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Christmas markets, a woman painter of the 1600s (do you know her name?), and Michelin stars for Italian restaurants: we offer all of these this month, along with Carpaccio in Venice – and, no, we are not talking about something you eat. There are also books as gifts for you and yours, or just for you if you prefer. We steal a march on the Marches, in the company of Italian illustrator Tullio Pericoli. And, as for the rest, well, you will just have to wait and see. Patience is a virtue, after all!
Let’s put you out of your misery straightaway, and talk about the painter
first. No, it is not Artemisia Gentileschi but, if you want more on her, click
here. The name I am referring to is Elisabetta Sirani and, 
opening on December
7 and running to February 27 in Bologna, is the first ever exhibition of the
work of this "local girl made good." More or less a contemporary
of la Gentileschi, Elisabetta Sirani was born in 1638 in Bologna. She too,
was a “daughter of”. In this case, her dad’s name was Giovanni
Andrea and he was a pupil of Guido Reni's, as well as being an art dealer.
By the age of 17, Elisabetta was a professional painter and engraver, her first
official commission coming when she was a mere 20 – a Baptism for the
church of San Girolamo alla Certosa in Bologna. Not only was she extremely
talented, but she also worked so fast that potential patrons came to watch
her work to be sure that it really was she, and not someone else, producing
these outstanding paintings in double-quick time. Apart from the religious
paintings, Elisabetta made a name for herself as a ritrattista (portrait artist):
royals, including the princes of Tuscany, the Duchess of Parma, and the Dukes
of Bavaria and Brunswick, clamored to have her paint their portraits. As it
was, by the time of her death at only 27 – of a banal gastric ulcer perhaps
brought on by her unrelenting pace – she had completed approximately
170 paintings, 14 etchings, and a number of drawings. These were documented
in a ledger she had dubbed Nota delle pitture fatte da me Elisabetta Sirani.
Apart from the works, some 80 of which can be seen at the
show in Bologna, Elisabetta Sirani left
her studio, the pupils of which included her sisters Barbara and Annamaria
(who went on to paint altar-pieces in many churches in Bologna), as well
as Ginevra Cantofoli, and Lucrezia Scarfaglia.
 Self-Portrait |
If you are interested in seeing other paintings by Elisabetta Sirani, try the
Accademia Carrara in Bergamo (a favourite of mine which I plan to discuss
some time soon). Her etching entitled The Holy Family with St. Elizabeth
and St. John the Baptist is in the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, while
the painting Three Angels Making Music can be seen at the Courtauld Institute
of Art in London.
Elisabetta Serani is buried, along with Guido Reni, her maestro, in a chapel off the north aisle of the church of San Domenico in Bologna. Click here for more details about the show.
The Marche were the focal point
of an exhibition I went to see at the 
Nuages graphic design gallery in Milan
the other day. The artist
was Tullio Pericoli,
and the show consisted of watercolors and pastels of the countryside around
his native Colli del Tronto. As the name suggests, this town – which
has a population of 2,900 and is in the province of Ascoli Piceno – is
a bit perpendicular. Indeed, the altitude above sea level ranges from 34
metres to 193 metres. The centre of this pre-Roman settlement is Piazza XXV
Aprile. From here rises an elegant flight of steps, built in travertine,
leading to the neo-Classical church of Santa Felicita. Tullio Pericoli, who
is also a scenographer, chose this flight of stairs as a backdrop for the
second act of the 1998 production of Donizetti’s Elisir d'Amore at
La Scala in Milan. The Pericoli exhibition is being held at Via Del Lauro
10; click here for more information. Opening hours are 2-7pm, Tuesday-Friday,
10am-1pm, and 2-7pm Saturdays. You have until January 29, 2005. A lot easier
to get to than La Scala, of course, where tickets are still a much sought-after
commodity. Click here to try your luck!
 © Marco Brescia, Teatro alla Scala |
Another event in Milan that coincides with the opening of
the Milan opera season – always
December 7, or the feast day of Saint Ambrose -- is the Bej, O Bej market in
the area around the church of – you guessed it! – Sant’Ambrogio.
This is just one of what we might call Christmas markets in Italy. Other notable
ones in Lombardy include Campodolcino, Madesimo, and Sondrio.
In the Piemonte, Asti’s Mercatino di Natale takes place
under the porticoes of the city center between December 15 and 25. Lots of
stalls with local delicacies,
Christmas decorations, and toys. For further information, call the town hall
on 0141 3991. Still in the Piemonte, Casale Monferrato, in the province of
Alessandria, holds its Mercatini Natalizi ed artigianato on the third Saturday
and Sunday in December. For info, call: 0142 457-789, or e-mail mondosrl@tin.it.
Casale also has a monthly antiques market throughout the year. Except August
of course. (But you knew that anyway). In Turin, head for the Piazza del Maglio
and along the Canale dei Molassi.
