L’ARMINUTA

L’ARMINUTA

L’arminuta by Donatella di Pietrantonio published by Einaudi is yet another book for which I thank Monica.

Arminuta is a dialect word from Abruzzo and means ‘comeback’.

Comeback, arminuta in fact, is the nickname given to the protagonist of the book that won the 2017 Campiello Prize

The Campiello Prize is a literary award by entrepreneurs from the Veneto region and conceived by Edilio Rusconi when he wasn’t yet publisher in 1963.

Campielli are actually small camps, or squares, typical in Venice

The trophy that is awarded to the winning book is in the shape of the characteristic ‘vera da pozzo’ that is often found in the centre of campielli (small squares) for the supply of water, in particular inspired by the vera da pozzo of San Trovaso in the Dorsoduro district.

The story of L’arminuta also inspired director Giuseppe Bonito.

The film starring Sofia Fiore and Carlotta De Leonardis was presented at the 2021 Film Festival in Rome and is distributed by Lucky Red.

This trailer shows me images that are very different from what I imagined when I read about them.

Have you seen the movie?

What do you think about?

The author: Donatella di Pietrantonio also won the David di Donatello Prize in 2022 for best non-original screenplay.

This ‘comeback’ forces the reader to reconsider the concept of mother.

Mothers.

I told you about someone who had two as Americo Marino and how they both embodied the true essence of being a mother.

Now I tell you about someone who has had two different dropouts.

But the concept of motherhood is so extensive and interconnected with innate love that it can also be expressed in a small, tiny Woman.

And where life deprives of maternal affection, life can give a sister.

“My sister. Like an unlikely flower, grown on a small lump of earth attached to the rock. From her I learned endurance. Now we are less alike in our features, but it is the same sense we find in this being thrown into the world. In complicity we are saved.”

MADRIGAL WITHOUT SOUND

MADRIGAL WITHOUT SOUND

Madrigal Without Sound is the book recommended by Monica to help me dealing with a period of history that is actually not in my league.

Published by Bollati Boringhieri, Madrigal without sound won the 2019 Campiello Prize.

About the author: Andrea Tarabbia has a WordPress blog and I was struck by the header image: a photograph of the entrance to apartment No. 50 on Sadovaja Street, Moscow, taken in the year 2000.

Actually, given the particular construction I should speak of authors because if the Madrigal is soundless, the book on the other hand has multiple voices.

Three different visions take the reader to look at the soul of Carlo Gesualdo, known as Gesualdo da Venosa, famous for being an excellent madrigalist, but also a bloody uxoricide.

Igor Stravinsky, Glenn Watkins, and Gioachino Ardytti.

Igor Stravinsky certainly needs no introduction.

Glenn Watkins is defined as the greatest expert of Gesualdo da Venosa.

Finally, I would define Gioachino Ardytti as the embodiment of the legends around the life of Carlo Gesualdo.

The exchange between Watkins and Stravinskji is epistolary, you know how much I love letters

And it is a prelude to what will happen in Venice in 1960: Monumentum pro Gesualdo da Venosa ad CD annum.

 

 

On the other hand, Andrea Tarabbia ascribes to Gioachino a manuscript narrating the life of Carlo Gesualdo down to the dark details of evil reported in a manner as ruthless as it is functional in portraying the character perhaps with the same criterion of repentance that he intended by extruding it in the famous Pala del Perdono.

 

Franco Battiato also dedicated a song that invites reflection on morality and the actions of men.

The madrigals of Gesualdo, prince of Venosa
Musician murderer of the bride
What does it matter?
He strikes his note
Sweet as a rose.

Strong words indeed.

Carlo Gesualdo’s bride: Maria D’Avalos, was slaughtered at Palazzo San Severo, where they lived, and various legends have been passed down about her ever since.

Certainly Maria remains a constant presence in the narrative of Gesualdo da Venosa’s life, in a sort of seesaw between alter egos and a mixture of good and evil.

I rather like to quote you this sentence from the book:
I think that music is the bride of words, and that every word is a box where all pain, and joy, and life are contained. With sounds we can explode this box, give it more pain, more joy, more life than it already has.

 

I find this to be very true: music for me can amplify states of mind.

What do you think?

RONDÒ ARMANIANO

RONDÒ ARMANIANO

Rondò Armaniano is an imaginary dance composed of lines, lights and colors that gently vibrate, as if refracted through a prism.

The Giorgio Armani Privè spring summer 2023 collection is a luminescent fantasy in which the clothes dance and shine.

