Klimt's Three Ages at Gallery of Modern Art in Rome.

Mothers have always been a popular subject in Art,  depicted as goddesses, tender Madonnas,  timeless mythological figures.
There is one work in particular that comes immediately to my mind when I think of motherhood. An icon. It's by Klimt, probably the greatest Austrian painter who ever lived and one of the most expensive of all time, after death.
It is surprisingly in Rome.
Shown for the first time at the Biennale in Venice in 1910, it won the gold medal in 1911 at the International Exhibition in Rome for the 50th Anniversary of Italian Unity. It was purchased by Rome's National Gallery of Modern Art in 1912.
A tender portrait of a loving mother posing as a Madonna. In fact it's often referred to as Mother and Child.  



The Three Ages of Woman (1905) - Gustav Klimt.
Galleria d'Arte Moderna - Rome.

But a mysterious third woman appears in the background: old, naked, an unforgiving depiction of decay.  A disturbing vision. So disturbing that in the numberless reproductions, posters and postcards, it's often simply 'cut out'.
The old woman might have been inspired, according to some scholars, by Rodin's  Old Courtesan, in Vienna for the Secession Exhibition in 1901.  
Three women at different stages in life: an allusion to the never-ending cycle of life and death. 
Klimt had lost his son Otto in 1902 and besides an apparent tribute to motherhood there is a clear obsession with time ad death.  Nevertheless it evokes also youth, fertility and love.
The vibrant colors of his palette convey a less bitter and tragic interpretation of the theme.  But the decorative elements in the background, similar to the byzantine mosaics he loved, are something else:  those mysterious shapes have been interpreted as bacteria and protozoa, symbols of decay and decomposition. He was fascinated by microbiology.
Death and sexuality were regarded as inconceivable elements of chaos by his society. Nevertheless Eros and Thanatos were the source of  Klimt's inspiration. 
The ageing process, especially concerning women, was a popular subject already in the Renaissance depicted by artists such as Giorgione. It became a common theme also in Klimt's Symbolist era.
His works have even been criticized for being pornographic.  He was fascinated and obsessed by female bodies. And by women's clothing.  Some of the outfits he created for his creatures are truly spectacular. Not surprising they inspired designer John Galliano for one of his collections.
Not much is known about his private life but he was apparently the father of at least 14 illegitimate children with his various lovers.
He once wrote: "I have never painted a self-portrait. I am more interested in other people, especially women.'





Trappist: the historical Roman chocolate.

 

In Sicily it's Modica, in Tuscany Stainer, in Turin Peyrano or Caffarel, among others. 
In Rome the synonym for chocolate is Trappist, produced from 1880 by monks! 
Dark, with milk or hazelnuts, gianduia and for Christmas 'torrone' (nougat) of course.
Their recipes are ancient and strictly top secret, their logo:  the Colosseum with a cross!
Trappists are named after La Trappe Abbey in Normandy (France).  They are a reformed wing of Cistercian monks who were also originally from France (Citeaux) where the order was founded in 1098.  Trappists follow St. Benedict' s rule.
They used to speak only when necessary:  they actually have a sign language!  Even if they were actually much more rigorous until the Second Vatican Council in 1960s.
They still live by the work of their hands, not neglecting study and writing.  Monasteries are generally located in rural areas and produce cheese, bread, chocolate, beer, jams, liqueurs and also cosmetics!
Their beers contain residual sugars plus yeast so, unlike common beer, will improve with age.

Three Fountains Abbey, 1874.

The Trappist Abbey in Rome is located at the Tre Fontane (Three Fountains) on the Via Laurentina where they have three separate churches (one to St. Paul, one to the Blessed Mary and the third dedicated to the Saints Vincent and Anastasius).  The Church of St. Paul was raised on the spot where the saint was beheaded by order of Emperor Nero. Legend accounts for the three springs (fontane) asserting that, when severed from Paul's body, his head bounced and struck the earth in three different places, from which fountains sprang up. The church also holds the pillar to which St. Paul was tied according to tradition and some mosaics from Ostia Antica.

