VISITING A UNIQUE HOME IN PERUGIA

Portrait of Queen Margherita of Italy (1881), It's a handmade and handpainted
glass window. Amazing! 

A couple of days ago I was part of a guided tour in Perugia with the subject of handmade glass windows.

This was a great opportunity for me, a wonderful introduction to the famous art glass windows atelier in Perugia, Moretti-Caselli.

The studio is located on the main road that takes downtown Perugia parallel to the famous Renaissance fortress called 'Rocca Paolina'.

Founder, artist Francesco Moretti (Perugia, 1833-1917), invented a technique that takes inspiration from the Renaissance. He painted on glass with the style of Perugino, Raffaello and Pinturicchio.

The perfect example of osmosis of the arts.

I was amazed when I entered the Moretti-Caselli museum. Location is unique. It is the last Renaissance home in Perugia, owned by the aristocratic Baglioni family. The studio itself is entirely preserved with ancient books, files, color bottles, tools and the original glass windows cardboards:  i.e. for the Cathedral of Perugia and the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli in Assisi with rare sketch photos.

In the United States you may admire the art of the Moretti-Caselli studio in Glendale, California at the Forest Lawn Memorial Park. Here there's a copy of the Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci created by two of Francesco Moretti's heirs: sisters Rosa and Cecilia Caselli  in the years 1925-1931. 

The Moretti-Caselli studio is still operating and available for special orders for churches, chapels , buildings and private homes.  

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- Original Posts by Roberta Niccacci -

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Leaving the World Behind

Deruta ceramics take inspiration from Renaissance art. Renaissance in its turn is an interpretation of the classical
ages; with the usage of talent, wisdom, engagement of the population of the 15th and 16th centuries through arts and crafts. We had a second Rebirth of ceramics art in Italy in the 1920s. It was called the Second Renaissance period.

Publishing a post-draft dated February 24th, 2013

Yesterday in the local newspaper a friend of mine who writes articles about the latest news from Deruta made me a great gift by publishing the writing of an entrance door to a villa belonging to a doctor of one of the most respected families of Deruta: Dr. Enea Magnini.

This morning I went back to Deruta for the polls and I visited downtown where I had an espresso at the coffee shops with my friends and looked for the villa in order to take a photo. I was impressed by the fact that I had never seen this villa with so much appreciation. I am more and more in love with the Renaissance culture and traditions, which revived in Deruta, in Italy, and in Europe in the 1920s and have left us such examples of ceramics art traditions.

The writing is the last part of an expression by Latin writer Juvenal and in Latin, it goes as follows:
"Protinus ante meum quidquod dolet exue limen" (tr. Lay your troubles down here before you enter my door"). The writing in capital letters is with the graces as per the tradition of the Roman ages, a trick so that the writing could be visible from far, same as the writings on marble on the facades of churches, cathedrals, and mausoleums and on top of the entrance Renaissance doors.

- Original Post by Roberta Niccacci -

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The chameleon in the Renaissance

The chameleon is the symbol of air, one of the
four elements of the universe for Francesco I de' Medici 

I truly like the chameleon because it is the first animal I thought of as a mascot of my family's workshop. In Italian the word "Camaleonte" includes "Cama" and the pronunciation is similar in both languages [engl. kəˈmiːlɪən].

I like the Chamaleon because it is part of the Renaissance concept of the world. I started my research about Italian Renaissance curiosities in January 2009 because patterns in Deruta are inspired by the Renaissance. I have now fallen in love with the Italian Renaissance as a source of inspiration and rebirth for myself and for my family's workshop.

I first met a chameleon represented on a fresco in the studio of Francesco I de' Medici in Palazzo Vecchio, Florence which I invite to visit, upon the appointment of a museum guide only, the visit goes under the name of "Secret Rooms in Palazzo Vecchio".

In Deruta Renaissance works of art of famous Italian artists, paintings and frescoes (the noble art) were repeated on ceramics pieces used for serving at the table, for important gifts, and to embellish homes and chapels with colorful floor tiles for centuries with wellness for the single families and the workers but depriving the community of unity, encouraging competition and separation.