Just like the Rococo interiors of Venetian palazzos, it is the splendour of light, multiplied by extraordinary embroidery, that creates the most precious sensations.

Rondò Armaniano is a symphony of small, jewelled jackets, long skirts, fluid trousers and sheath dresses that create seductive silhouettes.

Gorgères and diamond motifs inspired by a painting of Harlequin take us straight to the Venice Carnival, but not only.

Everything is light, impalpable and glittering. The diamonds motif expands onto the catwalk, in a painting that becomes reality.

A reality that remains a dream for many, yet I consider it Art, and as such I simply admire it without feeling the desire to own it.

I find that every time Giorgio Armani offers us his fashion shows, we can all consider ourselves richer in beauty.

And as if by magic, again King Giorgio has managed to pay homage to something in my heart: in this case Venice

Luciana in her tag wrote me “Venice & Armani: a dream” perfectly describing my thoughts.

And, just to frame … the fashion show took place in Paris

I really liked this sequence of shots: little glimpses, angles, viewpoints.

Here, at this point I would like to ask you if you would also like to remember a place that inspires you for whatever reason.

I came across this quote by Haruki Murakami:
People leave traces of themselves where they feel most comfortable, most worthwhile.

Do you agree with that?

In my case, I would rather say that it is the place that leaves its imprint in me, but I am weird … how about you?

 

A HAUNTING IN VENICE

A HAUNTING IN VENICE

If I say A haunting in Venice what do you think?

Curiosity, enthusiasm, and even a little bit of awe, for me.

What happens when several things you particularly like add up by blending together?

The perfect recipe.

Though the risk increases because the expectation is high.

And I would say that this is definitely the case with A Haunting in Venice i.e., the new movie coming out in 2023 that will see Kenneth Branagh acting under the quintessential mustache: those of Hercule Poirot

The first element that strikes me: Venice!

“My” Venice, you know by now.

But which Queen Agatha book are we talking about?

A Haunting in Venice grew out of Hallowe’en party, a book published in 1969

Shall we read together a few lines from the first two pages?

Or we can listen to

Agatha Christie therefore brings us back to the subject of All Saints

But … Venice?

In a statement shared with the press, Branagh said, “This development of the character of Hercule Poirot, as well as the Agatha Christie franchise is based on a complex and little-known mystery story set on Halloween in a pictorially enchanting city...”

The screenplay is by Michael Green, among his work I would recall Blade Runner 2049 just to get your thoughts.

20th Century Studios described the adaptation, written by Michael Green, as a disturbing supernatural thriller in which Poirot, now retired in self-imposed exile in the world’s most glamorous city, reluctantly attends a séance in a decaying, haunted mansion, during which one of the guests is murdered. The detective thus finds himself in a sinister world of shadows and secrets.

Certainly quite a leap of imagination from Woodleigh Common …  but if it’s jumping to Venice … we trust!

By the way, Kenneth Branagh decided to start filming right on Halloween leaving one doubt: the cast has been announced, but for now we can only speculate what the roles will be.

Do you want to give it a try?

Kyle Allen
Camille Cottin
Jamie Dorman
Tina Fey
Jude Hill
Ali Khan
Emma Laird
Kelly Reilly
Riccardo Scamarcio
Michelle Yeoh

NEST IN THE PARK

NEST IN THE PARK

If I say Nest in the Park, what do you think?

Specifically: Ticino Park, which I have already told you about. 

Could it be a nest in the park for Ibis

Or a nest in the park for them?

What about a den?

Maybe for the hare or for some other being that wanders around … 

No: Nest in the Park is an Eco-camp, to be precise it is the first Italian Tentsile Experience Camp.

What does this mean?

It means camping tents suspended in the trees for a total immersion experience in Nature.

What do you think about?

Can you imagine waking up and having a coffee in the heart, in an actual sense, of the Ticino Park?

Or, more generally, what is your ideal vacation?

Journey

Adventure or comfort

City  or countryside

I grew up experiencing camping vacations, not as extreme as the Park Nest, but equally significant enough to occupy a special place among the memories of the heart.

 

Of course, it’s all different now, we no longer talk about camping but glamping, and it seems light years from the time when postcards were sent …

And by the way, I’ve come a long way too, literally.

With my husband, holiday transformed: from the static “camping” to mile-long walks to visit as many places as possible.

Besides Paris I would mention Umbria.

But what about you? What holiday can you tell me about?

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