Renaissance seminars at the Aspen Institute, and has given Impressionist tours of Paris, Normandy, Brittany and Provence. He is both a Smithsonian Expert and an Accredited Lecturer with The Arts Society. He has lectured in many American museums, including at the Art Institute of Chicago, the Frick Collection, and the National Gallery. When not traveling for work or pleasure, he lives in the historic town of Woodstock, near Oxford, with his wife Melanie.