Florence News & Events March 2015 by FLORENCENEWSEVENTS

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Cambridge Bronzes Could Be Michelangelo’s

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Leonardo da Vinci Museum Marks a Decade

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STILL A CAPITAL Florence maintains national artistic leadership amidst 150th anniversary celebrations EUGENIO GIANI 2015 marks the 150th anniversary since Florence was made the capital of Italy. After 150 years our city has remained a capital, albeit a cultural one. The city’s institutions have prepared a series of initiatives to celebrate this anniversary, not only throughout the year but also over the course of the next five years to represent those be-

tween 1865 and 1870 that it reigned as the Kingdom of Italy’s leading city. During this period the city was given an important facelift. The walls surrounding the city were dismantled and replaced with modern avenues; Viale dei Colli and Piazzale Michelangelo were created on the southern side of the Arno by architect Giuseppe Poggi, the ‘mind’ behind the transformation of the city. In the suburbs, the area of Campo di Marte was created,

originally for military training and now a residential area hosting the stadium and other sport complexes. A train station and hydraulic engineering works were also carried out. The city somehow became accustomed to such a renewal and, when the capital was moved to Rome, it suffered from a period of, let’s say, ‘urban depression.’ Regardless, the city’s medieval dust was removed and a more modern and appealing facade was created.

Among the many cultural initiatives scheduled for this year are A Capital and its Architect: Political and social, urban and architectural events. Florence and the work of Giuseppe Poggi, which traces Florence’s urban renewal with photographs from the Alinari Archives; Florence: Photo of a City of History and Current Events, featuring 120 paintings by Fabio Borbottoni that portray the evolution of Florence into an urban city, with touch-screen

tables allowing visitors to navigate the city through historical and contemporary images; and Palazzo Pitti exhibitions Florence 1865: Birth of a capital at the Gallery of Modern Art, and Grand Ball at Palazzo Pitti at the Costume Gallery from November 28, which commemorates the ball that was held in the palace to mark the city as capital and showcases gowns, uniforms and ballroom music from 1865–68.

Van Gogh Alive Until April 12

Celebrating Women’s Day

A Florentine St Patrick’s Day

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Van Gogh Alive Redefines Museum Experience

Palazzo Strozzi Displays Ancient Greek Bronzes

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF: Lorenzo Picchi PROOFREADER: Lucy David GRAPHIC & WEB DESIGN: Naz Kangal THIS MONTH'S CONTRIBUTORS: Chiara

Becchetti, Brooke Feichtl, Lee Foust, Eugenio Giani, Dejou Bencomo-Jasso, Sara Mastroianni, Julie Newman, Claudia Niemann, Dylan Nikoletopoulos, Ivana Scatola, Guido Reverdito, Nadine Vogelsberg PUBLISHER: IAF

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Palazzo Strozzi is hosting the exhibit Power and Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World from March 14 to June 21. Organized by the Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi in collaboration with leading Italian and international museums such as the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Los Angeles and National Gallery of Art in Washington and the Superintendence for the Archaeological Heritage of Tuscany, the exhibit showcases some of the ancient world’s most important sculptural masterpieces. Sculptures are drawn from leading Italian and international museums and include 50 bronzes that trace artistic development during the Hellenistic era throughout the Mediterranean basin. During the reign of Alexander the Great, Hellenistic sculpture saw the birth of a genre known as ‘portraits

of power,’ at the same time it revolutionized the style of Classical art by imbuing its figures with pathos. Monumental statues of gods, athletes and heroes are being displayed alongside portraits of historical figures, allowing visitors to explore the fascinating stories behind the discovery of these works and learn about the production, casting and finishing techniques used.

Power and Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Hellenistic World March 14 – June 21 Palazzo Strozzi Open daily: 10 a.m.–8 p.m. (until 11 p.m. every Thursday) 055 26 45 155 www.palazzostrozzi.org

The Van Gogh Alive multimedia exhibit redefines the traditional museum experience through the projection of high-definition images of Vincent Van Gogh’s masterpieces on a largerthan-life scale. The exhibition is on display at the deconsecrated church of Santo Stefano al Ponte near Ponte Vecchio until April 12. Van Gogh Alive explores the life and work of Van Gogh from 1880 to 1890 during his time in Arles, Saint-Rémyde-Provence and Auvers-sur-Oise, where he created many of his masterpieces. It has premiered in major cities worldwide such as in the United States, Turkey, Israel and Singapore. More than 3000 Van Gogh paintings are projected in high definition on a huge scale, filling giant screens, walls, columns, ceilings and even

the floor, thereby redefining the traditional way of experiencing a museum. The location adds to the experience due to the religious influences Van Gogh experienced and the exhibit has not been previously displayed in a church. Santo Stephano is also particularly unique because of the damage inflicted on the church in WWII.

Van Gogh Alive Until April 12 Santo Stefano al Ponte Piazza di Santo Stefano, 5 Mon. to Thu.: 10 a.m.– 7:30 p.m. Fri. & Sat.: 10 a.m.–11 p.m. Sunday: 10 a.m.–11 p.m. (except on March 22 ) Admission: €12 www.vangoghalive.it

BREAKFAST, COFFEE & SANDWICHES

OPEN DAILY 6:30 A.M - 2 A.M. PIAZZA SANTO SPIRITO, 17/R 055 26 42 56

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

Cambridge Bronzes Could Be Michelangelo’s

LUCY DAVID New evidence could prove that a pair of bronzes currently on display at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, England, were cast by Michelangelo. Should this evidence be verified by the international research team examining the discovery, which is due to present its conclusions in July, the two sculptures would be Michelangelo’s only surviving work in bronze. Known as the Rothschild Bronzes, the statues portray two naked men riding panthers and are both approximately a meter high. The artworks have been attributed to various artists over the centuries, including Jacopo Sansovino, Benvenuto Cellini and Michelangelo himself, a connection that was discredited

in the early nineteenth century. The University of Cambridge’s Professor Paul Joannides renewed the link when he noted a detail in a drawing by Michelangelo’s apprentice, A Sheet of Studies with Virgin Embracing Infant Jesus (circa 1508), currently on display at Musée Fabre in France, which is believed to have been copied from an original drawing by the master himself. A corner of the page features the image of a man riding a panther in a pose similar to that of the statues. Both the characteristically hasty nature of the drawing and the anatomically precise nature of the works point to Michelangelo’s hand, from the men’s rippling abs to their navels, which closely resemble those of Michelangelo’s most famous nude, the David.

NEWS

Government Turns Down Move of Leonardo’s Annunciation

Leonardo Da Vinci’s Annunciation will remain in Florence and will not be showcased at Milan Expo, Italian Minister of Culture Dario Franceschini said last month. The Uffizi is loaning 28 pieces to the Expo, including Leonardo’s Landscape, a study for La Madonna del Gatto, Head of a Woman Looking “Even a peroneal tendon is visible, Down and a prospective study for the as is the transverse arch of the foot,” Adoration of the Magi. The Expo will said Professor Peter Abrahams, clinical anatomist from the University of Warwick. “Whoever made them clearly had a profound interest in the male body … the anatomy is perfect.” Although none of Michelangelo’s bronze works have survived, docu- A bronze sculpture of a horse’s head ments attest to the fact that he did dating back to 350 bce is undergoing cast one of his Sistine Chapel patron restoration after lingering for more Pope Julius II as well as a bronze than a century in storage at the ArDavid; however the David vanished chaeological Museum of Florence. during the French Revolution while The reason for its restoration is its the sculpture of Julius II was sacri- exhibition as part of the Power and ficed to war and melted down for ar- Pathos: Bronze Sculpture of the Helletillery shortly after it was made. nistic World exhibit hosted by Palazzo The Rothschild Bronzes are on dis- Strozzi from March 14. play at the Fitzwilliam Museum in The sculpture, which once graced the Cambridge until August 9. halls of Palazzo Medici Riccardi, was

also showcase loans from the Windsor Collection, the National Gallery in Washington and the Louvre’s smaller version of Leonardo’s Annunciation together with St John the Baptist and La Belle Ferronière, as well as St Jerome in the Wilderness from the Vatican Museums. Expo organizers also requested Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, but Uffizi Gallery director Antonio Natali declined.

Medici Bronze Restored for Power and Pathos Exhibit owned by Lorenzo the Magnificent and is considered a masterpiece of Greek Classical art. Visitors can view the restoration underway at the Archeological Museum until March 8. The bronze and other Hellenistic artworks will be featured in the Power and Pathos exhibit until June 21, when they will travel to the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles and then travel on to the National Gallery of Art in Washington.

NEWS

Bargello Dialogues with Visitors Museum introduces software to maximize educational experience

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

Lipchitz on Display at the Uffizi

The Uffizi is hosting the exhibit Jacques Lipchitz in Monaco, Florence and Prato: Drawings for sculptures The Bargello National Museum is the admired the most. An interactive detect the color and texture of cloth- 1910-1972 until May 3. first museum in the world to install table located at the exit also links to ing, avoiding facial features, and A Lithuanian-born artist who died in a new technology that furthers vis- works similar to the ones previously does not record images of visitors. 1973, Lipchitz was one of the protagitors’ educational experience. The admired, even those located in other Mnemosyne, which was funded by onists of the figurative language that new software, called Mnemosyne, Florentine museums. the Region of Tuscany and organized developed in Paris in the early years uses a network of cameras to identify Introduced in commemoration of the by the University of Florence with the of the twentieth century, and is most where visitors move throughout the 150th anniversary of the Bargello, the Center for Communication and Inte- famous for his Cubist sculptures. room, decipher how long they stay at software does not require visitors to gration Media, has been installed on Sixty-two works are on display, ineach artwork, and provides informa- use mobile devices. It preserves indi- a trial basis in the museum’s Donatel- cluding drawings and sculptures dotion about the pieces that they have viduals’ privacy by using sensors to lo room until June 2015. nated to the Uffizi by the Graphische

Galileo Museum Introduces Braille The Galileo Museum is introducing for the Blind and Visually Impaired, new initiatives for visually impaired Braille Printing House and the Devisitors on the 150th anniversary of partment of Culture and Tourism are the introduction of Braille. Braille collaborating on a similar project to books and early twentieth-century create an educational workshop for artifacts from the Braille Printing schools at the Galileo Museum called House of Florence are also being add- Dalla crittografica militare al codice ed to displays. and a program that conveys the hisThe Region of Tuscany has helped to tory of Braille Printing. fund a guided tour for blind visitors The Galileo Museum is located in that includes tactile reproductions of Palazzo Castellani, where the Instiscientific instruments accompanied tute and Museum of the History of by Braille descriptions, and Italian Science has been housed since 1930. and English guides for the visually The museum displays a collection of impaired. scientific instruments that were used The Galileo Museum, Italian Union throughout history.

Sammlung Galley in Monaco and two sculptures, Pegasus (1944) and Hagar II (1949) belonging to Palazzo Pretorio Museum. His Florentine works strongly illustrate the impact of two world wars and the influence of the early ‘60s.

Jacques Lipchitz Until May 3 Tuesday to Sunday: 8:15a.m.-6 p.m. Uffizi Gallery

Leonardo da Vinci Museum Marks a Decade The Leonardo da Vinci Museum, lo- museum is divided in four sections – cated on Via Cavour, 21, is celebrating mechanical projects; hydraulic, civic its 10th anniversary this year. Inaugu- and war engineering; anatomy; and rated by Gabriele Niccolai in 2005, the flight machines – and it is situated exhibit showcases Niccolai’s collec- next to the historic Caffè Michelantion of interactive models built from giolo. This is where the first cups of Leonardo da Vinci’s designs. With 52 coffee were served to the Macchiaioof its 300-plus handmade models on li painters in the nineteenth century, display, the Niccolai Collection is the whose revolutionary movement belargest private collection of Leonar- gan right here in this bar. The Florendo’s machines in the world. Visitors tine group included famous painters are guided through the interactive ex- such as Telemaco Signorini, Giovanhibit with labs, videos and 3D recon- ni Fattori, Adriano Cecioni, Silvestro structions in multiple languages. The Lega and Giuseppe Abbati.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

‘Leonardo’ Confiscated

la d’Este, a patron of the arts during the Italian Renaissance who sponItalian and Swiss authorities charged sored artists such as Titian, Raphael seven with criminal conspiracy for and Bellini. The rediscovery of the trafficking artwork and said that the priceless lost Leonardo was first relost painting attributed to Leonardo ported in the British press in October, da Vinci seized from a Swiss bank last was confirmed last month by Italian month was going to be sold for about art police and came amid efforts to €120 million. The 61-by-46.5cm por- uncover another lost Leonardo mastrait, which until 2013 was believed to terpiece, The Battle of Anghiari fresco, exist only in sketches, depicts Isabel- behind a false wall in Florence’s Pala-

BROOKE FEICHTL

zzo Vecchio. Fluorescent analysis has dated the painting to the sixteenth century and, in combination with da Vinci’s sketches of Isabella and the many letters she wrote Leonardo requesting a portrait, has provided evidence that Leonardo was the author of the artwork. However, further testing will be performed over the next months to confirm the discovery.

Florentine Artworks Head North for Milan Expo The Milan Expo opening on May 1 and Pallas and the Centaur by Bottiwill potentially feature 78 works of celli, the Badia Polyptych by Giotto, art from eight Florentine museums, Lamentation of Christ by Giovanni including paintings, sculptures, Bellini, Eva Cranach the Elder and drawings, art jewelry, ceramics and Bacchus on the Barrel by Peter Paul tapestries. Artworks donated to the Rubens. The Uffizi Department of Expo will be on display in Florence Drawings is also lending 16 pieces, until March 12. including those by Leonardo da VinThe Uffizi will donate more works ci (such as a prospective study for the than any other Florentine museum, Adoration of the Magi) one by Verrocwith 28 pieces including The Fortress chio, and another by Plinio Nomellini.

The Bargello National Museum will loan Lady with a Bouquet by Verrocchio, the Palatine Gallery may contribute Portrait of Ippolito de’ Medici by Titan and Bacchus by Reni, while the Accademia has been asked to donate three Giotto works. It is not yet certain if all the pieces will be exhibited in Milan because the paperwork has been completed for 56 of the 78 works.

NEWS

Hercules and Nessus Sculpture Restored

The restoration of Hercules and Nessus was completed last month and the sculpture is again on display at the Uffizi. The decision to restore the artwork was made last year to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the death of Giovanni Caccini (1556–1613), one of the most recognized restorers of the second half of the sixteenth centu-

ry, who rebuilt the work from the remains of an ancient statue believed to be Roman in origin. The sculpture is exhibited in a corridor at the entrance to the Uffizi, where it was put in 1595 after it was restored by Caccini. The restoration began last fall and was financed by the Friends of the Uffizi Association.