Rebirth will be possible in Deruta only and if ceramicists decide to help each other as if they were all poor like our ancestors did for their neighbors in the countryside in times of poverty. It is difficult to handle help when there is money involved and with it facing the risk of opportunists, games of power, fear, and failure but we should all find a reason for cooperating with mutual respect. It is important for Deruta to find a common field where everybody is the same and where people can think of the future within a united way of doing business as a friends-and-family experience: sharing, giving, working together for everybody's benefit, doing the contrary of which they have been doing for decades. Change is not something impossible, change is fun!

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CREATIVE DESTRUCTIONS

The Castle of Deruta in the 1940s, during the growth of the second

Renaissance of the most famous ceramics towns in Italy. 

Photo by: Roberta Niccacci, ceramics plaque on the way to

Castel-Leone is part of the aedicule dedicated to the Sacred Family. 

MY DREAM OF BUSINESS AS A FRIENDS AND FAMILY EXPERIENCE OF THE CASTLE OF DERUTA AS A SACRED FAMILY (January 2009-September 2012)

♥

I like to "attaccare bottone", give
start to conversations and see where
they can take me...some people in Deruta
may have guessed it was just chatting...
on the contrary, it was one of my tools to prove them!
Ah-ah-ah. 

♥ I guess in Deruta artisans and entrepreneurs are still guessing what I wanted to do with them...nothing special except getting together with peace of mind, based on their opening their doors to me with all their heart. A the end I could do nothing except chat with them or bring them some business, a few crumbs compared to what my dream was, their doors not being open to innovation;  the best they can do is change the patterns of their traditional drawings, by calling famous artists to their workshops if they can still afford it, or think of selling as much as possible by taking the advantage of someone bringing customers up to their doors, thinking of doing you a favor, by keeping going without caring about the destiny of other fellow citizens who unfortunately for them practice the same art of ceramics, therefore they are "competitors".

I do not like to play games in the business,
I like to be informal and I do not believe in
business plans. I want to see what the
persons in front of me are capable of, especially
in the way of taking advantage of what is
being offered to them. Without rules, human beings
only think about themselves and pay back gold with iron,
the irony of fate. 

I do not have Adele's beautiful & professional voice,  but I have a voice in the
Deruta's  Skyfall.  

Of all the feedbacks in Deruta, I fell in love with a couple
of people only, a Derutese young lady open to innovation (but who
knows what her parents' opinion was) and
an artist coming from abroad who lives and works in Deruta. 
He is the one who talked to me about the need for Deruta to go through a
healing process. Shortly afterward I gave up thinking I would
become a Saint since I am not at the level of Saint Francis, who died in his bed,
I would have died as a martyr for sure. No, thank you!
SAINT ROBIN OF DERUTA can wait...

After my negative experience in Deruta, I firmly believe that the rules of cruel competition, which come from the Industrial Revolution, cannot apply to the Italian way of doing business, especially when it is a matter of Arts & Crafts, therefore involving values such as passion and love: cruelty in the seek of the lowest price possible and the strolling from one place to the other enhancing unfair competition and copying is one of the reasons for the "Sky-Fall" of Deruta. (by the way, I highly recommend the latest 007 Movie that has opened in Italy on October 31st. Javier Bardem is just great, Daniel Craig wonderful and Judie Dench sweet and beautiful, I want to be like her in my adulthood, brunette version). The consequences of cruel competition and business rules which do not belong to our Italian heritage have created a loss of authenticity and when charm and appeal happened, this was restricted to your own workshop, such as the factory where I grew up in Deruta like in a beautiful prison where I was subdued to the same dynamics of the rest of the community. This is one point. The second point is something that has happened since the late 1960s when in Deruta there were a few factories only (the ones that had resumed the art of ceramics at the end of the 1800s and a few of them that had joined in the timespan from the 1920s to the1950s) which did research, with a structure, departments heads, scholars, each factory with its unique style and many workers going from 80 to 150 employees. At a certain point upon invitation of the unions and the arts and crafts associations lead by people of Deruta (affected by the auto-immune disease, about which I am going to write later) little by little each former worker of the original factories has opened his own workshop which has brought Deruta from something like five factories of the 1950s to 350 micro workshops of the 1980s. The starting action of opening small workshops and studios was the start of the scattering and the separation which has brought to zero evolution of the products, by encouraging unfair competition and loss of research and development, the start of the decadence despite the success which has accompanied Deruta until the late 1990s. The latest negative scattering of the art was the opening of workshops producing raw materials and bisque ware, unfinished products which have been sold everywhere in Italy and overseas without the awareness that there are shapes that belong to Deruta only beside the fact that the quality of the bisque ware was lower and lower, with no comparison with the quality of the products inside the workshops where products are subject to control for the whole process and they belong to each specific workshop as a distinctive and specific part of the personality of the workshop. The third point is the fact that inside the workshops themselves artists are not willing to cooperate to become part of their beloved workshops in times of recessions, they cannot believe that love and unity can be revolutionary, they will never be aware that they were treated with love if the only thing they can care about is their money at the end of the month (and good money for many decades) for which they do not want to run any risks, when they speak about loving their workshop it is all fake, they firmly believe that working for you is a lot they are giving already.
Forth point (four is the number of death in Japan and in Italy we only care about uneven numbers, as a matter of fact, flower bouquets only carry uneven numbers of roses) is that when you are in difficulties and your workshop was all your life, you think that someone who has benefited from your love, passion, and caring in a mutual exchange of satisfaction and success will be available to do anything to help you, on the contrary, it happens the same way it may happen with a broken marriage, your best retailer whom you have served for thirty years just goes next door and shops from your father's worst unfair competitor who has given your father the worst time in the world for the past forty years: all this in the name of freedom of choice?
So after all I agree with my mentor who says that I must let them all go in Deruta and start a new white page without regret, without complaint, in Deruta it will happen just like in Como, where in order not to give up on their power and without seeing further than their nose, they lost their art and the Chinese took over.
In conclusion, I would like to add for those who are strictly pragmatic, that selling art products and genuine Italian products is not only a matter of "where, why and how" buy them, there is much more to it, there are people, feelings, and stories behind each piece made which make them valuable, this is the reason why I wanted to talk about the experience that has happened to me in Deruta. If I only could make good usage of the creative destructions which are in action right now in Deruta!

