• The Italian Garden: From Pompei to Today ON DEMAND What makes a garden “Italian”? And how can you add elements of a classic Italian gardens to your landscape? Garden Designer and Horticulturist Carmen DeVito founder of www.Gardencult.com delves into these questions while taking you on a very personal tour of her favorite gardens in Italy and the United States. Carmen is a native of Italy and has created gardens throughout the New York City region. She will share a bit of Garden History, Mythology, and the “Idea” of the Italian Garden in literature and art from Roman times to the present day. You will learn about the classic plants as well as design and decorative elements that will inspire you to add an Italian flavor to your own gardens.
  • Celebrating Women History Month Live from Italy: Meet Italian Real Estate Guru Nikki Taylor For Women’s History Month, join us on Tuesday, March 15 at 7 pm as Nikki Taylor, an Italian Real Estate Guru and CEO of Italy Property Consulting, shares her invaluable expertise when it comes to buying property in Italy. Nikki will walk us through the real-life scenarios of purchasing overseas. She will share the best spots to invest in Italy right now and why it is crucial to obtain independent specialist advice when thinking of purchasing property in Italy. If you are thinking of making the leap and purchasing a home to live “la dolce vita,” this is an event you won’t want to miss.
  • Artemisia Gentileschi: The only known female follower of Caravaggio Presented by Dr. Snjezana Smodlaka  For the excellence of her art Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1652-3) is today among the most prominent Italian Baroque painters, male or female. In male dominated art world this girl, born in Rome, was the first female professional painter who obtained high honors: she was the first woman member of the celebrated Florentine Art Academy; THE MEDiCI FAMILY AND  THE KINGS OF SPAIN AND ENGLAND commissioned paintings from her. In spite of accomplishments and fame during her lifetime for almost three centuries oblivion and silence hid her artwork. Recent scholarly research gave Artemisia well deserved place in art history. In most of her paintings she did not conform to or imitated style or topics that were traditional at the time. Her subjects were women from the Bible and the history, women victims who suffered, but who were determined and active in taking their destiny into their own hands. Paintings with such topics required radically different treatment and Artemisia created and introduced dramatic and original depiction of her heroines that, with exception of Caravaggio, was rarely seen in European art. Artemisia’s style and choice of the subjects might have been influenced by her painful experience as a survivor and innocent victim of a rape. A public scandal that ensued almost ruined her reputation as a painter. In this presentation we will hear about her hard life and see her most famous paintings.  
  • BOOK PRESENTATION: CELIBATE: A MEMOIR Presented by Maria Giura (Author)  Join us as Maria Giura reads from her memoir Celibate, a story about her years-long relationship with a priest and her tumultuous journey toward authentic love. She’ll read excerpts in the contexts of eros and agape and will weave in anecdotes about writing. Books will be available for sale and signing or can be purchased in advance online at Amazon or B&N.
  • BOOK PRESENTATION: LAST STOP ON THE SIX Presented by Patricia Dunn (Author) 

    To purchase the book, click here.

    Can you ever really go home again? Theresa Angela Campanosi is about to find out in LAST STOP ON THE 6, a hilarious, hard-hitting and big-hearted novel that brings to mind the movie ‘A Bronx Tale.’ Dunn’s novel tells the story of Angela, who navigates love, guilt, and red gravy as she learns the price of living in the past.

    After a decade as a political activist in California, Angela is back in her childhood home about to topple her family’s tower of secrets: the truth about her brother’s accident, impending marriage and subsequent disappearance, her alcoholic father’s fall off the wagon, and her former boyfriend’s recovery from heroin addiction. And most of all, why Fat Freddie is tormenting her family.

  • Celebrating the Neapolitan Presepio A Christmas Tradition in the Italian American Community by Anita Sanseverino & Lou Barrella Get ready to begin the Holy Day Season at Casa Belvedere! Explore the origins of the Neapolitan Presepio tradition and its endurance by talented artisans who create this art form, both of old and of today. This lecture and video presentation will feature photos taken in the shops of Via San Gregorio Armeno in Naples, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and in churches and homes throughout the metropolitan area. They portray a variety of expression that keeps the Presepio a vibrant symbol of Christmas. Appropriate music sung by Renata Tebaldi, Luciano Pavarotti, Andrea Bocelli, among others, will enhance your visual enjoyment.  
  • Special Holocaust Series: “If you are not indifferent, things can be different.” Part 5: Meet the Survivors and Their Families Moderated by Author Elizabeth Bettina Join us via Zoom to meet Holocaust survivors who were saved because Italians risked their lives to help them. They hid them, provided fake documents and gave them food and shelter. Hear words of gratitude from those who lived through one of the worst times in history and see living examples of the famous quote in the Talmud, "When you save one life, it is as if you saved the entire world." Help shine a light on this important part of history, how approximately 80% of the Jews in Italy survived the Holocaust, because individuals chose to take action and see them as "cristiani come noi" - people just like us. If you missed Parts 1 and 2 of the “If you are not indifferent, things can be different”  series, watch it on demand via Casa Belvedere’s website: Click here for Part One: “It Happened in Italy – Untold Stories of How the People of Italy Defied the Horrors of the Holocaust” presented by author Elizabeth Bettina. Click here for Part Two: Primo Levi, a Holocaust survivor committed to keep alive the narrative of the Holocaust, lest we forget. Presented by Prof. Francesco Bonavita.
    This event is presented in partnership with:
         
