Every year the Borgo degli Artisti organises an art competition at Ponte a Serraglio in the beautiful grounds of the Villa Fiori. Kerry was there to take some photos for us so we can be part of the fun day.
It was a hot day and the artists sought shade where they could.
Lots of artists were there to paint our gorgeous village.
Here are the winners.
Thank you Borgo degli Artisti for a great event.
A very exciting part of the Bagni di Lucca Art Festival is the live entertainment. The organisers of the Art Festival in collaboration with the Fondazione Michel de Montaigne are presenting 3 wonderful evenings of music at the Casino in Ponte a Serraglio.
The Casino was the very first in Europe and was brought back to life several years ago with a beautiful renovation. What an excellent setting for these events!
On Thursday 18th July at 9.00pm there will be a concert piano recital by Ronald Farren-Price, a renowned Australian pianist. He will be performing Beethoven, Debussy, Chopin and Liszt.
On Friday 19th July at 9.00pm Neco Novellas will perform World Live Music.
On Saturday 20th July at 9.00pm Lucca Opera Festival will perform Opera in Maschera. Soloists Michelle Buscemi, Elena Fioretti, Letizia Cappellini, Claudio Sassetti, Mattia Campetti and Andrea Carcassi will perfrom the music of Mozart with pianist Jonathan Brandani. I have attended several delightful performances by the ensemble at the Oratorio degli Angeli Custodi in Lucca and I wish I was in Bagni di Lucca to see them in the beautiful Casino.
These amazing concerts are free, but you will need to book a place by email through http://artfestivalbagnidilucca.org or phone 349 5985908.
What a great time to be in Bagni di Lucca!
The first Bagni di Lucca Art Festival was officially opened with a party at Ponte a Serraglio. Several of the shops in the main street have been renovated and are now home to visiting artists.
On Saturday night the road was closed and there was a wonderful street party.
The artists exhibiting for the first weeks include…
Giuseppe del Debbio
Christian Gironda
Melissa Moore
Gianmarco Caselli
Jacolo da San Martino
Selby Hickey
David Finkbeiner
Michael Hanning
Thank you to my lovely friends Kerry and Moira for taking photos for us. I wish I had been there to join in the fun. I’m sure the next couple of months are going to be exciting in Ponte a Serraglio.
Congratulations to Jaqueline and her team for a successful opening to a very welcome event. For more information on the Art Festival please take a look at their website.www.artfestivalbagnidilucca.org
There is a new photography exhibition at La Rondine gallery in Ponte a Serraglio by Ella Haller Zwierzchowska. The young photograper’s colourful representations of India delighted visitors on the opening night last week.
The gallery was full of people having a great time.
Thank you Kerrie for photographing the event so we can all join in the fun.
Bagni di Lucca has a long history of making figurines from Plaster of Paris, or gesso, as it is called here. The tradition began in the 13th century when people from Bagni di Lucca started going to France to sell their silk and they became intrigued by the use of Plaster of Paris to make mortuary masks.
They experimented with it, as the soft alabaster, one of the main ingredients to make that type of plaster, was abundant in the area. They realised it would be possible to make inexpensive religious statues by making moulds and filling them with plaster…much cheaper than the usual carved marble or stone.
The figurines became very popular, as not everybody could afford a Della Robbia, or other original for their home or church. Presepi, or nativity scenes were big sellers and salesmen from the area would travel far and wide selling their wares.
I was very lucky to be able to see one of the last producers of figurines in Bagni di Lucca, and the only one who still makes his statues by hand. Meet Simone from Arte Barsanti.
The business was started by Simone’s great-grandfather in 1900. At its peak there were 60 people employed. Now it is just Simone with some helpful advice from his uncle Carmelo.
The little factory is a treasure trove of figurines, moulds and paraphernalia from years of work.
Simone took us through the process of making a figurine. First the mould is prepared.
The plaster powder is mixed with water until it is the consistency of yoghurt.
Then is poured into the prepared mould and shaken to get out as many air bubbles as possible.
The statue is then left to cure for about 20 minutes. If the figurines are under 30cm high they are solid plaster. If they are bigger than that they are hollow to save on plaster and to make them less heavy.
Once out of the mould, the figurines are finished by hand to remove any rough patches and fill any small imperfections.
They are then fired in the wood fired oven room.
The next step is to hand paint each figurine. The flesh coloured parts are spray painted first.
The rest is painted with brushes of varying sizes.
We were taken to the top floor where there is a little museum with some of the history of the business.
