BEATO ANGELICO: San Marco, Florence, 1436–1445

Posthumous portrait of Fra Angelico by Luca Signorelli

Fra Angelico (c. 1395 – February 18, 1455), born Guido di Pietro, was an Early Italian Renaissance painter described by Vasari in his Lives of the Artists as having "a rare and perfect talent". He was known to his contemporaries as Fra Giovanni da Fiesole (Brother John from Fiesole) and by Vasari as Fra Giovanni Angelico (Brother John the Angelic One).

Fra Angelico is known in Italy as il Beato Angelico, the term "Il Beato" ("Blessed One") being already in use during his lifetime or shortly thereafter, in reference to his skills in painting religious subjects. In 1982 Pope John Paul II conferred beatification, in recognition of the holiness of his life, thereby making this title official. Fiesole is sometimes misinterpreted as being part of his formal name, but it was merely the name of the town where he took his vows as a Dominican friar, and was used by contemporaries to separate him from other Fra Giovannis. He is listed in the Roman Martyrology as Beatus Ioannes Faesulanus, cognomento Angelicus—"Blessed Giovanni of Fiesole, nicknamed Angelico".

Vasari wrote of Fra Angelico:

But it is impossible to bestow too much praise on this holy father, who was so humble and modest in all that he did and said and whose pictures were painted with such facility and piety.

In 1436 Fra Angelico was one of a number of the friars from Fiesole who moved to the newly-built Friary of San Marco in Florence. This was an important move which put him in the centre of artistic activity of the region and brought about the patronage of one of the wealthiest and most powerful members of the city's Signoria, Cosimo de' Medici, who had a large cell (later occupied by Savonarola) reserved for himself at the friary in order that he might retreat from the world. It was, according to Vasari, at Cosimo's urging that Fra Angelico set about the task of decorating the monastery, including the magnificent Chapter House fresco, the often-reproduced Annunciation at the top of the stairs to the cells, the Maesta with Saints and the many smaller devotional frescoes depicting aspects of the Life of Christ that adorn the walls of each cell.

The Maestà (Madonna enthroned) with Saints; San Marco, Florence

In 1439 he completed one of his most famous works, the Altarpiece for St. Marco's, Florence. The result was unusual for its times. Images of the enthroned Madonna and Child surrounded by saints were common, but they usually depicted a setting that was clearly heavenlike, in which saints and angels hovered about as divine presences rather than people. But in this instance, the saints stand squarely within the space, grouped in a natural way as if they were able to converse about the shared experience of witnessing the Virgin in glory. Paintings such as this, known as Sacred Conversations, were to become the major commissions of Giovanni Bellini, Perugino and Raphael.

 

Visit Florence's culture and stay at Hotel Mario's

 

HOTEL MARIO'S

Via Faenza, 89

50123 Firenze

Tel. 0039 055 216 801

Fax 0039 055 212 039

E-mail: hotelmarios@hotelmarios.com

Internet site: www.hotelmarios.com 

Roman origins of Florence

A wooden model of Florence

Florence was established by Lucius Cornelius Sulla in 80 BC as a settlement for his veteran soldiers and was named originally Fluentia, owing the fact that it was built between two rivers, which was later corrupted to Florentia. It was built in the style of an army camp with the main streets, the cardo and the decumanus, intersecting at the present Piazza della Repubblica. Situated at the Via Cassia, the main route between Rome and the north, and within the fertile valley of the Arno, the settlement quickly became an important commercial centre. The Emperor Diocletian is said to have made Florentia the seat of a bishopric around the beginning of the 4th century AD, but this seems impossible in that Diocletian was a notable persecutor of Christians.

In the ensuing two centuries, the city experienced turbulent periods of Ostrogothic rule, during which the city was often troubled by warfare between the Ostrogoths and the Byzantines, which may have caused the population to fall to as few as 1,000 people. Peace returned under Lombard rule in the 6th century. Florence was conquered by Charlemagne in 774 and became part of the Duchy of Tuscany, with Lucca as capital. The population began to grow again and commerce prospered. In 854, Florence and Fiesole were united in one county.

