Renaissance Art & Giovanni Bellini

The renaissance period introduced the ideas of three-dimensional depth, realism, perspective, colour-tones and light in paintings, based on new understandings from different sciences such as anatomy, physics, mathematics, geology and natural sciences occurring in that period.

This post focuses on the evolution of a renaissance period artist through 11 paintings on the theme of "Madonna and child Jesus". The artist is Giovanni Bellini and all the paintings are from the Accademia museum in Venice.

The image below is that of a telero (huge painting covering an entire wall) started by Giovanni Bellini in 1515-16, left incomplete due to his death. (Click on the images for a bigger view)

The Bellini Bottega in Venice

In that period, the artists worked in Bottega or workshops, where the master artist had many apprentice and helpers. Jacopo Bellini, Giovanni's father, was a renowned Venetian artist in Venice. One of Jacopo's famous works is a tall mosaic inside St Marks basilica in Venice, known as "Mosaic of Visitation".

Giovanni Bellini, also called Giambellino, was born around 1930-35. He is considered as one of the great masters of early Venetian renaissance art. Giovanni had learned the art from his brother and father, was also influenced by his brother-in-law Andrea Mantegna, as well as other artists. Giovanni played an important role in developing the ideas of "tonality" in art, ensuring an overall tone for the painting and a smooth passage of tones in different parts of the painting.

Before presenting his art-works, let me briefly introduce the Accademia museum of Venice, where you can admire the originals of all the paintings presented in this post.

Accademia Museum

This museum hosts some of the masterpieces of renaissance period art by maestros like Tiziano (Titan), Tintoretto, Canaletto, Tiepolo, Hans Memling & Hieronymus Bosch. It is situated close to the Accademia bridge (orginally called Ponte della Carità, inaugurated in 1854). If you like renaissance art, do not miss visiting this museum during your visit to Venice.

The building hosting the Accademia museum today, was once a convent and a church (Santa Maria della Carità church).  Under Napoleon's rule in late 18th century, the religious persons from the church and the nearby convent were sent away. In 1807, the old Accademia museum was shifted in those buildings.

Giovanni Bellini's "Madonna and the Child" Series of Paintings

Bellini made a series of paintings of Madonna with the child Jesus. Let me now show you 10 paintings from that series present in the Accademia museum, so that you can appreciate his evolution as a painter.

There is an 11th painting at the end of this post, from his series on the theme of Pietà.

1. From 1448

I am not sure how old was Giovanni when this painting was made and how much did he actually contribute to it. The madonna of this painting does not look very young. Baby Jesus, sitting on a parapet, is holding an apple in his left hand and two fingers raised showing his dual (human and divine) nature. Madonna is expressionless while the child has a knowing expression, much wiser than his age.

2. From 1455

This painting was done when Giovanni was about 20 years old. It is simpler with fewer colours compared to the first one. The baby wearing a black dress, looks younger but still has a knowing expression while he holds his mother's chin with his hand.

3. From 1470

When this painting was done, Giovanni was 35 years old and clearly it is a more mature work, even if it not an oil painting on canvas like the others. Madonna seems to be lit by the light, with a blue sky behind her. Her face has a serenity while looking down at her sleeping son, lying nude, his hand hanging down, almost like a glimpse of the future awaiting them. There is a sense of three-dimensionality, proportions and perspective in this work.

4. From 1475 

Giovanni made this when he was forty. He has light coming in from upper right side, lighting up Madonna's serene and young face, while the light on the baby is more diffused. The baby has a more innocent face, and he makes the sign of his dual nature with this right hand, while his left hand grips his mother's thumb. 

5. From 1480

By now, Giovanni was 45 years old and clearly more skilled as a painter. The whole canvas seems lit by light with bright colours. The background has a light blue sky, fluffy clouds and the Euganei hills near Padua. The baby has a knowing and petulant look, as he holds his right hand in the two-fingers sign while his left hand discreetly seeks his mother's touch.

6. From 1485-90

Now Giovanni has crossed fifty years, he is recognised as a maestro. Perhaps, this means that now he can experiment and try new colours and ideas. The most distinctive change in the painting is the use of bright red colours in Madonna's gown and the heads and wings of the six cherubs on the clouds floating above. The baby seems to be wearing a modern looking night-shirt. The baby also has a more child like expression and seems to be talking to his mother.

7. From 1485-90

This is also from the same period. In this, the two have a green screen behind, the surface of the parapet is painted green, and in the background on the two sides there are two trees. The baby is nude, has a more child like expression and his left hand holds his mother's fingers. Once again the whole canvas seems to be lit by light.

8. From 1488 (With St Catherine and Magdalene)

This is a more complex work. Compared to the two women saints on the two sides, dressed in rich clothes and wearing jewellery, Madonna looks similar to the other paintings above. The baby seems lost in ecstasy. While the background is dark, the 4 figures seem lit by an external light, creating a few shadows. It seems to have clear Flemish or Dutch influences.

9. From 1490 (With St Paul and St George)

Like one above, this one also has two figures standing on both sides of the mother and child. However, this painting has much more in common with his other works - light blue sky with clouds, a red screen behind them, all the persons lit by a light coming from the left with a hint of shadows in the right side of the canvas.

10. From 1503 (With St John Baptist and a Woman)

This painting was done when Giovanni was 68 years old and it is even more complex, with a detailed urban background with the Vicentino mountains behind them - the houses have a distinct look, may be it shows the city of Bassano. Sheep are grazing on the grassy hills (click on the picture to see a bigger version for the sheep). It is bathed in light with shades of liliacs, pinks, green and light blues. Madonna has a soft and innocent expression. The skin tones of Madonna and the woman on the right seem to have the red tones associated with Titan.

