Here is our first selected post for the #WritefortheDanteSocietyBC August edition!
Thank you Carolyn Burak for your submission.
Each month, the Dante Society's newsletter & social media pages feature at least one selected post among the ones submitted to the Society (info@dantesocietybc.ca). Join our team of volunteer writers and collaborators. Make yourself known in the ItaloShpere! See submission instructions here.
About the author, Carolyn Burak:
"I am a 35 year-old yoga instructor and freelance interior designer with dual EU/Canadian citizenship, born and raised in Vancouver (Kitsilano and West Van). I lived in Florence for two years, studied at the renowned Florence Design Academy and have travelled all over Italy and Europe! I am currently here in Vancouver, and I miss Italy dearly" (Carolyn Burak)
Check Carolyn's photographs & the full story here below and in the attached document!
The Doors of Florence"
by Carolyn Burak
Each door of Florence is completely unique, and quite often they are the most striking feature of a building. They whisper to you as you walk the ancient cobblestones, each one telling a story of all the people throughout Florentine history who have set foot within the lush courtyards, stately corridors, rooms and staircases they conceal. If you listen very carefully, you can hear and feel these echoes of the past all around as you stroll by.
Many of the doors have eyes and ears. They are always listening and watching. If they could speak, imagine all the stories they could tell!
As an art history and interior design student in Florence, the doors always caught my attention wherever I roamed in the city. Of course, the original doors of the Baptistery, now housed in the Opera del Duomo Museum, are the most famous of all – artfully carved in bronze by Ghiberti, Pisano, and Michelangelo. And they truly are heavenly. However, it was the every- day, regular doors of Florence that stood out to me the most. Here in North America, doors are often overlooked; usually just sort of added on to a building as a practical feature without much thought given to their appearance and design. But the original architects of Florence, as everywhere in Italy, viewed the doors and entryways of all the buildings as opportunities for profound artistic expression.
As one enters such a masterpiece, one truly feels transported. The boundary between outside and in is emphasized dramatically, and one can’t help feeling special as one crosses the threshold and is welcomed within.
The doors of Florence are the literal gatekeepers of this magnificent city, which is really one immense living and breathing museum. The art and history they enclose haunt my dreams lately, and I wish for a time when I can return!
