My Note about Yesterday's Earthquake in Central Italy

The tortoise as a lucky charm   

The Cathedral of Norcia before after the earthquake that shook central Italy on October 30th around 7.40am

The cathedral of Norcia that collapsed yesterday under the earthquake broke my heart. Sacred places are the most ancient tradition we are carrying on in Italy. These places are like our identity card. They make us feel we belong to Italy.

The population of Norcia and its surroundings is safe and they have reached the Adriatic coast by bus organized by the Italian government. Some of our fellow citizens have arrived also here at the Trasimeno lake.

The people of Norcia, Castelluccio, Amatrice and other lovely small boroughs in the area between Umbria and Le Marche have left behind their homes, their belongings and everything they treasured.

I know what it feels like to lose everything. When you lock the door for the last time. That's how my blog started and why I am writing on this page. My family and I, we have lost everything we had: our workshop was our life.

Good luck to Norcia

However, there is much we can do if we are still alive. Our body becomes our home. We can think of ourselves as tortoises. That's actually what we become by getting stronger: tortoises. The warmth that we can spread through our body and mind is great. Life is sacred within us that we want to keep alive by praying in sacred places if we feel like it. For sure churches in Italy are inspiring thanks to their art. Art is for everybody to enjoy. It is not a matter of religion.

So I am sending out to the people of Norcia and surroundings all my best wishes for a safe recovery. You can never guess what is waiting for you if you accept your destiny, fight, hold on and rely on your resilience.

Current priorities regarding rebuilding the areas destroyed by the earthquake according to the government are 1. people, 2. churches 3. businesses. I agree with these priorities. Identity comes first. That is exactly what my priorities have been in reviving Cama. Of course, for me, the list of priorities came in by accident. I have discovered my destiny by the go.

Good fortune everybody in Norcia and let the tortoise be your lucky charm. An invitation to read my blog post about the meaning of Cosimo I de Medici's tortoise, Cosimo's favorite symbol.  I have written a few blog posts about the tortoise topic. The monks in Norcia will apologize to me for mixing sacred and profane. However, the profane bring some cheerfulness in relieving tragedies. This is also part of our traditions in Italy: we mix sacred and profane. It's one of our best gifts!

If you wish to make a donation to rebuild the cathedral of Norcia, herewith follows the direct link to the Benedictine monks. This is the newsletter the monks of Norcia sent out yesterday.

The monks of Norcia are on Twitter at this address: @monksofnorcia - We are now following them on Twitter!

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MANDORLA: an Italian Art Renaissance Curiosity

Pietro Perugino (Italian painter, 1446–1524), Virgin and Child in a Mandorla with Cherubim
c  1480- 1500 National Gallery, London 

MANDORLA is the second Italian art history word I run into based on my art discussions with my friend Rosemary. 

Mandorla is an Italian word that we lent to the English language as is. Same as LOGGIA that describes a typical Renaissance architectural patio attached to a church (like in the Spoleto's cathedral) or a belltower (like in Venice) or to a palace such as in Siena (seen in the Piazza del Campo). Therefore when we say 'Loggia' we know what we mean without translating it. Loggia is the first word I shared with Rosemary upon our art armchair traveling on Facebook. 

The same popularity should apply to the word MANDOLA,  however, this latter is less known than Loggia. So we have to translate it to be understood. Translating the word "Mandorla" is easy to do though. It is only one step away. 'Mandola' means almond. In art history terms 'Mandorla' is also known as "almond-shaped aureole". Here is a Mandola longer description from the National Gallery's glossary: 

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Mandorla

Mandorla is the Italian word for almond. In painting or sculpture, the term is used to describe the almond-shaped enclosure which is sometimes depicted around Christ or the Virgin Mary. For example, the Virgin and Child are represented in a Mandorla in Crivelli's version of 'The Vision of the Blessed Gabriele', and 'The Trinity' is represented within one in Barnaba da Modena's panel.

Mandorlas are most often depicted in the context of Christ's Ascension and the Virgin's Assumption.

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I have seen several Mandorlas in Italian paintings in the churches I have visited these past years. There are several descriptions about the origins of such an almond-shaped aureole coming both from mythology as well as from the Christian tradition. Among all theories, the one I prefer is that the almond is linked to the almond tree and to fertility. 

The traditional almond candies from Sulmona, Italy - We call them CONFETTI

That was indeed the first thing that came to my mind: the almond candies we use in Italy for weddings share the same origin as the Mandola in religious paintings! 

As a memory of a wedding or special celebrations such as baptism and graduation in Italy, we give guests a favor containing 5 almond candies as a sign of prosperity. 

The most important production place of almond candies in Italy is SULMONA in the Abruzzi region. It is where the candy tradition started in Italy. I was in Sulmona for the first time in 2000 and I liked Sulmona very much. There are all sorts of almond candies there, anything you can think of. In Sulmona, producers have highly specialized in the field of almond candies and they are still the best in Italy. 

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Renaissance Art Curiosities in Times of Rebirth 

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A Couple More Steps Forward and...It's Paradise!

The Purgatory is the second book written by Dante Alighieri
about a life journey's story. 

The book is part of a famous trilogy called: Divine Comedy

I couldn't wait any longer to share something I discovered on the Purgatory image I posted the other day. The image was part of my blog post about evolution coming in threes. My great discovery is that right now I am close to Paradise. So I am there at the end of Purgatory.