11. From 1505 - Pietà with Madonna and the Dying Jesus

The last painting is from the Pietà series, and is from 1505, when Giovanni was 70 years old. The white-haired Madonna's face is etched with lines of sorrow. A dramatic touch is given by the broken tree on the left of the canvas. The background is in the shade of orange-yellow seems to show Padua with Euganei hills and Vicentino mountains behind. Once again, the whole canvas seems to be lit all over with a diffused light and few shadows. (You can click on all the images for a bigger view.)

Things I Noticed in the Paintings

I think that as Giovanni grew older and more skilled, his works assumed more renaissance characteristics - they seem more three-dimensional, more realistic, while the proportions and perspectives improve.

In most of his paintings, the Madonna has an innocent or an aloof look, she does not seem to be looking at you. I also noticed that in many paintings, her little finger seems to be bent or crooked in the middle - it does not seem very natural. Try bending your finger like that and you will see what I mean.

On the other hand, the baby Jesus has a more knowing look, creating a kind of dissonance because his facial expressions are more adult-like. At the same time, the child's proportions do not always look right. For example in painting number 10 above, the child seems to be too long. Child's ecstasy, with his eyes turning up, in image 8 also made me feel a little anxious.

I love the light and vivid colours that seem to illuminate many of his works. They lack the light and shadow effects (chiaroscuro), which would become a dominant part of later renaissance art.

I also love the tender affection between the mother and the baby, expressed in the way the boy holds his mother's thumb or touches her hand. 

To Conclude

To look at the different paintings of Giovanni Bellini in a chronological manner gives us an idea of his evolution as an artist. At the same time, it gives us an idea of how the renaissance ideas of art were evolving.

Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452 and his Monalisa was painted in early 1500s. Michelangelo was born in 1475 and his frescoes of Universal Judgement in Vatican were painted around 1540. Thus, the art of Giovanni Bellini needs to be seen in the context of all the other artists, as they exchanged ideas, knowledge and techniques. 

All the paintings presented in this post are from Accademia museum in Venice. To feel their full impact, you need to look at them in the museum. For example, the sensation of light when you look at painting number 10 above is absolutely incredible. When I saw it, I was transfixed.

BTW, the Telero shown in the first image above was commissioned to Giovanni Bellini in 1515, when he had turned eighty. He was unable to finish it, as he died in 1516. It was completed many years later by another artist, Vittore Belliniano. 

I have been to the Accademia museum a few times, and every time I go there I discover new works which I had not noticed earlier!

*****  

Searching For Lila

I came across the story of Lila Lakshmanan Biro by chance. Half-Indian and half French, she has worked as a film-editor with many of the famous French film-directors like Godard and Truffaut in the 1960s.

Born in 1935, Lila will be ninety years old this year. She lives in an old age home in a suburb near Paris. My artist friend Samit Das, whom I have found on the journey to find Lila, has confirmed to me that she is fine and keeping well.

I first met Lila in a book when she was called Lila Herman. Finding her reincarnations into other names was an exciting search. This is the story of that journey.

 My First Encounter With Lila

I came across her first when she was known as Lila Herman, while doing research about the Roberto Rossellini - Sonali Dasgupta story.

In December 1956, Roberto, well-known Italian director, famous for his neo-realistic films like Rome, Open City and Paisà, came to India to shoot a film. Sonali Dasgupta, wife of Indian producer-director Harisadhan Dasgupta, was supposed to collaborate with Roberto. The two fell in love and this created a huge scandal in India. Hounded by journalists and an upset family, Sonali looked for support. She found some support in Lila Herman.

At that time, Lila was married to Jean Herman, an aspiring film-director. Jean was teaching French in Bombay in those days, was one of Rossellini's assistants for his film. They had a son in Paris in 1955 and then come to Bombay, where they had stayed for 2 years.

That is how I started my search to learn more about Lila Herman, but I found very little. She edited some films in early 1960s and then disappeared. 

Lila Herman to Lila Lakshmanan

The search for Lila Herman was a little complicated because her husband film-director Jean Herman had also disappeared and had become famous as Jean Veutrin, a well-known French mystery-writer. 

She had disappeared because she and Jean had divorced. After the divorce, she had become Lila Lakshmanan and had continued to work as film-editor. However, after a few years, even the trail of Lila Lakshmanan also turned cold.

Lila & Atila Biro

Searching for Lila Lakshmanan brought me to her second marriage to the well-known French architect and artist of Hungarian origins, Atila Biro. She had become Lila Biro.

Her husband Atila was born as Attila in Hungary in 1931, studied in Germany and settled in Paris. As a painter, he chose to write his name as Atila. Many of his works are part of different European art museums.

Atila and Lila married in 1963. Together, Atila and Lila, travelled to Italy, Marocco and many times to India. Atila had a large number of exhibitions in different European countries and the two often travelled together for those events. I don't know if Atila and Lila had any children. Atila Biro died in 1987. You can check some of his works on the Facebook page of Atila Biro foundation.

Lila Biro's Book

In 2012, Lila Atila Biro wrote a book called "Atila, Le soleil des métamorphoses" (Atila, the Sun of Metamorphosis).

The preface of this book was written by Lila's first husband Jean Vautrin (Herman), who wrote about his admiration for Atila's paintings.

I think that Jean and Atila had separated because she was in love in Atila. She married Atila, soon after her divorce while Jean had his second marriage a few years later. However, the three of them, Jean, Lila and Atila, probably continued to be good friends. 

Lila Biro Interview in 2017

In 2017, an event was organised in Paris on visual mapping of modernism in Indian art. In that connection, some art exhibitions and talks were organised, in which clips from some of Lila's films were also included. On that occasion, in an interview to Bombay Mirror by Sumesh Sharma, Lila had shared some information about her life:

"Lila was born in Jabalpur in 1935, where her father Lakshmanan was the director of All India Radio, while her mother was French. As a child, she had lived in Delhi, Lucknow and Bombay. Then her parents separated and 12 years old Lila arrived in a boarding school in England.

