For over 27 years, the FMR periodical publication, hailed by subscribers such as Jacqueline Kennedy as “the most beautiful magazine in the world” was eagerly sought after by collectors for the high quality of its art reproductions and in depth articles by celebrated literary and art critics. In its heyday, the magazine was published in five editions in as many different languages.
Founded in 1982 by Parma-born publisher, Franco Maria Ricci, the magazine ceased publication after Ricci sold it to dedicate the last years of his life to the creation of “the world's biggest bamboo maze” on his estate at Fontanellato near Parma, which houses his art collection and a museum in its heart.
The much lamented FMR magazine is now about to be relaunched, under the guide of his widow, Laura Casalis, supported by an team of internationally famous writers, art directors and experts in various cultural fields. Publishing date chosen for the launch of the new edition is the winter solstice, December 2021, and the first number will be issued free of charge to all subscribers for the year 2022. Added perks on offer are: membership of the Franco Maria Ricci Club, free entrance to the Masone Labyrinth at Fontanellato and discounts for subsequent editions and other surprises. The new magazine will be printed once more by the same historic Milanese printers Milani Grafiche, to guarantee the continuing high quality.
Info: Tel. +39.348.5904846 www.francomariaricci.com
The French Academy in Rome has re-introduced its spectacular annual event: “White Night at Villa Medici”, after two years' suspension due to the Covid pandemic.
On the evening of the 4th November 2021 visitors can enter the illuminated gardens of the renaissance villa overlooking the Spanish Steps and meet the 16 fellows who are living there at present and will be exhibiting their work. The artists cover many disciplines, including visual art, music composition, architecture, design, video creation, as well as writers and art historians.
This year's edition is called “Presto, la Notte” (“Quickly, the night”) and is curated by the well-known expert in contemporary art exhibitions and events, Saverio Verini.
Info: Tel. +39.0667611 www.villamedici.it
The Archaeological Park of the Colosseum, which encompasses a vast green area of 40 hectares (just under 100 acres) in the heart of Rome, is embarking on its first olive harvest. The Park, which includes the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill, has 189 olive trees - some venerable “Patriarchs” over a hundred years old, concentrated mainly on the southern slopes of the Palatine Hill, where Rome's emperors had their residences.
The appointment to help with the olive harvest is on the morning of the 28th October 2021, when an olive press will be set up in the in area around the historic Arch of Titus. Organizers expect to produce 120 litres of extra virgin olive oil, which will be marketed under the name “Palatinium” with a label inspired by a fresco design in the Casa dei Grifi on the Palatine.
The initiative is organized by Coldiretti (Confederazione Nazionale Coltivatori Diretti - Italy's major organization representing agricultural entrepreneurs) and the Op Latium organization of olive producers in Lazio.
The Archaeological Park of the Colosseum, however, also produces honey. Some 14 kilos of “Ambrosia del Palatino” were successfully produced this year from the hives positioned near the House of Romulus in a quiet corner of the Palatine Hill rich in variegated plant life.
Next step, according to Park Director Alfonsina Russo, will be wine making from vines planted amidst the remains of the glory of Ancient Rome.
MARGARET STENHOUSE
Info: Tel. +39.06.69984443 www.parcocolosseo.it www.coldiretti.it
After a lengthy and complicated restoration, begin in 2019, Michelangelo's last “Pietà”, known as the “Bandini Pietà” after its first owner, Archbishop Francesco Bandini, is now on show again in the Museum of the Opera of the Duomo in Florence.
According to Vasari, writer of the famous “Lives” of the Renaissance artists, Michelangelo was so dissatisfied with the quality of the marble he was using that he tried to destroy the sculpture. Fortunately, Bandini rescued it and commissioned an artist to tidy it up. It is now considered one of the jewels of the Opera del Duomo collection.
The lengthy and delicate restoration, financed by the Friends of Florence Foundation, revealed that it was not carved in Michelangelo's preferred material, which was the high quality marble of Carrara, but that the enormous 3-ton block had come from the Medici quarries at Seravezza near Lucca. Michelangelo, in fact, had objected that the marble was too hard and gave off sparks when he applied his chisel. Restorers found, in fact, that the stone contained pyrite.
The Pietà, which the artist originally intended to grace his own tomb, is an unusual triangular composition, with a hooded Nicodemus leaning protectively over the body of the dead Christ, which is supported by the Virgin Mary and – unusually – by Mary Magdalene. Michelangelo was into his seventies when he was working on the sculpture and the suffering face of Nicodemus is believed to be his self-portrait.
Info: Tel. +39.055223064 www.friendsofflorence.org https://duomo.firenze.it
The Chicory plant is probably the most underestimated botanical treasure, with an astounding range of widely differing varieties, ranging from the humble little roadside plant with starry blue flowers to the bitter-tasting red-leaved winter salad.
Less known except to gourmets and foody experts, however, is the queen of chicories – the Radicchio Rosso di Treviso (the Red Chicory of Treviso), cultivated exclusively in the fields of 24 municipalities in the Veneto Region and decorated with the exclusive IGP (Indicazione Geografica Protetto) denomination that guarantees not only the place of production but also its unique properties.
The Treviso chicory undergoes what can only be described as a magical transformation before it reaches the market place. For a start, the seedlings are planted in the autumn and harvesting only begins after the fields have suffered a couple of frosts. Uprooted and tied in bunches, the roots are suspended and left for a few weeks dangling in the pure running water from the Dolomite mountain springs. Next stage is the crucial “bleaching”, where the plants are kept in darkness for another couple of weeks. The result is an amazing metamorphosis. The leaves have become elegantly curving natural compositions in variations of white, crimson and purple.
