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Paco Neumann

Paco Neumann is a journalist, photographer, proofreader, flâneur and perpetual amateur currently living in between Florence, Berlin, Paris and Tenerife. He´s been a regular contributor to fashion, art, trend and lifestyle magazines and worked for news, advertising and communication agencies

For handball coach Shahram Nari, ‘coronavirus quarantine is different’ in Florence

For handball coach Shahram Nari, ‘coronavirus quarantine is different’ in Florence

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‏The streets, gyms and stadiums are empty, but in Italy, you can still hear the sounds of fun and teamwork this time is coming from handball’s amazing team ‘La Torre’, in Florence. Earlier last week the country’s government imposed unprecedented restrictions on its 60 million residents to slow the spread of coronavirus. Quarantined in their own homes and balconies, many are using social media to connect with the outside world, but for Coach Nari quarantine is Different.

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Palazzo Medici-Riccardi presents Picasso portrayed by Edward Quinn

Palazzo Medici-Riccardi presents Picasso portrayed by Edward Quinn

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Until March 1, the exhibition ‘Picasso. The other half of the sky. Photographs by Edward Quinn’ at Palazzo Medici-Riccardi in Florence proposes an approach to discover the Spanish artist and his relationship with the female world through the photos of one of the most notable photographers of the twentieth century: Edward Quinn. The show is the result of the unusual friendship that linked Picasso with Edward Quinn. Quinn became one of the few photographers who were allowed to photograph him at work, and he was embraced in his private life too. Consisting of eighty photos, the exhibition shows the intimate and private Picasso.…

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Florence Ice Village, ice skating at Fortezza da Basso

Florence Ice Village, ice skating at Fortezza da Basso

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One of the experiences indisputably linked to Christmas is ice-skating. The Florence Ice Village is not the New York Rockefeller Center, but it has its charm. I have never skated over ice, and I do not think I am going to do it on this occasion, but I love to go there and observe the eager faces of people, filled with curiosity and happiness. I love to guess who are the scared ones, the clumsy ones, the agile ones, the vanity ones, and even those who show their expertise — they take it as seriously as if they were in a world championship. All in all, this mixture is just great.…

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Lady Liberty’s twin statue travels from Florence to New York

Lady Liberty’s twin statue travels from Florence to New York

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Two stunning women will be confronted in the Hudson Bay of New York. One, monolithic and monumental and dominating the port of the Big Apple since 1886, is the famous symbolic statue Lady Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World, by Frédéric Bartholdi). On the other hand, and thought as a sculpture not as a monument, therefore of smaller dimensions but more significant in ‘aura,’ is her Florentine sister, Libertà della Poesia (The Freedom of Poetry). Less known by the public, but equality captivating, the Italian twin sculpture visits the city of New York on the occasion of the exhibition ‘Sisters in Liberty,’ which will be on display at the Immigration Museum located at the Ellis Island until April 26, 2020.…

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Abida Allouh’s Florence

Abida Allouh’s Florence

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Florence is an eternal dream

Florence is an eternal dream, the most beautiful city in the world. Since I remember, I have been fascinated by antiquity, history, and the Medici dynasty. So I decided to visit Florence, the city where Paco Neumann lives. He is one of my best friends. I met Paco in the mid-nineties when he lived and studied journalism and photography in Madrid. I have always been attracted to art, so I explored several museums and many Renaissance churches during my vacation in Florence. Needless to say that the entire city is a vast open-air museum.…

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PanicAle, craft cocktails and beers in Florence

PanicAle, craft cocktails and beers in Florence

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Heir of Lo Sverso, at PanicAle (Via Panicale, 7/red) one can drink special cocktails and draft beers, and have tapas. PanicAle is one of the more authentic places among the outdoor premises of the San Lorenzo Market, where it is located in Florence. Its waiters were trained at the Jerry Thomas Academy in Rome, one of the most prestigious schools for bartenders, in which the old style of mixing prevails. The best of PanicAle is its unique seasonal cocktails, created after personal experiences, travels, songs … their flavours resemble the ones from the drinks created during the Ottocento.

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Pinocchio, protagonist of contemporary art at Villa Bardini in Florence

Pinocchio, protagonist of contemporary art at Villa Bardini in Florence

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Pinocchio is one of the most reimagined characters in children’s literature and a cultural icon whose story has been adapted into many other artistic forms. The exhibition ENIGMA PINOCCHIO. From Giacometti to LaChapelle is dedicated to Collodi’s Pinocchio: a wooden puppet universally recognized as a symbol of Italy and Tuscany. Pinocchio, whose fictional adventures are among the most famous and reinterpreted stories in the 20th Century is now at the centre of Villa Bardini’s latest exhibit. The show examines the tremendous influence on the art world this beloved character has had over the last one hundred years.…

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Florence Biennale 2019

Florence Biennale 2019

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On view until October 28 at Fortezza da Basso, Florence Biennale is a minor and modest contemporary art exhibition in Florence, where it is regarded as a showcase of the international contemporary art production. Every two years the Florence Biennale enlivens the Medicean city with a programme of collateral events such as conferences, performances, workshops and lectures. All this with a view to offer artists and their audience the opportunity to engage with art and culture, and know more about the theme of each edition of the biennial. The exhibiting artists compete in a range of art categories, which, in the XIIth edition of the Florence Biennale, includes Drawing & Calligraphy, Painting, Mixed Media, Sculpture, Ceramic Art, Textile & Fiber Art, Jewellery Art, Photography, New Media Art, Video Art, Installation Art, and Performance Art.

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‘The Botany of Leonardo,’ exhibition at Santa Maria Novella Museum

‘The Botany of Leonardo,’ exhibition at Santa Maria Novella Museum

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On view until December 15 at Santa Maria Novella Museum, the exhibition The Botany of Leonardo. A vision of science bridging Art and Nature’ outlines the philosophical and technological context of the time in which Leonardo da Vinci lived in order to explore his study of form and the processes of the Plant world in greater depth. Through his eyes as a “systemic” thinker, the connections between art, science and nature, as well as the relationships between different spheres of knowledge, are revealed.  The botany of Leonardo thus becomes a privileged perspective that opens up a modern discourse on scientific evolution and ecological sustainability.…

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Viareggio Art Déco, chic decadence on the Versilia Coast

Viareggio Art Déco, chic decadence on the Versilia Coast

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The walk on the seafront of Viareggio is one of the most beautiful in Italy. This promenade is where its unique carnival parade takes place. Along four kilometres of coast, one can see the beach on one side and some beautiful –  and deeply decadent – Liberty-style buildings on the other. Today a modern city, Viareggio’s most distinguished monuments are the Art Déco buildings facing the waterfront, which have preserved their original structure since the beginning of the 20th century.…

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