  • Italy: The World’s Lifestyle Superpower  Italians have always been masters of reinvention. In this fascinating exploration of post World War II Italy, we will explore how the country rose from the ashes and devastation to transform from the face of Il Duce to La Dolce Vita, and how “Brand Italy” came to conquer the world through its passion and excellence in the realms of film, fashion and design, gastronomy, and viticulture. The program will be presented virtually by lecturer and award-winning author Carla Gambescia, who has been an advertising and marketing executive, entrepreneur and restaurateur. She co-created the Giro del Gelato bike tour which won OUTSIDE Magazine’s "Best Trip in Western Europe."
  • Plant in the Fall & Put the Garden to BED! Fall is a great time to PLAN  and PLANT the garden and get a head start on next year’s growth ! In this presentation, garden designer  Carmen DeVito of www.gardencult.com will give you ideas on what and how to plant in Fall as well as guidance on how to prepare the garden for Winter. She will share her favorite plants for Fall/ Winter color as well her favorite Bulbs for Spring bloom and share some time tested techniques to save you time and expense when you do your fall clean up.  
  • Celebrating Dante Alighieri: The man, the era he lived in, and his impact on Western civilization Presented by Prof. Louis Leonini Homer, Dante and Shakespeare are considered giants of world literature. Of all three, however, Dante's Divine Comedy is considered one of the greatest literary masterpieces of all time. In this lecture, Professor Louis Leonini will defend this critique as he takes you back in time to explore Dante Alighieri (1265-1321), his romantic poetry, his study of Italian dialects (De Vulgari), and Florentine Italian - which later became what is now called Standard Italian. We can often judge a man and his work by his admirers. The professor will tell how Boccaccio and Michelangelo idolized Dante, and Petrarch, Chaucer, Milton, and Shelley were strongly influenced by him. Botticelli made drawings for the Divine Comedy, and William Blake (a 19th century English romantic poet) actually learned Italian so he could read Dante's great work in the original. This lecture will examine what motivated Dante's great work, how it was written, and its impact even today, 700 years after his death.
  • How Italian Are You?  Discover if you qualify for Italian citizenship and what its benefits can mean for you! Presented by Carla Megale Di Tommaso 

    When someone asks, “Are you Italian?,” you probably answer “Yes!” Whether you are a native citizen of Italy or not, being Italian is part of who you are. And Italy is in your blood - more than you may know. 

    Italy’s Jure Sanguinis - a “Blood Law” - gives you the legal right to inherit citizenship from your parents or grandparents, regardless of where you were born. 

    What about your children? Does being an Italian citizen, even with a valid passport, mean your children are also Italian? Probably, but only if Italian authorities have a record of their birth. 

    And what if you’re married to an Italian citizen? You’ve grown to love Italy, you love to visit, you dream of retiring in Italy. Being married to an Italian gives you a good chance of acquiring Italian citizenship along with all its rights and benefits.  

    Some of you may just want to know more about your Italian ancestors, to discover details that will unlock mysteries about their lives. Answers may be found by searching township archives in Italy. They contain centuries of certificates of birth, of marriage and of death; they even record recurring names, changed names and other surprising, little-known facts. 

    All these different scenarios require different procedures that can seem dauntingly complicated. In fact, they are not simple. They entail knowing the requisite documents and correct sequence for obtaining them that will lead to certification of Italian citizenship. 

    If your life goals include becoming an Italian citizen or having your important life events recorded in Italy, check out this special presentation. 

  • “Festa della Repubblica”: How Italy Became a Republic Presented by Francesco Ranci The “Festa della Repubblica” is celebrated on June 2nd because on that very day, in 1946, the Italian people went to the polls. For the first time after 20 years of Fascism, after World War II had largely destroyed the country, they had an important choice to make. “Monarchia” or “Repubblica” ? Women were also allowed to vote, for the first time in Italian history, and so they did. Credit is usually given to Alcide De Gasperi for the remarkably consequential decision to call the entire population to a vote on such a huge and controversial issue. The choice was “Repubblica” by a close margin, and King Umberto II went into exile. In this presentation, we will look into the significance of this turning point in Italian history, for internal stability and international prestige. The message De Gasperi wanted to convey through the June 2nd referendum was that Italy could, and should be considered a trustworthy partner by the U.S. and their allies, now facing the Cold War against the Soviet Union. In 1950, official celebrations included the Italian Army’s parade in Rome. In 1961, the parade was joined by the “Frecce Tricolori”.
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