There is a photo of a recent Pope receiving a Barsanti figurine.
…and some old presepi, including one in a pumpkin.
…some old accounting equipment.
Best of all was an old suitcase which the travelling salesmen would take around the country to display their wares.
There is a delightful story that when Christopher Columbus arrived in America the first person he saw was a fellow from Lucca with a suitcase full of presepi for him to choose from.
We were given a beautiful presepio to take with us…my first…thank you Simone and Carmelo for a wonderful visit.
I really hope this wonderful tradition can be kept alive in Bagni di Lucca.
info@artebarsanti.it
39 0583 87882
A summer celebration, Benvenuta Estate, was held in Fornoli yesterday. It was a gorgeous day in Piazza Aldo Moro. Lots of people came.
There were stalls selling arts and crafts.
There was food.
Children and parents got together to play wonderful old fashioned games.
Stories and music were provided by Luca Fabrizio and Pietrolino…it was great fun.
Later on there was dinner under the stars. I couldn’t stay for that, but I am sure it was every bit as good as the rest of the day…welcome summer.
Every night fireflies are flickering in the dark. They are like pretty little fairy lights in the garden. Our friend Jim caught one and we had a close up look.
As you can see they are really tiny. The light comes from under the rear end. We let our firefly go and he took off and was soon shining his light once again in the garden.
The lovely Italian word for firefly is la lucciola…such a pretty little thing deserves a delightful name.
My friend Paolo told me that when he was young the children in his village used to catch fireflies because they believed they could turn into coins overnight. They would keep them in an upside down glass and in the morning there would be coins under the glass.
There was even a little poem about them.
Lucciola, lucciola vien da me
Che ti do il pan del Re,
Pan del Re e della Regina,
Lucciola, lucciola vien vicina.
Of course, he now realises that his mother put the coins there but he admits to spending many hours wondering how it was possible for such a tiny insect to produce money.
On Saturday afternoon there was to be a tug-of-war between the opposing teams of Fornoli and Chifenti. Fornoli is part of Bagni di Lucca and Chifenti belongs to Borgo a Mozzano. The towns sit on either side of the Ponte delle Catene…the chain bridge.
I arrived promptly at 4.00pm to find the rope positioned on the bridge.
There was a band.
There was a demonstration tug-of-war by a very good looking team.
It was good natured competition.
Did I mention that they were good looking? I found a special one for you.
The professionals tackled the locals.
The children tested their muscles.
The band marched across the bridge and back again.
There was one very interested spectator.
I would love to show you the actual competition, but I waited…and I waited. The event was supposed to begin at 4.00pm. I waited in the hot sun until 6.30pm and then I gave up and went home. I found out the next day that it went ahead at 7.30pm…late, even by Italian standards…what a pity.
Click here to see another fun event in Bagni di Lucca on the weekend…the crossbow competition in the grounds of Villa Ada.
There are a few things happening in Bagni di Lucca soon.
Firstly, on 12th and 13th June at the Sala Parocchiale at Via Vittorio Emanuele, 32 in Ponte a Serraglio there will be a puppet show for children. The show is being performed by the Carideo Clan and Friends and promises to be a lot of fun. Come along at 7.00pm.
Onn Saturday 15 June at the Piazza delle Ponte Catene is a tug-of-war, for men, women and children. Be there at 4.00pm.
This Sunday, 16th June is the day of the Palio della Val di Lima…Palio della Balestra…the crossbow competition. I went last year and just happen to have some photos. Click here for more on the event. I strongly urge you to attend this one. It starts at around 9.00am and runs all day in Bagni alla Villa, with the competition taking place in the grounds of the Villa Ada.
In Fornoli on June 23rd the Festival to welcome summer will take place. This one is new for me. I hope we have a fine day. Be in Piazza Aldo Moro in Fornoli at 3.00pm. At 8.15 there will be dinner under the stars at a cost of 15 euro…to book call 347 07756788.
Sunday 2nd June was Italy’s Republic Day…and Corpus Christi.
The beautiful 12th century church…Chiesa Parrocchiale di San Pietro…in Corsena, was decorated with flowers and candles for the First Communion fo several local children.
It is an excellent opportunity to see some of the beautiful religious art in the church.
The chapel at the side of the church was open…a very rare occurence.
Families gathered for the celebration.
There was a little procession from the chapel to the church.
The ceremony went well.
A special day needs a special haircut.
I’m sure everyone who took part enjoyed their day.
For more on the ancient church, click here.
Bella Bagni di Lucca 