Framing Art in Florence Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

Ciao! Preparing for an art exhibit is often stressful. It was so in my recent case while preparing for my first solo art exhibit in Florence, Italy. In my case, I was trying to create too many works in too short a time. And I do not see the point in putting an artwork in a frame if she is just not ready to be seen yet. Canceling any semblance of a social life and working lots of extra hours is one thing. Lowering my standards is quite another.

In the end, I removed two intended drawings from my exhibit. I will finish them as soon as I slow down some more. But it was also during this period that I met Lili Baehr. Her daughter Evy is studying photography in Florence and Lili had a dream to come here, too. She became one of my blog readers and rented the best apartment that I have seen in Florence to date. We have connected off and on while her month-long visit is ongoing. I met her friends Lauren and Shirley, and spent several occasions with her sister Lucrecia.


Lili and Lucrecia walked all the way out of the central part of Florence to where I live, only to catch me rushing about. They got a quick tour of my working space and then graciously helped me carry artworks to my framer, Massimo Fossi on Via della Pergola.



So, how about that? Go to meet an artist and you get put to work immediately! Lili thought to take these images of me with Massimo. And I was pleased that they loved my drawings. “Enough!” seemed to draw Lili’s attention again and again. I am grateful that my work has gotten so much high praise (from Lili and Lucrecia, as well as others since that day). Thank you so much.

If you would like to see my solo art exhibit online, click here:
http://borsheimarts.com/lightfromdarkness.htm


Also, an interesting Article: Life, The Brain, and Longevity:

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/article6163496.ece

Cultural Week Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

Today marks the last day of Cultural Week, when all of the state-run museums in Italy are free to enter. Because I have not slowed down since my exhibit opened ten days ago, I did not find out about this until it was already happening. I have delayed most of my schedule so that I could visit as many museums in Florence as possible.

I wanted to head over to the Boboli Gardens (having spent over five hours in the Palazzo Pitti two or three days ago), but it is raining now. Work calls and my laptop is full, so I cannot download more images until I remove lots from my files.

So, I will just leave you with a little bit of humor. This first image I took of a painting of walleyed boobs. I often tell my anatomy students that breasts do NOT consist of a grapefruit cut in half and glued onto the body. And they are NOT headlights, beaming straight ahead, since they lie on the curving egg-shaped form of the rib cage. So, perhaps you can see why I would enjoy this image of an artist taking the opposite extreme.

This painting titled “Portrait of a Woman” is housed in the Accademia in Florence, Italy, not too far from the famous “David” marble sculpture by Michelangelo. The label says something about Ghirlandaio, Michelangelo’s original teacher, but I cannot make it out and it could be from his school, not the maestro himself.

Or how about this one titled “Sant’Agata” by the Scuola Fiorentina, Del Sec. XVII and currently on exhibit in the Pitti Palace? I do not know the story of this particular saint, but “Boobs on a Platter” would be a working title for me. And who said that everything has already been done before? Hmmmm.

La Galleria dell’Accademia also houses many of Florence’s original plaster (gesso) sculptures that were later translated into marble. I love the expression of sorrow of this next artwork and decided that she was perfect for this blog post as she intently gazes forward (towards the “Portrait of a Woman”?) with much . . . empathy.

I was thrilled when a man asked me if I spoke French and could explain to him what the black dots on all of these gessos were. They are, in fact, measuring points. You will see them on all of the high points in a sculpture. The original gesso is placed on a board that corresponds to the proportions of the marble block to be carved. From a fixed point (such as a corner), the artisans will measure height, width, and depth to the black dot on the plaster sculpture and drill into the marble just short of the corresponding position. Once most of the marble is removed, the sculptor can recreate the art with better accuracy.

More about my museum experiences later. A dopo . . .

Art Exhibit Publicity Florence Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

OK, my exhibit opening was well attended and a LOT of fun. I did not get home until around 3 a.m.! In fact, Sei Divino and I will be having another reception, the “Not Quite Closing Party” on Saturday May 2, from about 7 - 11 p.m. here in Florence, Italy.

Besides getting listed in “The Florentine,” here is some more cool publicity:
http://www.absolutearts.com/artsnews/2009/04/16/35509.html
If you can read Japanese, check out this: http://mihodesigns.seesaa.net/article/117542666.html


It was a bit stressful trying to get my art in centro, but I still depend on Hafiza’s bike to help me. Still, I had to leave the very large box with a framed charcoal and pastel drawing at home because I just could not figure out how to load him up. He is quite large. Anyway, once I delivered the remaining artworks to my frame shop in central Florence, I was ready to call a taxi.

Once at Sei Divino, Antonio helped me relax and soon, I was back to my efficient confident self as we hung the artwork. It is the unknowns that cause stress and I always fear that tasks will take longer than I think (because I have little concept of time). Simo (short for Simone), the cook, was preparing that night’s yummies. Two of the three co-owners Cristian and Fabiano came in a wee bit later and Fabiano told me that this was the best exhibit they have had here. He told me that a man from Sicily called to find out more about my exhibit. People were wonderfully kind to me, and after midnight my friend Tuulia came over to pull me onto the “dance floor”; a joyous evening.

Normally, I am the photographer for my friends’ events, but not so much for my own this evening. I ended up photographing the exhibit after Sei Divino was closed and again the next afternoon. I had to go back anyway to replace a sold drawing with a new one.

So, I hope that you can see the exhibit, either online:
borsheimarts.com/lightfromdarkness.htm
Or with me again on 2 May in the evening. And later, we could dance . . .


P.S. Happy Birthday, Grandma Viv!

