It is not only the classical Italian Renaissance art that is on offer in Venice’s rich museum land, there is also an extraordinary modern art collection. Peggy Guggenheim, heir to the Guggenheim fortune, spent her life not only acquiring husbands – she was married to Max Ernst for a while, amongst various others – but … Read more
The most important museum in Venice is, no doubt, the Galleria dell’Accademia, a monumental museum with an incredibly rich collection of Italian Renaissance paintings, starting in the 14th Century. As I mentioned earlier, being predominantly interested in 19th and 20th Century modern art, I didn’t expect to be impressed much with Italian Renaissance art, but … Read more
This is the main museum in Verona. The building, Castelvecchio – so called to distinguish it from a newer castle – originates from the 14th Century, but has been heavily restored in the 1960s. It now houses a museum, with 12th C sculptures as well as several 14th C frescoes from the Veronese school, taken … Read more
Usually the last entry of the blog is a short, or sometimes longer, looking back on the trip, with a personal note often accompanied by some smart-ass observation. So what can I say about almost four weeks Northern Italy? Firstly, that Northern Italians are quite different from their brethren in the South, or at least … Read more
The last few days of our Italy journey we spend exploring the Tuscany region, away from the big towns. Inescapably, that exploration includes wine, as well. We could continue our art journey for weeks more, with the towns of Pisa and Siena only an hour, or so, away from Florence. But there is a limit … Read more
Florence – or Firenze in Italian – has all the art treasures and historical architecture you expect from this major tourist city. But it lacks a bit of atmosphere. The second major target of this trip, after Venice, is Florence – or Firenze, in Italian. Another of those Italian cities with an overdose of historical … Read more
There is little to do in San Marino, except that we can now say that we have been to another independent country. Technically speaking, San Marino does not belong in an Italy blog, of course. The independent Republic of San Marino should really be treated as a country on its own. With 62 km2 and … Read more
It was raining in Ravenna, but that didn’t affect the main attractions in town, an incredible collection of UNESCO World Heritage protected mosaics in several chapels and churches. I wonder why it is that almost everywhere in Northern Italy they have churches and museums with medieval paintings, except in Ravenna? And why is it that … Read more
Along the Brenta Canal, outside Padua, there are several fabulous villas, built in the 16th to 18th Century. We only had time to visit one, the extravagant Villa Pisani. Having admired some of the extravagant villas in Vicenza, we have to attend to some unfinished business outside Padua, as well. On our way in, driving … Read more
Perhaps one of the nicest cities in Northern Italy, Vicenza is all about the architect Palladio, who has had a hand in a wide variety of fabulous tourist attractions – if you like architecture, of course. Going to Vicenza was a bit of an afterthought. We first thought of going from Verona, by train, for … Read more