Living in Florence: A Saturday at Palazzo Strozzi

Yesterday, Rob and I went to Palazzo Strozzi for the Monkey and Beauty: Banks, Botticelli and the Bonfire of the Vanities exhibition. It's been open since September (and is around until January) and we've been dying to go. After nearly 10 days spent cooped up in the house with an awful stomach bug, I was more than happy to finally buy some tickets and check it out!

The exhibit is all about the role that Florence played in developing the modern banking system (huge) and the role that this new class of businessmen had on culture and the arts (also huge). It also talks a lot about the overarching role religion had during this time, as well. For me, the most fascinating parts had to do with the banking system and not so much the Bonfire of the Vanities...but that's just me :-)

It was one of my favorite exhibits that I've been to in a long time. I find that museums here in Italy (and particularly Palazzo Strozzi, which does this so well) really know how to make a fun, informative and digestable art exhibit. It took us about 1.5 hours to work our way through -- the art and artifacts were fantastic, but just as impressive were the text placards all around the exhibit. I don't "nerd out" with history quite like Rob, but even I was really fascinated by a lot of what I read. Florence history is full of intrigue and action, and it's great when an exhibit can capture it.

The exhibit runs until January 22 and you can learn more about it on the Palazzo Strozzi website.

The work of Clet Abraham?

The other day, Rob and I spotted this store's marquee with a little extra somethin' going on. I've read about Clet Abraham's sculpture on the Ponte alle Grazie in early 2011, and seen street signs with my own eyes, but this is the first time I've ever seen a shop that appears to have received the Clet treatment. Thoughts?

Any other spottings around the city that our fellow Florence residents can share?

Living in Florence: A Weekend Date at the Bargello

Rob and I had a little impromptu date day this past Saturday. We've been talking about going to the Bargello Museum since our first week here and we decided it was finally time to get our butts over there and check it out. Our laziness with checking out the Bargello is made even more lame when you consider the fact that entry is free with our Amici degli Uffizi cards. Lazy bums, I know.

I can't believe we waited this long to go. I can't speak for Rob, but I think the Bargello might be my favorite museum. Why? First of all, the building is steeped in history and houses lots of sculpture -- which I've slowly come to realize may just be my favorite type of art. I've seen Donatello's David so many times in books that it was almost surreal to see it standing (somewhat alone) in a massive room in the Bargello.

Because the Bargello was, um, totally empty, we basically got to enjoy the art, architecture and history at a great pace and without the pressure of crowds. Not more than 2 minutes walk away the Uffizi was completely packed, yet the Bargello was quiet and calm. I loved it!

Something else I loved about the Bargello is that despite all of the wonderful artwork exhibited, the place didn't feel visually packed. I love the Uffizi and Palazzo Pitti galleries, but sometimes when I walk out of there my head is spinning because I'm massively over-stimulated. The Bargello felt like a breath of fresh air in that respect. If you're visiting Florence, I really do urge you to check out this wonderful museum.

meet charles, frida and albert

When I went on my little Etsy shopping spree for the office redecoration I also decided to pick up some additional art to hang over our bookshelf. I decided on Barcelona-based illustrator Judy Kauffman's famous people prints. These prints are clever and cute -- a mix of the illustration style that I really like and the play on history that Rob enjoys.

It was hard to pick which three we wanted most, but we decided on Albert Einstein, Frida Khalo and Charles Chaplin. I had a thing for the Zorro print, but alas, he didn't make the cut.

Judy's Trip Big Print will be my next Etsy purchase...as soon as I have a place to actually hang it :-)

P.S. Apologies for the poor lighting in the top two photos -- this part of our apartment doesn't get much natural light and I have an aversion to flash photography.

office space re-do, part two

Now it's time for the fun part! Once we were satisfied with how we wanted the art hung, we (and by "we" I mean "Rob") drilled holes directly through the paper. Then, we ripped down the templates and hung the actual frames. Such an easy and fun way to hang frames this way...

After the photos were hung, then I got to have a lot of fun decorating the office a bit more and styling the desktop. I strongly believe that your workspace needs to be fun and pleasant -- particularly since we spend so much time working!

We bought a few pieces of new art for the office from Etsy:

• All You Need is Love Print from The Love Shop
• Across the Universe Print from The Love Shop
• Canal Print from Laura Amiss Art & Design
• When Will it Stop Print from Laura Amiss Art & Design