History & culture

Thinking About Italians

October 2018 |
During my first airplane ride to the U.S., a blonde hostess asked me if I wanted ice in my ginger ale. I kindly declined thinking to myself “ice, with this cold?” It was October, we were thousands of feet above the ground and I was already...

Le Superstizioni Italiane

October 2018 |
With the arrival of fall comes many things. The air is crisper, the leaves are crunchier and the superstitions are numerous. Superstitions come in a variety, from the mundane to the extreme. In October, the belief in these superstitions becomes...

See Art for Free in Italy: Visit the Cemetery!

September 2018 |
Italy is packed with art, but not just in museums where some of the most famous paintings, sculptures and tapestries are on display. The country is full of artistic works that can be viewed free of charge. For example, sculptures can be found in...

Things You Might Not Know

September 2018 |
Ballet was invented and performed for the first time in Florence in the Italian Renaissance courts during the 15th and 16th centuries. Catherine de’ Medici, an Italian aristocrat who later became the Queen of France, brought ballet to France where...

Back to School in Italy

September 2018 |
La fine delle vacanze estive ed il rientro a scuola a settembre rappresentano un appuntamento molto importante per scolari e genitori. Il primo giorno dietro ai banchi significa anche avere tutto l’occorrente per essere preparati a varcare la...

A Civic Commission by Andrea Gritti, Doge of Venice

September 2018 |
Un manoscritto miniato è un libro scritto a mano su pergamena o pelle di animale e decorato con vernice colorata e foglie d’oro e che costituì il metodo di produzione di testi  fino all’introduzione della stampa dopo il XV secolo. Tuttavia,...

Ferragosto: The Peak of Italy's Month of Relaxation

August 2018 |
The middle of August is a grand time for Italian vacations and commemorations as several festivals occur during this month. Ferragosto occurs on August 15 and for many Italians it is considered the peak of the vacation season for those ready to...

Painting in Siena Following the Black Death

August 2018 |
Neroccio de’ Landi fu pittore e scultore del primo Rinascimento a Siena. In entrambe queste arti figurative egli fu allievo del Vecchietta, di cui rilevò la bottega nel 1480, ma dal 1469 circa al ‘75 fu anche socio di Francesco Martini, forse...

A Portrait Medal by Pisanello

July 2018 |
Within the Byzantine gallery of the Cleveland Museum of Art may be found a portrait medal cast in lead, not by a Byzantine artist, but by the leading medallist of 15th century Italy, Antonio di Puccio Pisano, commonly known as “Pisanello.”...
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