Vatican Puts its Archives Online More than 4000 documents from the Vatican Library are now available online in high definition. The project was realized by Japanese company NTT Data, which was chosen to create the archive as part of the Vatican’s digital preservation project. The project began in 2014 when the two partners agreed to digitally preserve 3000 documents by 2018. A search tool will soon be added to the

archives. The Vatican Library has acquired many artifacts since it was founded 565 years ago. The collection encompasses 82,000 manuscripts; 1.6 million printed books; 400,000 coins and medals; 100,000 prints, drawings and matrices; and 150,000 photographs, in genres spanning history, philosophy, literature, art, mathematics, science and law.

NEWS

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

Realizing Leonardo’s Projects

Exhibit showcases working models of da Vinci’s designs as museum hits 10th anniversary Leonardo left to science. Professor Carlo Pedretti, director of the Armand Hammer Center for Leonardo Studies at the University of California, says, “Carlo Niccolai is an admirable figure, a talented craftsman who has developed his own way in studying the technological level reached by Leonardo da Vinci. Moreover, he is a person gifted with great simplicity and humility. His work is important to scholars because it helps our theories and contributes to study indepth Leonardo’s machines and all the technological discoveries made at that time.” Indeed, as Bill Gates’ $30 million purchase of the Leicester Codex indicates, we have much to be grateful to Leonardo for: next time your car gets a flat tire, you can thank Leonardo for inventing the jack.

LUCY DAVID A family of Florentine craftsmen has discovered previously unknown theorems hidden in Leonardo’s mechanical designs, shedding light on the full scope of his genius. Carlo Niccolai and his son Gabriele have spent decades constructing working models of Leonardo’s inventions through close study of his famous codices. In collaboration with a team of specialists, the Niccolai family re-creates the designs using materials such as wood, rope, fabric and metal that date back to the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. The rigor of practical and mechanical tests carried out on each model has given rise to a number of insights into Leonardo’s approach and surprisingly modern grasp of technology, such as his famous ‘robot’, which was originally believed to have been designed as an armored robotic knight. However, during laboratory tests the robot was discovered to be limited in its upper body movement and instead possess flexible wrists adapted to drumming, and is now believed to have been designed for use in parades and ceremonies. In his studies for a European Commission-sponsored exhibition of the machines in Brussels earlier this year, Gabriele Niccolai noted how Leonardo appears to have deliberately scattered the mechanical components required to create his inventions over several different pages of his codices, allowing artisans to create individual elements but preventing their understanding of the machine as a whole. This may be due in part to the fact that Leonardo’s codices have been split up and reassembled over the years – sculptor Pompeo Leoni took

the liberty of cutting and dividing several of the codices into scientific and artistic categories in the seventeenth century – however such a practice would have also safeguarded his inventions during times of war. Leonardo’s catapult design in the Atlantic Codex is rendered useless without details of its ballistic adjustments, which are found in a different part of the codex as a series of self-locking mechanisms. A deeper understanding of Leonardo’s codices has revealed that many of his technological innovations rested upon those of his engineering predecessors, such as Brunelleschi, Vitruvius, Heron of Alexandria and Archimedes of Syracuse, which Leonardo adapted to his own context. His modification of a mechanism based on a description found in Herodotus

and believed to have been used for bitions throughout Europe and as building the pyramids surpassed all far afield as Australia, New Zealand, expectations when Niccolai created China, the US, Brazil, Saudi Arabia its working model in 2011: a 300kg and Finland. More than 50 working concrete block was so reduced in models are on permanent display weight that a six-year-old child was at The Machines of Leonardo da Vinable to lift it. ci exhibit at the Leonardo da Vinci The Niccolai family has been recon- Museum in Via Cavour. Here visitors structing working models of Leonar- have the chance to not only observe do’s designs since 1995, when Carlo but also interact with various protoNiccolai dedicated himself to the types, such as the aerial screw used work full-time in a desire to realise in today’s helicopters, alongside a Leonardo’s legacy. His passion found- scuba-diving apparatus, glider, bied the Niccolai Collection, the largest cycle, tank and missiles; and view private collection of Leonardo mod- reconstructions of Leonardo’s studies els in the world, comprising more of anatomy. The exhibit also displays than 300 working models created by copies of six codices, in which the vishimself and his sons, together with a itor can view the sketches that reveal team of artisans, engineers, histori- the workings of the great man’s mind. ans and architects. The Niccolai family has been widely The models have been displayed at praised for its ongoing devotion to more than 100 international exhi- realising the vast inheritance that

INSIDE THE MICHELANGIOLO GALLERY, VIA CAVOUR, 21 www.macchinedileonardo.com

Leonardo da Vinci invented or modified several of the technological designs we associate with the twentieth century. Leonardo’s designs on display include the aerial screw (used in today’s helicopters), human robot, hydraulic drill, scuba-diving apparatus, hang glider, tank, missiles, bicycle, floodlight, lifebuoy and jack.

Leonardo da Vinci Museum Michelangiolo Gallery Via Cavour, 21 Open daily: 9:30 a.m – 7:30 p.m. Cost: €7 (full price); €5 (reduced); €3 (groups of 15 or more). Entrance, snack and drink promotion: €8 (between 11 a.m. & 4 p.m.). 055 295 264 info@macchinedileonardo.com www.macchinedileonardo.com

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

NEWS

Temple of Peace to be Restored for Rome’s Birthday

to feature in Rome’s annual birthday celebrations on April 21. Restoration of Rome’s Temple of “The goal is to replace the five marble Peace beginning early this month columns of the Egyptian portico that are intended to be complete in order surrounded the temple, where they

LUCY DAVID

were at the time of Vespasian,” said The 21st edition of the Rome Marathon those not up to the full 42-kilometer Superintendent of Cultural Heritage takes its marks this year on Sunday, run who would still like to participate Claudio Parisi Presicce. March 22. The race begins and finish- and see the sights, the five-kilomeAlso known as the Forum of Vespa- es in Via dei Fori Imperiali and passes ter ‘RomaFun’ fun run is also being sian, after the Roman emperor who by Rome’s most famous sites, includ- staged, with a finish line at the Circus constructed it in 71 ce, the Temple of ing the Colosseum, Roman Forum, Pi- Maximus. This more relaxed event is Peace is one of the lesser-known of azza di Spagna and St Peter’s Basilica. geared towards children and families, the five Imperial Fora due to the fact Previous editions have seen runners and has seen 80,000 participants in that little of it remains above ground. greeted by legionaries and praetori- recent years. Registration is available on the marThe project’s aim is to therefore en- ans in traditional garb. large the surface excavations to make More than 15,000 participants have athon’s website (www.maratonadiit more visible to visitors, while apply- already registered for the marathon, roma.it), which also includes inforing cutting-edge technology to take 8000 of whom are expected to come mation on hotels and other practical seismic issues into account. Although from Italy, with another 7000 drawn matters in Rome. Registration closes on March 5, but often referred to as a ‘forum’, the Tem- from 110 countries around the world. ple of Peace was never associated During the race, event organizers interested participants can request with civil functions and was there- provide refreshment breaks every a spot up until March 13, which may fore simply identified as the Templum five kilometers as well as food and be granted depending upon places Pacis, or Temple of Peace, so named refreshments at the finish line. For available. as it was built to commemorate victories and contain the spoils of war.

Damage Continues in Pompeii BROOKE FEICHTL Heavy rain caused two pieces of plaster to fall from the House of the Centenary and a garden, and part of a wall to collapse at the House of Severus in Pompeii last month. The damaged sites were closed to the public and donations for repairs are being accepted by the Italy/EU-funded Great Pompeii Project, the fund created in 2012 after a number of buildings in the city deteriorated. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi also encouraged private donations after satisfying some of UNESCO’s to help with the maintenance of the requests. Other damage that has ancient city. In July 2013 UNESCO occurred at Pompeii in recent years warned Italy that unless certain im- includes the collapse of the House provements were made before 2014, of the Gladiators in 2010, which was Pompeii could be removed from the described as “a disgrace for the whole list of World Heritage Sites. Pom- of Italy” by Italian President Giorgio peii received an extended timeline Napolitano. In 2014, severe weather

Rome Marathon Set for March 22

Chianti and Habanos Get Together

The Chianti Classico Consortium has opinion the partnership would lead announced a commercial agreement to positive results and was destined with Habanos, the most prestigious to last for a long time due to the perand exclusive brand of Cuban cigars. fect match between Chianti wine and Consortium president Giovanni Busi Habanos cigars. said that the initiative came from Only cigars that are handmade from Habanos, which was looking for a tobacco cultivated in DOP territories wine that would best match its cigars. are entitled to be called ‘Habanos,’ Busi agreed with the choice of the Cu- while all other cigars produced in ban producers, and said that in his Cuba are called ‘Cubanos.’

Italy Hits Lowest Birth Rate Since 1861 Italy’s national statistics agency ISTAT recorded 509,000 births and also caused destruction to a wall at 597,000 deaths in 2014, with a dethe Temple of Venus, a wall on a tomb crease from 2013 by 5000 and 4000, in the necropolis of Porta Nocera and respectively. The birthrate is the the collapse of a Roman-era shop lowest since Italy was unified in 1861, wall. The most recently damaged site, when the country began to document the House of the Centenary, is known it, and its decline has been continufor its explicit erotic paintings and the ing for a half century. earliest known depiction of Vesuvius. Before the statistics were released,

Pope Francis said that “the choice not to have children is selfish.” The lower death rate has increased life expectancy in Italy to 80.2 years for men and 84.9 years for women. Other figures cited included the number of Italian citizens living in Italy as 55.7 million at the beginning of 2015; a reduction by more than 125,000 from the 2014 figure.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CULTURE

Dante’s Commedia Misconceived by Dan Brown LEE FOUST The theme of the Book of Revelations, like the Old Testament Book of Daniel upon which it was based, is thlipsis—a Greek word meaning ‘tribulations.’ Consequently, our whole Judeo-Christian concept of God’s judgment in the afterlife stems from how we morally react to life’s tribulations. Since Revelations recounts mostly the retributions meted out to the enemies of Christianity and other evildoers at the end of time, a lacuna of early Christian theology was the knowledge of what happens to the souls of the faithful in the interim between death and the last judgment. Into this gap stepped the Vision of St. Paul, an apocryphal biblical text that spawned a considerable but little-read medieval genre of visions recounting journeys into a moralized Christian land of the dead—there are about 100 such texts written in Europe between the second and fourteenth centuries and it is from them that we take most of our common modern images of Hell and Heaven, as well as the entire concept of Purgatory. Dante Alighieri’s tripartite epic poem, La Commedia (Divina was added to the title later, by Giovanni Boccaccio), is one such encyclopedic, late-medieval account of how the unrepentant are punished in Hell, how the repentant are cleansed in Purgatory, and how the blessed celebrate their salvation in Heaven. It is the last of the medieval visionary tradition—a text too exhaustive, poetic, and influential to top. As alluring as a descent into the infernal regions at first sounds, however, the poem has nothing at all to do with any medieval plagues, nor with the threat to anyone’s life, and its vil-

Mentana Art Gallery of Florence presents the exhibition Contempor-Arte on March 28. The exhibit runs until April 15 and focusses on the visual arts. Organized by the gallery’s artistic director Giovanna Laura Adreani, it displays works by contemporary artists from all over the world, including Gonza-

lo Sanchez, Marta Motti, Laura Corti, Mauro Piccoli, Eduardo Roca Salazar (“Choco”), Tonino Giampà, Doris Broder Jakob, Jesse, Marion Duschletta, Freya Kazemi, and Daniele Vannucci. The gallery also presents Art-Invest, a formula to invest in art by purchasing works by renowned contemprary artists such as Ugo Nespolo, Alessandro Mazzoleni, Salvatore Magazzini, Gianpaolo Talani, Luigi De Giovanni, Sergio Benvenuti, Franco Lastraioli, Rosario Bellante and many others.

Mentana Art Gallery

lain is a chained-up, non-speaking, and totally ineffectual Satan. Neither the poem’s focus on morality, nor its lack of an active villain, is compatible with the modern thriller genre. We saw it in the film Se7en’s weak Dantesque references, we saw it in the over-romanticized video game Dante’s Inferno, and we see it yet again in Dan Brown’s mostly pointless attempt to exploit Dante’s poem in his recent thriller, Inferno. Just as modern-day romance plays no part whatsoever in the poet’s spiritual salvation as granted him by the figure of an allegorical, unknown woman who is called ‘Beatrice’ because the name signifies that she is a miracle from heaven, ‘a blessing,’ (as I discussed in last month’s article) so the episodic and poetic invocation of divine justice after death presented in the Commedia has no secular stakes— no ticking bombs or terrorist plots. It just doesn’t fit the thriller mold, and that’s why Dan Brown’s Inferno, for me, fails by choosing Dante’s epic as a platform—it grafts two incom-

patible species of tree together too haphazardly. The basic plot—a mad genius biologist cooking up a virus to save the world from human overpopulation—is interesting enough, but all of the half-baked information regarding the Commedia, Dante’s life, and his love for Beatrice, is needless, awkward, and often just plain wrong. Without it, the novel might also have clocked in at a more readable 250 pages instead of its tedious 462. For a really interesting take on Dante’s epic poem—and some awesome Godfather, Goodfellas, and Sopranos-style gangster shenanigans—try Nick Tosches’s In the Hand of Dante (No Exit Press, 2002). Tosches’s novel juxtaposes the medieval poet’s struggle to complete his poetic vision of Paradise with the bloodbath produced by modern-day gangsters fighting over the newly discovered original manuscript of the Commedia in the poet’s own hand. Now that would be a find worth fighting over! Read more from Lee at www.leefoust.com

HAIRDRESSING SALON IN VIA DE’ BENCI • • • • • • • • • • • •

Mentana Art Gallery Presents Contempor-Arte Exhibit

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Real or Virtual?

Landi Exhibit at Santo Ficara Art Gallery till March 28 NADINE VOGELSBERG Real or Virtual? is the question at the basis of the Edoardo Landi exhibition that runs until March 28 at Santo Ficara Art Gallery. The theme of the exhibit is black and white, reflecting interest in optic and kinetic art, and displays paintings made throughout Landi’s career, from 1960 to 2000. Landi originally studied architecture but was always interested in all art forms. His architecture background is reflected in his geometric style, which plays with the viewer’s perception, and he has experimented with various kinds of materials to achieve a plastic effect and multidimensionality. Edoardo

Landi’s works have been displayed all over the world. Santo Ficara Art Gallery is on Via Ghibellina, 164/r. The gallery is open from Monday to Saturday (9:30 a.m.–12:30 p.m.; 3:30– 7:30 p.m.). Entrance is free. To find out more, see www.santoficara.it.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CULTURE

Ring in the New Year, Make Your Italian Sound More Italian Florentine-Style

SARA MASTROIANNI

Until 1750, Florentines marked the start of the New Year not on January 1 but rather on March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation. While the Gregorian calendar had been followed in other Italian states since 1582, it wasn’t until 1749, when Grand Duke Francesco II of Lorraine decreed a change to the modern temporal calculations, that Florence started marking the New Year on January 1. Celebrations on March 25 were strongly linked to the worship of the Virgin Mary, and included a pilgrimage to the Basilica of Santissima Annunziata to venerate a thirteenth-century fresco depicting the Annunciation. The work is said to have been completed by miraculous intervention: the commissioned artist, unable to complete the face of Mary despite several attempts, fell

into a deep sleep and when he awoke he discovered the image of Mary’s face had been completed. From this a legend arose that the fresco had been finished by angels. Thus on March 25, devotees would make a pilgrimage to the basilica, and out of this a tradition arose a yearly fair held in the piazza. Via dei Servi, the road that connects this church to the Duomo, is named after the religious order that founded Santissima Annunziata, the Servi di Maria. In recent years, the Florentine government has revived this traditional celebration, organizing free concerts at the basilica as well as historical re-enactments of the procession from Palazzo Vecchio to Santissima Annunziata. Be on the lookout that day for the procession and live concerts in piazzas throughout Florence.