The Nickname for Roberta is "Robin" or simply short for
Roberta. This bird would have been part of the coat of arms
they would have created to commemorate my death, as a Renaissance Ambassador
of Deruta I would have deserved a personal coat of arms namely "Impresum".
Ciao!!! Goodbye!!!

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Original Post by Roberta Niccacci  - 
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IT'S ALL ABOUT WEAVING!

"DARE SPAGO" in Italian means that you are letting someone
express him/herself, you are letting someone have it
his/her way.  Spago in Italian means "cord"

I AM 

AN INTERPRETER

I'm not taking into consideration professional simultaneous interpreting (too fast for me!) chuchotage is ok. However, written translations are my favorite (no loneliness anymore in Facebook times), interpreting artists and meeting customers' needs is my mission!

                                               

                                                                                            ♥ Roberta Niccacci

"DARE SPAGO": Something I have really enjoyed in my life is when someone did let me express myself in what I liked to do: caregiving, teaching, selling ceramics. I appreciated it so much that this is exactly when I gave my best performances. This is the reason why I am using the same method in my new entrepreneurial experience; I am going to be very selective and it is something easy to do for me,  I am letting people in only and if they are "giving cord" to me!
I will test immediately if the eligible artists and producers have "Filo da Tessere" (tr. yarns to be woven), their openness might be there, it must be full openness! I am not looking for people who like to "dare filo da torcere" (tr. to give someone a hard time).

A classical expression of an angel
going through frustration. His effort to save
his favorite good person in the world was useless.
(this Angel is by Giotto, from the
Basilica of Assisi. He must be more polite than
other angels but he /she could not manage
his/her bad feelings)

Cama's best customers and fans know of my recent history: I was forced to abandon all my dreams about my home town Deruta because ceramicists did not need me in the first place, above all they could not understand what I wanted to do. Indeed there was not much I could do except sell their ceramics, rearrange their stores, creating a unifying way of doing business. No way to enter their ceramics factories my way. Among all the ceramicists I "bothered", only one of them fully understood what I wanted to do without much explanation. He was so deep in his understanding that he appreciated my efforts so much and to such an extent that he considered it as a way for Deruta to a healing path. But I am not competing to become the next  Saint of Deruta, St. Roberta of Deruta (maybe St. Robin would sound more international) most of the times Saints did not die in their beds at home, they were grilled on a grate like Saint Lawrence, if you were lucky enough a few angels could come and help, such as in the case of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, Saint Protector of Deruta but the help of the angels was not enough because she died beheaded right afterward, another example of a lucky Saint is Saint Sebastian, angels came and help him the first time, then he insisted with the Emperor and the Emperor ordered to kill him by scourging, who wants to become a Saint? Their problem was INSISTING. Therefore who wants to insist on a town which does not want you? (ceramicists want your customers and they want to keep their power at the same time. Who doesn't want that? They are jealous of their small garden, of course, not to mention the workers who are dead in the heart, they are not willing to cooperate for something innovative, fearful of losing their rights.

