Gallery sights in Florence
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A
Galleria dell’Accademia
A lengthy queue marks the otherwise inauspicious entrance to this museum, built especially to hold a single masterpiece, Michelangelo’s David. The collection now encompasses works by Botticelli and Taddeo Gaddi, a fine group of Russian icons, and several rooms of 14th-century paintings, including a remarkable embroidered Coronazione della Vergine (Coronation of the Virgin). However, it’s David everyone’s hot for – and for good reason. The subtle detail – the veins in his sinewy arms, the muscles that seem to ripple under his marble skin, the change in expression as you move around the statue – is impressive. Michelangelo was also the master behind the unfinish…
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B
Basilica di Santa Maria del Carmine
The 13th-century Basilica di Santa Maria del Carmine was all but destroyed by fire in the late 18th century. Fortunately the magnificent frescoes by Masaccio in its Cappella Brancacci, entered next to the basilica on the Piazza del Carmine, were spared. A maximum of 30 visitors are allowed in the chapel at a time and visits are by guided tour; places must be prebooked. Unfortunately, visits are often marred by the belligerent attitude taken by the attendants, who strictly enforce the ridiculous 15-minute-visit rule that applies here. How the church authorities think that this is enough time to appreciate the magnificent frescoes on show is an absolute mystery.
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C
Spedale degli Innocenti
Shortly after its founding in 1421, Brunelleschi designed the loggia for what was Europe’s first orphanage. His use of rounded arches and Roman capitals mark it as arguably the first building of the Renaissance, while Andrea della Robbia (1435–1525) added the distinctive terracotta medallions of infants in swaddling clothes. Subsequent architects turned the piazza outside into a marvel of order and quirky symmetry.
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D
Loggia della Signoria
Built by Orcagna in the late 14th century as a platform for public ceremonies, this elegant arcade now serves as an open-air sculpture gallery, with highlights such as Cellini's magnificent bronze Perseo (Perseus). Also known as the Loggia dei Lanzi, the arcade was named after Cosimo I's Swiss mercenaries, the Lances, who were once stationed here.
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E
Uffizi Gallery
Florence contains the incredible Uffizi, currently undergoing a facelift that should be completed in 2013. It contains the Medici family’s private art collection, with masterpieces from medieval, Renaissance, Mannerist, Baroque and neoclassical schools, including works by Giotto, Michelangelo, Raphael, Titian, Tintoretto and many more.
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F
Galleria d’Arte Moderna
Forget about Marini, Mertz or Clemente – the collection of the 2nd-floor Galleria d’Arte Moderna is dominated by late-19th-century works by artists of the Florentine Macchiaioli school (the local equivalent of Impressionism), including Telemaco Signorini (1835–1901) and Giovanni Fattori (1825–1908).
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G
Cenacolo di Santo Spirito
Home to the Fondazione Romano, a collection of 11th-century Romanesque sculpture, this former refectory provides a change of pace from the Renaissance and has grand frescoes by Andrea Orcagna depicting the Last Supper and the Crucifixion.
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