Welcome

Many artists dream about painting in Italy. Now, as retiring baby-boomers are increasingly taking up “brush and pallet knife,” more than ever, painting in Italy is the “thing.” Every day, a new “Artist’s” tour of Italy crops up in travel sections of the newspaper and on the Internet. But there still remains a majority of artists who prefer to “go it alone.” They are independent in their artistic styles, and prefer to be independent regarding their travels in Italy . This blog intends to target these free spirited artists who still need guidance to the best places to paint, especially those idyllic gems that are little known and less traveled. Certainly, independent travelers who are not artists will also benefit from this blog.

With a few exceptions, this blog is not a guide to restaurants, lodging, rental cars, or shopping, (except for art supplies.)

Sprinkled among the posts are: my paintings, and a few Italian proverbs and poems written by notable Italian authors for whom I work as a translator.



Please visit my website to view my original art:

http://www.pamelaallegretto-franz.com/

Giclee prints of my paintings, ranging from greeting size to poster size, can be purchased at:

http://pamela-allegretto.fineartamerica.com/



Saturday, March 21, 2009

WRITING IN ITALY/BASILICATA

Yesterday I wrote about painting in the Basilicata region. I’d like to suggest that it’s also an area that has enlightened numerous well-known authors. I already mentioned Carlo Levi and his stirring narrative: Christ Stopped At Eboli. It was his painting and his writing that carried him through the hardships during his exile in this primitive and desolate land. Another author who lived and worked in the region and wrote vividly about the landscape, people, and customs is, Ann Cornelisen. Two of her books in particular: Women Of The Shadows and Torregreca: Life, Death, And Miracles In A Southern Italian Village, are stand out examples of a writer who allows all five senses to guide her prose. In one review she wrote: “The south is still not for the easily discouraged. It is for those who can imagine living in another time, who can believe, even for a moment, in the mirage world created by light so piercing that it sears the eyes.”
Basilicata may have to take a backseat to Rome, Florence, and Venice, but don’t through it out of the car. Take the car, your Italian dictionary (very little, if any, English is spoken in most of the smaller villages), pen and paper, paints and canvas, and a strong sense of adventure, and travel south to chronicle for yourself this unique region and its engaging people.
Buon Viaggio!

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