Mystics can hear the voice
of Angels, one of them is
St. Cerbone who sang his prayers
at dawn and heard the angels reply.

This is what an angel looks like;
when he/she comes and
help.
They carry wreaths
of flowers in their hands!
They are not undertakers!
Angels want to help you
to stay alive.

A rare image of angels talking,
they have the rule of
silence but here they
were forced to ask for
mutual advice, they do not know
what else to do, someone is under
risk of immediate death,
risking becoming a Saint!
No room for suicide committers
in Paradise. 

This circle of angels is too beautiful! From
the nine Angels' choirs.
Hildegard's Illuminated  Prayers Book
It is a mandala!!!

Additionally, because I do not like to be a tourist guide, I do not want to become a licensed tourist guide, I do not want to be a guide at all, I was forced to leave Deruta for the new horizons leading me towards the borders between Umbria and Tuscany and about a year later after my moving to Piegaro I could scream "TERRA!" (tr. "Land!") like Cristoforo Colombo at the sight of the land which was actually America back in 1492, in times of high Renaissance in Italy. No Derutese should dare to come to my new land, I will close the entrance door to Piegaro, I have the keys to this town, I live in the toll-house of the village, as a matter of fact, everybody from Deruta should ask for my authorization to come in. "Tertium non-datur", Latins said, there will not be a third chance for you, my dear citizens of the beautiful declining town of ceramics.

Cors-Cordis means "Heart"
in Latin. Thinking of the
word "Cord" in
English! "Toto Corde"
means "with all my heart. 

If I were a Saint, St. Robin would be my
popular nickname, and the bird, the
Robin (for Roberta) would be my symbol
of remembrance. It may be included in my personal
coat of arms, like important family
members did in the Renaissance,
same as Popes and Saints. The neck of the Robin
is red from the blood of Christ, for the blood
of Jesus' good heart. 

It is not me who says that. On the contrary, I have tried to help with all my heart like my professional friends tried to, it is the predictions of consultants and market analysts, 80% of the workshops will be gone, only small studios will survive this recession if nothing will be done to fight against it.
This said, I have closed the heavy book about Deruta now and abandoned my dreams of unity for Deruta, which was the first priority to me in order to do a good job. I would have had a lot of work to do but the field was hard to work, the soil too hard to move and ears too strong. As a consequence, I am now concentrating on following the stream of my beautiful new experience on the border between Umbria and Tuscany. I wish to start by understanding where the Italian saying "Dare Spago" comes from. I cannot blow the horn until I have reached a safe shore but I could not resist communicating how happy I am to sleep in peace at night, getting over the sense of guilt I had in Deruta and my unhappiness, my frustration in not being able to help my way. Etymologically "Dare Spago" means that someone leaves allowance to a cord, a rope, deleting limits, giving freedom of action and speech, it comes from the use of attaching animals to a place by the use of a rope, such as a horse, so that it would not go too away. Regarding the English word "CORD", it is amazing how this word has the stem in common with the Latin word "CORS-CORDIS-CORDE", which means HEART!
The reverse of "Dare Spago" (tr. give cord) is "Dare filo da torcere" (tr. to give a hard time) and the meaning clearly comes from the textile industry. Last but not least someone talented "Ha Stoffa", someone talented has fabrics, this is the literal translation. The origin of these Italian sayings will be the subjects of additional posts in the future. I am taking to this new experience all the loyal Cama fans and customers, the Friends of Cama, who come as part of my precious treasure in this new world in Italy!

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- Original Posts by Roberta Niccacci -

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GIULIETTA

On October 8th all the cobwebs in the houses of my American
friends in the US are officially Halloween decorations, I am
learning this today from Kelly. Very witty!

EMOTIONAL MARKETING

Customers are the same as bugs, when they become resistant to attacks it is a good sign for the life of virtuous companies, and for the customers themselves, it means they are not slaves of advertisements. In the near future customers will buy your products only and if there are added values, which go beyond the benefit of low prices based on cruel competition, a consequence of the Industrial Revolution as much as Globalization now. Cama, my family's workshop was decades ahead in this process, this is one of the reasons why Cama was so beloved by its audience: genuine, true, authentic service to the customers, who do not forget.  