DAVID by Michelangelo

DAVID by Michelangelo

David is a masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture created between 1501 and 1504, by the Italian artist Michelangelo. It is a 5.17 metre (17 foot) marble statue of a standing male nude. The statue represents the Biblical hero David, a favoured subject in the art of Florence. Originally commissioned as one of a series of statues of prophets to be positioned along the roofline of the east end of Florence Cathedral, the statue was instead placed in a public square, outside the Palazzo della Signoria, the seat of civic government in Florence, where it was unveiled on 8 September 1504. Because of the nature of the hero that it represented, it soon came to symbolise the defence of civil liberties embodied in the Florentine Republic, an independent city-state threatened on all sides by more powerful rival states and by the hegemony of the Medici family. The eyes of David, with a warning glare, were turned towards Rome. The statue was moved to the Accademia Gallery in Florence in 1873, and later replaced at the original location by a replica.

 

Enjoy your trip to Florence and stay at Hotel Mario's.

HOTEL MARIO'S

VIA FAENZA, 89

50123 FLORENCE - ITALY

PHONE NUMBER: 0039 055 216 801

FAX NUMBER: 0039 055 212039

E-MAIL: hotelmarios@hotelmarios.com

INTERNET SITE: www.hotelmarios.com 

SUMMER IN FLORENCE

During the summer, Florence became a big open air stage where they are often tourists, visitors to play the part of the protagonists. With its squares, its churches and monuments to admire without getting bored, Firenze is ideal for young couples, families and groups of friends.

First we start with some advice. Florence in the summer is a very hot city, then try to limit your outputs to the cooler hours, preferring perhaps visiting museums and places indoors during the time when the sun is strongest. Of course this advicehas to be applied  to European tourists, because those Americans are certainly more accustomed to high temperatures. Ultimately the climate of Florence is still a Mediterranean climate.

We start from the center. Just a few months ago the entire area around the Piazza del Duomo, the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore with Giotto‘s frescoes, the famous dome of Brunelleschi and the Baptistery, had been pedestrianized. This is a great scene, one of the marvels of humanity, even more enjoyable now breathing cleaner air and less noise.

From here I awant to create two paths. The first takes you through the Via dei Calzaioli, where are boutiques of fashion: Gucci, Prada, Valentino and so on. A pause in Piazza della Repubblica, sipping a coffee at one of the famous bars, where the artists of the vanguard of primo novecento The second route takes you from the Duomo to Borgo San Lorenzo, where it is to be  visited the Church designed by Michelangelo and the museums of the Medici Chapels. Spread around a small market of leather handicrafts made by Florentine artisans. Bags, shoes, girdles, jackets. Here is a must to visit the Central Market, where you’ll find the authentic flavors of Tuscan cuisine and especially the Florentine. It starts primarily from meat, queen of the tables in the restaurants. The famous Fiorentina Cut, a cut of rib eye steak, cooked on the outside and rare inside.

You eat natural, or with oil and pepper, served with arugula and shavings of Parmesan cheese or perhaps with a beautiful chapel of fresh porcini mushrooms. At Central Market of San Lorenzo, a small restaurant offers some of the best specialty of Florence, at really low prices.

Try the sandwich with Lampredotto, or the one with the Bollito, tripe, Peposa and other dishes prepared daily. Then in the market you will find spices, cheese, bread and cake for all tastes. 

Many special exhibitions are also organized this year in Florence. Four hundred years after his death, Michelangelo Merisi in the Uffizi, along with Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo and Botticelli. Then the largest collection by many artists of the Reinassance period.

HOTEL MARIO' S
Via Faenza, 89
50123 Firenze
tel +39055216801
fax +39055212039
hotelmarios@hotelmarios.com
www.hotelmarios.com   

VIEW OF FLORENCE

Hotel Mario's............the place of Florentine style!!!

Florence has a legendary artistic heritage. Cimabue and Giotto, the fathers of Italian painting, lived in Florence as well as Arnolfo and Andrea Pisano, renewers of architecture and sculpture; Brunelleschi, Donatello and Masaccio, forefathers of the Renaissance, Ghiberti and the Della Robbias, Filippo Lippi and Angelico; Botticelli, Paolo Uccello and the universal genius of Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo.

Their works, together with those of many other generations of artists, are gathered in the several museums of the town: the Uffizi Gallery, the Palatina gallery with the paintings of the "Golden Ages", the Bargello with the sculptures of the Renaissance, the museum of San Marco with Fra Angelico's works, the Academy, the chapels of the Medicis, Buonarroti' s house with the sculptures of Michelangelo, the following museums: Bardini, Horne, Stibbert, Romano, Corsini, The Gallery of Modern Art, the Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, the museum of Silverware and the museum of Precious Stones.
The "Circumcision of Jesus", a Renaissance painting by Andrea Mantegna.

