THE ITALIAN FOOD ISSUE

PASTA FRITTATA

Elizabeth and I were invited to a garden luncheon overlooking Lake Trasimeno in Casalini, a small borgo in the Commune of Panicale.

As people were arriving and Prosecco was being poured, a tray of antipasti was brought out, one of the items were thin slices of an omelette or frittata, neither hot nor cold, but just slightly warm. Inside the rich egg mixture was pasta. It was like it's own little egg sandwich.

LAST NIGHT'S CARBONARA

Elizabeth makes a fabulous pasta Carbonara and as usual there was a bit left over along with some asparagus. So, instead of standing in front of the open fridge pushing cold pasta in my mouth we decided to try a pasta frittata for lunch.

I beat four eggs with salt and pepper and a handful of grated parmesan cheese then tossed the pasta and asparagus in. I poured the mixture into a hot non-stick skillet and kept gently pushing the sides to cook the eggs.

Then, under the broiler  until it achieved that All -American Diner 

state of perfection called 'golden brown'.

Lunch!

Salute!

{week 42}

Copyright 2015 James Aponovich

THE SWALLOWS OF PANICALE

The Italians call them Rondine and they arrive early in April. Everyday, from dawn to dusk there are hundreds of them over town screeching and flying at incredible speeds, clearing the sky of bugs. Hundreds...maybe thousands of birds.

Early Morning Light, Panicale
Johnny Apodaca
gouache on paper, 3"x3", 2015

THE PERIL OF PLEIN AIR

Artists who work in open air ( plein air) are constantly subject to the extremes of weather...raining? day is over, windy?....find shelter. too cold?...wear gloves, too hot? sweat a lot. These are the obvious elements that concern the outdoor painter and determine whether the day os successful or not. But, there is one thing that most people don't consider...the "gifts" that are dropped by the birds, thousands of birds. I have had more than one drawing 'improved' by the Rondine. So when the birds are screeching and the temperature is rising, I seek the comfort of the studio, look around for an interesting object, add a supporting cast of fruit.....and....

Terracotta Pitcher and Pears, Panicale

James Aponovich

pencil on paper, 10"x 7", 2015

This is a pencil study for a painting yet to come. But, you have to hand it to those plein air painters out there in the bush.

 Bravo, Johnny! and Thank you.

{week 40}

copyright 2015 James Aponovich

copyright 2015 Johnny Apodaca

PALIMPSESTS OF ITALY

Before the invention of paper, European Scribes wrote on dried lambs skin called vellum. (The texture of artist's drawing papers still referred to as vellum). Vellum was expensive, so in order to reuse the sheets, the old letters were scraped off, leaving behind a faint trace of the old text. These faint remains are called palimpsests. A walk through Panicale reveals many traces of old doors, windows and plaques, all forming a wonderful Panicalese Palimpsest.

The highest level of the town, Piazza Masolino, is named after the hometown (disputed) hero artist, Tommaso Fini (1383-1447). He is better known as Masolino da Panicale. He made a name for himself in Florence and Rome.

Piazza Mascolino is the old Civic center of town with the Gothic Lombard Campanile ( bell tower) where the town records are stored. During an attack it was also the refuge of last resort.

The old arch is still visible on the house of the Podesta or Medieval Town Mayor. Taste was turning toward the rectangular Renaissance window and door frames.

From the Sketchbook
Piazza Sant' Michele Archangelo
James Aponovich
pencil on paper

The next level is the religious piazza Sant' Michele Archangelo. The church was built around 1000AD, but, in 1696 the Baroque had arrived and the exterior was "modernized" in the prevailing taste.

The next level is the business/ social center, Piazza Umberto. Here the proud citizens would erect plaques to commemorate visits from important Popes, as Panicale is walled and high above the plain there was a reduced risk of malaria and bandits. It became a favorite stop over between Perugia and Florence.

A memorial stone commemorating the visit of Pope Innocent III in 1216, in typical Italian fashion, an electrician drilled a hole in it for wires.

{week 38}

Copyright 2015 James Aponovich

MADONNA DEL BUSSO

Madonna del Busso

I was showing Massimo some of the drawings in my sketchbook.

Massimo,  "James, do you know what Busso means?"