♥

In Piegaro like in many small villages in Italy, people carry nicknames and I really like the one they gave me: Giulietta, which is, of course, the Juliet of "Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare. This whole thing started with my engagement with one of the citizens of Piegaro back in the month of January of this year. The first thing I thought of was the commercial on Tv for an Italian car, Alfa Romeo in which they had selected Uma Thurman as a testimonial with a very appealing and elegant style. Mrs. Uma Thurman during the commercial uses words of appreciation for the car (a symbol well described by Carl Gustav Jung in his essays as basically a woman, in this case, a modern Juliet for the benefit of the car producer, [Alfa] Romeo).  These are the lines in Italian that they use in the commercial making you think of "Romeo and Juliet" By William Shakespeare:

“Io sono la purezza,

Io sono la bellezza,

Io sono la potenza,

Io sono la tecnologia.

Io sono tutte queste cose e molto di più.

Io sono Giulietta e sono fatta della stessa materia di cui sono fatti i sogni. Senza cuore saremmo solo solo macchine."

[mentre passa la voce con "Io sono Giulietta e sono fatta della stessa materia di cui sono fatti i sogni." appare la scritta "Noi siamo fatti della stessa materia di cui sono fatti i sogni." firmato W.Shakespeare]

So I searched the tragedy of William Shakespeare by the famous title of "Romeo and Juliet" to give the above lines a context and I could not find such lines, on the contrary, the only line that appears written on the commercial is listed under another famous tragedy by William Shakespeare, "The Tempest" (tr. "La Tempesta") which reads "We are such stuff/ as dreams are made on; /and our little life/ Is rounded with a sleep"...this is the only line that belongs to William Shakespeare. Not much truth for the spectators who read things second-hand and do not research about what is true and what is an adaptation in order to sell the products. The line which is making us feel so strong and delicate at the same time, just like women are, has nothing to do with Romeo and Juliet. It belongs to a different tragedy. 

Now, what...is the dream over? In this case, Alfa Romeo produces one of the best lines of cars in Italy, they are beloved by families and single men, the favorite color is a RED passion for singles and black for families. This was an example of a commercial regarding an excellent Italian product, the product is very good to start with. You would not run any risks with Alfa Romeo cars. They basically do not need commercials. They would not run into trouble by using some wise understatement policy. It would be better if they made us save that investment on the car price! 

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Money and Beauty. Bankers, Botticelli and the Bonfire of the Vanities

Crest of Pope Urbano VIII Barberini
who became Pope in 1623. The noble Barberini
family was originally from the county of Florence
(Semifonte, Barberino Val d'Elsa, Italy).

"Money and Beauty. Bankers, Botticelli and the Bonfire of the Vanities" (17 September 2011-22 January 2012)


This is the title of one of the several beautiful exhibitions that are organized at Palazzo Strozzi in Florence. Sometimes during the year, I get to visit Florence and I am probably going to accept the invitation of a new friend of mine from Piegaro to visit Florence again before wintertime. I love Florence and for me, it is a source of inspiration every time I go.
Regarding this exhibition in particular I recall that at the end of my visit, while walking back to the train along with the streets of downtown Florence I was feeling drawn back to the Renaissance times and it was a wonderful feeling, I could appreciate everything around me with so much pleasure, Renaissance scenes were still lively around me thanks to marble details, names of banks, arches, family crests, as if I had gone through a voyage back in time.
In times of recession for many of us, the temptation of destroying the wealth of others is very strong, the Vatican is running great risks these days, Pope Benedict XVI would be better off keeping silent, staying home, and inviting his followers and crews to pray for the peace in the world, stressing out what nuns and friars do every day among other obligations serving other people with welcoming homes for the poor, schools and retirement homes. Many people in Italy and in the world are currently pointing the finger at the wealth of the Vatican and the contradictions between their ethical comments about what is happening in our corrupted society and what they do bad and especially own: wealth, money, and at least one huge bank: The Bank of the Vatican known as IOR.

The famous "Last Judgment" by Michelangelo Buonarroti in the Sistine Chapel was commissioned by Pope PAUL III Farnese. 