She went to Sorbonne to study English Literature when she was 17. Lila successfully graduated and went to study at the French film school ID’HEC, where she met her first husband, Jean Herman, now better known as the French writer Jean Vautrin. She was studying editing as she didn’t think she was creative enough to be a director.

During her last year at the film school in Paris in 1955, she gave birth to her son. Lila’s mother, found a job for Jean Herman teaching French Literature at the Wilson College in Bombay, thus, they lived there for 2 years until the end of 1957.

Regarding the Roberto-Sonali story she said: “I was with Rossellini, when he met Sonali Das Gupta. He was a man who had the accomplishment of perusal; he would be convincing and would get his way with people. When Sonali’s affair became public, she came and lived with me on Carmichael Road."

In the End

In late 1960s, Lila Biro continued to work as editor for different well-known French film directors. Thus, in the films she edited, her name appears as 3 different persons - Lila Herman, Lila Lakshmanan and Lila Biro. I think that she stopped working as film-editor in early 1970s.

About the impact of her work, in 2023, film producer Daniel Bird said: "Lila Biro is a remarkable character who witnessed Rossellini in India, played a key role in the cutting of key titles of the French New Wave, and was a close collaborator of the Hungarian émigré painter, Atila Biro. For me, however, she’s also the star witness in a crime against film grammar: the jump cut. The editing style of Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless is now legendary, but I’ve always wondered what it must have been like in the cutting room when that revolutionary editorial decision was made. Thanks to Lila, that moment is vividly brought to life."

There was another Indo-French woman connected to the films - Leela Naidu. Leela was 5 years younger to Lila. In 1955, when Lila and Jean had come to Bombay, Leela was crowned Miss Femina. I wonder if the two had met and had been in contact in India or in France.

I am also curious about Lila and Jean Herman's connections with the films in Bombay, as the two had just come out of the cinema institute in Paris and must have been very interested to collaborate with Indian film-makers. It was the time when films like Mughle Azam and Devdas were being made.

To conclude this article, here is a romantic picture of a dedication of a painting by Atila to his "ma Lila cherie" (my dear Lila) from 1969 (click on the picture for a bigger view).

I wish I could talk to her and do a long oral-history chat to explore her memories.

***** 

Note: The first image of Lila presented above has been made from 2 images I found on internet. However, I could not find any picture of Lila and Atila together. The second image of Atila's dedication of a painting is taken from the facebook page of Atila Biro foundation.

Day of Remembering: Annamaria's Story

Our history books are full of stories of massacres and of persons forced to leave their homes and become refugees. Such stories have a special resonance for me because my mother's family was forced to leave their homes and lands in 1947, when that part of India became a new country called Pakistan.

Recently, I met Annamaria Marussi who told me her story of massacres and becoming a refugee from Istria, a peninsula at the north-eastern border of Italy, which is now a part of Slovenia & Croatia. Annamaria was born in a tiny town called Isola (Izola) in Istria.

This post tells her story. The image below has Annamaria with her son and grand-daughter.

Let me start by briefly explaining the location and history of Istria.

Istria - The Land and Its History

Istria (Istra in Slovenia and Croatia) is a peninsula, a thumb like stub of land jutting out into Adriatic sea close to the border between Italy, Slovenia and Croatia. This land is part of Karst region, a geographical area characterised by a plateau with steep cliffs overlooking the sea, extending from north-eastern Italy to Croatia. The area is full of caves and deep sink-holes (foibe).

This part of Europe, today marks the meeting place of 4 countries - Austria, Slovenia, Croatia and Italy and this explains its chequered history. 

By 5th century AD, it was part of the Roman empire, which gave it the name Histria. Then for around 400 years, it passed under different rulers, from Byzantines, to Longobards and Slavs. Around 900 AD, for about 800 years, till around the end of 18th century, Isria/Istra was under the Venetian republic and therefore, the winged lion symbol of Venice became a common sight in this area.

Around 1820 AD, this area came under the Austrian-Hungarian empire till the first world war, and then it became part of Italy. After the second world war, the area was occupied by the partisans of Tito and became a part of Yugoslavia. Finally, after the end of Soviet Union, Yugoslavia broke in different parts and now it is divided between Slovenia and Croatia.

The map below (from Wikipedia) shows how Istria is divided between Italy, Slovenia and Croatia today. The purple arrow near the top left part of the image shows the location of Isola (Izola) where Annamaria lived as a child.

The Foibe Massacres & The Ideologies

In 1945, as the German forces retreated, the partisans of Marshal Tito occupied Istria. As a lot of its inhabitants were Italians, the Slav origin partisans wanted to send them away and the fastest and least costly way to kill them to push them down the foibes, or the sink-holes, some of which were as deep as 300 metres. These killings were justified by the partisans as a just reprisal of the Slav deaths caused by the fascist German-Italian regimes. Many persons deny that civilians were killed and justify it as political vendetta.

Apart from the persons killed in the foibe, between 1947 and 1954, around 350,000 persons of Italian origin left their homes as Istrian refugees to escape the communist regime of Tito.

How many persons were killed in the foibe-massacres? There are contested claims from the two sides, varying from a few thousands to 10-20 thousand. Istrian refugees say that a lot of innocent persons were killed and present names and stories of some of them to prove their point. Yugoslavians downplayed the killings, saying that only the fascists and their collaborators were killed. 

Every year, 10 February is the Day of Remembrance In Italy for the Istrian refugees and the persons killed in the foibe-massacres. 

Personally, I believe that extreme left (radical communists) are the mirror images of extreme right groups like fascists. Examples from Soviet Union, China, Vietnam and Cambodia, show that communist violence was no less brutal then the fascists', though communists sometimes ignore those while fighting the different fascisms.