James, (This was sounding like an Italian Knock-Knock joke) " No, what?"

Massimo, "How do you say......BOOM!"

THE SETTING

Panacarola sits below Panicle along the shore of Lake Trasimeno. Since it was once an ancient lake bed it is quite flat, but very fertile. The Ancient Romans used to refer to this area as their "breadbasket". Anyway, one day we were seeking to buy some wine from the local vineyard owned by the Lamborghini family (of car fame). We came out empty handed because inexpensive and Lamborghini are two words that do not like to be together. On our way out we came across the most unusual church, Madonna del Busso.

THE PLACE

As far as architecture goes, it's a mess. It was built around the turn of the 20th Century with an English style belfry and a Post-Modern shape. It's painted pink and cream and sits on a white road in the middle of green fields. A row of pine trees parade in front of it. It would make a nice painting.

THE STORY

( you can't make this stuff up)

It seems that there was a group of Italian good ol' boys who didn't think much of conventional fishing techniques. They discovered that if they threw bombs into the water that after the explosion fish would die and float to the surface. Dinner! Maybe they were a bit liquored up, but somehow one of the bombs blew up in the boat!...No one was hurt!....A miracle!!  It must be that the Madonna saved them!...A huge miracle!....Let's build a church!...Whadda we call it?...I dunno....How about BOOM!

So, it was born and every September they honor the event by holding a horserace(?) and  have a grand festa until its dark, and then,....fireworks....BOOM!  BOOM!

Madonna del Busso

James Aponovich

pencil on paper

{week 37}

Copyright 2025 James Aponovich

LUNCH {Pranzo} ITALIAN STYLE

"Lasciate ogni speranza, voi ch 'intrate"

(Abandon all hope, you who enter here)

                                                                         -Dante Aligheri, The Inferno 

Our Neighborhood

 Well, at least abandon all hope of getting things accomplished for the rest of the day. Italians take lunch very seriously, no grabbing a sandwich on the run this day. Our neighbor, Annmarie, was leaving for a time and decided to have an "informal" grill for a few friends. ( then why is that woman wearing Prada?)

A View Of The Garden

We were about twenty, all told, Italians, Americans and a sprinkling of Danes. As is was a warm afternoon we were to dine in the garden.

Wednesday, 1:00 pm.

The lunch begins at one o'clock, or should I say the prosecco  is poured then. There is a competition to see if one can pop the cork over the theatre building. ( They say it has been done, but I have my doubts.)  In the garden, tables are laden with bruschetta con affumicato ( smoked salmon toasts) amongst other bites. Guests start arriving in staggered groups, most more or less late ( Americans are always on time).  Introductions are made, more prosecco is poured. " James, do you prefer whiskey?", I am asked, "No, grazie."

PRIMI ( first course)

Ceci Soup

We finally sit down for the first course, Zuppa di Ceci ( chikpea soup) and another primi, Risotto con Radicchio ( rice with chickory). No pasta, but that's O.K., I'm already stuffed..........more prosecco?

Perhaps some red wine?

SECONDI ( main course)

From the Grill

The 'grill' comes out, salsicce, e costoletto maiale ( grilled sausage and pork chops). These are meant to be separately, followed by the vegetables, but everybody just piles their plate full. Italians are not afraid of food and you are never asked if you have any type of food prohibitions.

If you can still breath, next comes the fruit and cheeses. If your glass is empty, not to worry, it will be filled. Thankfully, there is water.

There is much conversation and laughter, we are expected to change seats again and again. I don't mind , it gives me a chance to butcher my Italian to new ears, Oh, but wait! There's dessert? Tiramisu? I can't...the plate is put down in front of you.

As we start the goodbyes I glance at my watch.

It's 4:30 pm.

Photos courtesy Stew Vreeland

HOLLOW HOUSES

AT ALDO'S:

A43: " Ciao Massimo!"

Massimo: " Ciao James! Come stai?"

A43:   "Va bene. Massimo, I keep seeing abandoned farmhouses all around the countryside. Are they                           empty because of taxes? If not, why?"

Massimo:   "No, it's not taxes...It's just, how do you say...tastes change. Young people want new
                   houses, not in the country."