In the Renaissance one of the representatives of the Catholic Church, Girolamo Savonarola (1452-1498) incited rich people in Florence to get rid of their wealth, repent of their sins and give up on beauty and money, it is said that the artist Botticelli himself had some of his paintings fired in the so-called Savonarola's "Bonfire of the Vanities", which was one of the subjects of the exhibition in Florence, indeed the culmination of the story of the evolution and flourishing of the patronage of arts supported by banks in the city of Florence.

Urbano VIII born Maffeo Barberini (Florence
1568-Rome 1644) was elected Pope in 1623
and is buried in the Basilica of St. Peter in
Rome. 

Nowadays the process of condemnation seems to be reversed, the Church is being for the moment "verbally" attacked, in times when popes are no longer patrons of the arts despite the wealth they have accumulated in centuries of power. These days popes are no longer supported by the fact of preserving art and culture because it comes from their education, in the past being patrons of the arts was protection for themselves and their cortege in the first point. Art and beauty are a blessing for everybody while vile money is not a reason for being respected especially if popes are not coming from noble families like in the past, where their wealth had noble origins or at least what they made through the Church was being camouflaged by the respectability of their nobility. 

Among the Popes of the past, one of the most important Patrons of the Arts was Paul III born Alessandro Farnese, whose family owned a palace in Caprarola, Italy which is one of the best examples of Renaissance residences in Italy. Pope Paul III used to stop in Piegaro, Italy to rest during his travels from Rome to Perugia. He stayed in Piegaro five times at the end of which he named Piegaro "Terra" (Latin word for "estate") which was the highest title for a place as a thank you to the Piegarese for being welcoming and kind.  Pope Paul III is remembered for commissioning the "Last Judgement" (painted between 1536 and 1541) to Michelangelo Buonarroti. He honored Piegaro with his gifts in 1547 because the appointment "Terra" was accompanied by the public clock for the bell tower and the exemption from a tax for the 18 years to follow.

On the contrary the Barberini family, a Pope's family whose crest reproductions are numerous in the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome (three golden bees over a blue background), where the most important member of their family is buried, Pope Urbano VIII, they were known for the saying "Quod non fecerunt Barbari, fecerunt Barberini" (Latin for "what the Barbarians didn't do was perpetrated by the Barberini family") and is referred to their destroying attitude towards the arts (such as the fusion of bronze antique girders of the Pantheon to make the baldachin of the Cathedral of St. Peter) and towards the city planning in Rome which during their papacy underwent major remodeling. Nevertheless, in recent years, art critics have reinstated the Barberini family affirming that the saying was a slander of opponents of the Barberini family, propaganda that put the shame on the Barberini family to politically destroy them. Indeed Pope Urbano VIII, born Maffeo Barberini, was a great patron of the arts, the first sponsor of the famous Italian architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini who became famous all over Europe thanks to the intuition of this pope and is the author of the questioned baldachin, which we still admire in the Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome.

Sandro Botticelli, The Calumny of Apelles (1494) Uffizi Gallery
Slander is today's most used weapon in politics, religions, and many attacks on opponents in private life. 

As nobility is concerned especially these days popes should belong to noble families, this is the other shield against attacks because once you are deprived of nobility, you end up being on the same level as the people you are praying to, as alternative holiness maybe your other shield but only in case, you are a saint. And if you are a saint you have no money to defend yourself from the attacks of other people. Saints are the richest people among the poor (we are all poor compared to the wealth of a few people in the world) and thank goodness there is no money involved, we would be attacked likewise.

A Swiss guard at the Vatican
seen through a kid's eye. 

Art and beauty with strong roots add warmth and love to our lives, they were part of the Renaissance period as main themes, in a period which was exclusively Italian and created in Florence. If we think of the 17th century as a transition - the Baroque Cathedral of St. Peter in Rome is probably the greatest example of this period - the century that followed, the Enlightenment, was deprived of humanity; science may be right and perfect but forgets about the fact that mankind has a soul, indeed the 18th century gave vent to Romanticism which is likewise a period without balance concerning the feminine and the masculine in nature. Art and beauty are also the cure, panacea of our uproarious feelings, no matter how bad our feelings can be and regardless of their origins. Long-life to the Italian Renaissance and to those who appreciate it as a tradition of the Italian talented artists longing for peace, kindness, and love, this is one reason why in Italy we are very talented for uniforms!