Great monuments are the landmarks of Florentine artistic culture: the Florence Baptistery with its mosaics; the Cathedral with its sculptures, the medieval churches with bands of frescoes; public as well as private palaces: Palazzo Vecchio, Palazzo Pitti, Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Palazzo Davanzati; monasteries, cloisters, refectories; the "Certosa". In the archeological museum includes documents of Etruscan civilization. In fact the city is so rich in art that some first time visitors experience the Stendhal syndrome as they encounter its art for the first time.
The 15th century early-Renaissance frescos in the Cappella dei Magi in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi.

The Florentines – perhaps most notably Filippo Brunelleschi (1377–1466) and Leon Batist'Alberti (1404–1472) – invented both Renaissance and Neoclassical architecture, which revolutionized the way Rome, London and Paris and every other major city in Europe – from Barcelona to St. Petersburg – were built. The cathedral – one of the largest churches, topped by Brunelleschi's dome, dominates the Florentine skyline. The Florentines decided to start building it – late in the 13th century – knowing they did not know how they were going to do it. It was "technology forcing" – like the Kennedy Administration's decision to put a man on the moon. The dome was the largest ever built at the time, and the first major dome built in Europe since the two great domes of Roman times – the Pantheon in Rome, and Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. As a matter of fact, as mentioned in sections above, the Santa Maria del Fiore dome remains the largest brick dome of its kind in the world. In front of it is the medieval gem of the Baptistery, where every Florentine was baptized until modern times. The two buildings incorporate in their decoration the transition from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. In recent years, most of the important works of art from the two buildings – and from the wonderful Bell Tower, designed by Giotto, have been removed and replaced by copies. The originals are now housed in the spectacular Museum of the Works of the Duomo, just to the east of the Cathedral.

Florence has large numbers of art-filled churches, such as San Miniato al Monte, San Lorenzo, Santa Maria Novella, Santa Trinita, the Brancacci Chapel at Santa Maria della Carmine, Santa Croce, Santo Spirito, SS Annunziata, Ognissanti and many more.
The Palazzo della Signoria, better known as the Palazzo Vecchio (English:The Old Palace).

And that is without mentioning any "artists". From Arnolfo and Cimabue to Giotto, Nanni di Banco, and Uccello; through Lorenzo Ghiberti, and Donatello and Massaccio and the various della Robbias; through Fra Angelico and Botticelli and Piero della Francesca, and on to Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci, the Florentines have dominated the visual arts in a great way. And this list does not include many who, in any other place would be considered among the greatest of artists, but in Florence must be considered among the near-great: Benvenuto Cellini, Andrea del Sarto, Benozzo Gozzoli, Domenico Ghirlandaio, Fra Lippo Lippi, Buontalenti, Orcagna, Pollaiuolo, Filippino Lippi, Verrocchio, Bronzino, Desiderio da Settignano, Michelozzo, the Rossellis, the Sangallos, Pontormo, just to name a few. And this list does not include the prolific Ignoto. Nor does it include the near-Florentines, such as Raphael, Andrea Pisano, Giambologna, the wonderfully nicknamed Sodoma and so many more, such as Peter-Paul Rubens — all of whom spent time in Florence and were nurtured by it.
The statue of Perseo by Cellini in the Loggia dei Lanzi.

Then there are the art galleries. The Uffizi and the Pitti Palace are two of the most famous picture galleries in the world. But the heart and soul of Florence are in the two superb collections of sculpture, the Bargello and the Museum of the Works of the Duomo. They are filled with the brilliant, revolutionary creations of Donatello, Verrochio, Desiderio da Settignano, Michelangelo and so many other masterpieces that create a body of work unique in the world. And, of course, there is the Accademia, with Michelangelo's David – perhaps the most well-known work of art anywhere, plus the moving unfinished statues of the slaves Michelangelo created for the tomb of Pope Julius II.

In all, Florence has a great and numerous amount of museums. Among those at the top of most lists – other than those above – are: the impressive medieval city hall, the Palazzo della Signoria (a.k.a Palazzo Vecchio), a wonderful building with magnificent rooms and some great art; the Archeological Museum, the Museum of the History of Science, the Palazzo Davanzatti, the Stibbert Museum, St. Marks, the Medici Chapels, the Museum of the Works of Santa Croce, the Museum of the Cloister of Santa Maria Novella, the Zoological Museum ("La Specola"), the Bardini, and the Museo Horne. There is also a wonderful collection of works by the modern sculptor, Marino Marini, in a museum named after him. If photography is your interest, you should not miss the superb collection of works by the early photographers, the Alinari brothers. The magnificent Strozzi Palace is also the site of many special exhibits.