ROVINE (Ruins)

Rovina, Casalini ( in progress)
James Aponovich
pencil on paper


I seem to be attracted to the farmhouses in Italy that have been abandoned to time and nature. Perhaps I find empathy with them due to the fact that often I feel like a rovina myself.

Rovina, Podere Poggio del Lago
James Aponovich
pencil on paper


As you drive try Umbria and Tuscany the landscape is dotted with these grand Fattorie sitting in the middle of fields. I wonder where are the English and Americans who want their own Romantico Under the Italian Sun?

Rovina, Panicarola ( in progress)
James Aponovich
pencil on paper



As you look closer, you find the answer. We, who are "from away", want not an Italian farm but our 'vision' of an Italian villa. The ground floor of most farms here were for animals. It takes a long time to get that smell out. The staircase (scalette) is on the outside and it leads to
the second floor ( piano nobile).... heat and running water? Probably not. Electricity?
In other words........

" With enough money you can make water run uphill."
                                                -Italian proverb

So, if your vision is a villa in Italy with sweeping views and an infinity pool, you can find it and with enough time and money make it. Just be aware that at the end of the day, it will be nice, but is it Italian?



{week 34}
Copyright 2015 James Aponovich

DRAWN TO ITALY

LAGO TRASIMENO

Lake Trasimeno is the third ( or fourth?) largest lake in Italy and it dominates northern Umbria. It is only a drop of what it once was, it once stretched from Arezzo in the north to Spoleto in the south. Leonardo Da Vinci proposed linking the Tiber and the Arno to the Lake so there could be navigable commerce between Rome and Florence. He was full of big ideas, rarely realized. The Lake is quite shallow so the water is often  turquoise green. Unlike lakes in New England,no vacation house dot its shores, only fields and a few marshes.

The name is derived from the legend a failed (what else) love affair between the nymph Agilla, who was born in nearby Agello, and Trasimeno, son of the god Tyrraene. As their union was impossible, they threw themselves into the lake that now bears his name.

Isola Polvese from San Feliciano

James Aponovich

pencil on paper, 9" x 14"

The largest of the three islands that seem to float around on Lake Trasimeno is Polvese. It is largely uninhabited now but its history goes back to before the Etruscans. During the 13th Century, a fortessa (castle) was built on the south side of the island by the Knights Templar. Later, on the other side a monastery ( Orvieitan) was constructed and both ruins still stand. It once housed hundreds of people but malaria  drove them out. Napoleon wanted to drain it.

All I know is when you see the emerald Polvese sitting in the turquoise water....magic happens 

{ week 33}

Copyright2015 James Aponovich

THE LURE OF DRAWING IN ITALY

James Aponovich

sketchbook

"Idle hands are the devils tools."

                           - Puritan proverb

Q.  I've noticed that you do a lot of drawing in Italy, what gives?  Are they studies for paintings?

                                                                                  - Roberto C., Toronto

A. I don't crochet so it keeps me busy.

DESIGNARE

Drawing is active meditation or it can be likened to a dancer taken class daily or a pianist playing scales. With drawing, you sit yourself down in front of something and you must digest a lot of information. Somethings are discarded as superfluous, others are emphasized. The minds eye  edits and the hand puts it on the paper. Tools are simple, pencil and paper, but it is not easy.

Podere Poggio del Lago (abandoned farm / ruin)

James Aponovich

Due Pini  ( Two Pines)

James Aponovich

Today, Elizabeth and I went to Bagno Vignoni in the Val D'Orcia. It's a tiny Medieval Spa known since Roman times. A large Piscina (pool) dominates the piazza which was constructed by The Medici's. Lorenzo D'Medici himself came to the pool in an effort to alleviate his gout.

 It is one of the most charming spots for a light lunch. While we were sitting there at a small enoteca, I did what I so often do in Italy, I drew.

Bagno Vignoni

James Aponovich

{week 32}

Copyright 2015 James Aponovich

THE FOOD CRAFTERS ISSUE

PINEAPPLES

ANANAS ( A Pattern Pineapple)

Ana Aponovich

watercolor, 20" x 28"

"Don't play with your food!"