You can speak Italian very well, very accurately, and still not sound Italian. Why is that? Here are five tips to help your Italian sound more Italian. 1. “Piantala” (knock it off) with the personal pronouns. Italian very rarely uses personal pronouns io, tu, lui, lei, noi, voi, and loro, other than to reinforce a point. It is much more common to hear “sono andata al mercato ieri” (no pronoun) rather than “io sono andata al mercato ieri” (with pronoun), unless the person is trying to reinforce that they specifically were the one who went. Io at the beginning of every sentence sounds strange to Italian ears. Then how do we know who we’re referring to? Well, Italian verbs carry with them the idea of who they refer to with their conjugation. Parlo can only refer to io because the other pronouns have their own conjugations: parli / parla / parliamo / parlate / parlano. Why is this hard for English speakers? Because we need our personal pronouns to know who is doing what. 2. Learn Italian word-whiskers. What are they?

Those little mean-nothing words that we all put into our speech when we’re trying to search for what we really want to say, or to get attention, or to make a point. Why is this important? Well, um isn’t um in Italian. It’s more like ehhh. So gets replaced by allora or quindi or dunque and I mean can be translated as cioè. Beh is also a good one to use if you’re stalling for time and ehhhhh is also widely used. “Capito?”, “Giusto?” and “No?” are tacked onto the ends of sentences to make sure the listener understands, while “Boh!” the Italian equivalent of our “dunno!” Examples: “Beh, è proprio una bella giornata, no?” and “Voglio partire dopo il 15 aprile, capito?” 3. Talk fast. People can always tell when I’ve been in Italy, because I end up speaking English like a machine gun. I don’t know why, but Italians (in my experience) seem to be faster talkers and maybe leave less space between words. Everything runs together. 4. Use all the suffixes you can. Whereas in English we’d describe something as a little house, Italians might say una casa piccola or they might break out the suffixes and call

it una casetta or una casina. I would ask a little boy about his amichetti (little friends, amico + the suffix etti) at school, and describe someone as having a nasone (naso + the suffix one) if their face is unfortunately adorned with a big shnoz. This type of talk might sound “cutesy” to we anglophones, but I can assure you that even grown Italian men go around exclaiming that things are bellissima (bella + issima, the most beautiful) and hope to introduce you to their carissimo (caro + issimo, dearest) friend. When I asked a friend where he was spending Christmas he replied, “A casina.” At home. 5. Exclaim! Coo. Whine. Yell. Generally be theatrical in your speech. The Italian language is melodic in its own right, but Italian speakers are generally pretty theatrical. Don’t just say “Ti prego” (I beg you), say, “Ti preeeeeeeggggoooooooo” in a begging voice. And when you’ve had enough, it’s a strong “BASTA!” loud and clear. You’re trying to convince someone? Use the long, drawn-out “Daaaaaaiiiiiii” (come on) and whine a bit. Everybody’s doing it. I promise. Read more from Sarah at notjustanotherdolcevita.com

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CULTURE

Spring Flowers and Social Change

The historical roots of Women’s Day on March 8 As you stroll the streets of Florence this Sunday, March 8, you will no doubt notice the presence of fluffy yellow mimosa flowers everywhere – pinned to lapels, carried in bouquets and decorating table-tops. The mimosa flower has become the symbolic gift to offer to Italian women on this day, International Women’s Day, known to Italians as the Festa della Donna. A holiday that today would appear to be about light-hearted socializing with female friends, the Festa della Donna is actually a day of commemoration, one with a politically charged history tied to the international Socialist movement for fair labor practices. In the early 1900s, oppressive, unsafe work conditions and inequality in the

workforce were at their height, while Socialist Party movements for change, such as campaigns for equality, suffrage and better working conditions, were thriving. In these early years of the twentieth century, against a backdrop of the fight for equal rights, International Women’s Day was commemorated on various spring days, but never on March 8. It wasn’t until 1910, during an international Socialist meeting in Copenhagen, that an International Women’s Day was officially established. The proposal was met with unanimous approval by representatives of more than 100 women from 17 countries, on the grounds that it would be a day to celebrate the progress made by women over the years.

The movement for fair and safe labor practices gained momentum after the event known as the Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire on March 25, 1911, in which 146 employees of the Triangle Shirtwaist company died, the majority of them women and including many young immigrants from Europe. Some workers died in the fire and others from jumping out of windows to escape. Later testimony revealed the insufficient escape routes for workers and rumors spread that doors to the factory had been intentionally locked. After the fire, groups such as the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union grew in number and influence. In discussions of the Festa della Donna, the Triangle Shirtwaist

fire represents the culmination of the women’s rights movements around the world, and is one of the specific events remembered on this day. In Italy, the tradition of giving a mimosa flower on March 8 began during the WWII years. On March 8, 1945, Women’s Day was celebrated to honor freedom in liberated Italy, and the following year throughout Italy the mimosa appeared as a symbol of this day, most likely because the mimosa blooms in early March. Three Italian women who were participants in anti-Fascist politics (and two of whom were active partisans) are credited with the idea. They are Teresa Noce, Rita Montagnana, and Teresa Mattei. Lingering leftist associations with Women’s Day provoked reaction in

the Cold War climate of 1950s, spurring some to accuse the mimosa-gifting tradition as a public disturbance. Attempts were made in Italian Parliament to make the Festa della Donna a national holiday, but failed. In the 1970s, the feminist movement in Italy brought about a rebirth of the mimosa as symbol of women’s solidarity. In addition to celebrating with female friends, Italians might observe March 8 by serving a torta mimosa, a yellow cake very similar in appearance to the flower. Restaurants, bars, and nightclubs will offer Women’s Day specials, and many museums and galleries offer free entrance to women. Political rallies and protests may take place around town on March 8 as well.

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FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CULTURE

Trace Michelangelo’s Life in 10 Steps

mathea. The Nicodemus figure the next stop on the tour, the Lautravelled to Rome in 1496, he crethe artist returned to Florence. is thought to be a self-portrait of rentian Library that Pope Clemated his Bacchus and Pietà that The piece was commissioned by Michelangelo. As the statue did ent VII de’ Medici commissioned were to be used for the tomb of Agnolo Doni for his marriage to Celebrate Michelangenot live up to the artist’s expectaMichelangelo to design as a place French cardinal Jean de Billheres. Maddalena Strozzi or the birth of lo’s 540th birthday on tions due to Magdalene’s lack of to hold family manuscripts and Florence received the Bacchus their first child. This is the only March 6 by chronologproportion, Michelangelo damliterature. The building was not in 1572 and it now remains at panel painting by the artist. ically visiting 10 placaged the work in a flurry of anger. completed until 1571 when Giorthe Bargello. This statue is well- 6. Palazzo Vecchio: Michelangelo’s es that trace his history as an artist. This is why it is missing a leg. gio Vasari and Bartolomeo Amknown for its depiction of the god The Genius of Victory was created 1. Casa Buonarroti: Although Mimannati used Michelangelo’s of wine in an intoxicated state to be used as part of the tomb of 8. Medici Chapels Museum: The chelangelo did not live in this Medici popes Leo X and Clemsketches to continue building. and also symbolizes life, death Julius II, but because the statue building, it was commissioned ent VIII, respectively the son and 10. Piazza Santa Croce, 16: The and sensuality. The Bargello was never completed it instead is by his nephew and inherited by grandson of Lorenzo the Magchurch is the final resting place also contains other Michelangelo located in the majestic Hall of the his family for generations. The nificent, commissioned Michelof many famous individuals, inworks, including the Brutus, the Five Hundred at Palazzo Vecchio. home also displays early works angelo to build a family mausocluding Galileo, Machiavelli and Pitti Tondo and the David-Apollo. Work on the sculpture began in by the artist, including multiple leum next to the ‘official’ Medici Michelangelo. The artist’s tomb 1532, together with the collection autographed sketches, a plan for 4. Accademia Gallery: In 1501, Michurch, San Lorenzo. The only was decorated by Vasari with a chelangelo created the David, a of Prisoners pieces that are disthe facade of San Lorenzo, the works Michelangelo completed bust and the three sculptures statue that has come to symbolplayed in the Accademia. Battle of the Centaurs and the were the statues of Lorenzo the Painting, Architecture and Sculpize many ideas, including art it- 7. Museo dell’Opera del Duomo Madonna of the Steps. Magnificent and his brother Giture. self. The 17-foot statue stands at (Cathedral Museum): The Flor2. Piazza Santo Spirito, 30: Miuliano; the Duke of Urbino; the the end of a hall lined by the artence Pietà located in the Museo chelangelo spent time dissecting Duke of Nemours; the four alleist’s Prisoners, sculptures created dell’Opera del Duomo, is one of corpses in the hospital located gorical sculptures Day and Night, Chiara Becchetti is a professional tour for the tomb of Julius II. the last works of Michelangenear this church as a teenager. guide with a background in fashion. To and Dawn and Dusk; and the Malo. This Pietà possesses unique He used this research to create 5. Uffizi Gallery: The large gallery book a tour with Chiara, write to her donna and Child. houses the Doni Tondo, someelements such as the two addithe crucifix that has hung in the at: chiarabecchetti@hotmail.it times referred to as The Holy Famtional figures of Mary Magdalene 9. Laurentian Library: The same chapel since 1492. www.toptoursintuscany.com building complex is also home to ily, which was completed when and Nicodemus or Joseph of Ari3. Bargello: When Michelangelo

CHIARA BECCHETTI

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

OLTRARNO

The ‘Village’ of Florence

Strolling Santo Spirito between artists and cafes true, contemporary Florentine life unfolds. It is no coincidence that celebrities The area’s charm is enriched by local such as Sting and Madonna own an industry, such as artisan workshops, apartment in this neighborhood: San- art and jewelry schools, restaurants to Spirito is in fact to Florence what and corner bakeries, ancient churchGreenwich Village is to New York and es and vibrant nightlife spots in its Shoreditch is to London. central piazza. Besides the little treaLess frequented by tourists than the sures found in basement shops or center, the chic yet laid-back Santo open studios, a successful culinary Spirito neighborhood is a seeming- alliance in Santo Spirito between ly tranquil area, whose narrow side prestigious restaurants and familstreets with their tiny vintage stores, ial trattorias means a wide range of boutiques, and low-priced taverns Italian specialties. Beautiful gardens recall a bygone Florence. Locals can and cozy cafés offer the perfect suroften be seen descending the stairs of rounding to relax mind and body and their apartments early in the morning experience the pulse of an authentic to open their shops either below or neighborhood. in the next street along, no doubt in Given its alliance with creativity, Santhe manner they have done for many to Spirito has encouraged a more alteryears. At the same time Santo Spirito native, bohemian scene in Florence. exudes multiculturalism. It’s where In addition to Piazza del Carmine,

CLAUDIA NIEMANN & IVANA SCATOLA

Piazza Santo Spirito is a densely concentrated social hotspot, especially in the evening. Here, students, musicians and street artists mix with the neighborhood’s inhabitants to create a vibrant atmosphere. Piazza Santo Spirito host daily markets as well as an antique and flea market selling vintage items, typical handicrafts and regional food products on every second Sunday of the month. Although smaller than the markets in the city center, these offer low-priced specialties and individual items. Furthermore, during the summer, the square frequently transforms into a stage for various events and open-air concerts. At all hours, people gather on the steps of the church of Santo Spirito, the backdrop to the animated piazza. Although at first sight the façade may seem unimpos-

ing, the church is a classic example as their principal residence, and sovof Renaissance architecture. The lin- ereigns of Florence resided there in ear interior was designed by Filippo subsequent centuries. Today, inestiBrunelleschi in 1435, who applied a mable treasures from the collection of new architectural vision to his work. the Medici are housed inside Palazzo It was completed after his death in the Pitti’s walls. In 1549 the Boboli Garlate fifteenth century, but it was not dens were designed to the Medici’s until later in the eighteenth century elaborate desires, and situated just that the unfinished facade was add- behind the palace. This fine example ed. The building houses important of a Renaissance garden art has been frescoes, paintings and sculptures by open to the public since 1776. major artists such as Michelangelo, Although the streetscape has changed Orcagna and Sansovino. over the years, as sandwich bars and Just a few minutes’ walk away from souvenir shops have increasingly the piazza is Palazzo Pitti, originally found their way into the neighbordesigned for banker Luca Pitti, whose hood, Santo Spirito has maintained determination to surpass the Medici its authentic atmosphere. A great by flaunting his prosperity is discern- number of shops and restaurants able in this opulent construction. Lat- have managed to exist for decades, er, the Medici bought the palace when playing a vital role in maintaining the Pitti’s heirs went bankrupt. In 1550 genuine neighbourhood quality for the powerful family chose the palace which the district is widely admired.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

FASHION

Polimoda Opens New €3 Million Design Lab

The Fashion Design Institute Polimo- the president of the Region of Tuscada opened a new design lab worth €3 ny Enrico Rossi, as well as Polimoda million last month. president Ferruccio Ferragamo. The project was managed by the The 3100-square-meter building Scandicci Municipality and half of houses 13 laboratories equipped for the venture was funded by the Re- drawing, sewing, knitwear, creating gion of Tuscany as part of the ‘Cities paper patterns, shoes and leather of Knowledge’ (Città dei Saperi) plan goods, and will be used by students for integrated and sustainable urban in fashion design, fashion technology, development. footwear design and accessories. Last month’s ribbon-cutting ceremo- The new addition also has 400 square ny was attended by some of Florence meters dedicated to the Polimoda and Tuscany’s leading authorities, Startup incubator business in develincluding mayor Dario Nardella and opment.

