On Easter Sunday, the Medici Grand Duke's Villa Demidoff, near Pratolino, is reopening. The spectacular gardens are among Tuscany's largest. With the estate's well tended woodlands and open fields, and visits to the various buildings within the park, it is a wonderful easy day excursion from Florence. The trip by bus takes about forty-five minutes, [...]
In the past few months, increased visitor security screening was initiated at the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, the Duomo, in Florence. As with most of the other museums in the city (Uffizi, Bargello, Museum of the Works of the Duomo and many others), visitors are security checked before entering sites. The result of [...]
The program for the exhibit available from Casa Editrice Sillabe The great treasure of the arts in Florence is shared in yet another unforgettable program at the Medici Riccardi Palace. Artifacts and memories from the Flood of 1966, La Bellezza Salvata, are shared in this exceptional show. From now until March 26, 2017, [...]
For those of you who will be traveling in Florence in late March, please make note of the following world cultural conference to be held in the city. Hotel rooms are at a premium, if you can find them (!) and the city will be extremely busy. An unprecedented culture-focused meeting of the seven major [...]
Technology and gorgeous art come together once again in the de-consecrated church of Santa Stefano al Ponte in Florence. The church, located just steps from the northern edge of the Ponte Vecchio, is a fabulous location for the exhibit. The Klimt Experience brings over 700 images, projected by 30 laser systems, in an intimate exploration [...]
If you are planning on a trip to Italy, this is the season to read up on numerous great books about the culture, history and la vita Italiano. Florence: The reference I most strongly recommend is Christopher Hibbert's definitive The House of Medici-Its Rise and Fall. Hibbert deftly guides the reader through the intricacies of [...]
Within the newly renovated and redesigned Museum of the Works of the Duomo in Florence is a gallery which stuns most visitors; the gallery of Michelangelo's Deposition Pieta, also called the Nicodemus Pieta. The new space replaces the previous location of the work - a landing on the main staircase of the 'old' museum. In [...]
A fascinating staging - The Medici Dynasty Show It is always a great pleasure to encounter an experience in Florence that is new, fresh, educational and intellectually interesting. Such is the case with "The Medici Dynasty Show", now in its second year of performance at a historic 'new' venue. It is, additionally, rare [...]
It is a sad fact that many of the small independent bookstores in Italy have closed: Panton's and the Melting Pot in Milan are closed or are closing as I post this blog. The English Book Vaults in Catania has closed, as well. Larger stores, carrying more options, e-books and the ever dwindling number of [...]
Last Supper restored detail I had the privilege of studying the panels of Giorgio Vasari's Last Supper during a visit to the Opificio dell Pietra Dura workshop in Florence's Fortezza di Basso last March. Given the condition of the painting at that time, it was difficult to believe that the restored panels would [...]