                                                   -Eve ( as told to Cain and Able)

Italians love fruit, strawberries, cherries, figs, blood oranges....you name it. But, I would say that they harbor a particular  fondness for two: watermelon (cocomero) in summer and pineapple ( ananas) the rest of the year. Dessert is often a perfectly ripe piece of fruit to balance the complexity of a meal. Other desserts tend to be simple and not overly sweet. What complicated desserts there are usually have trickled down from France. However, there is one indigenous dish that stands alone.....

" The best tiramisu in the world."

                                  -Aldous Huxley

Think Tiramisu ( trans. 'pick me up') and it may elicit a yawn from you and in general for good reason.

Without a doubt, it has been overused and butchered here in the states......

....tiramisu cupcakes.....tiramisu coffee?

However, there is one restaurant in Italy whose Tiramisu reigns supreme, at Befico family
 owned ( since 1959)  Ristorante Masolino in Panicale. While Bruna and Sonia cook, and Andrea pours wine, Stefania rules the dessert menu. Torta di Nonna, Crema Caramella, Biscotti and her tour  de force Tiramisu compliment one of the best Italian meals you can get.

Bruna, Stefania & Sonia in the kitchen

Stefania

Masolino's Restaurant, Panicale

But, we are here for for fruit, so lets leave Panicle and return to Tuscany and the 

walled city of Borgo Sansepolcro.

Journal Page: Sansepolcro

James Aponovich

Yeah, we were on the Piero Trail ( blog post 21) and spent the night at what I think is the only hotel within the walls, Albergo Fiorentino. For dining, there is the attractive Ristorante Fiorentino in the hotel presided over by the gregarious owner. To start, I ordered the usual affitasi ( mixed local cured meats and cheeses) , but then I saw the most amazing antipasto pass by me for the next table.

THE PINEAPPLE SWAN

"I'll have what they're having."

They serve the swan two ways, for antipasto, various salamis are placed between the pineapple slices, and for the dolci course it is served without meat but instead with whipped cream ( panna). Anyway they showed me how to make one and when we returned home and hosted a dinner party, I made one with salami and was curious to see how it would be received.

It was like kids at a birthday party....within minutes...gone!

(week 22)

Copyright 2015 James Aponovich

CASTING A LONG SHADOW {part I}

CASTING A LONG SHADOW

{Part I of II}

Q.   Why do you go to so many churches when you are in Italy?

A.   Because thats where the art is. (maybe)

Duomo and Campanile*

James Aponovich

12" x 15"  ( in progress)

IN SITU  vs.  INSTITUTION

I must confess that my endurance level in most museums is (by professional standards) rather low. That does not make me a bad person or even a bad museum goer, I've been to quite a few. I find that there is a certain disjunct that occurs when a work of art is taken out of its original context and brought to an institution 'in perpetuity', think zoo. I know that it's necessary, but the whole museum-go-round experience often makes my head spin. My brain has a difficult time transitioning the radical shift that occurs when you move from one room ( or culture) to the next (era). It's cultural whiplash.

! DENSE FOGG WARNING !

Beth and I traveled down to 'The People's Republic' of Cambridge last week with our friends Bob and Sylvia, and also Tom and Shannon, who we had not seen since Florence, to check out the newly renovated Fogg Museum at Harvard University. Talk about spinning heads! 

The Italian Architect, Renzo Piano was hired to retrofit the original gem to accommodate two other museums under one glass ceiling ( architecture seems to be a man's world).  As soon as you enter the hermetically sealed chamber of what was the inner courtyard, the air becomes leaden with pedagogical antiquity. You stand in a clinically sterile environment, more in tune with a medical research facility. I say stand because there is no place to sit, unless you sit at the ubiquitous "museum cafe." Vacuous rooms, sharp angles, lots of glass, massive confusion of cultures, no logical flow, and oh, that stuff on the walls, the art? We are talking purity of architecture here folks, not clutter...whew.. my comment on leaving...........

"I need a Martini."

ON THE OTHER HAND

Panicale, from Piazza San Michele Arcangelo

James Aponovich

pencil on paper/ from the sketchbook

Panicale has three piazze, the lower one being the commercial (shops, cafes, etc.), the upper houses the old civic center, and in between is the religious piazza with the church of San Michele Arcangelo dominating. As a Christian church it has occupied this sacred spot for a thousand years and has accordingly undergone many transformations architecturally. By Cathedral  standards, it is 

quite small but put a coin in the box as you enter and the interior lights up to it's current Baroque splendor.

