Secrets of Ca’Dario in Venice

Dubbed “the house that kills”, this 500 year old Venetian Gothic palace has claimed lives and repelled boatmen, boarders, renters, owners and potential owners like Woody Allen.   Built for the aristocrat Giovanni Dario in 1479, the house then passed on to a long list of owners who were stabbed to death, murdered, or died by… Continue reading Secrets of Ca’Dario in Venice

The Glorious Gondolieri

Gondolieri steer on the right.

It occurs to me that most of the culture in Italy is built in layers, upon layers, upon which its truths become known. We see it in art as the stiff figures of the 14th century transformed into more human forms in which beauty could be brought forth and appreciated in the natural landscape not… Continue reading The Glorious Gondolieri

CASANOVA VISITS San Francisco

Last Sunday I was immersed in an over-the-top exhibit at the Palace of Legion of Art in San Francisco.  Giacomo Casanova (Italian, 1725-98) was our guide, though pictures of him were only a likeness at best. Through the art of painters of the time, including Tiepolo, Longhi, Boucher, Canaletto, Fragonard and Hogarth.  Rococo was key,… Continue reading CASANOVA VISITS San Francisco