by Penny | 9 Mar, 2014 | Books, News, poets and poetry, Sculpture, Social History, Tuscan gardens, WW2
Origo family Coat of Arms Clemente Origo Clemente Origo was a resident of Florence but he was also a Marchese, whose family Coat of Arms is shown alongside, with family land in the Tuscan countryside where his heart and understanding was more in tune with nature more...
by Penny | 23 Feb, 2014 | Modern Art, Sculpture, Social History, Women artists
Felicie de Fauveau – (Livorno 1801- Florence 1886) is referred by the Museo D’Orsay in Paris, which displays a collection of her work, as “the Amazon”. She is generally considered to be the first female sculptor to make a living from working...
by Penny | 11 Jan, 2014 | Architecture, Festival of San Giovanni, News, Sculpture, Social History, WW2
I have often mentioned in my Blogs the enormous number of valuable treasures in Florence that are hidden – usually below stairs or in attics around the city – simply because there is not sufficient room in all Florence to display them! Last month however...
by Penny | 9 Oct, 2013 | Religious History, Renaissance Art, Sculpture
This is just my speculation, but last night at the lecture at NYU La Pietra, open evening our lecturer Michael Rocke mentioned amongst the hundreds of words that he reeled off to describe homosexuality that one of them was “Night” and this reminded me of...
by Penny | 8 Oct, 2013 | Books, Exhibitions, Fresco painting, News, Painting, poets and poetry, Renaissance Art, Sculpture, Social History, Tuscan gardens, Women artists, writer's retreat
I am enjoying a combination of many wonderful things this week – decided to share just in case anyone feels there is no life after redundancy! I have never been happier! On Sunday I drove a group of friends to La Foce for their guide Sybilla, to show us around...
by Penny | 30 Aug, 2013 | News, Renaissance Art, Saints, Sculpture, Social History, The Medici
Have you ever noticed how many giraffes there are in early Renaissance paintings in Florence? Some of them look more like the Loch Ness monster than an elegant animal but what happened was that giraffe fever swept Florence in 1486 when al-Ashraf Qaitbay,...
