Monet, Waterlilies

If you love flowers, and Italy, and you’re so inclined, you might want to plan a trip to a small museum in a small town in Emilia-Romagna that is mounting quite a big show. From ANSA.IT (“Floral magic over centuries of art” Jan 22, 2010):

The San Domenico Museum in Forli is staging an entire show devoted to depictions of blossoms and blooms, including paintings by a host of masters from the 1500s to the early 20th century.

Work by Rembrandt, Vincent van Gogh, Caravaggio, Claude Monet, Paul Cezanne, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Giovanni Boldini and Giuseppe De Nittis will be among those featured. ”This exhibition charts the history of still life paintings, specifically a history starring flowers,” explained curator Antonio Paolucci.

The San Domenico exhibition titled “Fiori. Natura e simbolo dal Seicento a Van Gogh” opened last Sunday and will continue through June 10th. The guiding idea for the exhibit is to feature works by great painters who occasionally chose to paint flowers, rather than the “niche artist” who specialized in floral works only, according to the ANSA.IT article.

As it happens, we’re going to be in the general area of Forli this weekend, so we may just drop by. If so, watch this space for more to come on the exhibition.