In this special Covid-19 edition of The Florentine, rejoice in a renewed humanism from Florence, of learning, words, thoughts and creativity, with articles, poems and short stories penned by the city’s international community, plus ideas and considerations for the future from Tuscany’s leaders and institutional figures, all interspersed with iconic photography of Florence at its most restful.
Directed by: J. Brivilati
“It’s like waking up from a dream. And then you begin wondering ‘where am I going?’ And to answer that question you have to try and find out what you want. ‘What do I want to happen? How far we could go?’ – Alan Watts”
A short film I made about my last trip to Atacama, Chile, in 2020. There’s a kind of effect, something magical that happens to you in the middle of the desert. To have nothing to listen to if not the mixing of wind and your breath it forces you to look inside, to talk to your soul. This trip meant a new opportunity to learn about my experience on this planet, to learn about humility and to connect with Mother Earth.
The Atacama Desert (Spanish: Desierto de Atacama) is a desert plateau in South America covering a 1,000 km (600 mi) strip of land on the Pacific coast, west of the Andes Mountains. The Atacama Desert is one of the driest places in the world, as well as the only true desert to receive less precipitation than the polar deserts. According to estimates, the Atacama Desert occupies 105,000 km2 (41,000 sq mi), or 128,000 km2 (49,000 sq mi) if the barren lower slopes of the Andes are included. Most of the desert is composed of stony terrain, salt lakes (salares), sand, and felsic lava that flows towards the Andes.
The desert owes its extreme aridity to a constant temperature inversion due to the cool north-flowing Humboldt ocean current and to the presence of the strong Pacific anticyclone. The most arid region of the Atacama Desert is situated between two mountain chains (the Andes and the Chilean Coast Range) of sufficient height to prevent moisture advection from either the Pacific or the Atlantic Ocean, a two-sided rain shadow.(From Wikipedia)
Whether called “teardrop” or “mini-caravan”, the Carapate is distinguished by its design, technical innovations and careful finishes.
The Carapate offers a maximum of possibilities in a minimum of space. Ingenious and comfortable, it accompanies you during your weekends and trips
Its optimal weight, around 450kg depending on the options, allows it to be towed by most cars with just its B license in its pocket. Its optimized dimensions (3.20m / 1.90m) make it a handy vehicle, easy to move and winter. It will pass all the parking gantries and tolls at no additional cost. Its studied height (1.70m) ensures good handling and low consumption during your getaways.
The insulating qualities of its wooden structure (marine plywood) promise you great nights, summer and winter. Its carefully studied bedding is delivered with the compliments of the sandman.
Solar panel, shore socket, 220 volt sockets, USB ports, cigarette lighter; so many possibilities to enjoy the “Carapate” while traveling or at the campsite. Freedom is yours!
Originally comprising vast areas of the North Shores of Long Island, the Gold Coast was a favorite retreat of the rich and famous. Beginning around the turn of the century and through the 1920’s, the North Shore was the place to be for some of the most notable Americans. Along with grand houses, they built elaborate gardens, hiring such notable architects and landscape architects as Delano and Aldrich, Carrere and Hastings, the Olmsted Brothers, and Beatrix Farrand. Discover the gardens, as they were originally built, and learn about their history, landscape design, and present condition. This event was presented through the generous support of the Boston Design Center as part of the ICAA-NE Design Series.
CeCe Haydock graduated from Princeton University (BA English) and received a master’s degree in landscape architecture from the SUNY School of Environmental Science and Forestry. After working for the New York City Parks Department, she joined the firm, Innocenti and Webel in Locust Valley, NY, before starting her private practice. In 2007, she did research as a Visiting Scholar at the American Academy in Rome on Edith Wharton and Italian villas. She has lectured and written on historic Italian, French, and American gardens for Old Westbury Gardens, Maryland’s Ladew Topiary Gardens, Princeton University, and numerous garden and horticultural clubs. A trustee of Planting Fields Arboretum and a member of the International Council of The Preservation Society of Newport County, she is a visiting lecturer at the New York Botanic Garden and an adjunct professor at Long Island University. CeCe is currently expanding her private practice to include landscape sustainability.
Get ready for a Rocky Mountain adventure over the state that boasts some of the highest peaks, tallest sand dunes and largest single-site brewery in America. Every year Colorado attracts music lovers, ski buffs, and sports fans drawn to its Red Rocks, Aspen slopes and the Broncos’ Mile High Stadium. But it is also a state with a history, marked by war, a gold rush and legendary bank robberies. Through it all, Colorado remains a feast for the eyes.
The 12-storey Oscar Seppeltsfield hotel will have 70 rooms, each with a private balcony. The design of the building, which was conceived by Intro Architecture, is said to be inspired by the history of the winery and the wine barrels in its Centennial Cellar, which contains barrels of fortified wine dating back to 1878.
It will be constructed in the middle of Seppeltsfield’s Great Terraced Vineyard, which contains 60 to 80-year-old Grenache bush vines.
The hotel is named after winemaker and viticulturalist Oscar Benno Seppelt (1873-1963), a member of the family that founded the winery.
Filmed and Edited by: JÉRÉMIE ELOY, Wanali Films
Filmed on April 1, 2020
Saint-Malo is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany on the English Channel coast.