Verona’s mercatino is held between December 10 and 13
in Piazza Bra, which is right in the centre of the city by the Arena. There
are over 400 stalls
selling local sweets, tree trimmings, gifts, and toys. For further information,
call: 045 807-8579. Bologna, meanwhile, has stalls all
along the Strada Maggiore, in the portico of the church of Santa Maria
dei Servi and in Via Ugo Bassi. As you might imagine in this food-loving town,
delectable delicacies of all sorts are the order of the day. For more information,
call 051 239-6699. Other places
in Emilia-Romagna that have particularly noteworthy Christmas markets include
Reggio Emilia and Cesenatico.
In the Marches, Ancona’s
market oeprates from December 7 to 24. Located in Piazza del Plebiscito, which
is
also known as Piazza del
Papa, the market
is open from 9am to 8pm. Some forty stalls ranging from traditional crafts
to local food and wine specialities. The main part of
the Christmas market in Naples is located in and around the Via San Gregorio
Armeno. Check out the figures for presepe (nativity scenes).
In Siracusa, in Sicily, through to December 21, you can visit Natale
in Fiera,
which promises to be quite a big event. Among the offerings are cooking courses,
where you can learn how to make Sicilian Christmas specialties. For something
a little more traditional, try the Santa Lucia quartiere of the city where,
from December 13 to 20, the patron saint is commemorated with processions,
feste, and a mercatino.
The Republic of San Marino, too, has its Christmas market. This is open daily through to December 12, and then on the weekend of December 18/19, on December 24 and 26, and then December 31 through to January 6, afternoons through to 7pm on weekdays and from 10am on Sundays and holidays. If you are there before December 12, check out the Il Mercato di Natale di San Pietroburgo in the Giardino dei Liburni. If you thought the stallholders of the Forte dei Marmi market near Lucca, mentioned last month, were making a huge effort to come and bring their wares to Milan and thereabouts during the run-up to Christmas, then how about these guys, who came all the way from Russia’s northernmost city? For more information about Christmas markets, click here.
The Michelin guide to Hotels and restaurants in Italy 2005
has just been published. If you are looking for stellar performance in the
kitchen, then pay attention.
The three-stars in Italy are: Al sorriso, Soriso (Novara), Dal
Pescatore,
Canneto dull’Oglio (Mantua), Le Calandre, Rubano (Padua), and Enoteca
Pinchiorri, Florence.
There are 23 Michelin two-star restaurants
in Italy. Piemonte
boasts just one. This is Flipot at Torre Pellice, close to Turin. Lombardy,
on the other hand,
has no fewer than seven. Two are in Milan: Sadler and Cracco-Peck,
and another is at Abbiategrasso, some twenty kilometers away. This is the Antica
Osteria del Ponte. Bergamo has one: Da Vittorio, while there are
two just near Brescia: Gualtiero Marchesi’s eponymous place is at Erbusco,
while L’altro
Concesio is located at Miramonti. Quistelli near Mantua is where you
will find the last: Ambasciata.
If you are looking to focus your vacation
on Michelin two-star restaurants, then be sure 
to head for Verona, where there
are three: Il
Desco in the city
itself; Perbellini at Isola, a short distance outside; and a new one
this year: Arquade at San Pietro in Cariano. In Emilia Romagna, the addition of Il
Rigoletto, Reggiolo near Reggio Emilia, brings the total number of Michelin
two-star restaurants in that region to three. The other two are La Frasca at Castrocaro Terme (province of Forli’), and San
Domenico at Imola,
which is close to Bologna. In Tuscany, there are four two-stars: Arnolfo in Colle di Val d’Elsa (province of Siena), Da
Caino, at Montemerano
near Grosseto, the Gambero Rosso at San Vincenzo (province of Livorno) and
La Tenda Rossa in San Casciano Val d’Elsa, which is a short distance
from Florence. The Umbria region has just one two-star Michelin restaurant:
it’s Vissani, at Baschi near Terni. In Rome, seek out La
Pergola at
the Cavalieri Hilton Hotel. Campania boasts the Don Alfonso 1890 at Santa’Agata
sui due Golfi, while Ravello’s Rossellini has just graduated to the
two-star category. In Sicily, there’s the Mulinazzo Villafrati in Palermo.
In the Michelin one-star category, Italy has 197. No space
to go into detail here, but let’s just look at one of the novità:
Onice Restaurant, within the Hotel Villa La Vedetta in Florence. Chef Andrea
Accordi hails
from Mantua, and undertook his early training in London, latterly at Toto's
Restaurant in Knightsbridge under Anthony Genovese. He then moved to the
Regent Hotel in Bangkok as consultant Italian chef, but took advantage of
the locale to acquire an in-depth knowledge of Thai cuisine. And it is indeed
his skill at melding the best of Tuscan ingredients with the herbs and spices
of the Orient that earned him his star. Examples for antipasto course include
a fantasia di scampi. One is marinaded, one is fried in a crispy batter and
comes with Jerusalem artichoke, while one is grilled with citronella and
is served with a porcini mushroom salad. Or try the goose liver with a marmellata of Tropea onions, with a side of cauliflower mousse topped with cocoa beans.
