I have found a new place for my morning capuccino, my Starbucks in Italy. Ali Blu is situated right on E45, the main road through Umbria and is an unlikely place to enjoy a morning brew. But newly renovated with lots of outdoor tables, it's my perfect place from which to plan for the day. Following breakfast is the daily pilgrimage to the internet place. Staying in touch with work means daily trips to Marsciano for internet connection. I spend a long time there this mroning, checking emails, finding a New York Times article on sagras to send to Judy's son -in-law, uploading photos on to the blog, and not caring at all that I was missing a warm sunny morning.
At 11 I meet Judy and Fausto at Brico to purchase the toilet, toilet seat and cassetta. When we need help there is not a salesperson in sight (just like the polizia). Fausto tells me he is going to install the toilet himself since he's been unable to get a reasonable estimate for the work. In addition to the big items, there are a dizzying number of accessories to purchase for the various water connections - tubes, bolts, funnels and other totally mystifying items.
In mid-day I return to Piedicolle to change clothes for the evening, which includes an exhibition opening in Deruta. In Deruta's centro storico I find Judy and Wyatt trying their hand at painting ceramics and the entire street alive with festivities, tourists, outdoor dining, and of course the astounding beauty and variety of majolica displayed in the shop windows. It is a trip back to the renaissance, to the most lovely artistic tradition. There is a tent in which potters are working from designs that are posted on the wall. They are professionals of a time-honored art, using every muscle in their bodies to shape the clay as it spins, slapping on water to keep it maleable. It's a truly remarkable sight.
Also tonight is the opening of 4X5, the exhibition of contemporary majolica organized by Grazia Ranocchia. Gianni Cinti, Grazia's friend who I met in New York, has designed part of the exhibtion and is there with his partner, Gianmarco, for the opening. For Deruta, it is a lavish affair with a sizeable crowd, including the mayor, his chest puffed out with pride and importance. There are remarks by Grazia, by the art professor at the local school, and by the mayor himself, the latter two addressing the audience as if it were a ceramics class and a crowd of voters
This is the contemporary take on majolica and there is so much creativity here! Ceramic clothing, including bustiers and sandals with ceramic hardware; deconstructed ceramics featuring the elemental powder from which ceramics are made and personal interpretations; seeds and flowers from which perfumes are made set in artistically arranged ceramic bowls; a "curtain" made of suspended discs of gold-painted ceramic stones that make gentle sounds when they are stroked. Gianni, in his spectator shoes and bow tie, has taken a gorgeous shirt he designed for Gianfranco Ferre and suspended it over one of his paintings laid flat on the floor below, covered with charcoal and displayed against a large fleur-de-lys scarf. The effect is a drama of contrasts, black and white, disciplined and wild, organized and messy. I love this broad range of possibilities.
There is a lovely reception elegantly presented with substantial food and Umbrian wine. Gianmarco and I discuss the difficulty of doing this kind of exhibition in a place where no one really cares about such things. The locals are lazy and don't understand the potential of a show like this, the possibility that it could travel elsewhere if there was some sponsorship money, and the necessity of allowing more than one day to put it together! He said that when they arrived yesterday to help set it up, there was not even a pair of scissors to be found. Everyone donated their services, so there was no incentive to take it too seriously.
Back in Piedicolle there is a tremendous crowd. I inquire at the circolo and am told that the festivities are due to a futbol (soccer) game in the field. Sure enough, there are two local teams playing, but the crowd, food and drink seem out of proportion to the action. I think everyone is just happy to have some excuse to sit outside, create a picnic under the stars and have a cantina set up where they can purchase bottles of wine. I sit for a while watching the game, and the people around me, for the night is calm and cool and peaceful.
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