Florence Italy Mimmo Paladino Sculpture Contemporary

Dear Art Lover,

     There is a lot of “meh” and actual disgust going around now in Florence, Italy, [at least among my Florentine and Florence-based friends here] because of contemporary artist Jeff Koon’s current exhibition of two art pieces…. And not JUST here in the Renaissance City, but inside and in front of the Palazzo Vecchio!  [City Hall and in the main square of Florence]. 

     I have been perhaps too vocal about my feelings surrounding this artist and his work on Facebook, so look him up if you are curious about what could possibly disturb me so.

    The great thing is that during this same time there IS a marvelously successful CONTEMPORARY art exhibit in front of an antique building that works beautifully together.  The body of work out front anyway is titled, “The Witnesses,” by Mimmo Paladino.  As you can see, I was there late at night and thus, I have not yet seen the inside.  However, I will certainly do that once back from London.

    These primitive looking figures appear to be made from a volcanic stone; the sign says tufa, which is apparently a more porous form of limestone.  See?  This exhibition has taught me something already!  The artist has also used wood and metal in this composition of figures. I very much love how this works so well with the stone textured wall of the basilica.  I enjoy this area of town and it is a shame that I have never lived in that zone.  That is pretty much the only way I spend any real time anywhere.  But there is a lot going on and I have fond memories of my first trip to Italy in 2004 since I stayed at a hostel around the corner from this piazza.  ‘Twas lovely!

   













     Enjoy these images.  I include a snapshot looking away from the statues because this really cute girl rode up on her bike and starting speaking with the cute guard who watched over for vandals.  I am happy the shot is in focus since I get rather shy about taking these sorts of photos and often move the camera too quickly, ruining my bold effort.  I also included a shot of my friend and fellow painter Susan in front of the stone figures so that you have a better idea of their sizes.

      Exhibition continues until 9 January 2016, which thankfully is longer than what we must endure in Piazza della Signoria.  [There I said it again.  Jajaja]
FREE entrance, Monday – Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
See another Mimmo Paladino installation in historical Florence (also a good fit) that I wrote about years ago:  http://artbyborsheim.blogspot.it/2012/11/florens-2012-culture-week-florence-italy.html
And here:
http://artbyborsheim.blogspot.it/2012/11/the-kindness-of-strangers-and-angry-nun.html
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Let us meet in London!

Art NOW - London!

The Artists Fair - London [Yes, in the UK!]
WHEN: OPENING Preview > Thursday October 22, from 4 - 8 p.m.

Exhibition Hours > Friday & Saturday, October 23 & 24, from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m.

Sunday October 25, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.

WHERE: BARGEHOUSE, OXO Tower Wharf, South Bank, London SE1 9PH
WHY? Featuring Kelly's pastels and charcoal drawings from Morocco

The Artists Fair London 2015 presents 50 emerging and recently established artists from 30 countries (random order): Japan, France, Denmark, Australia, Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, Israel, United Kingdom, Martinique, South Africa, USA, Kosovo, Netherlands, Catalonia, Spain, Poland, Belgium, Sweden, Turkey, Norway, India, Lithuania, Russia, Canada, Taiwan, Finland, Switzerland, Romania, Estonia.

Free entry for visitors.

The great location, steps from both the Hayward Gallery and Tate Modern, and the perfect time, following the Frieze Week, can find yourself, ideally, in the heart of an international, fresh and vibrant art scene.

Receive Priority FREE ticket(s) ... no waiting: http://www.art-now.net/pdf/ART%20NOW%20priority%20ticket.pdf

Feel free to contact us for any information by info@art-now.net
ART NOW The Artists Fair London: www.art-now.net

Thank you for reading and making it all possible.
Peace,
Kelly

~ Kelly Borsheim, sculptor, painter, writer, teacher

http://BorsheimArts.com

Medici Chapel Cappelle Medicee Florence Italy

Cari Amici,
I had a good day yesterday. It is the start of free museum week (properly known as Cultural Heritage Week) in Firenze. I started off by showing up at the Cappelle Medicee. This is one of my favorite places in all of Florence, since Michelangelo’s hand is everywhere. And it was rather peaceful until about 9:30 when the students from local superior (high) schools began to arrive.

In the Cappella dei Principi (Main Chapel) there is much construction going on and one can see stones laid out on the floor and arranged in their patterns before they will be polished. It is amazing to me to consider that stone mosaics were created in the days before electricity. I mean, granite and some marbles are very hard stones. Today we used diamond blades and various power tools to cut and shape stone. With these tools, the work is still tremendous. Without them, the work seems miraculous.



The images that I include here of decorative color patterns and or “paintings” are actually stone mosaics! One is on the floor and the others are on the side of the altar. This place is so beautiful and serene. It will be even more lovely once the restoration is completed and the scaffolding removed. As I left the chapel, I was amused by the little jokes the boys made to each other as some accidentally set off the alarms during security check at the entrance. And also the way the guard tolerated them as harmless silly boys. This interchange diminished for a moment the serious reason that we need to have such controls in place.



I then walked around the building to enter the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana. I had never been inside this Basilica di San Lorenzo, in which the biblioteca (library) resides. On the far side of the garden in the square-shaped courtyard, I overheard a mass taking place. I leaned against the wall near the barely open window to listen. I think that there were only men inside because their deep voices speaking Italian in unison reminded me of when I was a child and the Catholic mass was spoken in Latin. While I have not been a Catholic for a great many years, as I child I was fascinated and somehow comforted by the mysterious ritual in the church services. I remember being horribly disappointed when English replaced the Latin. Somehow understanding the words removed too much mystery for me and I became less aware of the beauty of many voices in a melodic speech.

But I digress – again. On my way home, I stopped by the Bargello, a beautiful sculpture museo near my home. I will write of this tomorrow, I think. And later, I took the bus to the zona Careggi to see my friend Hafiza in the hospital. She had knee surgery last week. During my visit we moved her to another room two flights up. I joked with her that she thinks she is getting better (and she is), but she might beware since they are moving her closer to heaven. In return she fed me some gelled sugar candies that our friend Ernesto had brought her last week. She said that I needed some sweetening up.

I went home to paint a little bit and later my friend Lisa and I went grocery shopping before meeting Anna at Lisa’s house to watch a movie. A nice day, although not much work done. Sometimes I wonder if I can keep up the 12-hour plus pace that I have had for months now.