Feelings of the Day: Most of you are aware that I am learning how to be a writer and have written several short stories. I have not been published so it could be said I have not climbed up the first rung on the ladder to being known. I disagree, as I looked at art today. The first rung is trying. Many edits later I have completed some stories, so I have climbed higher. The climb to succeed further takes effort. The climb to being known takes skill, which requires practice to hone a talent. I am still a multitude of rungs away from having my name on a book in the library, and may never get there, but at least I can say I’m making the attempt. My feeling of the day is to wish you the time and ability to make your attempt.
Full Day’s Events: As part of the two-fer-one ticket at the Palazzo Bernini, I walked to the second place on the ticket. Palazzo Corsini near Trastevere.
Located across the road from Villa Farnesina, it was built between 1730-40 as an expansion on the Riario villa previously here. During the Napoleonic occupation Joseph Bonepart hung out here. Now it is a museum, with space assigned for the National Academy of Science, and has Italian art from the early Renaissance to the late 1700’s.
I found this art gallery a little underwhelming, compared to what I have been seeing for the last two weeks, so I acknowledge my bias. These works were all by artists known only to experts and fans, but by coming here it tested me on what I like as an admirer of good art: a detail, a flourish, a technique. Some notable items to me were: the palazzo itself, statues in the first floor lobby,
My favourites were “Psyche carried by Zephyrs” by John Gibson,
“Flower and Fruit” (Autumn and Winter & Spring and Summer) by Abraham Brueghel,
“Pantheon and Roman Buildings” by Charles Louis Clerisseau,
“Rebecca and Eliezer” by Carlo Maratti,
and two by Frans Francken the Third (Antwerp Cathedral in the Morning and Antwerp Cathedral in the Evening).
The “Dancer with a Finger on Her Chin”, by Luigi Bienaime known as Antonio Canova, made me laugh out loud when I saw it, because of the pose and expression. When you approach it the statue is looking to your left, its right, as if examining something of interest with an index finger placed “just so” on its chin. When you turn and stand in front of the face its expression and canted head is definitely one of more than interest. It is one of flirtation! Excellently sculpted and a pleasant surprise.
Time for lunch and I discovered lots of food in the nearby Botanical Garden of Rome, which was hosting a weekend long slow food festival. The crowd was active and excited. The foods and condiments, like oil and balsamic, looked delicious. The sellers were passionate about their products on display. One problem…I was leaving tomorrow and the lineups at each stall were long.
Instead, I made a short walk to a restaurant that was on my list and is operated and staffed by women: Luna e l’Atra. It was a little hard to find, on the grounds of the International Women’s House, but moving into the inner courtyard from the side street it was right there. Surrounded by greenery, and flanked inside by prominent women’s pictures, I sat and ordered. Known for its quality traditional cooking there was no quick meal here so I got my own slow food experience. With vegan and vegetarian options, I was tempted but chose the pumpkin and sausage fettuccine and the caponata (slow cooked mixed vegetables). They were both very excellent, reasonably priced, and allowed me to catch up on writing in my travel book.
Although it was still early afternoon it was time to pack. First, I stopped to see a fountain that caught my interest online: The Fountain of the Books. Made by Pietro Lombardi, in 1927, who was the same person who made the amphora fountain in the Testaccio district. Apparently, he made more but this one is my favourite of the two.
Packing was done, at a reasonable time, so I made supper, read, and did some electronic diary writing. 5.7km and 8 flights walked. A new place awaits and the hint is in the picture below, by Luca Carlevarijs, from the Palazzo Corsini.
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