Plans are well underway for the next Gallery Talks’ Florence Trip, tailored to those who have previously been to Florence and taking in many of the less well-known venues and hidden gems in this beautiful, historical city. Lunches and dinners will be at typical Tuscan restaurants where we will be sampling the delights of Italian food and wine and of course plenty of coffee and gelato breaks will be taken along the way!
Our itinerary starts with the Casa Buonarroti, the home of Michelangelo and a peaceful museum with few tourists. Here we will take in some of Michelangelo’s stunning early works and the frescoes celebrating his life, including one by Artemisia Gentileschi, who is the subject of a one-woman exhibition coming up at the National Gallery this April. The National Gallery filmed the Artemisia fresco at the Casa Buonarroti last month and it will be included in a video as part of the ‘Artemisia’ exhibition, much to the museum’s excitement!
After lunch in a tiny piazza, we’ll be visiting the vast Palazzo Pitti where I have planned a manageable route through a selection of the very many of the galleries cram-packed with significant art from the Medici family collections; we will focus on works by Lippi, Botticelli, Raphael, Bronzino, Titian, Giorgione and Artemisia Gentileschi. A short walk to the top of the Boboli Gardens will reward us with stunning views across the River Arno to San Miniato al Monte and the Tuscan hills, hopefully bathed in glorious sunlight. If there’s time, we might fit in a quick visit to the church of Santa Felicita to see Pontormo’s Deposition altarpiece in Brunelleschi’s Capponi Chapel.
Day Two starts with the Medici Chapels followed by the stunning little Capella dei Magi in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, frescoed by Benozzo Gozzoli and one of the oldest private chapels to have survived in a Florentine palace. After lunch in the rooftop restaurant of the Spedale degli Innocenti, overlooking the Duomo and rooftops of Florence, we’ll be paying a visit to the Accademia, to see the famous Michelangelo’s David, amongst many other sculptures by him and Giambologna and plenty of significant works of art by Botticelli, Lippi, Ghirlandaio and Perugino, to name but a few. The cloister of the church of Santissima Annunziata will provide some quiet time, whilst we admire Andrea del Sarto’s Madonna of the Basket, in preparation for putting our feet up before meeting for dinner.
Day Three takes in the imposing Palazzo Vecchio which is steeped in history. Built at the turn of the 13th century on the site of a Roman theatre as the seat of government, it has changed its role over the centuries, including as the home of the Medici family during the 16th century, and today is still the town hall of Florence.
A restorative lunch will be taken at our leisure and, after rubbing the nose of the bronze boar ‘Il Porcellino’ in the Mercato Nuovo to ensure our return to Florence, we’ll be visiting Santa Maria Novella. Inside the splendid marble façade, the Church of Santa Maria Novella houses a Crucifix by Giotto and Masaccio’s Trinity, although painted over one hundred years apart it is interesting to confront these two great masters of Italian painting at close range. The ‘Chiostro Verde’ frescoes by Uccello have recently been restored and the complete fresco cycle by Ghirlandaio in the Tournabuoni Chapel includes many portraits of 15th century Florentines. In other words, Santa Maria Novella is a treasure trove of Early Renaissance painting by some of the great masters of the 14th & 15th centuries. And, there are two tranquil cloisters in which to truly relax and absorb!
Our last morning in Florence will be spent visiting the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, or the ‘Duomo’, to admire its interior, followed by brunch at one of the oldest cafés in Florence whilst we watch the world go by in the Piazza della Repubblica, before heading for home.
