At the age of 24, Dürer thought he had found BEAUTY at the Venetian Piazza of San Marco’s Cathedral shown below. This tainted his impression of his home city Nuremburg which he felt only called him to DUTY.  Upon hiking back to Nuremberg over the Alps, he felt distressed about what he left behind but eager to pursue his artwork again in Nuremburg.   This is a historic fiction novel leaving you to wonder how it will all turn out for this conflicted man with whom many of us can identify.

Albrecht Dürer traveled over the Alps on foot and horseback two times to go to Venice to study art and later to find a man who was forging his art as well as to look for what he was missing in Nuremberg.  The trip was 440 miles one way from Nuremberg to Venice. Can you imagine hiking and riding a horse that distance over the Alps?  These are pictures from my trip to the Alps in the spring.  I envision the path in the top picture being like one that Dürer followed.

when I visited Nuremberg, I found plenty of good food and drink as well as interesting architecture and even a castle in the city.  In addition,  there was also a great artist in the years around 1500 who was the first to sell copies of his work to thousands of people.

at the Lombard Library (otherwise known as the Helen Plum Library) on Sunday, September 14th at 2:00PM.
Library address: 110 W. Maple Lombard, Il.
phone: 630-627-0316
Whoever answers the most questions correctly about Siena wins a free book!

You will learn more about the book  and all of the intriguing aspects of life, traditions, art and fun in Siena, Italy.

It is about an artist who created an altarpiece in 1311. The artist—Duccio—was regarded as Siena’s very best painter at that time. Siena was at the apex of its power and artistic achievement. In the book, Duccio gets into trouble, though. Two powerful men want to sabotage his work and his reputation, and they use the fact that he has a secret female apprentice as their way to destroy Duccio.

read Duccio and the Maestà within three days and said she loved it because of its suspenseful plot?  And, by the way, she discussed all of the interesting things she learned about fourteenth century Siena.

altarpiece by some in 1311, although most people loved it and greeted it with a large parade on its way to the Siena Cathedral.

in their traditions?  They may be lawyers, bankers, hair dressers, etc. and look very modern, but they still have a great deal of loyalty and social activities to do with their contrada or neighborhood. Read my book, and you will find out why.  Then, if you visit Siena, you will know how to spot the signs of the secret and wonderful Siena