Draw strength from beauty.   On Tuesday, I stood, masked, on Ponte alla Carraia for 10 minutes between appointments and drank in all of Florence’s perpetual possibilities. Horace coined carpe diem back in 23 BC and now we seize today while doing our best to protect tomorrow. It’s tiring, we’re exhausted, I know. But standing […]

Intesa Sanpaolo will provide the selected companies with up to 50 million euro in impact loans.

Rules on face protection, physical distancing and the closure of nightclubs and stadiums remain in effect.

Walking down the central aisle and up the burgundy red felt steps onto the historic boards of Florence’s oldest theatre, Teatro della Pergola, stirred surreal feelings in these dark times devoid of live indoor performances.   But Hershey Felder, Canada born to European parents and with a decidedly European heart, has developed an antidote, a […]

Covid-19 has rocked our world, and none more so than for working women around the world, especially in Italy.

A reminder of the Covid-19 rules in place in Florence and Tuscany.

  I donned my “shark” mask to visit Prato. Hand-stitched from Pucci silk castoffs with a jagged azure on sky blue pattern, the RN reuse of fabrics seemed appropriate attire for lunch in the (more than) textiles town.         There’s another, more idiomatic reason why I went with the predatory fish theme. […]

I first met Maria Manetti Shrem one overcast evening on the rooftop of Palazzo Gondi. The exchange was short but special. It was as though the clouds had opened and the sun shone as Maria joyfully exclaimed at the view of the Duomo with her trademark elan. Across the miles—Maria’s currently in California when she’s […]

  The cicadas were keen to get in on the act as Hershey Felder and his Florentine crew filmed memory sequences for the upcoming Beethoven play at the pianist and performer’s Tuscan castle, which will be live streamed on Sunday, July 12.   No bigger than a paperclip, the herbivores (the cicadas, not the crew; […]

Creative community space Numeroventi is sparking a conversation between Florence and its communities after the Covid-19 lockdown with the collaborative new exhibition titled Past Florence Future – So Close So Good.           Situated in Palazzo Galli Tassi, along via de Pandolfini, the show involves Tuscan-based artists and designers, who address issues […]