Browsing AuthorPaco Neumann

Author Gravater

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
Gardens of Florence #12: Serre Torrigiani
Outdoors

Gardens of Florence #12: Serre Torrigiani

21 marzo, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

It is a real privilege to visit the Torrigiani garden and greenhouse (serre) in Florence. Linked to the Serre Torrigiani greenhouse, Vieri Torrigiani Malaspina has always devotedly taken care of the garden. You can see this is his real passion when he talks about its charms to visitors. «I was born in this garden, and I have spent here and in the countryside all my entire life. I graduated as Agrarian Engineering in Florence, and in the seventies, I expanded the existing small plant nursery to exploit it as a company, besides taking care of the garden for my family and me,» comments Vieri. At the same time, I think to myself, “What a marvellous thing to have grown up here.” Torrigiani is one of the oldest aristocratic families of Florence. The first fashion show linked to the Pitti fashion events took place in this location.
…

Continue Reading
No Comments 4029 Views 4029 Views
Gardens of Florence #13: parco delle Cascine, the largest public park in Florence
Outdoors

Gardens of Florence #13: parco delle Cascine, the largest public park in Florence

20 marzo, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

It takes longer to cross the Park Le Cascine (parco delle Cascine) than to cross the historical centre of Florence, this gives an idea of its size. This park is the favourite for those who want — or try — to get fit. Its proximity to the river Arno also makes it an ideal place to organize a picnic or lie down to sunbathe. Usually, it is not very busy, not even on a Saturday at noon on a mid-spring sunny day. Except for some fountains, an eccentric pyramid, and some other ornamental lamps, there is no other human imprint or artifices made by the man, not even terraces or cafes, except the two food trucks that are next to a recreational mini-zone with decadent fairground attractions for children.
…

Continue Reading
No Comments 2489 Views 2489 Views
Gardens of Florence #4: parco mediceo di Pratolino
Medici Traces

Gardens of Florence #4: parco mediceo di Pratolino

19 marzo, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

This monumental complex, property of the City of Florence, is included since 2013 in the Unesco World Heritage list. In addition to housing The Colossus of the Appenines, the work of Giambologna for which it is perhaps best known, the Medicean Park in Pratolino contains two Italian gardens and another one in romantic style due to modifications in the 19th century, when the property passed to the Lorena and later to the Demidoff. …

Continue Reading
No Comments 3812 Views 3812 Views
Mimosa blosson on the International Women’s Day in Italy: la Festa della Donna
Art & Culture

Mimosa blosson on the International Women’s Day in Italy: la Festa della Donna

5 marzo, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

The 8th of March is the International Women’s Day or, as it’s more commonly called in Italy, la Festa della Donna, where the importance of women is celebrated by the giving and receiving of mimosa blossom.
…

Continue Reading
No Comments 2290 Views 2290 Views
Brands made in Florence #1: Stefano Bemer, the perfect pair of men shoes
Fashion & Shops & Markets

Brands made in Florence #1: Stefano Bemer, the perfect pair of men shoes

9 febrero, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

Stefano Bemer opened his made-to-measure men shoes store in the vicinity of San Frediano, Florence, around 35 years ago. After his decease in 2012, the brand was handed over to Tommaso Melani, director of the Scuola di Cuoio (leather school). Today located in a former chapel of San Niccolò (via di S. Niccolò 2), the firm currently supports Bemer’s initial idea to create perfect and unique footwear. Bemer handles 800 customers of which some order only one pair in their lifetime whilst others buy eight pairs a year. For this reason, they keep the wood prototypes used to create the final leather shoes.
…

Continue Reading
No Comments 4045 Views 4045 Views
Monica Magnani’s Florence
Moments & People

Monica Magnani’s Florence

9 febrero, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & ENGLISH / SPANISH VERSIONS BELOW