The Adoration of the Shepherds (detail)

Giovanni Battista Caporali ( 1476-1560)

The church also houses works of art, in particular three paintings of note: The Annunciation, by alleged home boy Masolino di Panicale,  The Adoration of the Shepherds, by Caporali, a pupil of  Pietro Perugino, and a small painting , possibly by another of Perugino's students, a boy from Urbino named Raphael. They are all set in their originally intended places (in situ) and it is a delight to be there, without guards, and absorb it all. After about ten minutes the lights go out....time to leave.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Coming up in Part II

"The Angel Issue"

Finding A Bit Of Tuscany In The Berkshires

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

*I have always wanted to do a painting of the Duomo in Florence. This is a fairly detailed drawing on panel that will serve as an underpainting. I will post the progress.

{week 19}

2015 copyright James Aponovich, text and original artwork

OLIVES { week 11 }

OLIVES

Ancient Olive Tree

James Aponovich

pencil on paper

" If I could paint and had the necessary time, I should devote myself for a few years to making pictures only of olive trees."

                 - Aldous Huxley

ITALIAN HARVEST

One morning, Katia came to our house for a visit. "James and Elizabeth, you must come to Panicale in October and help with the olive harvest, I will feed you!", she exclaimed with a flourish. It sounded to me like a Tom Sawyer and the fence set up. A lot of work, no pay. Elizabeth then replied, " Katia, you know that we would love to visit in the fall, but it is also a busy time for us in the studio, it is very difficult to get away" ( never mind expensive). Undeterred, Katia continued,"Senti carissima, the harvest is so much fun, we all participate, Massimo, my father and mother and even nonna helps out! And the food! Mama Mia!"

LITTLE DID WE KNOW WHAT WAS TO COME

olive orchard

The landscape of Umbria and Tuscany is characterized by two crops, grapes for the production of wine and olives for 'green gold', extra virgin olive oil. In both cases the fruit is harvested and pressed in the fall and miracles of everyday transubstantiation take place. all across central Italy, many private homes have a small vineyard for wine that will be consumed throughout the year, this is called table wine, humble and delicious. There is also usually from a few to hundreds of olive trees on the property. The oil that is pressed from the olives will sustain a families cooking needs for a year.

Together, these are the life blood of Italy.

Il Progresso olive oil

Who has the best olive oil in Italy? It depends who you ask. Some insist on the peppery Tuscan olive oil from Lucca and Chianti, others swear by the refined, elegant oil from Garda. Puglia, to the south has unwavering support, while to other southerners it is the dark green, sediment infused oil from Sicily.

Hillside of Panicale

James Aponovich

pencil on paper

Personally, all I have to do is look out the window to see where my favorite olive oil comes from. The hills surrounding Lake Trasimeno are considered by many to be the perfect blend of rocky soil and harsh climate necessary for the best olives.

DARK CLOUDS O THE HORIZON

That is until this year. The winter of 2013-14 was unusually mild, followed by a wet spring. we had heard rumors of a blight of Biblical proportions killing trees in Puglia and making its way north. The culprit is a fly inadvertently brought from the Americas, possibly California (gulp!). The fly burrows into the fruit, lays eggs and the larvae suck the olive dry. What is harvestable is questionable. A cold winter is necessary to control the fly population and it didn't happen,...so,what happens now?

One thing for sure, la casalinga (housewife) who was used to having oil for the year must now buy it...at higher prices. Italy is the second highest exporter ( after Spain) of olive oil in the world. That means less to export...higher prices.

Maybe next year will be better.

Ancient Olive Tree

James Aponovich

oil on panel, 10" x 8"

SPERO DI SI

( I hope so )

THE SHOPPING ISSUE (week9)

'THE SHOPPING ISSUE

CORTONA

The Val di Chiana from Panicale
James Aponovich
Pencil on paper


From the Piazza Masolino one can look over the red tiled roofs of Panicale and see the Tuscan city of Cortona nestled alongside the mountains that form the eastern edge of the Val di Chiana. By car it takes under an hour to get there. The road up to Cortona is not easy. It is full of hairpin turns, steep ascents and sudden cut offs. If the name Cortona sounds familiar, you are either a fan of Renaissance homeboy, the painter Luca Signorelli or you enjoyed basking under the Tuscan sun with one of Frances Mayes books.