Top 5 Things to Check Out in Florence, Italy

Hotel Mario's is very near to the most important spots in Florence!!! Ask the staff and your stay will be amazing!!!

Santa Maria del Fiore:
The fourth largest church in Europe, its length being 153 metres (502 ft) and its height 116 metres (381 ft).

San Giovanni Baptistery:
Located in front of the Florence Cathedral, it is decorated by many artists, notably by Lorenzo Ghiberti with the Gates of Paradise.

Basilica of Santa Maria Novella:
Located in Santa Maria Novella square (near the big Firenze Santa Maria Novella railway station) this contains works by Masaccio, Paolo Uccello, Filippino Lippi and Domenico Ghirlandaio. The great façade was made by Leon Battista Alberti.

Basilica of Santa Croce:
The principal Franciscan church in Florence, Italy, and a minor basilica of the Roman Catholic Church. It is situated on the Piazza di Santa Croce, about 800 metres south east of the Duomo. The site, when first chosen, was in marshland outside the city walls. It is the burial place of some of the most illustrious Italians, such as Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, Foscolo, Gentile, Rossini, and Marconi, thus it is known also as the Temple of the Italian Glories (Tempio dell'Itale Glorie).

San Marco:
A complex comprising a church and a convent. The convent, which is now a museum, has three claims to fame: during the 15th century it was home to two famous Dominicans, the painter Fra Angelico and the preacher, Girolamo Savonarola. Also housed at the convent is a famous collection of manuscripts in a library built by Michelozzo.

Basilica of San Lorenzo:
One of the largest churches of Florence, Italy, situated at the centre of the city's main market district, and the burial place of all the principal members of the Medici family from Cosimo il Vecchio to Cosimo III.

Santo Spirito:
Located in the Oltrarno quarter, facing the square with the same name. The building on the interior is one of the pre-eminent examples of Renaissance architecture.

Orsanmichele:
This building was constructed on the site of the kitchen garden of the monastery of San Michele, now gone.

Santissima Annunziata:
A Roman Catholic basilica and the mother church of the Servite order. It is located on the north-eastern side of the Piazza Santissima Annunziata.

Ognissanti:
Founded by the lay order of the Umiliati, this was among the first examples of Baroque architecture built in the city. Its two orders of pilasters enclose niches and windows with fantastical cornices. To the left of the façade is a campanile of thirteenth and fourteenth-century construction.

Santa Maria del Carmine:
in the Oltrarno district of Florence, it is famous as the location of the Brancacci Chapel, housing outstanding Renaissance frescoes by Masaccio and Masolino da Panicale, later finished by Filippino Lippi.

Santa Trinita:
It is the mother church of the Vallumbrosan Order of monks, founded in 1092 by a Florentine nobleman. Nearby is the Ponte Santa Trinita over the river Arno. The church is famous for its Sassetti Chapel, containing notable frescoes by Domenico Ghirlandaio.

Medici Chapel in San Lorenzo:
The Medici Chapel are the resting place of most of the Medici as Grand Dukes of Tuscany. One is the Sagrestia Nuova, the "New Sacristy", designed by Michelangelo. The other is the Capella dei Principi, the 16th and 17th-century "Chapel of the Princes", which is entirely covered with a revetment of colored marbles inlaid with pietra dura.

San Marco:
Comprises a church and a convent. The convent, which is now a museum, has three claims to fame: In the 15th century, it was home to two famous Dominicans, the painter Fra Angelico and the preacher, Girolamo Savonarola. Also housed at the convent is a famous collection of manuscripts in a library built by Michelozzo.

Santa Felicita:
is a church in the downtown, probably the oldest in the city after San Lorenzo.
Badia Fiorentina
Famous as the parish church of Beatrice Portinari, the love of Dante's life, and the place where he watched her at mass, for Dante grew up across the street in what is now called the 'Casa di Dante', rebuilt in 1910 as a museum to Dante.

San Gaetano:
One of the most important examples of the Baroque style in Florence, a city better known for its Renaissance architecture.

San Miniato al Monte:
Standing at one of the highest points in the city, this has been described as the finest Romanesque structure in Tuscany and one of the most beautiful churches in Italy.