Happy Earth Day Florence Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

Since it is Earth Day, I thought I would show you a few more of the photographs that I have taken of my Italian friend Doria’s charming garden not too far from central Florence. Can you tell that tulips are my favorite flowers?









Only yesterday I learned that THIS WEEK is Cultural Week in Italy. All of the State-run Museums are FREE to enter. I have work to do! April 18-26, 2009. For more information, call 800 991199 or visit www.beniculturali.it

Now, make a wish! Or as Luca told me they do in Italia, say “Pippo Filippo” (pee-poh fee-lee-poh). The puffing wind that your breath makes when you make these syllables blows the seeds from the dente di leone (assuming you put the flower up to your lips first). Happy Earth Day, it is a “let us wash each other’s back” situation . . .

Belly Dancing Calenzano Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

My inaugurazione (art reception) at Sei Divino here in Florence, Italy, went well last Thursday night. The reception was 7 - 11 p.m., but there were still lots of people there and I was pulled onto the dance floor around midnight. Home by 3 a.m. and the next night was a 1920s-theme birthday party for my friend Terra. I will write more about my exhibit when I can get caught up and in a few days, you may see 1920-party images on Facebook, if you like.


Saturday morning my friend Susan called me. We met at the Santa Maria Novella train station about noon - just as hail poured down on us (made me laugh) and we caught the # 2 bus to Calenzano. We found the dance studio on Via Vivaldi and caught up with the workshop being conducted by Aisha Ali. It was really fun. If I were not a sculptor (and if I had not been born such a shy person), I would definitely have been a dancer.


The music was great. Back in the 1970s, Aisha went to many countries and began to record the music she heard there. We danced to Egyptian, Tunisian, Moroccan, and Algerian music. I think we had a group of about 50 dancers. It was so great to be inside a real dance studio - with the bar along one wall and the mirrors against the other. Most everyone wore belly-dancing attire. There was so much color in the room!

Today, I go to meet my friend Elena in Piazza della Repubblica. She designs shoes for Gucci and made a trasloco to Roma with the company back in February. So today will be a fun reunion.

On a more serious note, several people have written to me asking how they can help me to help the victims of the terremoto (earthquake) here in Italy. I do not have an easy way to set up fundraising to help the Italian earthquake victims. However, fellow blogger, Sara Rosso, wrote a wonderful personal story and gave resources on how you can help.

Check out her blog entry:

http://www.msadventuresinitaly.com/blog/2009/04/07/earthquake-in-abruzzo-italy-and-reflections-on-another-california-earthquake/

Buona Pasqua Florence Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

Buona Pasqua or Happy Easter, as you wish. Since I am still very busy working to finish several paintings and drawings before my solo exhibit opens this Thursday in Florence, Italy, I will leave you with the following.

Last year, I wrote about the “Explosion of the Cart” that happens each Easter between Florence’s famous Duomo and Bastistry. To find out the connection between explosions and the religious holiday of Easter, please click on the link below.


http://artbyborsheim.blogspot.com/2008/03/easter-in-florence-italy.html

I also want to leave you with a few of the snapshots that I have taken of Doria and Luca’s garden. I feel fortunate to live with them. And finally, the full moon as I saw him over the Porta San Niccolò along the Arno River the other night. Enjoy this weekend and now, I paint.

Giambologna Florence Italy

Cari Amici (Dear Friends),

I mentioned sculptor Giambologna’s famous composition “Il Ratto delle Sabines” in my last post. It is one of my favorite sculptures. The final artwork is in stone and is one of the few original sculptures still on exhibit in the main piazza of Florence, Italy. Unfortunately, that public privilege keeps getting debated as more pollution makes it difficult to protect the marble.

Also, vandalism reared its ugly head recently when someone broke off a finger from Italian artist Pio Fedi’s marvelous stone carving of four figures, which is also one of the original artworks still on exhibit in this same space, the Loggia dei Lanzi. The discovery of the finger nearby is what clued in authorities about the damage. Horrible.

Back in 2004 during my first visit to Florence, I saw Giambologna’s original clay sculpture that was later translated into marble in the Academia. He was seeking to create a perfect composition in 3-dimensions. The spiral was the answer. The composition as seen from each viewing position would entice the audience to want to see what other views were offered.

As an artist it made sense to me that Giambologna did not start out with the famous (in his time) story of the abduction of the Sabines as his tema (theme). Someone suggested this titolo later and Giambologna had to design the bronze bas reliefs depicting more of the story for the tall stone base of his original sculpture.

Yes, sometimes the titles come first, but just as often, they come afterwards, or even during the creation of art. As visual artists, we communicate with a different language that consists of visual and tactile elements, such as line, shapes, tones, and texture.

The images you see here were taken at various times over the course of several years. The first one shows Giambologna’s “Il Ratto delle Sabines” in front of a projected image taken during the famous flood of 1966. I took this during the 40th anniversary event of the flood, November 4, 2006.



This last image is part of my giclée fundraising series to help the young man Rudy Sanchez that I have mentored since 1992. Rudy was born with Treacher Collins’ Syndrome. Years ago, the facial reconstruction doctors removed the last of Rudy’s teeth in order to reshape his jaw. However, through some Medicare law, teeth are considered cosmetic and therefore optional surgery (not paid for). So, Rudy needs $13,000 for a complete set of teeth. His family does not have that, nor do I.

If this image or any of my Italy images appeal to you, please consider purchasing a giclée or more (quantity savings apply) and know that your new artwork will enhance more than the lives that you share the art with. For more information about the art and about Rudy and Treacher Collins, please visit: Treacher Collins’ Art Project

Thank you so much!