Se qualcuno mi dice ‘Firenze’ la prima cosa che mi viene in mente è fuggire via. Firenze, a volte, io la guardo e mi sembra diventata un luogo comune, un cliché inventato per far contenti i turisti. Firenze per la nave da crociera è il percorso di due ore, per gli amanti clandestini è la città di un fine-settimana, per le famiglie sono i musei delle vacanze di Pasqua, per le gite scolastiche è il capitolo sul Rinascimento, per gli animi malinconici è lo struggimento della sindrome di Stendhal. Io, da questa Firenze, ho continuamente voglia di scappare e forse mi piace proprio perché, poi, quando sono fuggita via dai luoghi comuni, è così bello aver nostalgia di questa città! Firenze, per chi ha voglia di scappare, ha molte vie di fuga: per alcune ci vuole un mezzo di trasporto, per altre, invece, basta un paio di scarpe comode.
…

Continue Reading
No Comments 3941 Views 3941 Views
Brands made in Florence #2: Madova Glove Factory, the best gloves in town
Fashion & Shops & Markets

Brands made in Florence #2: Madova Glove Factory, the best gloves in town

8 febrero, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

The Donnini family has been producing high-quality hand made gloves since 1919, although their store opened in 1954. Stablished in via Guiccirdini 1R, next to their factory, both located near the Ponte Vecchio, Madova frequent clients are usually Korean, Japanese, American and Italian. The most notorious tiny glove shop in town is carefully designed, with its numerous shelves and drawers, where the gloves are conscientiously packaged and stored, classified by their shapes, sizes, and colors and available for both, men and women. Gloves made with first-class deerskin, lamb, or napa leather, and lined with silk, wool, or cashmere. Being all of them designed and manufactured in-house, some models are simple whilst others are perfect for sophisticated outfits.…

Continue Reading
No Comments 2475 Views 2475 Views
Shoe master Roberto Ugolini and his traditional atelier in Santo Spirito
Fashion & Shops & Markets

Shoe master Roberto Ugolini and his traditional atelier in Santo Spirito

8 febrero, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

Roberto Ugolini is one of the most prestigious shoemakers in Florence. His workshop is located right at street level, in Via dei Michelozzi 17, in front of the basilica of Santo Spirito, in Oltrarno, as if in old times, when medieval guilds were so present in cities. The business opened twenty-two years ago just like a repair shop, but he soon began to make shoes too, always in Italian and English leather tanned in Italy. It takes thirty hours of work to create a pair of handmade shoes; thus there´s a waiting list over six months to acquire any. Above and below, photos show one of the craftsmen, probably the sexiest shoemaker in the old continent.

…

Continue Reading
No Comments 3846 Views 3846 Views
Carla Macis´ Florence
Moments & People

Carla Macis´ Florence

7 febrero, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS, ENGLISH & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

Ho due città: una del cuore e una dell’anima. Cagliari è la mia città del cuore, mentre Firenze è quella dell’anima. A Firenze vivo da quando avevo 19 anni, ma non pensavo che mi sarei trattenuta a viverci, ma è successo. Piano piano «ci siamo scelte» ed è diventata l’unica città dove avrei potuto vivere per poter fare il mio lavoro, che mi consente di avere tante relazioni e un buon «know how». Mi piace la sua dimensione internazionale, ma anche la piccola dimensione e l’incanto che provo ogni volta che ancora dopo 33 anni riesce a suscitarmi.…

Continue Reading
No Comments 3436 Views 3436 Views
Oltrarno artisan walk — Experience the local, the authentic and the hidden Florence with Maria B.
Art & Culture

Oltrarno artisan walk — Experience the local, the authentic and the hidden Florence with Maria B.

7 febrero, 2024 / By:
PHOTOS & SPANISH VERSION BELOW

Maria B. — half Italian, half Swedish — is a graphic designer with great sensitivity and passion for any form of aesthetics and beauty. Florentine Experience Shopping was created by Maria in 2015 to spread her love for authentic and incomparable Florentine craftsmanship. She spent months hunting handicraft workshops interacting with the artisans and designers, where she gained knowledge of what is behind a genuine artisan piece. Her private and customized ‘Oltrarno Artisan Walk’ — among other exciting and recommendable tours she also organizes — offers a unique visit to some arresting and extraordinary working spaces. There one can observe closely artisans creating the most delightful and outstanding handmade products, for instance: leather bags and shoes, gold and silversmiths, Florentine mosaic, wood art, and much more.…

Continue Reading
No Comments 4207 Views 4207 Views