The walled city had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth from local extortion and overseas adventures. In 1944, the Allies heavily bombarded Saint-Malo, which was garrisoned by German troops. The city changed into a popular tourist centre, with a ferry terminal serving the Channel Islands of Jersey and Guernsey, as well as the Southern English settlements of Portsmouth, Hampshire and Poole, Dorset.
Founded by Gauls in the 1st century BC, the ancient town on the site of Saint-Malo was known as the Roman Reginca or Aletum. By the late 4th century AD, the Saint-Servan district was the site of a major Saxon Shore promontory fort that protected the Rance estuary from seaborne raiders from beyond the frontiers. According to the Notitia Dignitatum, the fort was garrisoned by the militum Martensium under a dux (commander) of the Tractus Armoricanus and Nervicanus section of the litus Saxonicum. During the decline of the Western Roman Empire, Armorica (modern-day Brittany) rebelled from Roman rule under the Bagaudae and in the 5th and 6th centuries received many Celtic Britons fleeing instability across the Channel. The modern Saint-Malo traces its origins to a monastic settlement founded by Saint Aaron and Saint Brendan early in the sixth century. Its name is derived from a man said to have been a follower of Brendan the Navigator, Saint Malo or Maclou, an immigrant from what is now Wales.
Saint-Malo is the setting of Marie de France’s poem “Laüstic,” an 11th-century love story. The city had a tradition of asserting its autonomy in dealings with the French authorities and even with the local Breton authorities. From 1590 to 1593, Saint-Malo declared itself to be an independent republic, taking the motto “not French, not Breton, but Malouin.
From Wikipedia
Filmed and Edited by: JÉRÉMIE ELOY, Wanali Films
Filmed on April 3, 2020
Le Mont-Saint-Michel is a tidal island and mainland commune in Normandy, France. The island is located about one kilometer off the country’s northwestern coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches and is 7 hectares in area.
The original site was founded by an Irish hermit, who gathered a following from the local community. Mont-Saint-Michel was used in the sixth and seventh centuries as an Armorican stronghold of Gallo-Roman culture and power until it was ransacked by the Franks, thus ending the trans-channel culture that had stood since the departure of the Romans in 460. From roughly the fifth to the eighth century, Mont Saint-Michel belonged to the territory of Neustria and, in the early ninth century, was an important place in the marches of Neustria.
When Louis XI of France founded the Order of Saint Michael in 1469, he intended that the abbey church of Mont Saint-Michel become the chapel for the Order, but because of its great distance from Paris, his intention could never be realised.
The wealth and influence of the abbey extended to many daughter foundations, including St. Michael’s Mount in Cornwall. However, its popularity and prestige as a centre of pilgrimage waned with the Reformation, and by the time of the French Revolution there were scarcely any monks in residence. The abbey was closed and converted into a prison, initially to hold clerical opponents of the republican regime. High-profile political prisoners followed, but by 1836, influential figures—including Victor Hugo—had launched a campaign to restore what was seen as a national architectural treasure. The prison was finally closed in 1863, and the mount was declared a historic monument in 1874. Mont Saint-Michel and its bay were added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1979, and it was listed with criteria such as cultural, historical, and architectural significance, as well as human-created and natural beauty.
From Wikipedia
Although our galleries are temporarily closed we wanted to share the Andy Warhol exhibition at Tate Modern with you. Join Tate curators Gregor Muir and Fiontán Moran as they discuss Warhol through the lens of the immigrant story, his LGBTQI identity and concerns with death and religion.
Meet the man behind the brand. It’s a Warhol you might not know, with some artworks you may not have seen before.
Find out more about the exhibition here
The Amalfi Coast is the pinnacle of the Italian dream. Tucked amongst the lemon blossoms and the bougainvillea is a line of thirteen towns that comprise the Amalfi Coast. Known for its vertical landscape, the villages are only accessible via the Strada Statale 163 — a narrow, winding, cliffside route that while unsettling to traverse, offers unparalleled views.
This magical strip joins the mountains and the Mediterranean Sea below and aesthetes from around the world flock here year after year to enjoy its quaint pebbled beaches, scenic hikes, perfect climate and legendary establishments, which are not limited to storied hotels and restaurants.
Landmarks from the Cathedral in Amalfi to Villa Rufolo in Ravello, all evoke the culture and the spirit of bygone centuries, and landmarks enjoyed by the likes of Jacqueline Kennedy, John Steinbeck, and Gore Vidal abound. With its signature limoncello, both grown and enjoyed locally, finest villas and breathtaking vistas, the Amalfi Coast is in a class of its own.
Carlos Souza is a global brand ambassador for Valentino and a contributor at Architectural Digest with over forty years of experience in the art and fashion world. His photography career began at the request of Andy Warhol, who asked him to shoot fashion shows for Interview. He has previously worked with Assouline on #Carlos’s Places (2014) and Comporta Bliss (2018).
Charlene Shorto was born in Recife, Brazil, and educated in Switzerland and Great Britain. She is wed to Carlos Souza and has two sons, Sean and Anthony. The family moved to Rome, where Charlene worked tirelessly under the fashion designer Valentino, eventually ascending to the position of director of Oliver by Valentino. Shorto also collaborated with Souza on Comporta Bliss (2018).
Boomers Daily 