It is not surprising that the Treviso Red Chicory and its variations: the early variety, the late variety and the Castelfranco variation (which is a different shape and colour) are considered gastronomic masterpieces created by man and Nature.
The quality of the three products is guaranteed by the Consortium for the Protection of the Radicchio Rosso di Treviso IGP and the Variegato di Castelfranco IGP, with headquarters in Quinto di Treviso, some 25 kilometres from Venice.
M. STENHOUSE
Info: Tel. +39.0422.486073 www.radicchioditrevisi.it consorzio@radicchioditreviso.it
The Covid pandemic has made some changes to Italian holiday habits. Whereas tourists have been avoiding the major art cities, the small historic “borghi” (villages with under 5000 inhabitants) have been enjoying a visitor boom.
The “borghi” are charming, tranquil destinations, complete with their own historic buildings, works of art, festivals, friendly retreats and splendid surrounding scenery, which constitute just under 70% of Italy's urban reality. Most of them are little known and are by-passed by the mass tourism market.
The “Progetto Borghi” (Historic Village Project), a digital forum dedicated to the regeneration of Italy's little towns, promoted by the Host B2B organization, was launched recently in order to encourage the above trend in increasing visitor numbers.
Backed by important partners such as the Italian Touring Club, the Association of the Authentic Borghi of Italy, the Association of Responsible Tourism, and the Association of Seaside Borghi, as well as the Most Beautiful Borghi of Italy, the project is also supported by the Universities of Calabria, Messina and Cagliari.
After a seven-year closure for restoration and updating, Rome's Planetarium is due to reopen end 2021- early 2022, endowed with a brand new, state-of-the-art system of digital projectors that will replace the old optical projectors and give visitors spectacular close-up views of the surfaces of the Moon, Mars and areas of the Earth.
The original Planetarium was situated within the archaeological complex of the Baths of Diocletian, near Rome's central railway station. Opened in 1928, it was one of the world's first star-gazing installations. When the ancient building proved inadequate, the Planetarium was moved to the EUR district in 2004 and set up inside the spacious Museum of Roman Civilization along with a new,
specially created Museum of Astronomy.
Italy now has Planetariums in all major cities, but only Rome and Turin have the added facility of an astronomical museum attached.
Info: Tel.+39.06.82077.1 www.planetarioroma.it www.zetema.it
A report on a promising reduction in Italy's share of Co2 emissions was presented during the recent All4Climate conference in Milan, held in preparation the UN Climate Change Conference, programmed for the 1-12 November 2021 in Glasgow, Scotland.
The positive news is that over the past ten years, Italy has been steadily gaining more trees. The country's forested areas have expanded and now occupy a total 11 million hectares, equivalent to just over a third of the entire national territory. These trees meanwhile have been hard at work absorbing the harmful Co2 emissions.
According to the latest Italian National Forest Inventory (INFC) report, the regions which have become “greener” are Tuscany, with woods covering 10.4% of its territory, followed by Piedmont and Lombardy. Another positive aspect is that Italy's forests are not confined to the mountains but they are also spreading over hilly and coastal regions, largely due to the abandonment of agricultural land in less accessible or fertile areas.
Italian woods are also rich in biodiversity, with 180 different species of plants censored. Oaks, ilex, beeches and hornbeam are the most prevalent, along with larches and various varieties of pines.
Info: www.sian.it
The small town of Nemi in the Castelli Romani area near Rome, has re-opened the ancient Hermitage dedicated to St. Michael Archangel, situated in a cavern in the cliffs high above Nemi crater lake.
The Hermitage is believed to date back to the 6th century AD and is mentioned in a papal decree of 1183 in which Pope Lucius III transferred the possession of the remote holy site to the monks of Sant'Anastasio di Aquas Salvias in Rome. In a state of abandonment for many years, hidden in undergrowth and virtually inaccessible, Nemi Town Council has now created a new Nature Trail along the cliffside so that hardy walkers are able to visit this interesting site, decorated inside with wall paintings of St.Michael, the Madonna and child and a surprising depiction of Nemi village of bygone days with its distinctive watchtower.
The Nature Trail was inaugurated on the Feast of St. Michael with the first mass to be held in the cave church for 250 years and a re-enactment of the solemn religious processions that took place annually in the past,
Nemi Mayor Alberto Bertucci, declared that the opening of the Hermitage was only one of several initiatives underway to increase tourism attractions to Nemi, which include improvements to the important archaeological site of the Temple of Diana on the lakeside.
Info: www.confraternitadinemi.org
Text & photos M. STENHOUSE
As part of its anti-Covid campaign, Italian railways Trenitalia continue to distribute free safety kits to all passengers on board its Frecciarossa and Frecciargento (Red Arrow and Silver Arrow) trains. The kits consist of a disposable paper bag containing a face mask, a sanitizing gel wipe and a carton of mineral water. First introduced in May 2021 when it became evident that the pandemic would continue into and over the summer, the FS (Ferrovie dello Stato - State Railways) introduced the kit as part of its customer care service. There are 38 Freccia trains operating throughout Italy.
All carriages and seating continue to be disinfected regularly at stations.
Info: www.trenitalia.com
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