Virgin and Child
Luca Signorelli
Tempera and oil on wood, c. 1505




ANYWHERE   ~   PRANZO  ~   ANYTIME

In Italy, for Elizabeth and I,  almost anywhere is worth going to as long as there is a decent chance of finding a great place to have lunch. Nothing wrong with a little destination dining and....by the way..."I wonder whats in that church ?"  You never know.
Aldo had told us that there are two "must do" things when we visit Cortona.
The first is to walk to 'Le Celle', an abandoned monastery founded by St. Francis in 1211
( Stew and I will do that in the spring). The second and equally important
 is to have lunch ( pranzo ) at  Osteria del Teatro.  Enough said.

Outside Aldo & Daniela's Bar Gallo


The four of us were having our usual morning coffee at Bar Gallo. It was the beginning of what was to be an unusually warm day for May. As we sat there I could sense an unease in our friend Debbie as she sipped her cappuccino grande. She seemed to be in a fog, even though we hadn't drank that much  wine the night before. Debbie is an articulate, intelligent and creative woman with the most uncanny sense of being able to do whatever it is a G.P.S. does. A few years ago we were lost, driving around the backroads of Tuscany trying to find our way to Siena. I was seemingly driving around circles when suddenly she screams "STOP!"
I slammed on the brakes and looked to the side of the road only to see a rundown factory with the name Pratesi on the side of it......OH, shoes...we will never make it to Siena now. this was a must stop. Elizabeth still wears a pair of red loafers she bought that day.


ITALIAN SHOES

Got Prada? Nah. Want Tod's? Too expensive. Bargain basement deal? Yes!
Place Debbie anywhere on the globe and she can locate wherever she is by the nearest shoe outlet. It is amazing, so I knew that the uneasiness I sensed that morning somehow involved shoes, or the lack of them. I decided to throw down the gauntlet...."Anybody up for a trip to Cortona?" Then over the empty coffee cups a war
cry arose......"Yes, shoes!"

We soon found ourselves in Cortona on the Via Natzionale looking for the Pratesi outlet.  Elizabeth and Debbie were on a mission for two finds: shoes and Italian leather purses, Jim and I, as usual, stood outside the more than tiny store  and did what men around the world do....we waited.



THE JOKER IS WILD

Cards From Cortona
James Aponovich
oil on panel, 7" x 5"



Boredom, or was it watching one too many people licking gelato soon got the better of me and I began to look around at the various shops. There was one in particular that caught my eye, Il Papiro.
It seemed to be a paper store and since paper is part of my trade, I decided to take a look and left Jim
standing sentry.

Me                   " Buona sera."

Comessa          "Buona sera, mi dica?"

Me                   " No grazie, sto solo guardando."

Comessa          " Bene."

* more of my butchered Italian

Looking over the cards, stationary and sealing wax, I noticed a deck of playing cards. A card player, I am not, I can't even play solitaire. But I love the hearts, clubs , spades and diamonds, never mind the King and Queen along with the Jack. However, I have always held the Joker in high esteem, and this Joker was one of the best I have ever seen. Paint him. I must!

Oh, Guess who ended up buying shoes?

Me! I need a pair of Italian suede driving shoes like I need a hole in the head. What's next, an Alpha Romeo?............Hmmmmmm.




POSTSCRIPTUM

Fighting The Italian Street Musicians Union Rates

We became exhausted after all that shoe shopping so the best remedy was to revive ourselves with a shared bottle of prosecco. We had just settled down at the nearest bar when a street musician came by and played a short riff on his accordian. Want to hear more, you gotta pay. Little did he know that I have harbored a lifetime of hatred of accordion music, must be the Lawrence Welk thing.
Anyway, I was feeling flush and offered a two euro coin. He looked at it, looked at me and walked on muttering something. Fortunately, I couldn't understand. So, I kept the coin and added it to the composition.

* 

Me                       " Good afternoon."

Shopkeeper          " Good afternoon, can I help you?"

Me                       " No, thank you, I'm just browsing."

Shopkeeper          " Very well."

'Tip O the hat' and thanks to Debbie DePeyster for suppling friendship and photos of Cortona.