Discovering Gucci Through His Museum

BROOKE FEICHTL

The Gucci Museum portrays the brand’s history through a variety of products ranging from travel and homeware to fashion and art. The museum, which opened in 2011 to celebrate Gucci’s 90th birthday, is 1715 square meters in size and spans three floors of the the Palazzo della Mercanzia near Piazza del Signoria. The location was chosen because it was once an administrative building that promoted the Florentine craft guilds of wool, silk and cloth importers. Italy’s fashion industry increased try’s turnover increased by 1.4 per- The exhibit begins with the story of its turnover by three percent in 2014 cent in 2013. But the global fashion the brand’s founder Guccio Gucci, and exceeded the profits of the glob- industry turnover declined by three who worked as a liftboy in London’s al fashion industry, Italian media re- percent in 2013, earning an estimated Savoy Hotel. When he returned to ported last month. The improvement €218 billion. The data comes from a Florence, Gucci was inspired by upin the sale of fashion items offers market survey that analyzed 135 Ital- per-class British travelers and began hope for an economic recovery after ian fashion firms with a minimum creating fine crafted travelware. The years of decline, as the Italian indus- turnover of €100 million in 2013. initial exhibits show the emphasis

Italian Fashion Industry Shows Signs of Recovery

that Gucci placed on travel, from diverse suitcases to the Gucci car that featured a monogrammed steering wheel, upholstery and tires. The next floor exhibits Gucci’s Flora motif. The design was created when Rodolfo Gucci commissioned illustrator Vittorio Accornero to create an original floral pattern for a scarf to be presented to Princess Grace of Monaco when she visited the Gucci Milan store in 1966. Variations of the pattern feature flowers, insects and berries for all seasons and have been printed on many products, such as dresses, purses and porcelain. The collection also displays other Gucci trademarks such as the horse bit that represented the British upper class, and Gucci’s bamboo purse handle. Gucci’s bamboo handle was invented during the supply shortages of World War II when bamboo canes were still

available for purchase. The handles are now made from a rare bamboo root and take more than 13 hours to fashion. On display are also Gucci evening gowns such as the ones worn on the red carpet by Blake Lively, Cameron Diaz and Salma Hayek-Pinault. The museum also features a café and the Icon store, where visitors can purchase one-of-a-kind items.

Gucci Museum Piazza della Signoria, 10 Museum: Mon. to Sun.: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Icon Store: Mon. to Sun.: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Thursday 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Bookstore and Gift Shop: Mon. to Sun.: 10 a.m.-11 p.m. Café and Restaurant: Mon. to Sun.: 9 a.m.-11 p.m. Admission is €7 (Thursdays from 8 p.m. is €5)

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

FASHION

Valentino, Versace and Armani Enchant Paris

BROOKE FEICHTL Paris’s Spring/Summer Couture Week ended in January with successful shows from Valentino and Armani designers. Valentino’s designers Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pieri Paolo Piccioli introduced a romantic theme by opening the show with the declaration that love is “the only force able to defeat any adversity.” The amorous essence was repeated in the collection through the use of red hues and multiple facets of art. A number of pieces were embroidered with quotes about love such as Virgil’s Amor Vincit Omnia (love conquers all) and others from Pier Paolo Pasolini, Jacques Prévert, and Shakespeare’s sonnets. Dante’s verses about adulterers Paolo and Francesca were sewn in gold thread into a blue organza gown that took 3500 hours to create. Russian folkloric embroidery was

another recurring theme that was de- at the La Chambre de Commerce et rived from the work of the French-Rus- d’Industrie. Aside from black, the colsian painter Marc Chagall. Other ex- or palette exhibited the colors of the amples of the artist’s influence were French flag, possibly as a salute to seen in a linen pantsuit embroidered France in the aftermath of the Charlie with pearls that was inspired by Cha- Hebdo attacks. Many pieces displayed gall’s The Walk and a lace, tan and red Versace’s talents, with well-crafted jacket inspired by Wedding Feast. embroidery and crystals covering Armani celebrated 10 years of couture everything from netting to over-theand 40 years of business by reflecting knee boots. Netting appeared often the idea of feminine strength that led in the many pieces that used cutouts; to the brand’s prominence. Bamboo others revealed exposed skin. The motifs were used throughout the col- asymmetrical circular cutouts were lection to represent feminine strength used to exaggerate the female silhouand reference the inspiration the de- ette while other form-fitting pieces signer received from oriental styles. appeared to be painted onto the modBamboo prints were seen in sage, els’ body. These tight-fitting ensemwhite, blue and black and appeared bles and jumpsuits with flared pant simple in nature but were deceptive- legs conveyed Versace’s well-known ly intricate. The collection included style. The collection also presented jackets, blouses, full skirts and eve- a number of black tailleurs, evening ning gowns that could be worn in the gowns with swirling nude insets and upcoming awards season. short bolero bomber jackets paired Donatella Versace debuted 46 outfits with skirts with fishtail hems. Some

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pieces featured original emojis that were appliquéd onto shifts, jackets, boots and woven into dresses. Schiaparelli made its third debut since it was bought by Diego Della Valle and the first since creative director Marco Zanini’s departure. Zanini has not yet been replaced. Many aspects of the show, titled Signs of Elsa, honored the brand’s late designer. The brand continued to convey the interpretation of Schiaparelli through surrealists prints such as stars, orange zigzags on a blue dress and a favorite Schiaparelli motif: heart appliqué stabbed with pins. Two other examples of surrealism and eccentricity in the collection were the longsleeved, emerald-green sheath that had a design of a pair of hands undoing a crystal necklace on the back and a white tuxedo with a blue fez hat. The collection also displayed androgynous looks, with multiple flowing

pantsuits and oversized shouldered outfits. The show’s set was designed by the famous photographer JeanPaul Goude and was notable for its use of the music of Parisian choir Les Chérubin and the bright pink hue that Schiaparelli made famous. Giambattista Valli presented his collection inspired by an imagined conversation between Coco Chanel and Janis Joplin. A carefree feeling and obvious femininity seen in the clothing reflected both women’s eclectic personalities. The majority of the first half of the show exhibited black-andwhite pieces, followed by outfits that used pastels in pink, yellow and orange. Tulle was used in a variety of ways in ballgowns, skirts and capes. Joplin’s influence could be seen in the ‘60s-style tunics, jackets and pants worn under dresses. The collection also included many varieties of the designer’s signature floral patterns.

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• • • • • • • • • • • •

Tue. to Thurs.: 9 a.m.–6 p.m. Fri. to Sat.: 9 a.m.–7 p.m.

Via dei Benci, 37r 055 234 48 85

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CITY INFO TOURIST INFORMATION Firenze Turismo .... 055 29 08 32 // 055 29 08 33 Via Cavour, 1/r Mon–Sat: 8:30 a.m.–6:30 p.m. (Closed on Sundays and public holidays; see Commune info points below for Sunday hours.) info1@firenzeturismo.it www.firenzeturismo.it Florence Airport .................................... 055 31 58 74 Via del Termine, 1 Daily: 8:30a.m.–8:30p.m. infoaeroporto@firenzeturismo.it Commune ................................................ 055 21 22 45 Piazza Stazione, 4 Mon–Sat: 8:30a.m.–7 p.m. Sundays & public holidays: 8:30 a.m.–2 p.m. turismo3@comune.fi.it www.comune.fi.it Bigallo loggia ........................................... 055 28 84 96 Piazza San Giovanni Mon–Sat: 9 a.m.–7 p.m. Sundays & public holidays: 9 a.m.–2 p.m. bigallo@comune.fi.it

EMERGENCY SERVICES Police – emergency .................................................. 113 Police – carabinieri .................................................... 112 Police – municipal .............................. 055 32 83 333 Ambulance .................................................................... 118 Fire department .......................................................... 115 Tourist medical service ..................... 055 21 22 21 Poison Center ....................................... 055 79 47 819 Pharmacies (open) ............................... 800 42 07 07 Vehicle breakdown (ACI) .......................................... 116 Obstruction& towed vehicle ........... 055 42 24 142 Civil protection services ..................... 800 01 5 161 Child abuse hotline .................................................... 114 Emergency vet services ................ 055 72 23 683 Environmental emergency response .............. 1515 Lost & Found (Florence office) ........ 055 33 48 02

TRANSPORT BUS & COACH ATAF (www.ataf.net) ........................... 800 42 45 00 BluBlus (www.blubus.it) .................... 800 27 78 25 SITA Nord (www.fsbusitalia.it) ......... 800 37 37 60 CAP (www.capautolinee.it) ............... 055 21 46 37 Vaibus (www.vaibus.com) ............. 058 35 87 897 TRAIN Trenitalia (www.trenitalia.com) ................. 89 20 21 Italo (www.italotreno.it/en) ....................... 06 07 08 TAXI Radio Taxi Firenze ......................................... 055 42 42

MUSEUMS & GALLERIES Accademia Gallery* Alinari National Photography Museum* Bargello National Museum* Bigallo Museum* Cathedral Museum (Museo dell’Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore)* Costume Gallery (Palazzo Pitti)* Dante House Museum* Galileo Museum * Horne Foundation Museum * Jewish Museum* Michelangelo’s House (Casa Buonarroti)* MUDI Children’s Museum Museum & Florentine Institute of Prehistory Museum of Natural History sections: Anthropology & Ethnology* Geology & Paleontology* Minerology & Lithology* Zoology ‘La Specola’* National Archaeological Museum* Orsanmichele* Palatine Gallery (Palazzo Pitti)* Palazzo Davanzati* Palazzo Medici-Riccardi* Palazzo Pitti* Palazzo Strozzi* Palazzo Vecchio* Porcelain Museum* Science & Technical Foundation* Uffizi Gallery* Vasari Corridor

RELIGIOUS SITES Baptistry of San Giovanni* Brancacci Chapel* Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (Duomo) ‘Dante’s church’ (Santa Margherita de’ Cerchi) Jewish Synagogue* Medici Chapel* Ognissanti San Lorenzo San Marco* Santa Croce* Santa Felicità Santa Maria Novella* Santissima Annunziata Santo Spirito

GARDENS Boboli Gardens* Botanic Gardens* Rose Gardens

MARKETS

ANTIQUES Borgo Allegri, Via dell’Agnolo, Piazza dei Ciompi, Via Martiri del Popolo Last Sunday of each month (except July): 8:30 a.m.–7:30 p.m. CENTRAL MARKET Fresh produce, local and Italian food products. Via dell’Ariento Monday–Friday: 7 a.m.– 2 p.m. ; Sat: 7 a.m.–5 p.m. July and August: Monday–Saturday: 7 a.m.–2 p.m. CASCINE PARK Food products, clothing, antiques and homewares. Viale Lincoln, Viale Lecci, Piazzale J. F. Kennedy Every Tuesday: 8 a.m.–2 p.m.

SHUTTLE SERVICE FLORENCE AIRPORT From Florence S.M.N. train station to Florence Airport (Peretola): Every hour and half-hour from 5:30 a.m. till 11 p.m. Bus stop located outside train station near taxi stand. From Florence Airport to Florence S.M.N train station: Every hour and half-hour from 6a.m. till 11.30p.m. ‘Vola in Bus’ ATAF/SITA service ........... 800 42 45 00 www.ataf.net Florence Airport ..................................... 055 30 61 300 (Peretola) www.aeroporto.firenze.it/en Pisa International Airport ...................... 050 84 93 00 (Galileo Galilei) www.pisa-airport.com

FLEA MARKET Piazza dei Ciompi Daily: 9 a.m.–7:30 p.m. FLOWERS & PLANTS Via Pellicceria (under the loggia) Every Thursday (except public holidays): 8 a.m.–2 p.m. PORCELLINO Clothing, textiles, Florentine straw products, leather and souvenirs. Piazza del Mercato Nuovo, Via Porta Rossa Daily: 9 a.m.–7:30 p.m. SAN LORENZO Leather goods (bags, shoes, clothing) and souvenirs. Piazza San Lorenzo and neighboring streets Daily: 9 a.m.–7:30 p.m. SANT’AMBROGIO Fresh produce, flowers, clothes and homewares. PIAZZA GHIBERTI Indoor market: Monday, Tuesday & Thursday: 7:30 a.m.–2 p.m.; Wednesday & Friday: 7:30 a.m.–7 p.m.; Saturday: 7:30 a.m.–5 p.m. Outdoor market: Monday–Saturday: 8 a.m.–2 p.m. SANTO SPIRITO Piazza Santo Spirito Fresh produce: Monday–Saturday: 8 a.m.–2 p.m. Handicrafts & antiques: 2nd Sunday of each month (except July & August): 9 a.m.–7 p.m. Organic produce: 3rd Sun of each month

APPROXIMATE FARES Firenze-Pisa Airport ............................................ € 140.00 Firenze-Bologna Airport .................................... € 180.00 Firenze-Montecatini .............................................. € 90.00 Firenze-Arezzo ....................................................... € 140.00 Firenze-Siena ......................................................... € 120.00 Firenze-Livorno ..................................................... € 160.00 Firenze-San Gimignano ..................................... € 100.00 Firenze-Outlet Barberino ..................................... € 65.00 Barberino A/R+ 1 hr .............................................. € 120.00 Firenze-Outlet Leccio ............................................ € 65.00 Leccio A/R+1 hr ..................................................... € 120.00 Firenze-Outlet Prada .......................................... € 110.00 Prada A/R+1 hr ....................................................... € 160.00 FLORENCE AIRPORT FROM/TO DOWNTOWN Weekdays- € 20.00 + Luggage Holiday- €22.00 + Luggage Night – 23.30 + Luggage Taxi Bus 1 Pax 20 Euro** 6 Euro* 2 Pax 20 Euro ** 12 Euro* 3 Pax 20 Euro ** 18 Euro* 4 Pax 20 Euro** 24 Euro* 5 Pax 20 Euro ** 30 Euro* *then you need a Taxi/** more 1 Euro each bag

Lorenzo de’ Medici

RESTAURANT & PIZZERIA

LIVE SPORTS

Lorenzo de’ Medici Restaurant and Pizzeria is an elegant yet reasonably priced spot situated right in the heart of Florence, just a few steps away from the Medici Chapel, the church of Santa Maria Novella and San Lorenzo market, and no more than 200m from the Fortezza da Basso. It is the ideal restaurant to try traditional Florentine dishes or pizza cooked in the wood-ﬁred oven. The perfect restaurant for tourist groups, business dinners, meetings or private dining.