More on the Abbey:
http://www.sanpaolotrefontane.org/index.php
http://www.abbaziatrefontane.it/index.php (only in Italian).

Once the area was swampy and malarial:  that's why eucalyptus trees were planted:  their liqueur distilled from the leaves is very popular.   Their specialties are sold in the little shop by the entrance.  The monks also sell an aromatic vinegar which is said to cure headaches and rheumatism and the best chocolate you can find in Rome. 
Actually till 1970 all those goods were produced by the monks, now a factory in Frattocchie supplies the shop of the Tre Fontane.

Their specialties are also online:
http://www.bottegadelmonastero.it/index.php?manufacturers_id=20&sort=3a&language=en

A brief video on the factory (better without audio):
http://youtu.be/mHaCkTcmKn8

 

 

St. Joseph of the Carpenters in Rome.

San Giuseppe dei Falegnami is one of those surprising non-tourist Roman parish churches definitely worth a visit.  It is located up above the Mamertine Prison, the ancient Roman prison where, according to the legend, St. Peter and St. Paul were kept before martyrdom.
At the foot of the Capitole hill, by the Arch of Septimius Severus.
It's a baroque church, 'very' baroque:  a golden light pervades the richly decorated interior.  Built in 1597 by the Congregation of the Carpenters:  many of the angels hold carpenter's instruments in honor of their patron saint St. Joseph. The project by Giovan Battista Montani is completed by G.B. Soria.

Interior.
Partly remodeled at the end of XIX century.



 Cantoria.
Rest on the flight to Egypt and Prophets by Giuseppe Puglia (1634).



Nativity -1651
Carlo Maratta
(2nd altar, left).

The Oratory is the real gem.
Frescoes by a very active baroque artist from Velletri:
Marco Tullio Montagna.
One of the preliminary sketches for those frescoes is...
in the Art Museum of the School of Design in
Rhode Island!

Marriage of the Virgin Mary.

Nativity.

Flight to Egypt.

SS. Luke and Martina: Pietro da Cortona's two souls.

The church of St. Luke and Martina was designed by Pietro da Cortona next to the building which housed the Academy of St. Luke  till 1931, on the site where originally a VII century chapel to Santa Martina (martyr Septimius Severus) was erected,  facing the Arch of Septimus Severus and the Roman Forum. 

Bust of Pietro da Cortona by Bernardino Fioriti.
(lower church).
His tombstone can be seen on the floor of the nave (upper church).

In 1634, when Pietro da Cortona became the director of the Accademia, he requested to build his own funerary monument in the church.  But surprisingly during the construction of his chapel the body of Santa Martina was unearthed. 

Santa Martina (main altar) by Nicola Menghini (1635).

To celebrate the event cardinal Francesco Barberini, pope Urban VIII's nephew, commissioned Cortona the project of a new church in honor of Martina but also dedicated to St. Luke (patron saint of painters) for the building was owned by St. Luke Academy (the guild of artists founded in 1577). 



Symbols of the Evangelists


The remarkable stuccoes are by Camillo Rusconi, G. Battista Maini, Filippo della Valle.
Completed in 1730.

Cortona's plan is based on a Greek cross.  The dome is ribbed and it's supported by a tall drum, lightened by huge windows, rhythmically undulated.  The windows are adorned by garlands, shells, scrolls and female heads.  The dome and the vault are coffered and decorated with the Barberini bees and laurel, lilies for chastity and palms of martyrdom. 

The shrine of Santa Martina was designed by P. da Cortona
and cast by Giovanni Artusi.

In the crypt the shrine with the remains of Santa Martina.  The materials are colored, the plan is more complex.  A striking contrast with the upper monumental church, austere and white, almost entirely decorated with white stuccoes (surprising, considering da Cortona was primarily a painter).   Around this time also Borromini adopted white stucco for S. Carlo alle Quattro Fontane).  Preminence is given to architecture.  They could have been influenced by Palladio who retained 'white' the most appropriate color for churches.

A Roman mummy and her jewels.