Story of Annamaria Marussi

Annamaria was six years old when her family was forced to leave their home in the tiny seaside town of Isola on the Istrian coast. According to her, out of the 32,000 persons living in that town, 28,000 had left as refugees. She talked about that experience with the following words:

"I come from the town of Isola in Istria but my father was from Fiume (Rijeka in Croatia). He had come to work in Isola. My mother's family, all her relatives, were from Isola.

I was born in the house of Domenico Lovisato (NdR: a well-known geologist and palaeontologist, born in 1842 in Isola in Istria) and then our family had shifted to another house. In those days, Isola had only 2 main roads and our house was on one of those. We lived on the first floor and as you came down the stairs, there was a atrium and the main door. At the top of the door was a crescent-shaped window with glass in different colours. After many years, when finally we had our house, I asked to have the crescent-shaped window over the door, with glass in different colours, to remember that house in Isola.

I remember the times when we would go for vendemiare (grape-collection for making wine). The family of my maternal grandmother had vineyards. They had some containers which were hung on the mules and donkeys and they would put small children in those containers. So I would go to the countryside sitting inside a container hanging on the side of a mule.

I also remember when it was time to collect almonds, or when I went with my father in a small boat because he loved the sea and fishing. Sometimes in the evening he took me with him for fishing. Later, after the exodus, when we were living in that rundown house in Trieste, some evenings I went with him to the Audace wharf for fishing, and I was supposed to not make noise because otherwise the fish didn't come near.

Our family, I, my parents and my brother, we all had to leave our home. My father had left earlier, while the remaining three, we left in 1947, when the Paris Peace plan offered us the possibility of leaving. We were allowed to take only our furniture, we put them in trucks which took them to store-houses as the refugees didn't have homes or spaces in refugee camps to keep them. We took the boat which was going too and fro to take the refugees to Trieste in Italy.

We were more fortunate than other refugees because my father had already found a place for us in the old town of Trieste. It was bare, small and poor but at least we had a home and we could all stay together. Trieste had an enormous refugee camp, created in the silos, an old store-house building near the railway station. It was divided into small boxes, each hosting a family. There were around 2000 persons living that building.

Over the years, the Istrian refugees have created some associations, which promote the organisation of the Day of Remembrance, so that we don't forget the Istrians. Out of the 350,000 refugees, around 70,000 left Italy to emigrate to north and south Americas, Australia, New Zealand, and other countries. They can be found in every part of Italy.

I remember when we had put our stuff in the truck and said goodbye to our relatives. My grandparents were still there when we left in 1947. One of my traumatic memory is from 1945, when the German soldiers, while retreating had blown up a dam and we heard this terrible sound of the bomb.

I went back to see my old house in Isola and it was such an alienating sensation. It has changed a lot. To see that house which was my house and to see other persons living there, to think of the memories of that place of how it was, it was traumatic.

After so many years, the impact of that exodus, of leaving that home is still strong, I have nostalgia for those days. It is a wound, because it was not just leaving our old home, but it was that life in a small town where everyone knew everyone else, all that lost. For example, the sister of my father, they emigrated to USA. My paternal grandmother used to live with their family, she could not go with them to USA because they said that she was too old, and she suffered from this separation. Other relatives were sent to Sanremo. My husband's family some were sent to Perugia, we were all thrown apart in different directions, so many lacerations in our hearts."

Conclusions

Talking to Annamaria brought back my childhood memories of talking to my maternal grandmother and her lingering sorrow about the land and persons, as well as the trauma of partition of India and Pakistan. In those days we were living in the house of a Muslim trader who had gone as a refugee to Pakistan and I remember wondering if he knew that we were living in his house.

The real issue about becoming a refugee, as in Annamaria's story, is that of facing forced eviction and violence, as well as, loss of property, dignity and family relationships. That is the pain we carry in our hearts for ever.

The image below has Annamaria Marussi and Gianni Bevilacqua, two persons who were forced to leave their homes in Istria and become refugees, at the Day of Remembering exhibition on 10th February 2025 in Schio (VI), Italy.

I also remembered an encounter with a Pakistani girl in Washington DC, after watching a play, "A Tryst with Destiny" written and directed by my sister, which was about the India-Pakistan partition. She had said, "I understand the trauma of my elders about leaving their homes and becoming refugees and having nostalgia for the past. But I was born in Pakistan and that is my homeland."

I can imagine the lives of the persons now living in the house in Isola where Annamaria lived as a child. For them also that house, the community of Isola and the Istria region, is now their homeland. If and when, they will leave that house to go and live somewhere else, they would also miss it.

I think that is the story of all refugees. The first generations miss what they have lost and carry that hurt all their lives. But the second and third generations, hopefully, they can stop being a refugee, they can make new memories about their new homelands, and the old stories lose their power of hurting us and keeping us as a prisoner of the pain. 

*****

Sonali SenRoy's Book

I had first heard about the Sonali - Rossellini story in 2008, when Dilip Padgaonkar's book, "Under Her Spell: Roberto Rossellini in India" had come out. 

Over the past 17 years, I have spent numerous days in libraries and archives, collecting information in English, Italian and French about their story. For example, you can read my article about this story written in 2008. You can say that I am obsessed with it.

Today I received a book written by Sonali in 1961, that I had ordered. There was a surprise hidden in it. This post is about her book and the surprise. The image below shows Sonali from the back-cover of her book.

Let me start with a brief background about the Sonali-Rossellini story.

Brief Background About Sonali-Rossellini Story

The 1945 film, "Rome, Open City" created the legend of Italian film director Roberto Rossellini. At the end of 1956, Rossellini arrived in India to shoot a film. At that time, he was married to the Hollywood star Ingrid Bergman.

In India, he fell in love with Sonali Dasgupta, wife of film director Hari Dasgupta. There was a huge scandal. In October 1957, Rossellini and Sonali escaped to Paris with her younger son.