It is probably a legend that the uniforms of the Swiss guards of the Vatican were designed by Michelangelo but we like to think this is a true story, as a matter of fact, these uniforms were inspired by Renaissance paintings and they are very fascinating especially in the drawing herewith displayed. The Swiss guards have been to the service of the Popes in the city of Rome since 1506, the year in which Leonardo finished his "Monna Lisa".

The Monna Lisa edited by my friends at Sezione Aurea, The writing is sarcastic for these
times and "L'agio conta" translates "wealth matters". 

A note from the Desk of Roberta Niccacci 

Dear Readers, 

Thank you very much for your patronage. I wish to know all of you one day, maybe by serving you with products and services. Today the blog has reached 30,000 visits with a steady flow of 3,000 visits a month in the past quarter. I see your statistics, the keywords you use to find my blog but I am not receiving any comments or feedback from your side. Well, maybe this is just how blogs work. Anyway, if you wish to receive more of my posts you may "like" my Facebook page at the following address: www.facebook.com/friendsofcama. This would be much appreciated. 

With Affection and Warm Greetings from Italy, 

Roberta Niccacci

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BE STUPID!

A very faithful portrait of St.Francis of Assisi after Giotto's fresco
in the upper Basilica of Assisi. Ceramic Reproduction from Deruta,
Italy, 1923 

'Be stupid' is the 2010 campaign's title of a famous Italian company based in Trieste, Italy and called DIESEL (2,000 employees and 5,000 stores all over the world). Campaign advertisements can be found all over New York and the United States where Diesel stores are located.

I ran into this philosophy claim because of the fact that I realized how business can be cruel, merciless. If you do not follow the rules of profit and money revenues you are considered as stupid vs smart.
According to the Diesel campaign, stupid people are those who do not follow conformisms;  free-thinking, progress and innovation are some of their keywords.

Click this image to see the Video by Diesel 

Francis of Assisi (1182-1226) was a free thinker, idealist and innovator of his time. He was proclaimed Saint in 1228 by Pope Gregory IX. Francesco's father was an affluent merchant of fine fabrics who made his fortune in France. He coined "Francesco" for the first time dedicating his son's name to France (Francia in Italian, Franciam in Latin). Saint Francis with his prayer 'The Canticle of the Creatures' is considered as one of the founders of the Italian literature. Thanks to St. Francis the Italian language went a step forward compared to Latin, the language that gave birth to current Italian. St. Francis of Assisi is celebrated in Italy every year on October 4th, Feast Day of St.Francis of Assisi, Patron Saint of Italy.

One of St. Francis' gifts was humbleness, which has become part of St. Francis spirituality. When we are in peace with ourselves we do not blame, we can create and our creations come from our accepting what happens in our lives, accepting people we meet without judging them. A deep tenderness may arise from crossed paths with other people. Creativity as a way of expressing the fruits of our friendship to others. Through mutal respect and straightforwardness we will not run the rish of being betrayed by the person who works with us. Benefits to his/her heart and our heart are very high. Touchy will not be part of a humble person's vocabulary. A defeat will be translated into a learning lesson to go forward on the beautiful path of both our personal and professional life.

The Canticle of the Creatures from the back of the Aedicule of St.Francis of Assisi located in Deruta, ceramics
plaques, beginning 1920s. 

I strongly believe that the 'Be Stupid' campaign is not meant to attract customers simply
because of a marketing claim, Diesel created it as a true philosophy.
this is one thing why Italy makes the difference with some of his producers: creativity.

Poverty is the second important tenet of St. Francis spirituality, which could be expressed in business organizations through a common share of profits, which in Italy goes under the name of "cooperative".

Last but not least is the call to fraternity, which can be applicable to business by making other people stand out for their personal gifts, giving up on competition.

this is fun!

Writing about business companies and employees empowerment under these terms is considered as stupid. There is too much heart in it. Additionally no one would believe on the power of getting together with love as a way to create business. Therefore this attitude would be considered as stupid twice (we judge as stupid something we refuse because in this case it is against business common rules, a field where there hasn't been innovation since the Industrial Revolution time. The Industrial Revolution has inspired the rest of the countries in Europe and in Italy in particular has fostered hatred between owners and employees. These latter supported by the unions). Therefore still nowadays it is very difficult to see people gathering together to found a cooperative in Italy. In people's mind terms of comparison are: competition, markets, costs, investments, risk, failure. Whereas there are no boundaries or problems that cannot be solved if energy, belief and hope is involved. Together only we can make it, as we need something truly powerful such as trusting each other to be successful.

