Italian romance

Several years ago, I traveled to Italy - an artistic pilgrimage of sorts, to see Pisa, gaze at the mosaics of Ravenna and walk the streets of Florence.  As an art historian (in my other life) I  had always heard about Italian art and culture, so I felt obliged to go.  I even read all of the literature I could get my hands on - including travelogues by Frances Mayes, Henry James, etc.  

  

When I got there, what I discovered was something quite different from what I expected.  Certainly the "obligatory" art work was beautiful - but it was by no means representative of the collection at large.  I found extraordinary mosaics and sculptures and tapestries and architecture that were essentially ignored because they had no "name " attached to their provenance...and I found thousands of tourists clamoring to see all of the great and leaving the rest of the museums virtually unseen.  It was rather sad - that so much artistic angst and passion would go unnoticed.  I think my favorite was the statue of St. John in a palace museum near the river - the only one opened on a Monday. This casting of John was frail and entreating; not the robust neo-Hellenic or Renaissance representation of the saint as we tend to see him. 

I crossed the Ponte Vecchio, which still sports the 14th century merchant shops built after an enormous flood in 1333.  The entire bridge is covered with jewelry shops - ranging from the divine to the outlandish.  On the middle of the bridge there is a bunch of metal locks - hanging rather like grapes from the vine - each of them with the name of some couple who has visited and bridge and has "bound" their love together by attaching their lock to the cluster.  It is sweet and innocent and rather hopeful in a city which can sometimes seem a little jaded.  The best time to visit is early morning - without the tourists - or late at night, when the river mists over and the skies turn that lovely lavender and orange mix.   It was my favorite surprise in Florence, and there were many... 

 

Ravenna was beautiful.  A small town, loaded with history (prior capital of the Roman Empire rates some status I guess) and blessed with talent beyond anything I expected.  Whole churches were encrusted with azures and golds - the most illusory was the transfiguration of Christ at Sant Apollinaire de Classe - lots of imagery that I doubt the simple people of the 6th century would have understood.  I was also fascinated by the sheer effrontery of the mosaics of the emperor and empress in San Vitale - Justinian and Theodora - as they are depicted with popes and saints in the altar of the church.  It says a great deal about the separation of church and state for the period.  Most people just thought they were interesting, but did not consider the implications. 

My Italian journey made me want to return to college for my PhD in Art History so that I could teach my own art history curriculum:  "Art History for non-conformists" or Art History for the politically challenged."  Maybe in a few years you will see me as the guest lecturer at the National Gallery leading non-sheep through the halls and listening to them spout opinions about little known Renaissance artists. 

One final note about the place I stayed in Pisa - Santa Croce di Fossabanda ( an old convent )  - I stayed in one of the novices rooms - very Spartan, overlooking a courtyard.  It was just what the doctor ordered.  Quiet, charming, close to the river, and utterly disarming.  There was even an old and venerable rabbit who watched over the place - one which would perhaps have caught the eye of Albrecht Durer in his search for the perfect rabbit to draw.  Of course, all I could think of was Monty Python...."It's just a bunny...but it had HUGE teeth...."  The mind can produce the most perverse turn to even the most idyllic of moments.

The trip to Italy was challenging, enlightening, and a bit tiring.  I think it warrants a second visit - maybe a stay of two weeks or so - to soak up the culture and really understand why Tuscany is what it is.  Then perhaps I may never want to leave - between the sun and the passion for life which Italians seem to embrace, it would be intoxicating.....