If you ever visit Palazzo Massimo don't forget to include the basement in your itinerary:  my favorite room houses an amazing exhibit of gold jewelry, alabaster cinerary urns and a sarcophagus still containing the mummy of an eight-year-old girl!
There's also a stunning numismatic collection, the largest one in Italy, covering all periods from the mint of Juno Moneta. 
More than 100 marble fragments illustrate the Edict of Diocletian (301 A.D.),  a measure to combat inflation, essential for understanding Roman economy.  Last but not least you'll have the opportunity to admire the 3 precious scepters of the emperor Maxentius  found in 2006 on the slopes of the Palatine by the Arch of Constantine.
But let's go back to Roman jewelry...  those treasures are precious documents to understand the opulence and the luxury of antiquity.  The little girl of Grottarossa is unique:  though embalming was practiced in Rome, this is the only mummy (II century A.D.) that survived from that period.  Her funerary kit is also on display.  She was actually found adorned with gold earrings and a gorgeous gold necklace embedded with sapphires.

Jewels from archaic period to Imperial age.

So many different ways to style the hair with gold.
 

A Roman Barbie (II century).  Ivory.
From the sarcophagus of Tivoli (Via Valeria).
 

Grottarossa Mummy
discovered in 1964.

Her doll.

Her jewels. 

 

The 'X-rated' Fountain of the Naiads in Rome.

No other city celebrates water like Rome! Almost every square is adorned with a fountain more or less monumental!  Arriving by train,  the very first fountain we come across is the modern Fountain of the Naiads, dominating Piazza della Repubblica. 

The square, a step away from Termini station,  is also known as Piazza dell' Esedra, occupying the large curved space of the former baths of Diocletian.  The porticoes designed by Gaetano Koch at the end of XIX century, replace the ancient Roman buildings originally located around the exedra. 

The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels is actually an interesting example of converted architecture: one of the halls of the ancient Roman baths, transformed by Michelangelo into a church! Hard to tell from the exterior, since the façade is, simply, the brick wall of what was probably the ancient Tepidarium, respected and maintained by an artist that was so much ahead of his time.

The very first fountain, commissioned by the pope Pius IX in 1870, was dominated by four chalk lions by Alessandro Guerrieri, replaced in 1901 by the Fountain of the Naiads by Mario Rutelli.

Rutelli was a sculptor from Palermo, probably more known for being the great grand-father of Francesco, mayor of Rome twice between 1993 and 2001.  Mario's father was the famous architect who designed the Teatro Massimo Vittorio Emanuele in Palermo: the third largest lyrical theatre in Europe.
Mario Rutelli designed also the statue of Anita Garibaldi on the Janiculum and one of the Victories on the Monument to Victor Emmanuel.

For Mussolini the fountain was ' the exaltation of eternal youth, the capital's first salute to art'.

The Naiads are nymphs, each one alluding to a particular form of water.
They can be identified by their allegorical  animal.




A frilled lizard for the nymph of underground streams.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When first unveiled the four naked bronze statues of the Naiads, deemed to be 'obscene', were fenced with a railing.  Their 'lascivious' and 'provocative' poses were considered excessive by the prude conservatives of the time!



A horse for the nymph of the Oceans (detail).

The models who posed for Rutelli's sensual naiads were renowned for their beauty:  they came from Anticoli Corrado, a little village perched on a hill, not too far from Rome, known in XIX century for the legendary beauty of local women, apparently so attractive that the little borgo became the village of artists and models, literally colonized by sculptors and painters!



A giant snake for the nymph of rivers.

Fortunately, in spite of the opposition and the initial censorship, the naiads remained in place and the railing was finally removed. 









A swan for the nymph of the lakes.

Rutelli completed the fountain with some sculptures to be placed in the centre:  three human figures, a dolphin and an octopus tangled together. 
The first version in mortar placed in 1911 for the International Exposition was greeted with so much sarcasm, that the final bronze version was never added.
The group nicknamed the fish fry, was replaced by the statue of the sea-god Glaucus which received more positive feedbacks. 
The much criticized concrete fish fry lies abandoned in the gardens of Piazza Vittorio today. 

