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Here’s our round-up for September, 2022.
Florence gets jazzed up as 120 musicians perform in 10 locations. Get fingers clicking to top-class concerts held everywhere from Renaissance cloisters to classy clubs. Smooth sax, electrifying bass and downbeat drums can all be expected, with entrance fees ranging from free to 15 euro. Big names on Italy’s prolific jazz scene alternate with up-and-coming stars and well-known international players, with audiences awed by all types of jazz, from the cool to the experimental.
Cirk Fantastik awes with avant-garde contemporary circus, setting imaginations alight with artists performing in concerts, readings, talks and workshops, allowing audiences to enter behind-the-scenes. Be dazzled by comedy acrobatic shows, pull up a pew for puppetry and grab a glimpse of aerial dance and live music, letting little ones clown around in free workshops for a family day out. Tickets from free to 15 euro.
World-class speakers tackle burning issues with the first edition of the idea-spreading talk series in Fiesole, exploring possibilities in clean energy, social entrepreneurship, climate and sustainable finance and new technologies. Speakers include Manuel Pulgar-Vidal (global leader of Climate & Energy at WWF) and Sarah Roberts (CEO of Practical Action NGO), speaking around the theme of ‘A Renewed Humanism’.
90 creators of artisanal excellence come to the glorious gardens and centuries-old palazzo with exhibitions, installations, workshops and events that explore the role of crafts in contemporary society. The ballroom will host an exhibition dedicated to vegetable tanned leather with the Abbraccio installation under the loggia keeping viewers lingering. Entrance 10 euro, free for under 12s.
Don’t miss the upcoming episode of ‘Restoration Conversations’, live-streamed from Florence’s Villa Bardini. Presenter Linda Falcone joins co-curator Walter Guadagnini to explore exhibition highlights on location, at ‘Fotografe! Women photographers: Alinari Archives to Contemporary Perspectives. “Our intent is to breathe new life into photography of the past, and see the works of the present under a different light,” says Guadagnini, of this groundbreaking show which sparks a dialogue between photography icons – such as Wanda and Marion Wulz, Margaret Bourke White and Germaine Krull – and emerging female artists of modern-day Italy, including Giulia Parlato, Federica Belli and Sofia Uslenghi. To join the event on September 12, tune in online, at 6.00pm in Italy; 12.00pm EST; 9.00am PST; 5.00pm in the UK. Please use this link: theflr.net/womenphotographers or access directly through The Florentine‘s Facebook and YouTube channels. The event is free. ‘Fotografe!’, open at the Villa Bardini and Forte Belvedere in Florence until October 2, is organized and promoted by Fondazione CR Firenze and Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia, in collaboration with the City of Florence. This ‘Restoration Conversation’, organized by exhibition donor Calliope Arts and The Florentine, explores women’s contributions to the Alinari Archives, one of the finest and most complete of its kind in the world.
The multifaceted Icelandic-Danish artist positions visitors at the core of his reflections on the concept of shared experience. Venture into the artist’s unique engagement with the Renaissance palace, with the courtyard, piano nobile and Strozzina undercroft transformed by colour, water and light-focused works, interacting with the senses and creating lasting impressions.
On show until October 31, Mr. Arbitrium, sculpted by Emanuele Giannelli, rivals the Basilica of San Lorenzo with his five-metre mass. Prior to the statue’s arrival in Florence, the piece spent time in Seravezza’s Palazzo Mediceo and beside Milan’s Arco della Pace, San Michele Church in Lucca and Fortino dei Lorena in Forte dei Marmi.
Five evenings see music and more in the basilica, cloister and cenacle, with guests including Angelo Branduardi, Markus Stockhausen, Petra Magoni and Wim Mertens performing amid the extraordinary cultural heritage of the Santa Croce basilica complex. September 20-24; free admission, reservations required.
All arts weave together for a September of dance, theatre, music, multimedia and performances in an artistic mix that sees 27 events across 22 days involving 120 artists. Make sure to catch free performances like Sabrina Mazzuoli’s From Interstellar to Calore in the Rose Garden at 5.30pm on September 9. Grab a ticket for Oumou Sangaré’s Timbuktu at Teatro Puccini, with 15 euro granting you access to the musical performance that forms part of Festival au Désert.
Guided tours, theatre, cinema, concerts, conversations and insights involve more than 40 cultural entities with over 30 events in 34 locations. Make the most of the chance to see spaces like the historic archive of Maggio Musicale, Casa Schlatter and Villa Il Palmerino, discovering the stories of borgo Pinti, and grabbing a glimpse of the rarely visitable spaces of Casa del Mutilato and Villa Tornabuoni Lemmi. September 8-30; free admission, reservation info online.
Gathering games and playthings together is the fun-filled fest that features hundreds of different games and events, including workshops and competitions for the dedicated and curious. Bring your board-game skills and go head-to-head with gaming geniuses, scoring finds in the secondhand games bazaar.
