 |
| Blame the Moon - Venice Carnival 2019 - Photo: Cat Bauer |
 |
| Venetian Festival on the Water - Photo courtesy Carnveale di Venezia |
 |
| Caffè Florian art director, Stefano Stipitivich with artist Adrian Tuchel - Photo: Cat Bauer |
Adrian Tuchel at Caffè Florian
Inside the world-famous Caffè Florian in Piazza San Marco, a hub for Carnival adventurers, is an exhibition of Adrian Tuchel's extraordinary watercolors. Adrian lives and works in Cambridge, but has chosen Venice as his favorite place. With a career as a graphic designer and architect, Adrian has invented a unique form of expression. He creates long watercolor panoramas of Venice painted on scrolls of specially designed paper. You know how you can switch your camera to take a panoramic photo? Like that, only Adrian does it by hand. Which means he has to draw with pencil on a flat surface, roll up the completed section, then continue for five or six lengths, unable to see the entire drawing until it is complete. Imagine the concentration!
The result is a series of delightful Venetian landscapes. That they are on show at Caffè Florian is especially meaningful, for Adrian is also a romantic, smitten by Venice. In his own words:
"...It was in 1982 that I first managed to realize my dream and savour what it means to taste a cup of coffee at Florian: a journey through history!
In this heady intoxicating atmosphere coalescing the sounds of the bells, the melody of the strings and the voices, a dream was born that I am continuing to live with my wakened eyes. After a romantic dinner with an attractive foreign girl I had only just encountered, on the steps next to the Caffè I kissed my future wife cradled in the background by Florian's eternal melody: it was the evening of Saturday, September 18, 1993."
Twenty-five years later, Adrian's lovely and vibrant wife, Barbara, was with him at the inauguration on Valentine's Day at the Caffè Florian, evidence that Venice still works her magic charm. You can see the watercolors through March 14. Go to Adrian Tuchel's site for more information.
 |
| Big Venice - Photo: Cat Bauer |
Big Venice
It is surreal to see elephants walking through the narrow streets of Venice. A camel crossing a bridge is a strange sight. Cars in Piazza San Marco are a bit disconcerting. The photographic exhibition Big Venice at the Wilmotte Foundation over by Misericordia in Cannaregio is a fun trip to a less touristy part of town. Many of the photos were taken in 1954 when the Togni Circus was in town. The exhibition runs through May 5. Go to the Wilmotte Foundation for more information.
 |
| Marco Forieri aka Furio |
Music is Back in Piazza San Marco
Starting from February 23, there will be DJ sets and live bands in Piazza San Marco during Carnevale, just like the good old days. On Saturday, March 2 the beloved Furio and his band Ska-j appears on stage, sure to draw a huge crowd. The former lead singer of the Venetian band Pitura Freska performs with The Star and "their energetic African American sound."
 |
| Arianna Fontana - Photo courtesy Carnevale di Venezia |
Flight of the Eagle
On Sunday, March 3, when the Marangona bell in Piazza San Marco strikes noon, the Eagle will fly from the top of the Campanile, soaring over the square. This year's Eagle is Olympic champion Arianna Fontana, winner of eight Olympic medals. The Italian short track speed skater is the youngest athlete to have won a medal at the Winter Olympic Games, and was the Italian flag bearer at the last Olympic games. It is a move to publicize Italy's desire to win the Winter Olympic bid for Milan-Cortina in 2026.
Venice Mayor Luigi Brugnaro says, "We want the whole mountain region to feel at home in Venice... Cortina, in particular, is the jewel of our mountain region, which represents our history and identity..."
 |
| Sergio Boldrin, owner La Bottega dei Mascareri - Photo: Cat Bauer |
Mask Maker Sergio Boldrin revamps La Bottega dei Mascareri
Over by Rialto, my good friend and veteran mask maker, Sergio Boldrin, has spruced up La Bottega dei Mascareri, his tiny shop that adjoins the Church of San Giacometto, redoing the window display, opening up the ceiling and exposing the centuries-old wood beams. We figured that the beams that adjoined the church were probably built around 1512 when the Rialto district was destroyed by fire and the entire zone rebuilt.
Eighteen years ago, back in 2001, I wrote an article titled A Brief History of Mask Making for the International Herald Tribune - Italy Daily, to which I own the copyright, and which I republished on this blog in 2008 and again in 2017 -- an excerpt in italics is below.
Venice Carnival 2017 and A Brief History of Mask-Making
A Brief History of Mask Making
by
Cat Bauer
In
a city where there seems to be a mask shop on every corner, it may be
surprising to learn that the ancient Venetian craft of mask making was
only revived about forty years ago.Sergio Boldrin is one of the senior mask-makers in Venice, as well as an accomplished artist. When he was a child, there were no mask shops in the entire city. There was no Carnival. During the terrorism and political upheavals in Italy in the 1970s, the wearing of masks was discouraged.
Click here to read the entire article.
Incredibly, I have discovered that my article has been plagiarized! Many people have written about Venetian masks, in their own words. But someone named Filippo Merlo republished my article on a site called Venice Tours on July 18, 2018 with his name as the author, stealing nearly every word, omitting the part about Sergio, adding subheadings and leaving out some sentences -- he even titled it Venice Carnival Mask: a Brief History. I also discovered that in addition to claiming to be an "author," Filippo Merlo says he is a "social media expert" and "web-marketing manager." Not only is Merlo's handiwork unethical, it pops up in search engines and is a red-flag for Google as duplicate content.
You cannot "Blame the Moon" for that!
Go to the official Carnevale di Venezia site for all the goings on during Venice Carnival 2019.
Ciao from Venezia,
Cat Bauer
Venetian Cat - The Venice Blog
It's Carnival time in Venice! This year's theme is "Blame the Moon," that celestial body responsible for all sorts of chaos here on earth, from love affairs to ocean tides.
ReplyDelete