Tuscany

When their previous book, Provence, was published, reviewers marveled that the photographs looked like paintings. Equally memorable are the splendid photographs in Tuscany, which exquisitely capture the light, colors, and textures of Italy’s most romantic and inspiring region. For three decades Sonja Bullaty and Angelo Lomeo have been drawn to Tuscany and its surrounding areas endeavoring to photograph the special light, the sculpted countryside, the heralded cities and hilltowns, and the celebrated art and architecture. Their photographic themes include timeless views of ocher landscapes where farmers arrange their haystacks like artists; castles overlooking acres of irises and vineyards; shadowy cypress trees defining the land; explosions of color in springtime; incandescent views of Florence, Siena, and Pisa; faces on sculptures; faded frescoes in silent cloisters and other details of art and architecture; humorous vignettes of the daily round; and sparkling Mediterranean seascapes. This photographic album of Tuscany is truly unlike any other. In her fascinating text, Marie-Ange Guillaume provides a verbal portrait of the scores of artists and writers, as well as infamous people, who lived or worked in Tuscany, including Michelangelo, Leonardo, Stendhal, Savonarola, the Brownings, Henry James, Modigliani, Fellini, and James Ivory. The anecdotal text, liberally flavored with quotes from the letters and diaries of these well known individuals, provides insights about Tuscany today and in centuries past.