THE UFFIZI GALLERY -- BY SAMUEL HILT -- PART 1

THE TOP 30 PAINTINGS TO VISIT IN 

FLORENCE'S GREATEST ART MUSEUM

The thing that scares away some fledgling art fans from art literature is the pretentious stuffiness of some books.

Just when we have visited a famous museum and want to learn more, our enthusiasm is dampened by a stuffy author.

We are made to feel stupid is we cannot instantly state 10 things that distinguish Botticelli from Bronzino.

There is zero pretention in The Uffizi Gallery -- The Top 30 Paintings to Visit in Florence's Greatest Art Museum.

In this 60-page book, Samuel Hilt has authored the most down to earth art guide in the history of publishing.

The Uffizi Gallery book review continues tomorrow Oct.6

This book can be purchased for $12.95 by contacting:

WWW.TUSCANYTOURS.COM

 

DOZENS OF SUGGESTIONS FOR FALL FICTION READING

BOOK CRITIC HEIDI JOHNSON-WRIGHT SUGGESTS
A COMBINATION OF CLASSIC AND 
CONTEMPORARY FICTION FOR FALL READING

• The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood
• Drood by Dan Simmons (a perfect companion to Wilkie Collins’ two best books, The Woman in White and The Moonstone.)
• The Resurrectionist by Jack O’Connell
• The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
• My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk
• The Sheltering Sky by Paul Bowles (a perfect companion to the  fantastic non-fiction book, Skeletons on the Zahara by Dean King)
• The First Circle by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
• America Classics: Moby Dick by Herman Melville (a perfect companion to the gripping non-fiction book, In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex by Nathaniel Philbrick); The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald; anything by Raymond Chandler, but esp. Farewell My Lovely and The Big Sleep
• The Alienist by Caleb Carr (a perfect companion to the non-fiction book, Low Life by Luc Sante)
• The Poisonwood Bible by  Barbara Kingsolver (a perfect companion to the  fantastic non-fiction adventure travel book, Blood River: Terrifying Journey Through the World’s Most Dangerous Country by Tim Butcher)
• Waiting for the Barbarians by J.M. Coetzee
• Anything by Graham Greene, but esp. The Heart of the Matter
• Anything by W. G. Sebald
• My three favorites by Mario Vargas Llosa: Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter; Death in the Andes; Feast of the Goat
• The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson
• Loving Frank by Nancy Horan
• The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova
• The Tent of Orange Mist by Paul West
• Two books by Donna Tartt: The Secret History and The Little Friend
• Anything by Arturo Perez-Reverte, esp. Queen of the South and The Painter of Battles
• The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

 

DAWNTOWN DESIGN/BUILD COMPETITION DEADLINE IS 10-31-12

DAWNTOWN ANNOUNCES FIRST EVER

DESIGN BUILD COMPETITION

Our friends at DawnTown/Miami -- including Executive Director Joachim Perez and board members: Andrew Frey, Jean-Francois Lejeune, Terry Riley and Eric Hankin -- have asked us to pass along this notice about a very urban-minded competition for the Magic City.


DawnTown, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting architecture in Miami, is announcing an open call for portfolios to their new competition: DAWNTOWN DESIGN/BUILD.

In the last four years, DawnTown’s annual ideas competitions have attracted designers from around the world to present new and creative possibilities for Miami. 

Now in its fifth year, DawnTown seeks to turn these ideas into reality through DAWNTOWN DESIGN/BUILD.

This competition seeks the talents of a designer or design team to create a low cost, innovative, and temporary installation in Miami.

The competition is open to architects, artists, and all creative professionals. 

Designers can work individually or collaboratively in teams, with the requirement that at least one team member is located in the United States.

Interested designers/design teams must submit a six (6) page PDF. The PDF should include all competing
participants with a short biography of each, a one (1) page essay on their design philosophy, and samples of
their existing work (either built/unbuilt).

Work samples should demonstrate an entrant’s ability to be artistic and innovative.

Entries will be collected from September 17th 2012 to October 31st 2012, with finalists being announced on November 15th 2012. 

For complete rules and requirements to register, visit our website www.dawntown.org.

DAWNTOWN DESIGN/BUILD is made possible by the generous grant of the John S and James L Knight Foundation and The Miami Downtown Development Authority. 

Don’t miss out on a chance to be a part of this inaugural architectural event for Miami!

TUSCANY -- ABBEVILLE PRESS -- PART 6

PHOTOGRAPHS BY SONJA BULLATY AND ANGELO LOMEO. TEXT BY MARIE-ANGE GUILLAUME

Guillaume also recounts the Florence-based relationship between famed writer Henry James and his host (and fellow writer) Constance Fenimore Woolson (grand niece of Fenimore Cooper.)

"Here, I have attained that old-world feeling I used to dream about, a sort of enthusiasm made up of history, mythology, old churches, pictures, statues, vineyards, the Italian sky, dark-eyed peasants, opera-music, Raphael and old Michael....Perhaps I ought to add Henry James. He has been perfectly charming to me for three weeks," penned Fenimore Woolson, referring to Michelangelo as old Michael.

Guillaume's keen sense of storytelling -- coupled with Bullaty's and Lomeo's artistic capturing of said vineyards, statutes, churches, peasants and haystacks -- make Tuscany a must-have travel book.

WWW.ABBEVILLE.COM   $45

TUSCANY -- ABBEVILLE PRESS -- PART 5

PHOTOGRAPHS BY SONJA BULLATY AND ANGELO LOMEO. TEXT BY MARIE-ANGE GUILLAUME

The cathedral of Siena is portrayed in varying displays that show its pure beauty, its scale against the cityscape, its exquisite detailing in close up and its commanding view over the historic town and out into the countryside.

In telling the tale of Michelangelo's endless days of work in Florence and other parts of Italy, Guillaume shares the delicious quote by the artist himself: "I am bruised, exhausted, worn out: such is the fruit of my efforts; death is the inn where, having paid my dues, I'll have bed and board."

WWW.ABBEVILLE.COM   $45

TUSCANY BOOK REVIEW CONTINUES 
TOMORROW -- OCTOBER 2

TUSCANY -- ABBEVILLE PRESS -- PART 4

PHOTOGRAPHS BY SONJA BULLATY AND ANGELO LOMEO. TEXT BY MARIE-ANGE GUILLAUME

The full-color book is divided into chapters on: The Lure of Tuscany; The Land; Springtime and Gardens; Trees and Vineyards; Florence, Siena, and Pisa; Faces; Hilltowns and Abbeys; Marble; Windows and Doors; and The Coast.

Along with all the expected shots of the Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Vecchio and Duomo, the Bullaty-Lomeo team's keen eye produces a haunting image of white grave markers making a brilliant geometric pattern at the American cemetery near Terme di Firenze.

In Siena, an aerial shot captures the enormity of the Piazza del Campo while a brilliant small image depicts two children, barely tall enough to walk, enjoying the fabled public plaza.

WWW.ABBEVILLE.COM   $45

TUSCANY BOOK REVIEW CONTINUES 
TOMORROW -- OCTOBER 1