Art Routes
If I were to name the most Florentine square of all, it would undoubtedly be Piazza SS. Annunziata. Adorned with the Brunelleschi-style loggia, expanded over the centuries on three sides of the square for harmony and completeness, it features the Basilica dedicated to the Virgin—still the heart of Florentine spirituality. The square is also home…
As a hub of Dominican religiosity, the Basilica, steeped in history, engages in a captivating dialogue with the adjacent contemporary Santa Maria Novella Station. The latter, a recent creation by the Tuscan Group under the guidance of Giovanni Michelucci, complements the Basilica, creating a unique fusion of 20th-century design and 14th-century grandeur. This interaction represents…
Who knows what might have happened at night. Cosimo, on horseback, lingers in Piazza della Signoria before returning home after one of the numerous duties that the life of a Grand Duke entails. He savors the quiet of the sleeping city at this hour of the night. The palace stands stern against the blue sky,…
“celeste è questa corrispondenza d’amorosi sensi“ (Celestial is this correspondence of amorous senses) The pristine marble facade of the Santa Croce church stands out against the blue sky. It will be a surprise to find yourself in front of such a majestic building, coming from the tangle of narrow and winding alleys beyond Piazza San…
The David. The David, as we all know him. The one with furrowed brows and a thoughtful gaze. The one with a stone clutched in one hand and a sling in the other, captured just before slaying the giant Goliath. There is not just one in Florence. There are indeed three. One, the authentic masterpiece…
A meticulous visitor, strolling around Florence’s Cathedral, will catch a glimpse of Brunelleschi, somewhat in the background, contemplating his masterpiece, the dome. What might be going through his mind? Perhaps the risk he took proposing a project he couldn’t be sure would stand? He cared little. If the Florentines preferred not to take risks and…
“What do they think they’re doing with that outfit? It always looks like a museum piece!” “What a clean and impeccable house! It’s not at all welcoming; it seems like no one lives there… it looks like a museum!” “How boring… this movie is more tedious than a museum visit!” “Ugh, we have to go…
Florence, the city of the lily, the Marzocco, and the Medici family. Florence, a city embraced by the waters of the Arno, remarkably low during dry spells but alarmingly high in periods of heavy rain. So high that it struck fear into those present on that November 4, 1966… Florence, the city of the dome…