Dear Art Lover,
Having lived for many years in Firenze,
Italia (translated to Florence, Italy), I have passed many a time and admired the
Demidoff Monument by sculptor Lorenzo Bartolini. My favorite of the marble allegorical sculptures
is a mother holding her sick or perhaps dead child across her lap, in a not unlike
the famous Pietà pose by Michelangelo.
My brother Steve was recently visiting me
here in Italia for the first time and we traveled around quite a lot to give
him a brief taste of this country.
Naturally, while in Firenze, we went to the Medici Chapel (my favorite
place) and the Accademia.
Besides housing Michelangelo’s famous “David,”
the Accademia also houses his marvelous unfinished slaves, many more paintings
and then..the gesso museum… a true delight.
This is where many of the plaster sculptures used to create a copy or
copies into marble (with a point-up system) are stored. Many will still contain the little black dots
on the surface of the plaster. These mark
the high points in an area of each sculpture and help in the roughing out of
the stone, so as not to remove too much material from any given area.
Shown here is the
plaster model from which was carved the marble sculpture for the Metropolitan
Museum. I apologize that my images are
not so clear nor show all the views. My
main camera died in my second fall where I reinjured my knee back in March. Then this smaller camera I bought from a
friend years ago and only used for backups died during my brother’s
vacation. My neighbors were probably
relieved that I was not sporting a camera during our recent dinners
together. Another one has been ordered
in anticipation of my first trip to Sicily soon. Enjoy… and see the Accademia when in
Firenze. There is also a small set of
rooms for the study of music. They have
many unique and/or antique musical instruments there, as well as a handful of
research computers.
For more information on
sculptor Lorenzo Bartolini, click here:
Peace,
Kelly
P.S. Welcome Home, little Levi!
“Love, Vice, and Wisdom” by Bartolini |
Gesso Museo - Plaster Sculpture Museum-Accademia |