Wait for your perfect match.
He/she will find you sooner or later!
Watch out and be ready for
the miracle. 

After all when we get married, do we ask ourselves if we shall make it? If we do, we should not get married. In an authentic relationship our "yes" is unconditional. When this happens marriage will bring lots of fruits immediately. Of course we must make sure that: 1. we have met our soul mate 2. accept our soul mate as is 3. love our soul mate without conditions! We will feel so strong and powerful that nothing will stop us from being happy. We will have so much energy that we will be able of doing anything. If we transfer these simple rules to business, "alea iacta est" (latin for "there you have it").

The perfect organization
based on
St. Benedict's rules is the latest
trend in marketing. 

For the above reasons St. Francis is the perfect example to establish the correct relationship among partners in an innovative company. Rules will be based on our Italian famous saint's genuine and original spirituality. From this point of view, St. Francis becomes the example of an outstanding personality and a revolutionary icon for all times.

On another level and thinking of how to get the best profits out of a business we may refer to St. Benedict of Norcia (480-547), patron Saint of Europe. We refer to St. Benedict as regards to a company's logistic and organization. Indeed St.Benedict was the first great entrepreneur in Europe by creating the first multi-national corporation of scriptoria (tr. copyists factories) during dark times and deep recession for the world at that time. Without St.Benedict's help we would have lost all our European heritage of ancient classical books.                                                                          
We will notice that St. Francis and St. Benedict are both inspired by simplicity. Like Americans say "short is sweet", simple is beautiful. Regarding simplicity I would like to dedicate tSt. Francis of Assisi simply prayer to my American friends, followers are readers wishing them "PAX ET BONUM" (St. Francis' motto "peace and well") and "ORA ET LABORA" (St. Benedict's motto "work and pray"), I have decided that these saints will be my sources of inspiration for my innovative way of doing business in times of wars, darkness and recession. I can see lots of light on the horizon, if fortune keeps staying next to me. Fortune: a little bit of pagan world adds some disenchantment and beauty to the subject of being good. We do not want to be tooooo good. Remembering that what is beautiful is also good!

St. Francis was a very brave heir giving up on his father's fortune to follow his heart. His choice of poverty has made him eternal. Despite St. Francis followed our God's local model, St. Francis is beloved everywhere in the world by people belonging to other religions, too. 

A Simple Prayer 

~ 

The Prayer of St. Francis of Assisi

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

Where there is injury, let me sow pardon.

Where there is doubt, let me sow faith.

Where there is despair, let me sow hope.

Where there is sadness, let me sow joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek

To be consoled as to console,

To be understood as to understand,

To be loved as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive.

It is in pardoning that we are pardoned.

It is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

– St. Francis of Assisi

 A classical holy picture of St. Francis.
A prayer is  unsually  printed on the back. 

And for my Italian readers the prayer's Italian translation:

Preghiera Semplice 

O Signore, fa di me uno strumento della tua Pace:

Dove è odio, fa ch'io porti l'Amore.

Dove è offesa, ch'io porti il Perdono.

Dove è discordia, ch'io porti l'Unione.

Dove è dubbio, ch'io porti la Fede.

Dove è errore, ch'io porti la Verità.

Dove è disperazione, ch'io porti la Speranza.

Dove è tristezza, ch'io porti la Gioia.

Dove sono le tenebre, ch'io porti la Luce.

O Maestro, fa' ch'io non cerchi tanto:

Essere consolato, quanto consolare.

Essere compreso, quanto comprendere.

Essere amato, quanto amare.

Poiché sì è:

Dando, che si riceve;

Perdonando che si è perdonati;

Morendo, che si risuscita a Vita Eterna.

San Francesco d'Assisi 

(mi dispiace deludere i lettori stranieri ma la Preghiera Semplice sembra che sia stata erroneamente attribuita a San Francesco, fu piuttosto una preghiera di autore francese ignoto che la scrisse dietro un santino di San Francesco e venne pubblicata in Francia nel 1912. E' comunque ispirata a San Francesco e quindi possiamo chiamarla Preghiera di San Francesco. In passato si sono presi questa licenza. Seguiamo ciò che hanno deciso per noi i fruitori della preghiera). 

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- Original Posts by Roberta Niccacci -

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