4 years later, in June 1961, Sonali wrote a book in French & Italian titled, Altro Mondo (the Other World).

Sonali's Book

I had heard about this book, but had not managed to lay hands on it. After so many years, a few days ago, while re-reading my old notes, I was reminded of this book and thought that now it might be possible to find it on internet. I found it straight away, and ordered a used-copy for a little more than three Euro.

Today morning that book arrived. It says that it was originally published in French and translated into Italian by Sonali herself, with the help of Mr. Dominique Aubier. It was published by Longanesi & C., Rome in June 1961. The cover has the picture of a woman from the Ajanta caves.

On the book, the author's name is Sonali Dasgupta. The first question in my mind was - why did she use this name for her book?

Sonali's maiden name was Senroy, and after her marriage to H. Dasgupta, she had become Sonali Dasgupta. When she had reached Paris in the beginning of October 1957, Roberto was still married to his second wife, Ingrid Bergman, and their legal separation was ratified in Rome in early November 1957. At the end of November 1957, their daughter Raffaella was born.

Thus, her choice of publishing her book as "Sonali Dasgupta" in 1961, probably meant that she and Roberto were not yet formally married. May be, at that time, her divorce with Hari Dasgupta was not formalised and thus she was forced to use that name, because it was on her official documents?

Surprise in the Book

I was surprised that the used copy of the book I have received, has a hand-written note in Italian by Sonali (click on the picture for a larger view): 

 "Questo libro non è l'opera di uno scrittore ma l'esperienza di una donna. La sincerità in esso racchiusa è la prova della simpatia e amicizia per tutto e tutti. Maggio 1961, Roma, Sonali Dasgupta."

(Trans.: This book is not the work of a writer but the experience of a woman. The sincerity in it, is the proof of sympathy and friendship for everything and everyone. May 1961, Rome, Sonali Dasgupta)

Sonali and her elder son Raja

The book is dedicated to Ragia (Raja), her elder son. In the book, the spellings of Raja are "Ragia", because Italian does not have J and it uses "gi" for the J sound. It is possible that she had given verbal instructions about the dedication and the person transcribing it had used the Italian spellings of the word. I feel that she must have been disappointed that her son's name was not spelled properly.

When I had first read about the Sonali and Roberto story, I had been greatly struck by her leaving of her elder son, Raja, in India, who was around 5 years old at that time. It had seemed to me like a "Sophie's Choice" kind of situation because a mother had been forced to take one child and to leave behind her other child.

I think that by dedicating this book to Raja Dasgupta, she was expressing her regret and pain at that separation.

Contents of the Book

The book is composed of 13 chapters. The first chapter starts with her days in Bombay immediately preceding her departure from India for Paris, with her young son Arjun (later he changed name and became Gil Rossellini). A couple of chapters have brief glimpses of her life in India such as about her birth in Banaras/Varanasi and her father's work as a doctor and about her journey to Europe.

Rest of the book is about her encounters with Europe, first with Paris and Saint Remy in France and then about her life in Italy. These encounters include linguistic difficulties, challenges of adapting to the western clothes, and the curiosity of people about the sari-wearing woman. In the parts about Italy, there are also different episodes of dealing with journalists and other curious persons.

The book does not touch on her love-story with Roberto and her life with her first husband. It reads like a series of vignettes, as if she was talking to someone about what it means for her to be an exotic Indian in Europe and to explain the peculiarities of India to the Europeans. The first draft of the book was probably written by that interviewer (Dominique Aubier), at a time when she didn't have a good command over French or Italian.

The book also shows her desire for dignity and privacy, for not giving in to journalists looking for melodramatic stories and scandals.

Conclusions

To find this book with her handwritten words in my hands was an incredible sensation. Suddenly, I could touch the words she had written and imagine her sitting at a table in a bookshop, writing dedications.

It seemed to me, as if across time and space, she has decided to extend her finger towards me, daring me to touch her.

I had written to her once to ask for an interview, but it was a time of bereavement and she had withdrawn from all public contacts at that time. She died in 2013.

I have been obsessed with this story for almost 2 decades. I have already written about it a few times and have been in contact with Raja Dasgupta, her elder son, as well as with a few other persons who knew her.

With all the material that I have collected about this story, I know that one day I will write a book about it. When I saw her handwriting today, I felt as if she is herself asking me to do it.

***

Visiting Schio: Sacred Sites

The tiny town of Schio in the north-east of Italy, about 30 km from the provincial capital Vicenza, is full of sacred sites that bring here pilgrims from all over the world. At the same time, many of these sites are also wonderful places for nature walks and hikes.

The town is located in the foothills of Pasubio mountain, part of the Little Dolomites, and thus, be ready to go up and down the hilly paths during your walks (above: a view of Pasubio and Leogra river in Schio).

This post provides an overview and brief information about the different sites. Over the next few months, I hope to write more detailed posts about each site. Except for a pre-historic site, all the other places in this post are related to the Catholic church.

Pre-historic Prayer Sites on Mount Summano

Mount Summano towards the east of Schio is around 1300 m. high. Some believe that the its name indicates Pluto, the ancient God of the underworld; others think that it indicates the God of lightening and rain.

Ancient archaeological remains have also been found in a cave known as Bocca Lorenza, on the eastern side of Summano, which can be a great walk from the nearby Sant'Orso town.

Near the summit of Monte Summano, you can visit the church dedicated to St. Mary (above), as well as see the ancient site where prehistoric folks use to make sacred fire for worship (image below).

If you are used to mountain hikes, you can try the hike from Tretto or from Sant'Orso to the top of the mountain. It has plenty of places for panoramic views of the Schio valley below. Many years ago I tried this hike once, starting from Tretto, but it was too tough for me, I had to give it up half way (below, a view from the top).

St. Martin church in Schio

St Martin hill in Schio hosts one of the oldest churches in this area, which was built at the site of an older temple dedicated to a female deity. The first church was built here around 7th century CE. The first written document about this church is from 1185 CE.

