The newsmaker

The newsmaker

Florentines know him well, and Italians-as well as the rest of the world-are starting to find out who this young and ambitious politician really is.   When 35-year-old Matteo Renzi was elected mayor of Florence in June 2009, he was nicknamed the ‘boy-scout' candidate

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Thu 09 Sep 2010 12:00 AM

Florentines know him well, and Italians-as well as the rest of the world-are starting to find out who this young and ambitious politician really is.

 

When 35-year-old Matteo Renzi was elected mayor of Florence in June 2009, he was nicknamed the ‘boy-scout’ candidate for his youthful appearance. However, after one year in office, he is increasingly being considered Florence’s ‘revolutionary’ mayor for the many changes he has championed in the city and for his commitment to ‘re-launching one of the world’s most well-known cities, and improving citizens’ quality of life,’ a comment he made after making the Duomo area a pedestrian-only zone in one month’s time (see TF 109).

 

Tourists and residents likely appreciate the fact that Renzi stayed in Florence throughout the summer to clean up (see related articles this issue), devising an action plan to make it cleaner and more liveable, respected-and loved.

 

He has not been quiet about his work. A formidable communicator, a politician who is considered modern and in line with the times, he is noted for understanding the potential of social media (he has over 12,000 Facebook fans and counting) as a useful tool for reaching out to the citizenry.

 

He is also outspoken about residents’ role in changing their city. On September 28, Renzi, along with members of the local administration, will meet with groups of citizens to discuss the ‘future of Florence.’ These citizen assemblies will take place simultaneously in 100 areas of the historic city centre and periphery that have been identified as being in dire need of renewal. The aim of the assemblies is to gather opinions and suggestions from locals about areas that need a ‘new face.’ (Follow this story in subsequent issues as TF continues a focus on the mayor’s renewal agenda.)

 

Indeed, after one year at the helm of the city, whether he is liked or not, Renzi has provoked, instigated, urged and called on the local citizenry get involved in the city’s greater plan for renewal, change and beauty. He and other members of the local administration have done so by meeting with locals on the streets, and through BarCamps, citizen assemblies, the Internet, and use of social media. TF’s Suzi Jenkins was right when she said ‘In a relatively short period of time, Florence has started to give change a chance. Change in the way the city is governed, change in the city’s infrastructure, and change in the tools that are used to communicate that change. That’s a whole lot of change’ (see TF 119, ‘Change, the hardest thing of all’). 

 

And the world is starting to notice.

 

In a recent article, ‘Italy: Five Ways,’ Travel+Leisure magazine correspondent Valerie Waterhouse writes, ‘The birthplace of the Italian Renaissance has become a hot spot for contemporary creativity,’ referring to the renewed importance the city has been giving to the contemporary arts.

 

The German weekly Stern recently published an article on Florence in which the author, Claus Lutterbeck, tells readers, ‘Florence is changing; go there.’ Lutterbeck spent a few days in the city over the summer and dedicated much space to mayor Renzi, whom he describes as ‘left-wing, young, fresh and with lots of fans . . . on Facebook.’ Lutterbeck also cited a young Florentine at the Oblate Library who told him, ‘Florence was a city for old people; now it belongs to us.’

 

Is this new perception of Florence as a ‘young and modern city’ a reflection of its ‘young and modern’ mayor? Despite political affiliation and regardless of whether one agrees with the mayor or not, it has to be noted that the media dotes on such political flair, freshness and enthusiasm in politics. Renzi’s methods and comments make headlines here in Italy and around the world. An example is his recent effort to renew the rather old debate on the ownership of Michelangelo’s David and, more importantly, who has the right to the fill its coffers with the eight million euro in ticket admissions that the sculpture draws in annually (see TF’s Facebook page for major news outlets that covered the story).

 

In the end, as the saying goes, all news is good news. For if the world is talking about Renzi, it is also talking about Florence.

 

 

The debacle over the ownership of the David has received international attention, making headlines in major Italian and English-language news outlets across the world. The editors at TF posted two stories on TF’s Facebook Fan page and received numerous comments. See a selection below:

 

(posted by Sheila Colton Rogers) David belongs to Firenze. Having watched the video, and heard what mayor Renzi has to say, I am in total agreement. I have been to Florence two times, and seeing this gorgeous statue in the Accademia will bring tears to your eyes. Something as beautiful as Michaelangelo’s statue of David, belongs in a place as beautiful as Florence.   

 

(posted by Deanna Mulligan Vera) The David belongs in Florence. Although I’d have to question Renzi’s comment about the tourists leaving the graffitti. The graffitti extends far beyond the lines for the Accademia. The graffitti was the worst I had ever seen it this year and it’s clearly not [all] by the hands of tourists.

 

(posted by Brooke Puglise)…Florence is the most beautiful city in my opinion. I agree with the mayor’s wishes to improve the management of the Uffizi that is currently nationally ran. The money from tourism should all go to Florence. It’s naturally Florentine.

 

(posted by Sandro Rosseti)…The David’s ownership (art has always been sold and bought) issue is not about whether it’s the symbol of Florence, but about the 8 million euros that come from selling the entrance tickets. Both Rome and Florence are hungry for the money-the symbol issue is just smoke in the eyes. And regarding the property itself, the question raised by the lawyers is a deeper one: let’s say that the David was bought by the Repubblica Fiorentina (there are well-known documents about this), but can the present city be considered the natural historical development of that, or it is a totally different institution and for that reason it ca’t claim the property? The implications of this question are huge, and not only in Florence. Should the David’s ownership be assigned to the state, it would be a passkey for reclaiming a number of artworks and their revenues…

 

 

See more posts at www.facebook.com/pages/The-Florentine

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