Over 40 artists perform for the techno fest, including big names like Fisher, Paul Kalkbrenner and Caribou, as well as rising stars such as Kolsch and Nina Kraviz. House and dance fans get a dedicated weekend in the hippodrome, with a full weekend pass costing 89 euro, and VIP tickets priced at 169 euro per day.
September 16-March 31 and September 22-October 3
The artistic display at Museo Novecento pays tribute to the well-known English artist 50 years after his memorable exhibition at Forte Belvedere in 1972, with historical images collected from personal archives. In conjunction, two of his monumental works, Family Group and Large Interior Form, will be exhibited in piazza della Signoria and the churchyard of San Miniato al Monte respectively.
24 September 2022 - 2 October 2022
A veritable “museum for sale” as secretary general of the Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato Fabrizio Moretti defines it, comes to Palazzo Corsini with 75 international galleries displaying 4,500-plus works in a carefully curated display for passionate purchasers. The biennial is coupled with Florence Art Week, as many of the city’s galleries extend their opening hours with an array of events to fascinate art fans.
Sign up for yoga at 10am on Saturday mornings (15 euro) and enjoy a documentary film screening with producer/editor Bobbi-Lea Dionysius at 7pm on September 12 (15 euro). A drama class for adults will be at 7pm on September 14 and an Italian language class at 7pm on September 19.
Catch the Ritmi exhibition with works by Elena Santoni on display at the FAF space in borgo San Frediano. From September 27 to October 1, the FAF Green Festival focuses on women and sustainability, with talks, pop-ups, events around health and wellness, tastings and art installations centred around all things green.
Until September 24, the bookshop/cultural centre at via dei’ Pucci 4 hosts Racconti della Mèria, a free contemporary art series with events varying from a live painting by street artist Mìles accompanied with music by Michelangelo Scandroglio and Luca Zenanaro, to poetic readings and film screenings.
Get into good habits with the free-for-all five-kilometre parkrun in Mensola park every Saturday at 9am.
Knitters find their niche with Hailey Hodge’s free Knit Club every Wednesday from 6-9pm in via Guelfa 114. Message @artisthaileyhodge on IG.
Florentines hail the first bottles of new wine brought from Rufina to Palazzo Vecchio via the traditional oxen-led Carro Matto (crazy cart) on September 24.
Speakeasy Multilingual Happy Hour is a social gathering from 8-11.30pm on September 14. Meet at the Circolo Rondinelli and grab a drink and dinner plate (13 euro for members, 15 euro for non-members)
Autumn at The British Institute
Madness in Romantic Opera by eminent musicologist Matteo Sansone at 6pm on Wednesday, September 14.
Wednesday 21, an intriguing talk titled Santa Trinita: Life and Death in a Renaissance Square in the Library at 6pm, followed immediately by the vernissage for the Florence Art Week exhibition, Love not War, in the SOTTO al British space. The show by four local artists aims to raise humanitarian funding for Ukraine.
Thursday 22 sees the first concert in the new Music al British season at 6.30pm, with works by Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev and Listz performed by Nikita Lukinov.
On Wednesday 28 at 6pm, The British Institute launches their new wine partnership with boutique winery Tenuta degli Dei. The producers will tell their story and serve their excellent wine.
Art Battle Villa Vittoria
Painting gets competitive with 12 talented artists showcasing their skills in a mere 20 minutes to be awarded best of the evening.
September 29; tickets purchasable online only, costing 12 euro
Thrift sale St. James’ Church hosts a charity thrift shop sale on the last Wednesday of the month, from 9.30am to 11.30am on September 28, with a wide range of household items, clothes, toys and more.
Sagra del Tartufo Circolo ARCI II Girone
It’s all things truffles for the 38th edition of the fest in Girone. Sample specialties like truffled rice morsels, taglierini and bistecca, with proceeds donated to the Blue Cross of Pontassieve.
September 1-25; reservations required by calling +39 331 4480285 from 4-6pm.
October 1-2, La Fierucola brings the 23rd International Ceramics fair to piazza Santa Croce.
Celebrated New York artist, illustrator and author well-known for her New Yorker covers, Maira Kalman speaks at midday on September 9, presenting ‘Love and Death with Maira Kalman and Alice B. Toklas’, followed by a reception. RSVP lapietra.events@nyu.edu.
At 7.30pm on September 21, join an apericena at Palazzo San Niccolò for WIN’S Solstice Social, welcoming new and returning members. 20 euro for members, 25 euro for non-members.
Don’t miss the Sunday hike and aperitivo in Fiesole organized by The Florentine and led by licensed guide Jennifer Deckert on September 25, meeting at piazza Mino at 4.30pm, with farm tour and aperitivo (20 euro). Book your spot: press@theflorentine.net