GET 20% OFF WITH YOUR STUDENT DISCOUNT CARD Via del Giglio, 49 // 055 21 29 32 www.lorenzodemediciristorante.com

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CITY INFO OPENING TIMES BAPTISTRY OF SAN GIOVANNI* Piazza San Giovanni 055 23 02 885 Mon–Sat: 11:15 a.m.–7 p.m.; Sun and 1st Sat of every month: 8:30 a.m.–2 p.m. July 4– Sept 28: Thurs–Sat: 11:15 a.m.–11 p.m. Easter Week (Thurs, Fri, Sat before Easter & Easter Mon), April 25 & May 1: 8:30 a.m.–7 p.m. Closed Jan 1, Easter Sunday, Sept 8, Dec 24 & 25. BOBOLI GARDENS* 055 23 88 786 March Daily: 8:15 a.m.–5:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. with daylight saving) April–May & Sept–Oct Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:30 p.m. (5:30 p.m. with standard time) June–Aug Daily: 8:15 a.m.–7:30 p.m. Nov–Feb Daily: 8:15 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Closed 1st and last Mon of each month; Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25. CATHEDRAL CUPOLA* Piazza del Duomo 055 23 02 885 Mon–Fri: 8:30 a.m.–7 p.m.; Sat: 8:30 a.m.–5:40 p.m. Closed Sun; Jan 1; Jan 6; Thurs–Fri–Sat before Easter; Easter; June 24; Aug 15; Sept 8; Nov 1; Dec 8; Mon & Tues of the first week of Advent; Dec 25 & 26. Note: 463 stairs by foot only, no lift. GIOTTO’S BELL TOWER* Piazza del Duomo 055 23 02 885 Daily: 8:30 a.m.–7:30 p.m.; January 6: 8:30 a.m.–2 p.m. Closed Jan 1, Easter, Sept 8 & Dec 25. Note: 414 stairs by foot only, no lift VASARI CORRIDOR Piazzale degli Uffizi, 6 055 29 48 83 Available to private groups only: contact Uffizi Gallery for information. MUSEUMS ACCADEMIA GALLERY* Via Ricasoli, 58/60 055 23 88 612 Tues–Sun: 8:15 a.m.–6:50 p.m. Closed Mon, Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25. PALAZZO MEDICI-RICCARDI* Via Cavour, 3 055 27 60 340

Mon–Tues & Thurs–Sun: 9 a.m.–6 p.m. Closed Wed.

Closed 2 & 4 Sun, and 1 , 3 & 5 Mon of the month; Jan 1, May 1, Dec 25.

BARGELLO NATIONAL MUSEUM* Via del Proconsolo, 4 055 23 88 606 Daily: 8:15 a.m.–1.50 p.m. Closed 1st, 3rd & 5th Sun and 2nd & 4th Mon of each month; Jan 1 & Dec 25.

PALAZZO PITTI* Piazza Pitti, 1 Palatine Gallery 055 23 88 614 Tues–Sun: 8:15 a.m.–6:50 p.m. Royal Apartments closed every year during Jan for maintenance. Closed Mon, Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25. Costume Gallery 055 23 88 801 / 23 88 713 March Daily: 8:15 a.m.–5:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. with daylight saving) April–May & Sept–Oct Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:30 p.m. (5:30 p.m. with standard time) June–Aug Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Nov–Feb Daily: 8:15 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Closed 1st and last Mon of each month; Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25. Gallery of Modern Art 055 2388601 Tues–Sun: 8:15 a.m.–6:50 p.m. Closed Mon, Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25. Silverware Museum (Museo degli Argenti) Piazza Pitti, 1 055 2388709 March Daily: 8:15 a.m.–5:30 p.m. (6:30 p.m. with daylight saving) April–May & Sept–Oct Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:30 p.m. (5:30 p.m. with standard time) June–Aug Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:30 p.m. Nov–Feb Daily: 8:15 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Closed 1st and last Mon of each month; Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25. Porcelain Museum 055 2388709 March Daily: 8:15 a.m.–5:15 p.m. (6:15 p.m. with daylight saving) April–May & Sept–Oct Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:15 p.m. (5:15 p.m. with standard time) June–Aug Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:15 p.m. Nov–Feb Daily: 8:15 a.m.–4:15 p.m. Closed 1st and last Mon of each month; Jan 1, May 1 & Dec 25.

CATHEDRAL MUSEUM (Museo dell’Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore)* Piazza del Duomo, 9 055 23 02 885 Mon–Sat: 9 a.m.–7:30 p.m.; Sun: 9 a.m.–1:45 p.m. Closed Jan 1, Easter, Sept 8 & Dec 25. DANTE HOUSE MUSEUM * Via Santa Margherita, 1 055 21 94 16 April–Sept Daily: 10 a.m.–6 p.m. Oct–March Tues–Sun: 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Closed Mon (Oct 1–March 31), Dec 24 & 25. GALILEO MUSEUM * Piazza dei Giudici, 1 055 26 53 11 Mon & Wed–Sun: 9:30 a.m.–6 p.m.; Tues: 9:30 a.m.–1 p.m. Closed Jan 1 & Dec 25. JEWISH MUSEUM * Via Farini, 6 055 23 46 654 June–Sept: Mon–Thurs & Sun: 10 a.m.–6:30 p.m.; Fri: 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Oct–May: Mon–Thurs & Sun: 10 a.m.– 5:30 p.m.; Fri: 10 a.m.–3 p.m. Closed Sat, Jan 1, Dec 25 & Jewish holidays. MICHELANGELO’S HOUSE (Casa Buonarroti)* Via Ghibellina, 70 055 24 17 52 Mon & Wed–Sun: 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Closed Tues, Jan 1, Easter & Dec 25. NATIONAL ARCHAEOLOGICAL MUSEUM* Piazza Santissima Annunziata, 9b 055 23 57 720 / 23 575 Tues–Fri: 8:30 a.m.–7 p.m. Sat–Mon: 8:30 a.m.–2 p.m. Closed Jan 1 & Dec 25. PALAZZO DAVANZATI * Via Porta Rossa, 13 055 23 88 610 Daily: 8:15–1:30 p.m.

PALAZZO STROZZI* Piazza Strozzi 055 27 76 461 Piano Nobile: Mon–Wed & Fri–Sun: 9 a.m.–8 p.m. and Thurs: 9 a.m.–11 p.m. CCC Strozzina: Tues–Wed & Fri–Sun: 10 a.m.–8p.m.; Thurs: 10 a.m.–11 p.m. Closed Mon.

Sixty museums in 72 hours with the Firenze Card Become a Friend of the Uffizi For €40 for youth under 25, €60 for an adult and €100 for a family (two adults and two children), the card offers a calendar year’s worth of free privileged entrance to the following museums: Uffizi Gallery Accademia Gallery The Pitti Palace The Palatine Gallery & Royal Apartments The Gallery of Modern Art The Costume Gallery The Medici Treasury The Porcelain Museum The Boboli Gardens The Bardini Gardens Bargello National Museum Museum of the Medici Chapels Museum of Palazzo Davanzati Museum of San Marco Garden of the Medici Villa of Castello Medici Villa of Petraia Medici Villa of Poggio a Caiano Medici Villa of Cerreto Guidi & Historical Hunting Territorial Museum Cenacolo of Ognissanti Cenacolo of Andrea del Sarto Cenacolo of Fuligno Cenacolo of Sant’Apollonia Cloister of the Scalzo www.amicidegliuffizi.it

The Firenze Card is your one-stop pass to the museums, churches and gardens of Florence. For €72 it offers: • 72 hours of free access to 60 of Florence’s most popular and important museums, churches and gardens, including current exhibitions, permanent collections and museum activities; • Free use of public transport within Florence; • Immediate access to busy museums – skip long queues and pre-booking; • Your choice of start date: the clock doesn’t start ticking until you enter your first museum; • Dedicated smartphone application to help find the museums, access free wi-fi and give you updated information on exhibits and events; • Though the card can only be used once in each museum by one person, it also allows free entrance for EU citizens under 18 who are members of the same family unit of the cardholder. See the website for full details: www.firenzecard.it

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

FOOD & WINE

Easter: An Italian Culinary Tradition

Pitti Taste Returns from March 7–9

perts on food from all over the word. Presided over by ‘gastronaut’ Davide The 10th edition of Pitti Taste, the fair Paolini, these professionals cover topdedicated to Italian excellence in ics such as contemporary eating, taste taste and food lifestyles, is returning and future food trends. Taste Events from March 7–9 at Stazione Leopolda. include exhibitions, book presenPresented by Pitti Immagine, the fair tations, cooking competitions, and showcases products from more than much more held at cooperating loca300 leading companies in the interna- tions in Florence. tional food world. Last year, more than 13,500 people The exhibition showcases a Taste attended Pitti Taste, of which 4,600 Menu, consisting of Taste Tours, Taste were buyers from more than 40 counTools, Taste Shop and Taste Ring and tries including France, the United Events. Taste Tours presents stations States, Great Britain, Germany, Rusof a wide variety of food, ranging sia and Australia. from trout tartare with honey to homemade pasta made by major ItalPitti Taste ian producers, mixed pickled vegetables, and much more. March 7–9 Taste Tools is the area dedicated to Stazione Leopolda Sat 7 & Sun 8: Trade members only: food and kitchen design, and in9:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m; cludes merchandise for professional Public: 1:30–7:30 p.m. chefs or anyone who loves to cook. Mon 9: 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. The items displayed range from technical equipment to clothing for the Tickets: €20 daily ticket for the kitchen. general public, €15 for professionTaste Shop sells all the food exhibitals (valid for the three-day event); ed at the fair, which sold more than children under 10 years enter free. 25,000 items at last year’s edition. www.pittimmagine.com Taste Ring hosts debates between ex-

JULIE NEWMAN

DEJOU BENCOMO-JASSO Easter is a time of joy, observance, revelry, and celebrating through food traditions. An Italian Easter is no exception. Classic dishes vary from region to region, yet much Easter fare remains common throughout the country. Le Uova: Eggs are an essential component of an Italian Easter, as both symbol and ingredient. Brightly colored hard-boiled eggs and chocolate eggs are the delight of children and adults alike, while a number of traditional Easter time dishes include egg as a key ingredient. Pizza Piena: These stuffed pies are tall, quiche-like rounds of pastry filled with eggs, cheese, cured meat and/or sausage. While variations on the pizza piena exist across the country, the velvety richness of this

pie makes it a welcome staple at the dessert is a cross between a cake and a pie, with a filling of ricotta, eggs, Easter table. Uovo di Pasqua: An oversized egg egg yolks, sugar, milk, boiled wheat, made of chocolate and stuffed with cinnamon, vanilla, lemon zest and a surprise treat, the Italian choco- candied citrus fruits. late egg is a whimsical confection L’agnello: Lamb is both a religious traditionally presented to family and symbol and an essential dish in the friends as an Easter present. Adding Easter meal. In northern regions to the festive nature of the chocolate lamb is used in hearty stews with egg gift is its often colorful, painstak- beans and potatoes, and in braised variations with herb-infused broths ingly decorated wrapping. Colomba Pasquale: This dessert and root vegetables. Lamb meatballs bread is named after the Italian word and pasta dishes filled with a mixfor dove, colomba. It’s baked in the ture of lamb and ingredients such shape of this symbolic bird, meant to as cheese, garlic, onion or herbs are represent a sign of peace, and is made also commonly prepared. In other according to the same method used regions roasted lamb is served with for the Christmas cake panettone, artichokes, peas or other spring vegetables. omitting the candied fruits. For more about Dejou Bencomo-Jasso, Pastiera: Rooted in pagan celebravisit www.countrybred.com/bredblog tions of the arrival of spring, pastiera She can be reached at is a mainstay of Easter celebrations, dejou@countrybred.com particularly in Naples. This unique

THE BEST SUBS IN TOWN Sandwiches Salads Soups Onion Rings Fries Pasta Fresh Fruit

Mon. - Sat. 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. Via Sant'Egidio, 22/r 347 11 88 056 theoilshoppe.it

HOME DELIVERED AND POURED WINE IN S. SPIRITO

COOKING COURSES IN SANTO SPIRITO

THE RESTAURANT OF THE FLORENTINES

Bring your bottle to be filled for less than €1.50, straight from the barrels of Il Santo Vino. Here patrons can choose from a wide range of Italian wine in bottles or barrels sourced throughout Tuscany and Italy, as well as spirits and digestives. Il Santo Vino also provides a home-delivery service alongside selected local specialty and organic products, such as truffled goods, honey, jam, coffee and a variety of Sicilian spreads.

In Tavola aims to spread Italian food- and wine-rich regional culinary traditions, such as those of Tuscany with its variety of dishes and recipes. Cooking classes as well as individual lessons for both professionals and beginners are offered, with special deals for students.

Located in Via Ghibellina near Santa Croce, Da Que’ Ganzi offers a fresh seafood and meat menu for both lunch and dinner. Tuscan specialties include ribollita and authentic Florentine steak, and all of the cakes and sweets are homemade. A special weekday lunch menu for less than €10 makes the restaurant affordable for anyone.

Monday: 5–9 p.m. Tues. to Sun.: 10 a.m.–2 p.m.; 5–9 p.m. Borgo Tegolaio, 46/r 055 53 87 122 // 345 90 93 425 www.ilsantovino.jimdo.com mariella.croda@yahoo.it Skype: ilsantovino

COURSES INCLUDE:

Market tour & cooking class Four-course dinner Easy dinner Easy lunch Home-made pasta Pizza & gelato

Via dei Velluti, 18 055 21 76 72 www.intavola.org info@intavola.org

Special dishes: BAKED SEA BASS & TUSCAN STEAK

Mon. to Sun.: 12–2:30 p.m. & 7–11:30 p.m. Closed on Tuesdays. Via Ghibellina, 70/r 055 22 60 010 www.daqueiganzi.it info@daqueiganzi.it

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

What Not to do When Making a Pizza

FOOD & WINE

Dining with Dante Taverna La Divina Commedia offers medieval-style dishes Named after Dante Alighieri’s most shin of pork with new potatoes and famous work, The Divine Comedy, seasonal vegetables, risotto inspired this homely, rustic taverna fittingly by medieval Tuscan flavors, and lies on Via dei Cimatori, only a few tasting plates of assorted cheeses acmeters away from Dante’s House. companied with fresh fruit and jams, The venue prides itself on its inno- including the taverna’s specialty hot vative and creative idea of preparing red pepper jam. solely traditional dishes based on Also serving as a wine bar and pizzemedieval recipes. Some are adapted ria, the restaurant offers an eclectic and revisited for the modern age but selection of wines from its cellar, an in a way that one maintains the om- outdoor summer terrace, and is fitnipresent feeling of Florentine history tingly decorated in a medieval style and tradition – so much so that Dante with armour and banners – and, of himself could walk in and dine next course, a mandatory bust of Dante to you. himself. As a matter of fact, this is a regular occurrence at Taverna La Divina ComTaverna La Divina media, as the venue regularly hosts Commedia recitals from Dante’s great work by professional costumed performers. Via dei Cimatori, 7/r Traditional medieval-style dishes in055 21 53 69 clude home-made ribbon pasta with Open daily: 11.30 a.m.–12.30 a.m. wild boar and mushroom sauce, roast

The best way to approach the preparation of a pizza, rather than with what should be done, is probably by avoiding what should not be done. Here is a list of the most common mistakes that people often make when preparing their own pizza. Use improper flour: This is important because it sets up the foundation of your pizza, the crust. If the correct flour is not used for the dough, it can prevent the crust from rising or make it rubbery. Use an average-strength flour that has 10–12 grams of protein. Combine the yeast and salt wrongly: This must be done in a very specific way. Mix the two ingredients first in two separate bowls with water before putting them together. This prevents

the salt from damaging the yeast. Let the dough rest for too little time: You must set the yeast aside so that it can ‘rest’ for two to three hours after first making it to enable the yeast to work. Then divide it into small sections of 200–300 grams and allow it to sit for six to eight hours to become soft. Manipulate the dough too much: After the lasting resting session, roll out the dough and begin to form the shape of the pizza. However, you must also tap and knead the dough to make it firm. Bake in an inappropriate baking tin: The perfect pizza requires a lot of heat, especially from underneath. Consequently a thin aluminum pan

will give you the best results. Use mozzarella that is too damp: Make sure you drain the mozzarella before you put it on your pizza. The best way to do this is to cut it the night before and set it in a colander in a refrigerator overnight or for a few hours. This method is also effective for buffalo mozzarella. Put on toppings before baking: If you apply the toppings too early, they will burn your pizza. Instead, put the mozzarella and vegetables on right before the pizza is done cooking. Toppings like ham or meat can be added after it has been removed from the oven. (Source: Il Corriere della Sera Cucina, with editorial modifications.)

