Italian ‘Ghost Town’ Rescued by Instagramable Street Art Which Attracts Thousands
A southern Italian hamlet referred to as a ghost town is now attracting thousands of tourists by commissioning artists to paint more than 140 murals on the sites of shops and homes. It seems fitting that the birthplace of so many of the world’s great artists should leverage painting as a means of recovery—why should Rome and Florence have all the b...
World-renowned mosaic artist Danilo Bonazza has made New Jersey the unlikely epicenter of a luxury art renaissance
Danilo Bonazza has spent the last decade building Art & Mosaics into one of New Jersey’s most exclusive luxury services. His custom pool installations command prices that start at $200,000 and up with waiting lists that stretch across three continents. “People don’t understand what they’re buying until they see it,” Bonazza said during a recent int...
No shorts, no flip-flops: La Scala bars beachwear from the opera
Operagoers have been warned they will be banned from entering Milan’s prestigious La Scala theatre if they turn up wearing shorts, tank tops or flip-flops. Kimonos, however, are acceptable. The venue’s management team reminded people how not to dress for an opera after complaints that some spectators were donning attire more suitable for the beach....
Italian-American center says you don't have to be Italian to enjoy its new Des Moines home
When Italian Ambassador Armando Varricchio visited the museum at the original Italian-American Cultural Center of Iowa in Des Moines five years ago, he was impressed. Housed in a mural-bedecked former bakery on Indianola Avenue, the museum told the story of Italians who migrated to Iowa to work in coal mines or on railroads, then set down deep root...
Rome redevelops Calatrava's Vela for Jubilee of Youth
Rome authorities on Monday evening inaugurated the Vela landmark, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, ahead of the Jubilee of Youth in the southeastern Tor Vergata suburb. The project to redevelop and complete the futuristic structure, which was abandoned for more than 15 years, was financed with €80 million allocated by Italy's econo...
Sammontana Italia Takes Its Italian-Style Ice Cream To The US
Frozen-food and ice-cream company Sammontana Italia is launching its iconic Barattolino ice cream in the United States. This marks a significant step in the company’s international growth strategy, which recently included the acquisition of La Rocca Creative Cakes in the US. The strategy also leverages the long-standing presence of the Bindi brand...
A Summer in Versilia: Art, Sea and Italian Style
Versilia occupies the northern coastal strip of Tuscany within the province of Lucca. Stretching from the Apuan Alps down to the Ligurian Sea, it includes four key municipalities – Forte dei Marmi, Pietrasanta, Seravezza, and Stazzema – known as “Old Versilia,” as well as others such as Camaiore and Viareggio. The area takes its name from the Versi...
Holy Ferrari – coffee and cars will return to Burien’s Casa Italiana on Saturday, July 26
ALL ITALIAN cars & motorcycles are welcome to participate – Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Vespa, Moto Guzzi, and more. This is always a fun day at Casa, and car aficionados can expect to see an impressive lineup. Come drool over the cars and over the food! There will be pizza made on-site, and grilled sausage and pepper sandwi...
Meet Oriolo, the secret village in Calabria you've probably never heard of
Perched between the peaks of the Pollino Park and the fragrant breezes of the Ionian coast, Oriolo is a lovely village in Italy's southern region of Calabria, a small, medieval treasure still delightfully under the radar. In this "secret" place where historical identity remains beautifully intact, ancient memories are carefully preserved. Oriolo wa...
Italian design leads Europe in revenue and employment
Italian design continues to rank first in Europe for both revenue and workforce share. Italy accounts for 19.8% of the design sector’s total European turnover (€6.3 billion) and employs the same share of professionals in the field, outpacing Germany (18.9% of revenue and 15.1% of employment) and France (12.8% and 15.6%, respectively). However, grow...
Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man may finally have a geometric explanation
For centuries, scholars have analyzed Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man, searching for the hidden principle behind its flawless geometric structure. Now, more than 500 years later, a possible answer has emerged—and the surprising part is that it didn’t come from an art historian or a mathematician, but from a dentist. Even those with little interes...
Italian Workmen's Club to be recognized with national status
The Italian Workmen's Club building in Madison (WI) will be receiving a national recognition next Tuesday. The Italian Workmen's Club, located at 914 Regent Street, is set to receive the prestigious designation of a National Historic Landmark. This recognition underscores the building's cultural and historical significance, having served as a corne...