In late 1985, a person from Schio called Renato Baron claimed to have a vision of Madonna on the hill, around 250 metres above the St Martin church. Over the following years, hundreds of his followers started collecting here for prayers. Some persons from the Catholic church, spoke against Baron and his cult.

For the pilgrims coming here from different parts of Europe, a proper walking path has been created leading to the site where Baron had his vision, and then to the top of the hill. You may or may not believe in Baron and his vision, but it is a wonderful place for a hike to the top of the hill. Come prepared with proper walking shoes, a cap and a bottle of water. You can see two views of this path here (above and below).

San Zeno Church in Magre, Schio

Magre is the part of the Schio located across the Leogra river bridge. Magre hill is located in the centre of this area, while the much higher, Magre mountain separates Leogra valley from the Agno valley on the west. Archaeological excavations on the Magre hill have shown objects from prehistoric to more recent times.

San Zeno area is located on the western slope of Raga mountain in Magre. To reach here, you need to walk till the end of Via Siberia road. It is a protected area and vehicles (including bicycles) are not allowed beyond a point. The tiny San Zeno church is from 14th century, and has been recently renovated.

It is located next to a waterfall, which looks beautiful after the rains.

The final 150-200 metres of the path require a steeper climb and some effort. So go there with proper walking shoes, a cap and a water bottle.

St. Mary Mother church in Pieve

This church goes back at least a thousand years. The legends say that it was built at the site of an older pagan temple. During medieval period, it was considered as the mother church for all the surrounding mountains areas. It was also the seat for a bishop, till the Duomo church was built in Schio in 1473.

Over the past centuries, this church (above) has been renovated many times, the last being in 1989, so it does not look so old. It still has some old frescoes and an old baptismal fountain. Next to the church, you can also see the old water canal, Roggia Maestra, from the 12th century.

This church is located in Pieve Bel Vicino, a few kilometres north of Schio. From the city centre, it takes a 45 minutes walk to reach there.

St. Francis church of Schio

This church and monastery were inaugurated in 1436. Built on the eastern edge of the medieval town on the hill of Olives, it is one of the most beautiful churches in the city. The church has a famous painting (below) by the well-known renaissance-period artist Francesco Verla (1470-1521) and a 14th century stone statue of Madonna.

The asymmetrical looking church (below) with a central nave and one sided aisle is open to public only on special occasions (at present, it is on the afternoons of the first Sundays of the month but that keeps on changing).

Duomo of Schio

Duomo was built in the city centre in 1473. It is placed on the Gorzone hill, right in front of the castle hill. An older Longobard tower and then a church had existed here before the construction of Duomo. It is dedicated to St. Peters. With stairs on the two sides for going up to the church, it has a majestic look. The external sculptures of the four evangelists are by Valetino Zajec. It dominates the central plaza, Piazza Rossi.

One of the paintings (Gesu Maestro, 1943) in Duomo has an indirect link with my wife's family. That painting is by Alfredo Ortelli, who lived in Magre. His sister Ita, was my mother-in-law's friend and after the death of her brother in 1963, lived with my wife's family for many years (in the house where I am writing this post).

FYI, Duomo is a cathedral level church, without a bishop - it can only be called Cathedral, if it has a bishop.

St. Jakob Church

Located on the road behind Duomo is the 15th century St Jakob's church. It has some nice paintings from 19th century. The most beautiful part of this church, in my opinion, is its 16th century bell-tower, in the image below (to see it, enter the portico next door, going to the back of the church).

St. Mary Chapel in Valletta

It is charming little chapel located in the valley between the Castle hill and the hill with St Francis church. A water canal passes underneath it and an old city gate can be seen next to it. The first documents about this chapel are from early 16th century but probably the church goes back to older times.

St. Bakhita's Canossian Church

The congregation of Daughters of Charity, also known as Canossian nuns, have an old history in Schio. One of their nuns, mother Bakhita, was declared a saint in 2000 by Pope John Paul II. Mother Bakhita (or St. Bakhita, if you prefer) had a very unusual story.

Born in Darfur region (Sudan) in 1869, she was taken from her village and sold as a slave when she was 7 years old. Her name Bakhita (fortunate) was given by the Arab slave-sellers. She ended up in the house of the Italian consul in Khartoum, who brought her to Venice, where she joined the nuns. She spent many years in Schio, and died here in 1947.

Pilgrims come to visit her tomb from all over the world. Her church (image above) and tomb are located in the city centre. A monument near the St Francis church (image below) remembers her and the millions of persons taken away from Africa as slaves.

In Conclusion

As you can see, even if Schio is only a tiny mountain town, it has many sacred places to visit, which are open to people of all religions. Many of these places, also provide opportunities for nature-walks along beautiful  and serene mountain paths. To conclude this post, here is a view of the city centre seen from the terrace of the Duomo of Schio.

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The Library & Airship of Amerigo da Schio

Recently, an old noble family of Schio opened their private library with antique books for public viewing. The family's name is "da Schio" (literally "from Schio") and they have a big villa in the city centre, in front of the Duomo church.

Count Amerigo da Schio, from this family had made the first airship in Italy and its maiden flight had taken place in Schio in 1905. This was just two years after the the Wright brothers had made their maiden flight in 1903.

This post is about the "da Schio" family's private library and the story of the first Italian airship made by Amerigo da Schio.

Civic Library of Schio

These days, our Civic library in Schio is having a mini-exhibition about antique books and handwritten manuscripts. This exhibition will be on till the end of Dec. 2024.

The tiny town of Torre Belvicino, a few kilometres north from Schio, was one of the first places in Italy where the printing press was started, soon after Johannes Gutenberg had discovered the moveable type for printing in Germany in 1440 CE. The first printed books in Torre Belvicino came out around 1460.