A corner of Naples in the center of Florence Pizza-making classes at the “Jersey Shore” pizzeria

FRESH INGREDIENTS PERFECT CRUST BAKED IN A TRADITIONAL WOOD OVEN

HOME DELIVERY Via dei Cimatori, 21/r // Tel.: 055 28 54 87 // www.ovesuviofirenze.com

Sample Authentic Italian Brews with a Beer-Tasting Class The Contemporary Academy and tend, notification is required at least its partner Terra di Delizie are cur- one day before the session. rently hosting beer-tasting classes. The Contemporary Academy is an The classes are delivered in English, association dedicated to advanced Spanish and French and last two training in the restaurant and beer hours, beginning with a 40-minute business, while Terra di Delizie is an lesson on the culture, history, style e-commerce portal of Italian food and production of Italian beer and and wine. Their shared mission is to followed by a professional tasting ensure the authenticity of an Italian craft beer experience. session of Italian brews. Participants learn about the beer Beer-Tasting industry from legitimate beer sommeliers rather than employees of the Tommaso Pieri: 348 852 64 26 wine industry, and receive an amatomopieri@hotmail.com teur Italian craft beer certificate at the contemporaryacademy@gmail.com conclusion of the class. In order to at-

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CITY BEAT

Try Yoga and Pilates

BROOKE FEICHTL Melissa Ferrer’s yoga studio, 19r, provide classes in Power Yoga, Restorative Yoga, Fusion, Pilates and Ashtanga at various times of the day and throughout the week. Classes range from five to 10 participants and multiple languages are offered. 19r connects to the Oltrarno community by offering activities to a diverse population that consists of residents, tourists and people from different backgrounds. The studio also adds an alternative exercise style that is

newer to Florence and familiar to foreign visitors. Ferrer began practicing yoga and Pilates to recover from back injuries inflicted in a car accident. She began teaching classes throughout Europe in places such as Sweden and Spain until she came to Florence and opened 19r six years ago.

19r Yoga Via dei Bardi, 19/r 339 197 09 02 www.19ryogapilates.com

Taste Springtime at Pino’s “The flavors are so simple, making it perfect because it tastes like spring,” says Salumeria Verdi’s owner, Pino, about students’ favorite sandwich during this period of the year. The flavors are indeed as fresh as spring: prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and pesto. Pino has not only changed his restaurant to fit his customers’ needs, but also understands the flavors that they like. And this, together with the family-style atmosphere of his refectory, marks the secret of his success among locals, students and tourists. Salumeria Verdi began as a sandwich shop with 10 menu options and has transformed through 24 years of business into a restaurant that serves 30 different sandwiches. But Pino’s favorite patrons are by far the Americans: the ones he loves to work with the most and the ones who love his food the most. “They [Americans] always trust any

flavor combination that I suggest and they always leave happy,” he says. Some other student favorites include ‘The Best,’ a sandwich made of roast beef, smoked cheese, spinach, eggplant, hot sauce and peppers. But now it’s springtime, and Pino celebrates this period of the year in his own way.

Salumerica Verdi Via Giuseppe Verdi, 36/r 055 244 517 www.salumeriaverdi.it

Enoteca Pozzo Divino Via Ghibellina, 144/r 055 246 69 07 www.pozzodivino.eu

Discover Venice in Santa Croce

Pet Sitting in Florence Dedicated to the personalized care of four-legged family members, Florence Pet Sitting offers doggie daycare and boarding, and national and international pet transport. We welcome all types of animals, including special needs pets, and are open year-round, including holidays. Located in S. Spirito in the Oltrarno 345 693 6081 www.florencepetsitting.com florencepetsitting@gmail.com

• • • • • • •

Daycare or overnights at our facilities or walks and check-ins from your location; Two long walks per day and frequent outings; Updates and photos of your pets during their stay; Secured garden for urgent bathroom needs; No cages; pets are free to roam and sleep where they like; 24-hour companionship; Bathing and nail-clip offered.

Murano glass and Carnevale mask enthusiasts need not travel to Venice for quality souvenir items. Alvise Giustinian is a gift and art store specializing in Murano-made items and that guarantees the sale of purely Murano products, with no importation. Products include masks, jewelry, and glass objects for the home. Jewelry has proven to be the shop’s

most popular item, due to the ease of transport and availability of products starting at merely €5, according to owner Paola. Alvise Giustinian’s spacious interior allows for an abundant selection of gifts and a comfortable shopping experience. Paola’s customers tell her that prices in this beautiful, museum-like shop are lower than those in Venice. If you’re in Florence

but looking for classic Venetian crafts such as papier-mâché masks and handmade glass, then Alvise Giustinian is a store worth a visit.

Alvise Giustinian Corso Tintori, 19/r 055 246 62 95 www.alvisegiustian.com

SOFT DRINK R O CCO MEDITERRANEAN SEAFOOD SPECIALTIES

DRINKS AND MORE ON VIA DE’ NERI

San Carlo bar offers continental and American breakfast and brunch, simple but refined lunch, a large aperitivo buffet, and an extensive wine and cocktail list. Music and art create a warm, lively atmosphere while friendly staff members are always ready to cater to any requests. San Carlo is a bar suited to any time of day: great for a quick coffee or snack, a leisurely aperitivo or meal, or simply an after-dinner drink with friends.

Whether you want an iced coffee or a bottle of wine, a beer and crisps or a refreshing soda, Soft Drink Rocco has got you covered. It has everything that you could need at a moment’s notice, selling a wide variety of alcohol, soft drinks and foodstuffs. Snugly settled on Via de’ Neri, if you find yourself in the Santa Croce area and in need of a cold drink on a hot day, or anything for that little gathering of friends you’re having, give them a visit.

Specialty:

TUNA STEAK

Borgo Ognissanti, 32-34/r 055 21 68 79 info@sancarlofirenze.it www.sancarlofirenze.it

Via de’ Neri, 16/r Santa Croce 389 02 50 515 roccosal@hotmail.it

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

CITY BEAT

Santo Spirito Opposes Market Move

A Prestigious Birthday

Gazzarrini Celebrates 200th Anniversary Santo Spirito’s residents are opposing the council project to move the antique market from Piazza Santo Spirito to the recently pedestrianized Piazza del Carmine. Residents of the area have organized a petition and gathered 600 signatures in February, and have counter-proposed to have the market in

both squares. The antique market, which is held on the second Sunday of each month in Piazza Santo Spirito, forms part of the area’s identity. Resident spokesperson Olivia Turchi said, “Piazza del Carmine cannot be transformed casually and cannot be considered as a space to be filled at

any cost; it must change in a way that is spontaneous for the residents of the area. It not a bazaar; it needs to be thoughtout with a coherent program that matches its characteristics and those of the district that it is situated in.” Double the market instead of moving it; will the council approve?

Dave Matthews Band Announces Florence Concert The Dave Matthews Band will perform in Florence this fall. The European tour of the band will start in Lisbon, Portugal, on October 11. The first Italian concert is scheduled at the Mediolanum Forum in Assago, Milan. The band will perform at the Mandela Forum in Florence on October 18 and will host two more concerts in Italy, one in Rome and one in Padua. The format of the concerts will consist of two concerts in one, as experimented by the band in their tour last year.

Saddles and suitcases for 200 years. It all began shortly after Napoleon was exiled to the island of Elba after his military campaigns in Europe. Indeed, it was in 1815 when the Gazzarrini store first opened in Florence. The location was the same as today, Via Porta Rossa. At that time the store’s address was number 13, which corresponds to today’s 71–73/r. The shop initially produced saddles and suitcases. The first landmark change came in 1911 when Giuseppe Gazzarrini, an employee of the shop, bought the firm and decided to specialize in suitcases. In the 1920s the firm began to exhibit at national and international trade fairs, where it was lauded for the quality of its products. One of the Gazzarrini family’s most difficult moments came in 1966, when Florence’s famous flood thor-

oughly damaged the shop. After the flood, the Gazzarrini came up with their most innovative idea. They were the first to introduce ‘rigid suitcases’ to Florence, which at the time just was an American novelty. Traditionally a quality sector, the fine leather sector stands on its own with Gazzarrini as one of Italy’s top products. Today you can find countless leather goods at the shop in Via Porta Rossa, as well as travel accessories and quality brands, including Samsonite, Tumi, and Longchamp, of which Gazzarrini is an exclusive dealer.

Valigeria Gazzarrini Open daily: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Via Porta Rossa, 71-73/r 055 21 27 47 info@valigeriagazzarrini.com www.valigeriagazzarrini.com

Low Mass at St. Mark’s English Church Wednesday, April 1 at 5:30 p.m. at Via Maggio, 16.

A series of meditations on the imagery of the Lamb in the Scripture in relation to Jesus Christ.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

LEISURE

A Florentine St Patrick’s Day

Do Italians celebrate St Patrick’s Day? Not really. At least not in the manner that Irish and Irish-Americans are familiar with. Yet Florence is one of few Italian cities that sees celebrations and festivities come alive on March 17, thanks in large part to the high num-

ber of Americans visiting this city every year. On St Patrick’s Day, Irish Catholics commemorate their patron saint, who converted to Catholicism in fifth-century Ireland and who is associated with the color green given his practice of using the shamrock to

explain the concept of the Holy Trinity. He died on this date in 461. Due to Irish immigration and the subsequent relocation of St. Patrick celebrations to other countries, today March 17 is also a popular feast day outside of Ireland. Italians do not, as a rule, celebrate this particular saint. But for those in Florence this March 17 and throughout the weekend, local Irish pubs and restaurants host events for those who wish to participate celebrations. Concerts, games, special events and Irish food and drinks will be available from March 17–21, courtesy of Irlanda in Festa, the Italian festival honoring St Patrick’s Day. Celtic music and dance performances are also being held as part of the festival at the Obihall Theater. Irish pubs sponsoring St Patrick’s Day-related events are Lochness Lounge on Via dei Benci, Dublin Pub in Via Faenza, One Eyed Jack at Piazza Nazario Sauro and the English pub Kikuya in Via dei Benci.

Jog With a View Jogging in a crowded city with hardly any sufficient sidewalk space can be frustrating, and not to mention dangerous. Luckily, Florence offers some beautiful scenic routes for those who’d like to keep warm and explore the city at the same time. Cascine Park is a great place to go running, with large, grassy open spaces along the Arno. It is located off of Via del Fosso Macinante, and is large enough to get in a full workout while exploring the entirety of the park. If you head east out of the river, you will soon come across paved, treelined parks Parco dell’Alberetar and Parco dell’Anconella, which are per-

fect running spots. Equally, if parks river and to your starting point. are what you’re after to accompany An alternative route starts at the Duoyou during your exercise, (or distract mo, heading south along Via dei Calzyou), how about jogging down to the aiuoli and crossing the Ponte Vecchio, Boboli Gardens behind the Pitti Pal- until the roundabout at Porta Romaace? There’s an entry fee but the gar- na. Turn left onto Via Machiavelli den holds spectacular artworks for and follow the winding road which you to look at whilst you’re jogging, turns into Via Galileo. Veer left upon and it is especially stunning at sunset. reaching Piazzale Michelangelo and For those looking for a flat but long around the back of the square, followrun, start south of the Ponte Vecchio ing the bends onto Via San Miniato. and continue east past Ponte alle Head for the river to get back to your Grazie. At the roundabout at Ponte di starting point. It may seem impossiSan Niccolò, turn right and follow the ble to get proper outdoor exercise in trees along Viale Michelangelo, and a city, but joggers are well rewarded continue all the way around Piazza- with the picturesque routes that Florle Michelangelo. Turn right onto Via ence has to offer outside of the main Galileo to bring you back down to the city streets.

LAMPREDOTTO AND OTHER TYPICAL FLORENTINE SANDWICHES

(Just a few steps from Piazza della Signoria)

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Have Fun in Tuscany on Horseback

IVANA SCATOLA Having explored Tuscany on horseback, the only way this experience could compare would be experiencing it via Vespa or quad bike – two options that tour operator Fun in Tuscany offers as well. The day was jampacked with new experiences, beautiful sights and tastes, and a wonderful group of people: unquestionably one of the best I’ve had in Tuscany yet. After a hack through a beautiful Tuscan forest that weaved in and out of vineyards (where both my horse and I paused to sample some fresh Chianti grapes), we tasted the range of gorgeous homemade honey. We then went on to the ancient hilltop town of San Gimignano (built in 1300), where we experienced incredible gelato and stunning Tuscan views, before moving onto a restaurant villa in which we were given a private room and a traditional Tuscan three-course meal to accompany our wine-tasting (of which we sampled 11!). Fun In Tuscany’s success is attributed to the fact that the tour is unlike other typical, ‘supermarket tourism’ tour

organisers. All tours are undertaken in groups of maximum eight people, and cater to the interests of the group. Private time is provided so that people can explore the place themselves, yet the option is available to follow an organiser if they so wish. In this way, the group and the tour have a very intimate and personal feel, and you really gain the strong impression that the organisers are truly interested in you as people, instead of simply tourists and clients. They took us to places I would never have been able to find myself if I was organising a personal trip; such as a gelateria that has twice won the Gelato World Championships in San Gimignano. They were incredibly obliging to our requests and questions and refreshingly knowledgeable. What I loved seeing most was that they really were enjoying themselves on the tour along with us – having true, genuine Fun in Tuscany.

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FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

EVENTS

Exhibitions

THE COLOUR OF THE SHADOW Until March 8 Pitti Palace, Gallery of Modern Art, Andito degli Angiolini From Tuesday to Sunday: 10am-6.30pm Closed on Monday www.polomuseale.firenze.it

THE OTHER HALF OF HEAVEN Female saints and private devotion in the great Florentine families in the XVII - XIX century Until March 8 Villa La Quiete Friday: 10 a.m.–6 p.m.

EARLY TWENTIETH-CENTURY FLORENCE IN THE WORK OF GUIDO SPADOLINI Until March 12 Municipal Historical Archives of Florence Monday & Friday 10 a.m.–2 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday: 10 a.m.-5.30 p.m.