San Vito, a surprising church in Rome.

  

The little church dedicated to St. Vitus in the rione Esquilino, is only 10 minutes from the more known Basilica of St. Mary the Major. 

It's first recorded at the end of VIII century as S. Vito in Macello since it was near the macellum, the ancient Roman indoor market.

The location of the church is bizarre, almost leaning on the Arch of Gallienus.
The arch was originally an ancient Roman gate (Esquiline) in the Servian walls, the very first walls of Rome (IV century B.C.).  Rebuilt in monumental style in the Augustan period, it was dedicated to the emperor Gallienus and his wife Cornelia Salonina in 262,  by the equestrian Aurelius Victor (the inscription is on the architrave). From the gate two important Roman roads started:  the Labicana and Tiburtina.

The Church is actually dedicated to St. Vitus,  Modestus and Crescentia:  IV century martyrs under the emperor Diocletian, much venerated the Middle Ages.

St. Vitus is more known; Modestus, and Crescentia were, respectively, his tutor and his nurse, husband and wife.  According to the legend Vitus, the son of a Sicilian senator, was brought up by Modestus and his wife as a Christian. His father tried in vain, even torturing him, to shake his faith, but Vitus was resolute and did not betray the two.  They managed to escape by boat to Lucania but were captured and taken to Rome where St. Vitus also cured the emperor Diocletian's son of devil possession.  Accused of sorcery they were tortured and condemned to death.

An angel would have brought them back to Lucania where they died. 

The three saints are very popular in Southern Italy and Sicily.  Much venerated also in Prague where the huge cathedral is dedicated to St. Vitus, the patron saint of Bohemia.

In the late Middle Ages in Germany St. Vitus feast (June 15th) was celebrated in a singular way:  worshippers danced around his statue.  As a matter of fact he is the patron saint of dancers (besides actors, comedians). He is also invoked for protection against epilepsy, lightnings, animal attacks and... oversleep!  The expression 'St. Vitus dance' also refers to a neurological disorder characterized by uncoordinated movements. 

The church in Rome was originally a diaconia, a 'welfare center' for the care of poor people and the distribution of alms. It was rebuilt at the end of XV century by the pope Sixtus IV in the present location, near the original site.  The Cistercian monks to whom it was entrusted at the time, established also a small monastery, adjacent to the church.  Further restorations followed and with the expansion of the neighborhood beyond the Roman walls a new façade was opened on Via Carlo Alberto.  In the 70s such alterations were fortunately removed.
 

 

 

The interior is incredibly plain and sober:  one nave, the apse, a lacunar ceiling, almost white. 

So modest that, walking toward the altar, you don't expect the impressive fresco on the right wall.
 

XV century fresco

It's a Renaissance work attributed to Antoniazzo Romano or Melozzo da Forlì (XV century) depicting a Madonna and Child, between Crescentia and Modestus and, down below, from the left St. Sebastian, Saint Margaret (the dragon, one of her attributes, has almost disappeared, only the tail is visible) and St. Vitus with a dog.
 

St. Sebastian, St. Margaret, St. Vitus and ...the dog.

In the Italian iconography he appears with one or more dogs. 
Probably because of his birth:  June 15h is a date preceding summer which was associated by the Romans to the star Sirius, considered to be the 'dog star' because it's the brightest in the constellation of the dog (Canis Major).  But also other explanations are possible of course, even if less credited:  the dog could be related to the fact the saint was invoked against rabies, or more simply it is a symbol of his fidelity to Christ.

 

A modern fresco (XIX century) on the opposite wall shows a Madonna offering the rosary to St. Catherine of Siena and St. Dominic.

On the right wall there is also an ancient Roman funerary cippus (a tomb marker) still bearing the inscription.    Known in the Middle Ages as pietra scellerata (infamous stone), it was believed that martyrs were tortured and killed on it.  Its surface is consumed because according to traditional beliefs the powder obtained by scratching the marble cured a multitude of evils, especially hydrophobia (rabies).