At the same time, the St Francis church had some antique handwritten manuscripts with some exquisitely made illustrations from 13th century. Thus, our library has an eclectic collection of antique old books. I will write a separate post about our library, its history and its old books.

For the inauguration of this exhibition of old books in the civic library, the "da Schio" family also opened the doors of their private library for the public, to show off their collection of old books.

Da Schio family in Schio

The records show that the "da Schio" family house has been there for more than a thousand years. The old pictures from 19th century show 4 houses built together. Around 1875, the building was renovated and a new façade was built, giving it a more dignified appearance, so that the four houses appear as one.

The "da Schio" family had a number of famous personalities in the past. These personalities included Manelino da Schio, mayor of Belluno in 13th century while his son Frà Giovanni da Vicenza was a well-known Catholic Dominican inquisitor (his portrait can be seen in the stained-glass windows of Santa Corona church in Vicenza). The descendents also included a bishop in the 16th century. The title of Count was given to the family in 1530 by emperor Charles V.

The family's royal symbol is a mermaid with double tail, which can be seen at the top of the house and in the family seal placed in the books (image below).

The present Count Giovanni da Schio, was born in the room above the library but today lives in their villa in Castel Gomberto. One of the Counts' son, Tommaso Amerigo, is a trained archivist. Both Giovanni and Tommaso were present during our visit to explain the history of the house and the library (first image at the top).

The remaining parts of the "da Schio" building have been made into offices and apartments. However the family still maintains the library. 

Library of the "da Schio" House 

This library has about 4000 volumes including 2 incunabulum books (the first printed books in 15th century).

The library was (and is still) not organised for subjects or authors, but rather for aesthetic reasons, putting together books of the same sizes and colours in the same shelves. Each cupboard (all are open cupboards), covering the whole length of the wall, has an alphabetical identification and the shelves are numbered. Thus, to find a specific book, one must consult a card-catalogue. There are 10 boxes of card-catalogues (shown in the first image at the top).

However, the family has started a process of digitising the book-archives.

The library room has a few pictures of Amerigo da Schio, who is considered as a famous Italian and world personality. The place of honour, in the centre of the room, is for a model of the the famous Amerigo airship hanging from the roof.

The Airship of Amerigo da Schio

Amerigo was born in Schio in 1836. Though he trained as a lawyer, he had eclectic interests including astronomy. During that period, different persons were discussing how to fly. While the Wright brothers were trying with their aeroplane, it was too heavy to be able to carry passengers.

On the other hand, others were thinking of an airship carried by a big balloon - these were also known as Blimp or Dirigible Balloon. Amerigo was among one of them, though he thought that with time, lighter metals will be found and future will belong to aeroplanes.

Hot air balloon was invented in France in 1783. Two years later, Blanchard and Jeffries crossed the English channel in a hydrogen balloon. In 1852, Giffard flew a steam-powered airship filled with hydrogen, while the Zepplin airship was invented in 1895, which were also used to bomb Britain during the first world war.

Amerigo's airship in Schio, was the first Italian airship. Making it was not easy because the parts had to be built and brought to Schio. For example, its motor was made at the Fiat factory in Turin, while the black plastic sheet fixed at the bottom to allow elastic expansion of the balloon, was made by Pirelli. It was filled with a gas made from burning some metals and other things. Underneath the balloon, a frame made from aluminium tubes was built to carry passengers. The first flight on 17 June 1905, in the area where the old hospital of Schio is located, was successful. After that it was flown a few times.

A book published to commemorate 70 years of Amerigo's airship by Arrigo Usigli, had some information about the challenges in making the airship: "Its total weight should have been around 1000 kg but the initial endothermal motors were too heavy for it. However technical progress helped by reducing this weight and a motor produced by the French Buchet was chosen, which weighed only 80 kg and provided 12 HP." (p. 25)

At one level, we can say that the invention of the airship was not very useful, because over the next few years, aeroplanes were developed and became the principle mode of flying for humans. However, Amerigo's airship innovation led to better industrial capacity in many areas in Italy, including in the Fiat and Pirelli factories.

To Conclude

If Homo Sapiens species arrived some 300,000 years ago. The writing was discovered around 3000 years ago. Till about 500 years ago, books were only handwritten and were thus called Manuscript (from Latin, Manus means hand and Script means writing). The society that reads books, arrived only some hundred-two hundred years ago. Initially, many persons, not used to the easy availability of books for general public felt that books were a bad invention, that they would have destroyed the human capacity for memorising and thinking.

While, today we can only laugh at those fears, already the world is changing. With technologies such as easy video-making with mobile phones and internet, perhaps we are moving towards a post-writing and post-book world. As has happened so many times in the past, new technology does not mean that the old things disappear. Hopefully, books will be with us for a very long time, even if they change form and become electronic or video-story tellings.

The beautiful library of the "da Schio" family is one of the treasures of humanity and hopefully, it can be preserved for future generations. 

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Art from the Fascism Era

The art and architecture are influenced by the dominating ideologies of their times. The rise of fascist ideologies in Italy during 1920s and 30s, had influenced the art and architecture from that period.

Recently, I had an opportunity to visit an exhibition on this theme at MART museum in Rovereto (Italy). The image below shows the sculpture of a man at the exhibition entrance.

In this post, I want to share about some exhibits from this exhibition. There were hundreds of art-works including paintings, sculptures, posters, photographs and models in this exhibition. For convenience, I have sub-divided a few examples of those in 3 groups - influence of fascism on the arts, representations of Mussolini and the end of fascism.

You can click on the images of this post for a bigger view.

Art from the Fascist Era or the Fascist Art?

Some artists believe in the ideology and thus, their creative expressions are aligned with the ideals of that era. Other artists may not believe in the ideology but can be forced to follow the dominant dictates of that ideology.