Where do you think I am? You would never ever guess why and where I got stuck these past months in the Purgatory. There is a particular reason you may not aware of. It comes from my family name: Niccacci. I am stuck in the circle of gluttons!!! I only have two circles left and I am stuck with gluttons!

Indeed my last name Niccacci comes from an Italian nickname for glutton, gourmet and to some extent a person who likes the right things, meaning good food as an example and beautiful things. Such a person is defined as NICCA in our dialect. Niccacci is the corresponding noun to 'nicco' (masculine) and 'nicca' (feminine), which are adjectives.

It is such a relief when there is an answer to what is happening to us. In these past months, I have been eating everything that was at hand. The fridge would not open the door for me at a certain point anymore, so much he was tired of being opened every other minute. If only I had known the circle of gluttons was near the end of the Purgatory!

The circle of gluttons is before the last circle. The very last one is the circle of lust. I will skip on that. I will find a rope and climb on it to get to Paradise straight from the gluttons' circle. My great-grandparents, the original Niccacci family, will see me and help me get there with them. They will give me a hand. After all the connection is perfect: from the gluttons' circle to the authentic Niccacci family in Paradise.

I have been waiting to get to Paradise for two years now. Since the time I was in San Francisco in 2014 looking for an eligible partner. A partner I could not find at that time and I was forced to come back to Italy. It was like falling back to square one, to the book of Hell. If people only knew what I have been going through. So once I am in Paradise. I will stay there put and hold on to it!  

Aurora by Guercino: this is ideally what the conclusion of my journey with Cama should look like 

P.s. When I was in school I could not care less about the Divine Comedy. I am enjoying studying art and literature now because they mean something to me. The reason is there is a connection with my real life: my journey with CAMA. Works of art really take life now. They speak to me. I have always loved teaching and with the amazing experience I had in these past years I would have much to share with students:  about the importance of education and how studying could be turned into something useful and enjoyable if we knew what it is for. 

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Friends of Cama: the intangible heritage of a much loved Italian ceramic workshop

Translation of the article published by L'Italo-Americano on August 18th, 2014 available online in the original Italian edition: 

DERUTA talking coat of arms with the castle (Deruta)
and the Gryphon (Perugia) protecting the city. On top of the
tower a plant of rue, the herb of grace, a symbol of
good luck 

The history of the brand name “Cama” has its roots in Deruta, the most important ceramic production city in Italy. It is also linked to California and to most areas of the United States by a common thread. 

The name “Friends of Cama” was originally created by a group of American customers from the Bay Area, who in 2010 came together to raise a “crowdfunding” in order to save the ceramic factory from imminent closure.  They wanted their favourite artisan workshop to stay in business as for 30 years they had become collectors, and closure meant they would not be able to acquire any more genuine Cama pieces.  

This sincere initiative for the workshop, visited by many people, was “Cama” which is an acronym for Cooperativa Artigiana Majoliche Artistiche (Majolica Artistic Handicraft Cooperative), founded in the fifties specializing in hand-painted Renaissance dinner services.

It is thanks to the artist Elena Niccacci that the classical Deruta patterns reached their perfection, a quality much appreciated by her American customers. Elena’s style became a fashion statement on the dinner tables in many American homes, also in Starbuck’s cookery book entitled “Passion for Coffee” and in films (“Mrs Doubtfire, 1993).

In 2010 Elena Niccacci celebrated 60 years in the world of ceramics, as well as being the first woman entrepreneur to revive the Deruta classical patterns.  As a young girl, she believed passionately in her work, at a time when the art of pottery was reserved for the elite.

During difficult times for Cama, a bridge was created between the US and Italy but it needed more time and resources in order to envisage new horizons.  Reopening the workshop as it had been operating before was unprofitable and attempts to merge with another factory in Deruta were in vain.

Therefore the members of Friends of Cama began to take on a supportive role in the company’s transition and innovation. Starting from a common sharing and a great relationship with Cama’s customers, the daughter Roberta Niccacci took over the intangible heritage of the company in the search for new paths.  So far it has taken five years.  A challenge that has changed Roberta’s life.

“It has been a journey that I never imagined to do.  As each door closed I went forward.  I learnt not to give up;  to fight and to stay focused.  I became very strong because having a vision makes you resilient” said Roberta Niccacci.  “It’s like living a dream.  And I want this dream to come true.  I’m ready to celebrate with my many friends all over the world starting from the United States.  Thank you to all the friends and customers of Cama, and the people unknown to me, for supporting me in an impossible mission – never attempted in Deruta before.”

In Deruta Roberta was the face of Cama;  she took care of the clients with considerable talent together with her brother Andrea, who supports the project to make Cama revive in an original way. With the help of her Italian mentor, who believed in her potentialities, Roberta has moved from sales assistant to innovator.

Roberta Niccacci writes about her journey on the Cama Facebook page www.facebook.com/FriendsofCama and on the blog www.friendsofcama.blogspot.it.

Overcoming the vicissitudes in Italy, where she experimented, researched new methods, knocked on doors;  this year Roberta finally visited the Friends of Cama in the Bay Area returning to San Francisco after twenty years.  She has never forgotten her love for the city and her long-standing friendships.

Now Roberta’s project is ready to take the plunge, possibly with an American business partner, and make her dream come true:  to revive Cama and once again serve the loyal customers who patronized her family’s workshop. 

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