INSIDE: The Artistic Village of Dozza 3 Private Guides in Ravenna 5 Bicycling Through Ferrara 6 Where to Stay in Bologna 8 Giorgio Benni Giorgio giasco, flickr.com giasco, Basilica di San Vitale MAMbo SPECIAL REPORT: EMILIA-ROMAGNA Bologna: dream of City of Art ith its appetite for art, Bologna’s ® Wcontributions to the good life are more than gustatory. Though known as the “Red City” for its architecture and politics, I found a brilliant palette of museums, galleries, churches and markets, with mouth-watering visuals for every taste. ITALYVolume 8, Issue 6 www.dreamofitaly.com July/August 2009 City Museums For a splash of Ravcnna’s Ravishing Mosaics 14th-century sculp- ture start at the fter 15 centuries, Ravenna’s lumi- across the region of Emilia-Romagna. Fontana del Nettuno A nous mosaics still shine with the With only a day to explore, I’m grate- in Piazza Maggiore. golden brilliance of the empires that ful that local guide Verdiana Conti Gianbologna’s endowed them. These shimmering Baioni promises to weave art and bronze god — Fontana Nettuno sacred images reveal both familiar and history into every step. locals call him “the giant” — shares the unexpected chapters in Italian history water with dolphins, mermaids and while affirming an artistic climate that We meet at San Apollinaire Nuovo on cherubs. Close by, Palazzo Comunale’s thrives today. Via di Roma. A soaring upper floors contain the Collezioni basilica, its narrow side Comunale d’Arte, which includes opu- Ravenna attracted con- aisles open to a broad lent period rooms and works from the querors from the north nave where three tiers 14th through 19th centuries. Put your and east during the of mosaic panels draw wallet away. Bologna’s city museums fifth through eighth my attention. There’s are free so you can return to savor centuries. That period’s majesty in the well-pro- paintings such as Ludivico Carracci’s vibrant blend of Roman, portioned architecture, Santa Caterina d’Allesandro or the full Ostrogoth and flickr.com Antiquite Tardive, but the mosaics are the length portrait of a 17th-century Mosaic in Basilica di San Apollinaire Byzantine cultures has main event. aristocrat by Artemisia Gentileschi — drawn the aesthetically-minded to a Baroque artist who counted the Ravenna ever since. No wonder when Commissioned by Theodoric the Great, Medici family among her patrons. Dante Alighieri was banished from who reigned in Ravenna from 493 to (www.comune.bologna.it/iperbole/ Florence in 1302, he spent his last years 526, the church blends the beliefs of MuseiCivici/) here. that ruler’s Arian Christianity with the Catholic theology of Rome. Justinian’s On the same floor, the Museo Morandi is About 56 miles east of Bologna, this rule followed and he added Byzantine dedicated to the paintings and prints of eminently walkable city was a stop on influences for a vivid mix of visual this contemporary of de Chirico, Pollack the Roman road that still traces a path continued on page 4 continued on page 2 Lord Byron lived in Ravenna between 1819 and 1821. Art in Bologna continued from page 1 Tucked into shopping arcades Bologna’s commercial g and Chagall. A lifelong Bolognese, of the city’s portico-covered streets. frescoes, sculptures and stained glass Giorgio Morandi composed still lifes (www.pinacotecabologna.it) represents four centuries of Emilian and landscapes using minimal color, art. One controversial scene from often utilizing simple bottles and pitch- Small but airy, the Villa delle Rose, an Dante Alighieri’s Inferno has incited ers. Subject of a 2009 exhibition at the 18th-century private home, sits among unsuccessful terrorist plots, so don’t Metropolitan Museum of Art in New gardens above Via Saragozza, 230. In plan to carry large bags when you York, Morandi intended his work “to 2008, private galleries and MAMbo col- visit. touch the depth, the essence of things.” laborated to fill the intimate rooms so The artist’s studio at Via Fondazza, 36 is the tempo changed ever few months. Step onto the cobbled river stones in slated to open to the public in the fall the pleasant Piazza San Domenico and of 2009. (www.museomorandi.it) Even if there’s no exhibition at the view the marble and brickwork villa, take bus 20 up columns that recall the end of the The Museo d’Arte Moderna Via Indipendenza to plague. Inside, the church of San di Bologna, known as the covered 17th-cen- Domenico is the final resting place of MAMbo, rises tall and tury walkway where its namesake saint. His ornate tomb sleek in a former bakery at the fit and the faithful includes sculptures by a young Via Don Minzoni, 14, a 10- climb under 666 arch- Michelangelo. Other chapels contain minute walk from Piazza es to Santuario della works done by an honor roll of Italian Maggiore. Opened in Madonna di San Luca. artists dating back to the 15th century. 