Among the temptations of the pasta options, there's potato gnocchi with river
shrimp, artichokes, porcini mushrooms and a coulis of spinach with extra-virgin
olive oil. Or how about the risotto with lime and scampi, coconut and green
curry? For main course, the beef cooked in an aromatic brodetto sounds appealing,
as does the duck with the tamarind caramel, served with celery root and apple.
The sweets range from spicy pear cake to sfogliatine with Darjeeling tea,
with a compote of tangerines and honey. The whole is served against the exquisite
backdrop of the neo-classical style Villa La Vedetta, just below Piazzale
Michelangelo in Florence. This delightful hotel is surrounded by its own
ample grounds featuring laurel bushes, cypresses, and olive trees. Beyond,
is an extremely privileged view of the city. Villa La Vedetta is at 78 Viale
Michelangiolo in Florence.
Given what we have been talking about, you would be forgiven
for thinking of food if I say “Carpaccio.” But on this occasion, it just happens
we are talking about a painter called Vittorio 
Carpaccio (1460?-1525?). An
exhibition of his work has just opened at the Galleria dell’Accademia
in Venice and goes on until March 13, 2005. This is the first comprehensive
exhibition of this artist’s work since 1963, partly because of the kind
of paintings in which he specialized. As the exhibition’s subtitle tells
us, Carpaccio was a pittore di storie, which means that each of his works consisted
of more than one canvas. These, over time, have come to be separated and have
ended up in different parts of the world. Bringing them back together has been
a major challenge. Thus for example, exhibiting the six canvases depicting
the Storie della vita della Vergine (executed in about 1504 for the Scuola
degli Albanesi), and the four narrating the Storie della vita di Santo
Stefano (created between 1511 and 1520), involved the Venetian Galleria Franchetti
at Ca’d’Oro, the Milanese Brera Gallery, Bergamo’s Accademia
Carrara, the Louvre in Paris, the Staatsgalerie in Stuttgart, and the Galleria
degli Uffizi in Florence. Also on display will be the nine paintings that make
up the cycle entitled Storie di Sant’Orsola (1490-1495), as well as the
telero that includes il Miracolo dell’indemoniato al ponte di Rialto which was commissioned in 1494 by the Scuola di San Giovanni Evangelista.
This was part of a work called the Ciclo dei miracoli della reliquia della
croce that involved many of the major painterly names of the day. The
exhibition is dedicated to Rona Goffen, the American art historian; the catalogue
is
by Marsilio. For reservations please call (051) 520-0345.
Meanwhile, have you ever wondered why very thin
slices of fillet steak, salmon, or other prized meat or fish served with oil
and flakes
of parmesan cheese
are called carpaccio? Well, it is because the dish was invented by
Giorgio Cipriani, owner of Hemingway’s beloved Harry's Bar,
on the occasion of – you guessed it! – the last Carpaccio show.
Looking for Christmas presents for
foodies? You could do a lot worse than look at the tasty offerings from the Il
Gusto collection from
Gribaudo Editore.
I love the one on bread, for example. Each chapter of this 200-page book
covers one bread-eating opportunity. Thus the first chapter is breakfast
breads. Then we go on to breads to set off aperitivo, antipasto,
soup, meat and fish, cheese, and – believe it or not – dessert.
One example of the latter? Bread with ricotta and cherries, There are recipes
for 54
types of Italian bread in all, each accompanied by a recipe for something
to serve alongside them. In the case of the abovementioned ricotta/cherry
concoction, it would be a fruit compote. Something for main course? Bread
with thyme, apple, and scallions served with a chicken salad. Not just any
old chicken salad, though. This one is made with celery, grapes, and almonds. Click
here if you’d like to order this book.
OK, so the book is in Italian only, but the pictures make the whole thing good enough to eat. Indeed, it might well provide a stimulus to learn the language. Perhaps someone should write a companion volume entitled something like Italian for Readers of Italian Cookbooks. Me? Don’t be silly. No time. I’m much too busy trying these recipes.
Let me mention one last book idea, even if it is not due to
be published until May 2005. I found out about it after visiting Palladio’s
villas in the Veneto, which I told you about last month. The book is called
Palladian
Days, and recounts the life of Mr. and Mrs. Carl I. Gable of Atlanta, Georgia
at Villa Cornaro in the village of Piombino Dese about 30 kilometers from
Venice. They have lived there since 1989, and are only the sixth family to
occupy the villa in its almost 450-year history. Click
here for more information.
Now that I have whetted your appetite for all sorts of Italian delights, all that remains is for me to wish you happy holidays and a happy new year. I have enjoyed bringing you my reports throughout the year, and hope to have the pleasure of your company again in 2005.
By Roberta Kedzierski, Milan
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