In the second group, sometimes, artists' dissent against the dominant ideology may be expressed in hidden symbols or clever subversions of ideas. The image below shows posters about fascism from 1920s & 30s.

Fascist Ideology & Its Artistic Influences

Fascism means glorification of masculine virtues - tall, broad, strong, powerful and patriotic alpha males with square jaws, leading their families, communities and the country, to compete against, fight and dominate the men from other communities and countries, for the glory of their fatherland.

Women play a supporting role in this process, they are supposed to reproduce children, look after their families and communities, and admire their handsome men. (The image below has a sculpture of the war veteran and fascist leader Carlo Delacroix by the sculptor Antonio G. Santagata in 1928)

I had no idea about the impact of fascist ideology on the arts and thus, I was very curious to visit this exhibition. My friend Giorgio loves art and when he proposed that we go to Rovereto to see it, I immediately agreed.

The term "Fascism" comes from Fascia or Fascio, a covering or a band. For example, fascias can be the cords tying together bundles of grain-stalks. For this reason, often paintings from that era show bundles of grain-stalks tied together by the fascia. This term expressed the strength of being united.  Image below has a painting from this exhibition, showing bundles of grain-stalks.

Evolution of Fascism in Italy

The ideas of "Revolutionary Fascism" were launched after the end of second world war by the 34 years old Benito Mussolini around 1917. Five years later, in 1922, the king of Italy appointed the 39 years old Mussolini as the prime minister.

In 1925, Giovanni Gentile, the philosopher and the ideologue of fascism, launched the Manifesto of Revolutionary Fascism at Palazzo Fava in Bologna (that building today hosts a medieval museum).

Initially, the fascist ideology developed as secular, but over the 1930s, Mussolini developed closer links with the Catholic church. During 1930s, Mussolini also became closer to Hitler and Nazism, and the racial segregation laws targeting the Jews were enacted in 1938.

In 1943, the arrival of British-American allied forces in south Italy led to German occupation of remaining Italy and the conclusion of the fascism. Partisans killed Giovanni Gentile in 1944 and Mussolini was lynched in April 1945.

With this introduction, now let me come to some examples of the exhibits.

Artworks in the Exhibition: Influence of Fascism on Art During 1920s and 1930s

Fascist ideals of women and children were expressed through creation of specific movements with their black costumes, songs and parades. For example, the children were organised in the Ballila groups for physical and moral education. Ceramic statues from 1930s from the ceramic factories of Nove-Bassano and the statues by Elena Konig, shown below, represent these.

Designs made by the artist Achille Funi during 1930s for making frescoes in official buildings also show the influence of fascism (image below). Funi is credited with the Novecento art movement during 1920s and for bringing back fresco mural-paintings into vogue.

Mario Sironi was another artist, part of the Novecento movement, who worked on fresco mural-paintings. The image below, shows his works "the horse-rider" from 1934, illustrating men and horses, another favourite theme of fascism.

Italian futurism art movement had started in early 20th century, before the first world war. During late 1920s and 1930s, a second futurism-art movement came around, which was heavily influenced by fascism. The two images below show some examples of this phase of futurism-art.

 

This was the biggest section of the exhibition.

Artworks in the Exhibition: Art About Benito Mussolini

Mussolini as the supreme leader of fascism, was often represented in paintings and sculpture. As an icon of fascism, these representations often showed him as fighter and warrior, with square jaws, frowning brows and a scowl or even injured in a fist fight. Below you can see some examples of these icons.

Artworks in the Exhibition: Art About the End of Fascism

In 1943, the arrival of allied forces in south Italy signalled the end of  fascism and artists could finally express themselves openly. For example, the 1943 painting by Mino Maccari shows the end awaiting Mussolini.

In 1945, at the end of the second world war, Benito Mussolini was lynched and angry mobs had brought down his statues and broken them. One such bust of Mussolini, which had been created by sculptor Adolf Wildt in 1923, and was broken with hammers by an angry mob in 1945, illustrates that time (image below).

India in the Exhibition

The fascism-art exhibition also had a 1942 painting by Italian artist Adalberto Libera titled "The Ataturk Monument in Ankara", shown in the image below. It has a column of fire in the middle and round walls all around with the Sanskrit words "Vande Matram" written in Roman alphabet.

Libera is known primarily as an architect. I don't think that the painting shows the Ataturk monument, rather it shows India's independence struggle against the British, which might have been seen positively by the fascist regime. I don't know if Libera had by mistake added the Sanskrit words to his Ataturk painting or if the exhibition organisers have mistaken the painting-title.

In Conclusion

This exhibition on art from the fascism era was curated by the well-known Italian art historian, critic and author Vittorio Sgarbi. He is known for his abusive and polemical TV-show persona and I don't like watching him, but I liked the way he has curated this exhibition.

At the end I am haunted by the broken statue of Mussolini. It reminded me of images of statues of Lenin and Saddam Hussein being brought down by mobs. In this sense, history keeps on repeating itself - sooner or later, the dictators and the strongmen become prisoners of their own images and are unable to confront the reality in time, to stop themselves from the final inevitable showdown.

Let me conclude this post with another image from this exhibition - a 1939 painting by Cesare Maggi titled "Listening to the Duce's radio broadcast".

I think that the above painting is about the declaration of Italy joining Germany in the war. Most persons in the painting look sombre and are dressed in black, the colour of the fascists. I am intrigued by the man in the red shirt standing in the centre, who has military medals pinned on his shirt. Was that red colour used by the artist to give a strong focal point in the painting or was it a sign towards the role played by Italian partisans in the war, who had fought against the Mussolini regime? The hill in the background seems like San Luca in Bologna, which had a large network of partisans.

May be Maggi, usually known as an artist close to the fascist regime, was actually trying to express his dissent through this painting?

Perhaps a similar argument can be made about some of the busts of Mussolini, which seem to caricature a strongman persona?

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