Florence Charterhouse:
A charterhouse, or Carthusian monastery, located in the Florence suburb of Galluzzo, in central Italy. The building is a walled complex located on Monte Acuto, at the point of confluence of the Ema and Greve rivers.

Great Synagogue of Florence:
A magnificent synagogue built between 1874 and 1882. The design integrates Islamic and Italian architectural traditions.

EXPLORING FLORENCE..........

Reserve a room at Hotel Mario's!!! The staff is very helpful and gives you many advices!!!

The city lies on the River Arno and is known for its history and its importance in the Middle Ages and in the Renaissance, especially for its art and architecture. A centre of medieval European trade and finance and one of the richest and wealthiest cities of the time, Florence is considered the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance; in fact, it has been called the Athens of the Middle Ages. It was long under the de facto rule of the Medici family. From 1865 to 1870 the city was also the capital of the Kingdom of Italy.

The historic centre of Florence attracts millions of tourists each year and was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1982. Florence is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and its artistic, historic and cultural heritage and impact in the world remains vast up to this day. The city has also a major European impact in music, architecture, education, cuisine, fashion, philosophy, science and religion. The historic centre of Florence contains numerous elegant squares (piazzas), Renaissance palaces (palazzi), academies, parks, gardens, churches, monasteries, museums, art galleries and ateliers. The city has also been nominated, according to a 2007 study, as the most desirable destination for tourists in the world.

The city boasts a wide range of collections of art, especially those held in the Pitti Palace and the Uffizi, (which receives about 1.6 million tourists a year). Florence is arguably the last preserved Renaissance city in the world and is regarded by many as the art capital of Italy. It has been the birthplace or chosen home of many notable historical figures, such as Dante, Boccaccio, Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli, Niccolò Machiavelli, Brunelleschi, Michelangelo, Donatello, Galileo Galilei, Catherine de' Medici, Antonio Meucci.

Settignano, a magic place up to the hills of Florence

When you'll be at Hotel Mario's, from our very convenient position in the city, you could walk to the train station of Santa Maria Novella and catch the bus line 10 that will get you up to the hill of this nice small and panoramic village.
Settignano, a tranquil residential district located on one of the hills overlooking the city of Florence, shares its artistic fame with nearby Fiesole. The original village was probably founded by an important Roman family, thus fundus Septinianus, when Florentia was chosen as the residence of the united regions of Etruria and Umbria.
The name of Settignano is famous in the whole world thanks to her natural and adoptive sons, sculptors, architects and painters whose works of art adorn many museums. Desiderio da Settignano, Antonio and Bernardo Rossellino, Luca Fancelli, Meo del Caprina, the Ciolis and the Lorenzis were all born in Settignano, as was the painter Bartolomeo Bimbi. Other artists and scholars, such as Michelangelo, Niccoló Tommaseo, Telemaco Signorini and the poet Gabriele d'Annunzio lived in Settignano and were inspired by its harmonious landscapes.
Because of its vicinity to the famous quarries of Maiano and Trassinaia, Settignano also produced a multitude of lesser known artists, artisans, quarriers, carvers and stone masons who embellished the palaces of Florence during the Renaissance and introduced Florentine Renaissance artistic theories into many other cities in Italy as well as France and Spain.
Settignano is a lovely village, go in one of that little restaurant just around the main square and enjoy a good Chianti red wine and a bistecca alla fiorentina ( the steak ); enjoy the life, come to Italy.


information about Settignano are taken from the website www.settignano.com

Bill Viola presents "Emergence" at the Accademia

The Galleria dell’Accademia will present the restored Pietà da Palestrina, the marble group sculpture attributed to Michelangelo and exhibited in the Tribune of the David. On this occasion at 10.00 p.m. in the Tribune of the David the Galleria dell’Accademia of Florence proposes the video Emergence (2002) by Bill Viola in the presence of the artist himself. This event intends to suggest a meditation on the theme of the Pietà, a central theme in the life and work of Michelangelo starting from his youth (St. Peter’s Pietà), and then repeatedly in later age (the Bandinelli Pietà intended for his own tomb, and the Rondanini Pietà).
This is another extraordinary possibility to see an incredible artist from the past, Michelangelo, and an extraordinary artist of this times, Bill Viola. The Bill Viola's opera will be on till 9th of May 2010, so don't waste to much time.
To book the hotel, just call us at the +39-055-216801 or write an email to this adress : info@hotelmarios.com