POWER AND PATHOS March 14–June 21 Piazza Strozzi Daily 9 a.m.–8 p.m., Thursdays 9 a.m.–11 p.m. www.palazzostrozzi.org

THE ART OF FRANCIS Masterpieces of art and lands of Asia from the 13th to the 15th century March 30 – October 11 Accademia Gallery Daily: 8:15 a.m.–6:50 p.m. Closed on Monday

FLORENCE: PHOTOGRAPHY OF A CITY BETWEEN HISTORY AND UP-TO-DATENESS Until April 5 Via Bufalini, 6 Monday to Friday 9 a.m.–7 p.m.; Saturday & Sunday 10 a.m.–1 p.m. / 3 p.m.-7 p.m.; www.entecarifirenze.it

EQUILIBRIUM Until April 12 Ferragamo Museum, Daily 10 a.m.–7.30 p.m.

VAN GOGH ALIVE Until April 12 Chiesa di S.Stefano al Ponte Monday to Thursday: 10am-7.30pm, Friday & Saturday: 10 a.m.–11 p.m. (Except on March 12th, 19th & April 4th); Sunday: 10 a.m.-9 p.m. (Except on March 22nd)

IL MERCATALE DI FIRENZE Quality products market March 7 Piazza della Repubblica 8:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m.

PITTI TASTE Travelling through the diversity of taste March 7-9 Stazione Leopolda Saturday & Sunday: 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (only for business) 12:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. (open to the public) Monday: 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.

SANTO SPIRITO FAIR March 8 Piazza del Carmine 9 a.m.-7:30 p.m.

FORTEZZA ANTIQUARIA March 14-15 Piazza Vittorio Veneto 8 a.m.-8 p.m.

SAINT JOSEPH AND CARPENTERS FAIR March 15 Piazza Santo Spirito 9 a.m-7 p.m.

23RD FAI SPRING DAYS March 21–22 Piazza del Duomo and other various places in Florence and surroundings www.fondoambiente.it ACCADRÀ DOMANI. AN ONGOING ARCHIVE OF ARTISTS’ BOOKS March 21–May 9 Piazza S. Pancrazio 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Closed on Tuesdays, Sundays & Public Holidays www.museomarinomarini.it

Sport

Fairs & Markets

GHERARDO DELLE NOTTI Until May 24 Uffizi Gallery Daily 8:15 a.m.–6:50 p.m. Closed on Monday A CAPITAL AND ITS ARCHITECT Until June 6 State Archives of Florence Monday to Friday: 9 a.m.–5 p.m.; Saturday & Sunday: 10 a.m.–1 p.m. Closed on Easter Monday

SAINT JOSEPH FAIR March 19 Piazza Santa Croce 9 a.m-7 p.m.

FLORENCE ELECTRONICS FAIR March 24-28 Stazione Leopolda 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday March 28th: 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

ARTISTIC GYMNASTICS March 14 Nelson Mandela Forum 10 a.m. for all day long

Music & Dance

SS. ANNUNZIATA FAIR March 25 Piazza SS.Annunziata 9 a.m.-7 p.m.

CIOMPI MONTHLY ANTIQUE FAIR March 29 Piazza dei Ciompi and surrounding streets 9 a.m.-6 p.m.

Folk Festivals

THE FEAST OF THE ANNUNCIATION AND THE FLORENTINE NEW YEAR HISTORICAL PARADE March 25 Basilica SS.Annunziata 3:30 p.m. www.comune.fi.it

Meetings

LENTEN OUTDOOR FAIR/MARKET March 15, 22, 29 Viale Lincoln - Piazzale Kennedy 8 a.m.-8 p.m.

FIRENZE URBAN TRAIL March 7-8 Start from Piazza Santa Croce March 7th: 9 p.m. March 8th: 8:30 a.m.

EXTRAORDINARY OPENING OF VILLA IL GIOIELLO March 15 Villa Il Gioiello 3 p.m., 4 p.m., 5 p.m. Entrance: €9 Bookings: Natural History Museum 055 275 64 44 edumsn@ unifi.it

STABAT MATER March 6 Basilica San Lorenzo From: 9 p.m.

BIRD’S DANCE PROJECT PROGRAM TWO March 7 Teatro Cantiere Florida From: 9 p.m. www.murmuris.it

BALKAN PARTY GORAN BREGOVIC March 13 Teatro Obihall From: 9 p.m. www.pinocchiojazz.it FIDELIO, THE FACE OF FREEDOM March 13 - 17 Florence Opera Theatre Fri. 13 March: 10 a.m. and 8:30 p.m. Sat. 14 March: 4:30 p.m. Sun. 15 March: 4:30 p.m. Mon. 16 March: 10 p.m. Tue. 17 March: 10 p.m. RUDOLPH BUCHBINDER March 19 Florence Opera Theatre From: 8:30 p.m.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

ENTERTAINMENT

ODEON FIRENZE

Canonero Wins Fourth Oscar

Piazza Strozzi, Firenze 055 214 068 Office: 055 295 051 www.odeonfirenze.com Tickets: Regular: €7.50; Reduced: €6* *Every Wednesday; students from Mon. to Fri. and selected partnerships.

INHERENT VICE DIRECTOR: Paul Thomas Anderson GENRE: Comedy | Crime | Drama STARS: Joaquin Phoenix, Josh Brolin, Owen Wilson, Jordan Christian Hearn PLOT: In 1970, drug-fueled Los Angeles detective Larry ‘Doc’ Sportello investigates the disappearance of a former girlfriend.

A PIGEON SAT ON A BRANCH REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE DIRECTOR: Roy Andersson GENRE: Comedy | Drama STARS: Holger Andersson, Nils Westblom, Viktor Gyllenberg, Lotti Törnros PLOT: Roy Andersson’s delightfully off-kilter trilogy about a pair of travelling salesmen who peddle novelty items. Golden Lion winner at last year’s Venice Film Festival.

DATES/HOURS: Monday, March 9: 4–6:45–9 p.m. Tuesday, March 10: 4–6:45–9:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 11: 4–6:45 – 9.30 p.m. Thursday, March 12: 4–6:45–9:30 p.m. Friday, March 13: 9 p.m. Saturday, March 14: 4–6:45–9:30 p.m. Sunday, March 15: 4–6:45–9:30 p.m

Italian costume designer Milena Canonero won an Academy for the Best Achievement in Costume Design for Wes Anderson’s The Grand Budapest Hotel last month and was even praised via Twitter by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Italian Minister of Culture, Dario Franceschini, echoed Renzi in congratulating the costume designer from Turin, saying that this Oscar “is yet another confirmation of the strength and vitality of Italian cinema and creativity.” Canonero previously won Academy Awards for costume design in Barry Lyndon in 1975, Chariots of Fire in 1981 and Marie Antoinette in 2006.

A Sworn Virgin in Berlin

BROOKE FEICHTL

DATES/HOURS: Monday, March 2: 4:30–9 p.m. Wednesday, March 4: 4:30–9 p.m. Thursday, March 5: 4:30–9 p.m.

The Grand Budapest Hotel also won Oscars for Best Achievement in Makeup and Hairstyling, Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score and Best Achievement in Production Design. Other movies that were lauded at the Oscars last month were the film Birdman, directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu and starring Michael Keaton, which was awarded Best Film, Best Director, Best Set Design and Best Photography; while Eddie Redmayne won Best Actor for his portrayal of Stephen Hawking in The Theory of Everything and Julianne Moore received Best Actress for her performance in Still Alice.

Vergine Giurata (Sworn Virgin) was the only Italian film in the main competition at the 65th Berlin International Film Festival. The film received a warm response from the audience but did not win an award. The film depicts the story of an Albanian girl who takes part in a local custom by disguising her female identity in order to avoid social restrictions. It is an Italo-French-Swiss-Albanian co-production featuring the Italian language, an Italian director, Laura Bispuri, and Italian actress, Alba Rohrwacher. Vergine Giurata is Bispuri’s first full-length picture and is an adaptation of the bestselling book by Elvira Dones. The Albanian custom,

called burrnesha or virgjinesha, occurs when a woman takes a vow of chastity, renames herself with a masculine name and wears men’s clothes in order to enjoy social freedom within the patriarchal northern Albanian society. The practice also existed in parts of the western Balkans, such as Kosovo, Macedonia, Serbia and Montenegro. The film provides a commentary on gender, culture and the sworn virgin practice. The film will soon be available in Italian theatres thanks to Cinecittà Luce Institute. Another Italian film, Il Gesto Delle Mani (Hand Gestures) directed by Francesco Clerici, won the prize for best film in the Forum category. The jury applauded the film’s flow that depicted ancient bronze sculpture techniques.

Ben Stiller to Film in Rome FOXCATCHER

ROMEO & JULIET DIRECTOR: Carlo Carlei GENRE: Drama | History | Romance STARS: Hailee Steinfeld, Douglas Booth, Damian Lewis, Laura Morante PLOT: Romeo and Juliet secretly wed despite the sworn contempt their families hold for each another. It is not long, however, before a chain of fateful events changes the lives of both families forever. DATES/HOURS: Monday, March 2: 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 3: 4:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 4: 6:30 p.m. Thursday, March 5: 6:30 p.m.

TUTTI NELLO STESSO PIATTO FESTIVAL: MARCH 6-8

DIRECTOR: Bennett Miller GENRE: Biography | Drama | Sport STARS: Steve Carell, Channing Tatum, Mark Ruffalo, Sienna Miller PLOT: The greatest Olympic Wrestling Champion brother team joins Team Foxcatcher led by multimillionaire sponsor John E. du Pont as they train for the 1988 games in Seoul - a union that leads to unlikely circumstances. DATES/HOURS: Monday, March 16: 4–6:30–9 p.m. Tuesday, March 17: 4–6:30 –9 p.m. Wednesday, March 18: 4–6:30–9 p.m. Thursday, March 19: 4–6:30 p.m. SPECIAL EVENT

METROPOLIS (1927) DIRECTOR: Fritz Lang GENRE: Drama | Sci-Fi STARS: Brigitte Helm, Alfred Abel, Gustav Fröhlich, Rudolf Klein-Rogge PLOT: In a futuristic city sharply divided between the working class and the city planners, the son of the city’s mastermind falls in love with a workingclass prophet who predicts the coming of a savior to mediate their differences. THURSDAY, MARCH 19: 9 P.M.

Rome’s Mayor Ignazio Marino said last month that Ben Stiller will soon be filming in Rome. The announcement came after Marino met with Stiller. The filming is for the sequel to the movie Zoolander and will last 12 weeks, with two weeks of outdoor shots around Rome followed by shooting at Cinecittà studios. The cast is expected to be both Italian and international and to include returning actors such as Owen Wilson and Will Ferrell. Stiller’s wife, Christine Taylor, and Penelope Cruz have signed to return to the sequel. According to rumors, model-turned-actress Cara Delevingne may also appear in the movie.

Ben-Hur Remake Shot in Matera Filming began on January 2 for the remake of the classic movie Ben-Hur in Matera. The film’s director, Timur Bekmambetov, chose to film in the south-eastern Italian city because of its ancient Sassi cave dwellings that are being used as the setting for Jerusalem. The film crew, which includes actors Morgan Freeman and Jack Huston, is expected to work in Matera for one month. Some of its residents will be among the 1000 extras acting as Roman soldiers in the film. The plot depicts the story of the Jewish prince

Juddah Ben-Hur who is tricked and sold into slavery by a trusted friend. The protagonist eventually returns to seek revenge on his enemy. The original 1959 movie starred Charlton Heston as Ben-Hur and Jack Hawkins as Quintus Arrius. The Sassi caves are an UNESCO World Heritage Site and have also been used as a setting in the 1964 film The Gospel According to St Matthew by Pier Paolo Pasolini, and Mel Gibson’s 2004 The Passion of the Christ.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

MUSIC

Porto di Mare – Eskimo

Dancing, Italian-Style

Bridging cultures through live music at the club where all musicians meet IVANA SCATOLA As with any port, Porto di Mare – Eskimo is synonymous with exchange, correspondence, and coming and going. Anyone is welcomed through the doors of this club, which also hosts a pizzeria and cafè. Its focus on live music and cultural exchange is one that the man who started the club, Francesco Cofone, holds close to his heart: “We never play anything recorded here,” he says with a smile. The method of bridging cultures at Porto di Mare is just getting out an instrument and beginning to play. “I’d be keen to talk to anyone who is interested in playing and sharing their music with us,” Francesco says. The club has also created its own big band, the Eskimo Jazz Orchestra. An all-star Tuscan jazz band born under the initiative of Francesco, it includes some of the biggest and respected names on the jazz scene amongst its members. These include trumpeter and band conductor Fabio Morgera, who played under legendary American jazz cornetist, composer and conductor Butch Morris for 30 years in New York; Dario Cecchini, sax and leader of Italian

marching band Funk Off; trumpeter Luca Marianini; trombone player Stefano Scalzi and guitarist Riccardo Onori, who both played alongside renowned Italian singer-songwriter and rapper Jovanotti; percussionists Walter Paoli, ex-member of 1970s Italian jazz, progressive rock and electronic group Area, and Piero Borri; clarinet player Nico Gori; and guitarists Paolo Conte, Ivano Fossati and Riccardo Galardini – to name just (a little more than) a few. The band’s genre has evolved from classical music to a looser, improvised style: “Morris’s idea was to dissolve any sort of ‘formation’ in the orchestra, and for this reason, conducting isn’t undertaken in one style but acts more like a tool for endless different styles,” Fabio Morgera explains. “I conduct a group of musicians but they have complete freedom of the choice of notes; it’s an exchange between us. There’s no rigid music score to follow … In this way, it’s possible to create music together that has an organic quality.” The band performs live at the venue every month, and has already had many requests from specialized magazines to festival directors.