2007, the collection is Stop along the way at Take a trip behind the altar to see the Matteo Monti being reorganized with MAMbo Villa Spada to see an inlaid choir stalls and a small museum. 20th-century works but extensive textile col- July/August 2009 July/August will continue to focus on Italian art hot lection (www.comune.bologna.it/ Sometimes overlooked beside the larg- 2 off the easel, the video camera, the iperbole/museotappezzeria/), or just er San Giacomo Maggiore, the oratory of found-object assemblage and any other inside the Porta Saragozza where the San Cecilia is a simple rectangular media used in 21st-century artwork. Beate Vergine di San Luca includes the space lined with wall paintings of the This city museum does charge for spe- artistic history of the Sanctuario saint’s life. Ten panels rotate counter cial exhibitions, but look for free peeks (www.museomadonnasanluca.it) clockwise in this church on Via at the intriguing permanent collection. When you reach the top of the hill, you Zamboni, 15 that also hosts musical Then browse the bookstore or break can continue your art sojourn in events. bread at Ex Forno del Pano Café where Bologna’s churches. www.dreamofitaly.com local art aficionados gather. Each step toward the (www.mambo-bologna.org) Holy Art monastic complex of Santo Stefano adds to the enchant- Prefer classic art? The Pinacoteca Home to a celebrated 11th- ment. Clay faces stare from Nazionale di Bologna holds works dating century icon of the Madonna the Palazzo Bologini and his- from the 13th century, often drawn and Child, as well as exem- toric porticos angle toward from religious communities in the plary side altars by the stones of the triangular region. Located for the last 200 years Bolognese painters, the piazza. Finally, step into the on Via delle Belle Arti, 56, modern reno- Santuario della Madonna di flickr.com Gabriele, interwoven courtyards, gar- vations allow visitors to experience the San Luca is also a wonderful dens and four remaining works from many vantage points. The place to survey the city churches in the ancient golden age of Bologna is well repre- below. maze that hold the treasures sented, with works by all three Carracci of Santo Stefano. A museum brothers as well as Guido Reni. The Back in the city center, don’t displays many objects pre- collection also includes Italian masters judge San Petronio by its served after a 20th-century Giotto, Raphael, Tintoretto and unfinished façade. Bologna’s restoration and each unique Parmigianino. There is an entry fee, but largest church, though not its space merges centuries of the museum is well worth the short cathedral, fills one side of the architecture and worship. Il Cama, flickr.com Il Cama, stroll from Piazza Maggiore along one Piazza Maggiore. An array of San Petronio Words can’t really describe Each September, Ravenna hosts a and along both busy and quiet streets, galleries reflect the city’s cultural complexion. this Benedictine marvel. It’s a must- when she’s not doing her own artwork. beauty, Piazza Santo Stefano is the see. (http://hyppo.com/u/caldarese/) perfect location for the Antiquario Città di Bologna. On the third weekend of Some churches do have entry fees, but Bongiovanni Gallerie fits neatly in the each month, tables laden with art, jew- there’s no charge in the city’s private Galleria Acouaderni, in a passageway of elry, linens and glass goods crowd galleries. the old Jewish quarter just off Via beside antique furniture brought by Rizzoli, 36. Fresh ideas, such as a group European vendors. Check the city’s Bologna’s Galleries show of works done with light, hang nine regularly-scheduled markets such on the walls. Interested in as Kurbis on Via del Tucked into shopping arcades and emerging artists, the Monte for handicrafts along both busy and quiet streets, gallery often presents and Mercato di Vintage Bologna’s commercial galleries reflect shows and installations at Piazza Verdi for the city’s cultural complexion. that have an architectural clothing. component. Arte e Arte appears tiny, but this corner (www.galleriabon The Mercato di Mezzo is space in Galleria Falcone-Borsellino (two giovanni.com) flickr.com truth82, artisanal in a culinary blocks from Piazza Maggiore) shows Antiquario way. Stalls line the important international artists, such as Architecture is also in evidence at Freak Renaissance-era byways near Piazza Jim Dine, Clive Barker and Christo. Their Andò, though the era is quite different. Maggiore with most open by 7 a.m. top Italian talents include new names, Note the claustrophobic circular stair- every day except Sunday. Colorful such as Nanni Valentini and the better- case in this former monastery on Via continued on page 8 known Giorgio Morandi and Marino delle Moline, 14.