Discover the pizzica tradition at Porto di Mare Club The pizzica is the most traditional dance in southern Italy, originating in the area of Salento in Puglia. This type of dance is part of the so-called tarantelle, typical dances of the South, the origins of which can be traced back to celebrations in honor of the Greek divinity Dionysius. Dissolute, passionate and sensual attitudes were typical aspects of these celebrations, and still are. This music is rooted in the sun-baked ground of southern Italy, and with the most primitive instincts that unite its people in one language; that of the body, which goes beyond differences in sex, religion and race. Southern Italy is not just an area in this country. It is also, and mostly, a

way of life, a mental state. It is precisely this way of life, this mental state that brought together a group of southern Italian musicians in Florence into a band, in order to transmit their passion, traditions and the spirit of their land. The Tarantella Street Band is composed of Francesco Cofone (lead singer), Kira Carson and Angela Benastá (vocalists), Luca Bersaglieri (guitar) Pietro Perri (accordion and mandolin), Gionata Martano and Marcello Zappia (tambourine), Luca Bannella (organ and Calabrian lyre) and Giusy Andrisano, (pizzica master dancer). The band’s intention is to encourage people’s dancing traditions, allowing everyone to take part and learn them,

including those who do not have any experience. The Tarantella Street Band performs on Friday at Porto di Mare – Eskimo, a restaurant and club located just outside the city center (in Via Pisana, 128, near the Ponte alla Vittoria). To get there by bus, catch bus no. 12 from Santa Maria Novella train station in the direction of Piazzale Michelangelo and get off at the Sanzio bus stops, where you will see the club in front of you. Come along and meet Francesco and Giusy, who will teach you the secrets of the pizzica. The atmosphere is familiar and relaxed. If you would like to escape the more touristy confines of the English-speaking city center, then this is the place.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

LEISURE

Get to Know Italian Soccer

American sport culture does not consider the possibility of a tie; it relies on a playoff bracket system. In soccer, on the contrary, a tie can be a honor-

able result or, in other cases, a sort of defeat. Besides the different format of league play, there are multiple leagues and tournaments that take

place at the same time. All of this can seem confusing to Americans trying to follow Italian or European soccer. To help sports fans get better orient-

Formats for Soccer Leagues & Tournaments Round Robin: Every team plays each other once. Points are awarded depending on the outcome of the game. Win = 3 points Tie = 1 point Loss = 0 points Top teams advance. Double Round Robin: Same format as Round Robin, but every team plays each other twice. Aggregate: Used in determining the better of two teams. Each team gets a home and away game. The score is combined between the two games. If there is

a tie in total goals, away goals are used as the decider, e.g.: Real Madrid (H) vs. Bayern Munich (A): Real wins 3-2. Bayern Munich (H) vs. Real Madrid (A): Bayern wins 2-1. Combined score 4-4, away goals in favor of Bayern Munich 2-1. Bayern Munich would win or advance. This format ensures that there is not a home or away favoritism toward any team. Brackets or Knockout: One game played between two teams. Winner advances.

Leagues in Italy & Europe

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Top tournament in Europe. Starts in July and finishes in May. Total of 76 teams are eligible to play. Four play-off rounds that use aggregate styles of play to determine the winners. Double round robin elimination is used once there are only 32 teams left, forming eight groups of four. Top two teams from each group advance and use aggregate bracket elimination to see who reaches the final. The final is only one game held at a pre-determined neutral location.

Mon. to Fri.: 8 a.m.-10 p.m, Saturday: 10 a.m.-6 p.m, Sunday: 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

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YOGA & PILATES IN THE HEART OF FLORENCE • • •

SERIE A Fiorentina vs Milan March 15 at 3 p.m. EUROPA LEAGUE Fiorentina vs Roma March 12 at 9:05 p.m. Keep up to date with Fiorentina at en.violachannel.tv

This tournament is secondary only to the Champions League. Starts in July and finishes in May. Open to 195 teams from around Europe. The League has four rounds of play-offs where additional teams enter the event at every level depending on how they qualify. These games are played in a knockout fashion. Once down to 48 teams, the teams are divided into 12 groups of four and play a round robin format. The top two teams from each group advance. Once down to 24 teams, 12 more teams are added to the tournament and a knockout aggregate fashion tournament commences. The final is a single game format.

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Made up of the top 20 professional teams in Italy. Season runs from mid-August until mid-May. League uses a double round robin format. The top two teams at the end of the season automatically qualify for the Champions League. The third place team gets to compete in a knockout round for a spot to enter the Champions League. The teams placed fourth and fifth qualify for the Europa League Tournament. The team with the most points at the end of the season is deemed the champion, and is awarded the Coppa Campioni d’Italia trophy. At the end of the season the three lowest teams are moved down to the lower league, Serie B, while the top three teams from Serie B are moved up to join the 20 teams of Serie A Played by all 78 professional teams in Italy from all series (Serie A, Serie B, Serie D, and Lega Pro). Begins in August and finishes in May. Once down to eight teams, the highest-ranked eight teams from the previous year join the competition, which creates a knockout bracket for 16 teams. The semi-final is played in a two-legged aggregate scoring manner. The final is played in a single game every year in Rome. The winner of the Coppa Italia qualifies for the Europa League.

THE BAR YOUR MOM WARNED YOU ABOUT The newly reopened Jack is ready to rock ‘n’ roll! Come by for lunch or dinner and try the revamped menu featuring traditional Italian food and American staples. Enjoy live music, DJ sets and the costume parties that Jack has become famous for, as well as two HD screens showcasing special sporting events. If all that Italian espresso just isn’t hitting the mark, drop by OneEyed Jack’s to enjoy American coffee with a free refill between 11 a.m. and 5 p.m. Free wifi is also available.

Daily from 11 a.m. – 2 a.m.

Piazza Nazario Sauro, 2/r 055 09 44 561 www.thejackpub.com

Tickets can be bought through When in Florence, online at it.violachannel.tv, at the stadium and at Fiorentina Point on Viale Manfredo Fanti 85/A.

NEW JOMA FIORENTINA 2014-2015 KITS

Get your Fiorentina shirt with a 15% discount when you show this paper at the FLORENCE CURIOSITY SHOP next to Pizzeria O’Vesuvio in Via De’ Cimatori, 23/r.

HAMBURGERS AND AWARD-WINNING ARTISAN BEER Mostodolce craft brewery was the first of its kind to open in Prato and now supplies twin pubs in Prato and Florence with its award-winning artisan beer. From pitchblack stout to honey beer and a seasonal Christmas variety made from chestnuts, Mostodolce’s range appeals to the most earthy and subtle of palates. Match your choice with complementary dishes created in the pub kitchen: from the hefty flavours of smoked ribs and tortelloni with wild boar ragout to light snacks and the intriguingly named ‘birramisu’.

Open Daily: 11–2 a.m. Via Nazionale, 114/r (near the train station) 055 23 02 928 www.mostodolce.it

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

LEISURE

Stay Connected to College Hoops: Apart From Soccer March Madness in Florence A guide to Florence’s other sports Soccer dominates Italian sporting culture, yet there are several other sports one can engage in while in Florence. Whether you are looking to cheer on horses, catch a foul ball or see a sport that you have never even heard of, Florence has many sporting events to offer. Rugby: Although seen as the evil step-brother to both American football and soccer, rugby does have a presence in Florence. The organization has multiple teams for people of all ages, so there is no telling who you will see playing when you go to the practice pitch. The senior team is called Aeroporto Firenze and still has a number of games to play before the season ends in May. Even though they aren’t professional, it would be fun to see a rugby game in Italy. For more information go to www.firenzerugby1931.it

DYLAN NIKOLETOPOULOS If you are an avid college hoops fan, sometimes studying abroad can get in the way of staying connected with your team back home. However, even while in Italy you don’t have to miss out as your favorite teams make their way to the final four. As the regular college basketball season is coming to an end, the Big Dance picture is a little bit clearer and closer. Florence hosts more than 5000 American students every semester, and local restaurants and bars, realizing that Americans love their sports, offer opportunities for you to watch your favorites. Whether you are a hard-core college hoops fanatic or have no idea why people call it ‘March Madness,’ why not go out and enjoy the college hoops atmosphere around town? Just

as you see Italian soccer fans yelling and cheering in front of TV screens in bars everywhere, you too can show your support for our American teams. This year especially is a year not to miss. With Kentucky ranked in first place with an undefeated record, UVA making historical improvements and Duke triumphing despite the loss of shooting guard Rasheed Sulaimon, there is no shortage of madness going into this year’s March. This March is a calling to everyone from those who don’t know what the Big Dance means, to those who can list every top 25 team’s field goal percentage. Create your bracket, choose your team and see how long your March madness lasts! Following is a list of places that plan on screening College Basketball NCAA March Madness.

SELECTION: Sunday, March 16

FIRST ROUND: March 18–19

SECOND & THIRD ROUNDS: March 20–23

SOUTH & WEST REGIONAL: March 27 & 29

EAST & MIDWEST REGIONAL: March 28 & 30

NATIONAL SEMI-FINALS: April 5

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME: April 7

of the Italia-DNA Silver league. The team plays other local cities such as Lucca, Roseto and Bari, to name a few. Despite being in second to last place with an 8–14 record, the team would love to see some international support. It would also be fun to see how Italian basketball compares to American basketball with March Madness coming up! For more information go to www.affricobasketfirenze.com or call 055 53 85 922. The office is located at Viale Paoli, 20. Baseball: Baseball is great sport to watch with spring right around the corner. MLB spring training won’t be starting for a while so why not take the this time to visit another team? The Fiorentina baseball field is located a couple of blocks from the Fiorentina soccer stadium and is great sport to go watch on an afternoon. The team is currently in Series C but has had success in the past in Series A. For more information go to www. fiorentinabaseball.it or email info@ fiorentinabaseball.it.

Horse Racing: Whenever people think of horse racing in Italy, they often think of Il Palio in Siena. However, Siena is not the only place in Tuscany that offers horse racing. There are American Football: Yes, American multiple styles of racing, including football exists outside of the borders chariot racing. A large venue is open of the USA. Just because we are the to spectators that offers gambling, only ones who watch it, doesn’t mean restaurants and lounges. Located we are the only ones who play it! only 20 minutes from the SMN train Guelfi Firenze is the American footstation, this is a perfect event for a ball team in Florence and currently sunny weekend afternoon. For more plays in the second league under the information go to www.visarno.it or Italian Federation of American Footsend an email to visarno@hid.it. The ball. Although the season is over, the track and office is located at Viale del team would love to play with AmerVisarno, 14. icans. Spend an afternoon with the team running up and down the field, Basketball: Although not the same catching footballs or showing them status as the Los Angeles Lakers, how good you are at the American Fiorentina does have its own profes- sport. For more information go to sional basketball team. The team is www.guelfifirenze.it or call 339 70 12 called Enegan Firenze and is part 020.

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

TRAVEL

Limoncello, Sun and Black Sandy Beaches

Included

Visiting the Amalfi Coast with Bus2alps rento ideal. When first visiting this the world-famous Blue Grotto and the region, visitors are greeted with the peak of Mount Solaro. The grotto is Known for its picturesque sights and sight of Mount Vesuvius looming over not only exceptional because it is an laid-back beach vibe that has attract- the countryside and dramatic views accessible sea cave, but the sunlight ed celebrities, weekend jetsetters and of traditional cities built into sloping that travels through the entrance illuminates the clear water and creates college students from all around the cliffs. world, the Amalfi Coast is one of the As the tour journeys to the Isle of Ca- brilliant blue and green hues. paradises of Italy. It is also home to pri, visitors experience a mystical Mount Solaro is the tallest point of Caa variety of destinations, including place that is home to many ancient pri, reaching 589 meters and providNaples, Pompeii and the Isle of Capri. myths, including the site of the sirens ing unparalleled views of the island. After sunbathing and exploring the March and April are the best time to in Homer’s Odyssey. visit this region because the crowds On the private boat tour around the island, visit the seaside town of Posand heat have not yet swarmed island provided by Bus2alps, you too itano, a short ride from Sant’Agnello the beaches, making the trip with will be captivated, not by mythical and Sorrento. Positano is made up Bus2alps to the Isle of Capri and the creatures, but by the natural beauty of multicolored buildings that cling seaside towns of Positano and Sor- of the area. Visitors also journey to to the cliff above the hot black sand

BROOKE FEICHTL

and pebble beaches. Visitors can enjoy people-watching in the beautiful surroundings and take part in water sports in the pristine waves. Only the Bus2alps tour includes a ferry to Capri with a private boat tour of the island, as well as transportation to Positano and Pompeii. The last day of the trip includes a tour of the ruins of Pompeii accompanied by an optional private guide who will fill your ear with the ancient city’s history. The trip was awarded Second-Best Tour Worldwide and is the two-time winner of Best Tour in Europe by TourRadar in 2012 and 2013.

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Round-trip luxury coach transport (with A/C, DVD, & bathroom) Accommodation with your friends at top-rated hostels Breakfast Private ferry to island of Capri with a private guided boat tour of the island (with a stop at the Blue Grotto) Private transfer to Positano Private transport to Pompeii A Bus2alps trip leader The Amalfi Coast Bus2alps destination guide

FLORENCE NEWS & EVENTS MARCH 2015, NO. 13

TRAVEL

Visit Croatia With Bus2alps

Croatia’s natural beauty makes it one of the best destinations for outdoor activities, relaxing on the beach, and admiring cultural wonders. Untouched sandy beaches, the magnificent wonder of the Krka Waterfall – considered one of the most beautiful waterfalls in Europe – and whitewater rafting on the emerald-green Cetina River are just the beginning of a perfect coastal getaway. The tour focusses on the medieval port town of Split, a city whose birth is associated with the construction of Emperor Diocletian’s Palace in the year 305 ce, located on Croatia’s pristine Dalmatian coast. The first day of the trip includes an optional whitewater rafting trip on

the Cetina River, an adventurous and scenic experience on one of Croatia’s great natural landmarks. Those who don’t join the rafting adventure can spend the day laying out on one of Split’s beaches, join a tour of the Split city center, visit the Diocletian Palace, rent a bike and ride up Marjan Hill, or take a day trip to local surrounding towns, such as Omiš, or the Krka Waterfalls. Omiš, located 25 kilometers from Split, another port town on the gorgeous Dalmatian coast full of interesting tourist attractions, can be accessed by the local bus and is where the Cetina River meets the sea. An optional pub crawl through Split’s nightlife is also offered, ensuring

travelers don’t miss out on the hot- an optional trip to the island town of test spots. The following day gives Trogir, about 30 minutes from Split, to the group a chance to join an op- enjoy one of the many dining options tional private island cruise tour des- available. Trogir was founded by the tined for the island of Brač. Brač is ancient Greeks and today its city cenknown for its rolling hills, isolated ter is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. bays, clear waters and breathtaking On the last day of the tour, you can views – however, it is also home to explore the Krka National Park before medieval buildings and an exciting returning home. range of activities, such as windsurf- Croatian cuisine has many influences, ing in the harbor. For a spectacular from Austro-Hungarian and Slavic to beach day, the island’s most famous Italian (especially Venetian) and othbeach is the Golden Horn, known in er Mediterranean cuisines. Goulash, Croatian as Zlatni Rati, and is famous pasta, grilled meats and skewers, and for its triangular shape with trees in seafood are all common. Croatia has its center. Here, along Golden Horn’s two distinct wine-producing regions, tree-lined beaches, are the remnants the inland and coastal areas, and one of an ancient Roman country villa. of its most popular wines is a Riesling In the evening Bus2alps organizes known as Graševina.

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Round-trip luxury coach transport (with A/C, DVD, & bathroom) Accommodation with your friends at top-rated hostels Breakfast Transport and entrance to Krka Waterfalls National Park Exclusive Bus2alps discounts on various activities (rafting, island hopping, and more) The Croatia Bus2alps informational guide A Bus2alps trip leader

Il Supermercato... da Gustare e deGustare

Sapori & Dintorni is the new way to do the shopping: in the heart of Florence there is a place where Food, Culture and Territory meet. Get in and discover the Supermarket to test and taste! Inside you will find many typical products of the Italian food tradition. Buy your favorite product and taste it within the tasting area.

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THE SUPERMARKETS ARE OPEN: • Monday - Saturday: from 08.30 am to 9.00 pm • Sunday: from 09.30 am to 9.00 pm