Valentina Zucchi – författare

Many people crave a creative outlet, but more often than not, don't know where to start. In Blue, Valentina Zucchi and Viola Niccolai invite you to nurture your creativity and build your confidence by taking inspiration from modern works of art that celebrate blue, perhaps the best-loved colour of all.Discover the most important blues, ones that the all-time greatest painters have used in order to paint velvet, mountains, Madonnas, angels, skies and storms. Throughout the book, Valentina and Viola provide creative and fun prompts – many based on famous works of art – which will encourage you to draw or paint on the pages using various techniques. Packed with inspiration from the world's most celebrated artists, including the ancient Egyptians, John Constable, Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh, Yves Klein and more, you will discover the many meanings of blue and just some of the innumerable stories that bring it to life.Blue is a short course in unlocking your creative self – perfect for budding artists of all ages who are keen to try out different artistic techniques and materials, and begin their artistic journey.

Many people crave a creative outlet, but more often than not, don't know where to start. In Red, Valentina Zucchi and Paolo d'Altan invite you to nurture your creativity and build your confidence by taking inspiration from modern works of art that celebrate the prince of colours, red.Discover the reds best-loved by artists – from Tyrian purple to crimson red – which have been used since prehistoric times to conjure up many things, from fire and danger to blood, love and passion. Throughout the book, Valentina and Paolo provide creative and fun prompts – many based on famous works of art – which will encourage you to draw or paint on the pages using various techniques. Packed with inspiration from the world's most celebrated artists, including Leonardo da Vinci, Rothko, Titian, Matisse and more, you will discover the many meanings of red and just some of the ways it can be used to express your creative passion.Red is a short course in unlocking your creative self – perfect for budding artists of all ages who are keen to try out different artistic techniques and materials and begin their artistic journey.

Many people crave a creative outlet, but more often than not, don't know where to start. In White, Valentina Zucchi and Francesca Zoboli invite you to nurture your creativity and build your confidence by taking inspiration from works of art that celebrate the silent and tidy colour of white.White could be considered a non-colour, since it often suggests an absence of something. In fact, the reverse is true: white contains everything, even all the other colours. It has many shades, from chalk to snow white, and is found everywhere, from clouds to wedding dresses. Throughout the book, Valentina and Francesca provide creative and fun prompts – many based on famous works of art – which will encourage you to draw or paint on the pages using various techniques. Packed with inspiration from the world's most celebrated artists, including Paul Klee, Michelangelo, Claude Monet and more, you will discover the many shades of white and just some of the ways it can be used to convey meaning.White is a short course in unlocking your creative self – perfect for budding artists of all ages who are keen to try out different techniques and materials and begin their artistic journey.

Many people crave a creative outlet, but more often than not, don't know where to start. In Black, Valentina Zucchi and Francesca Zoboli invite you to nurture your creativity and build your confidence by taking inspiration from works of art that celebrate the most enigmatic colour of all, black.Black is a special colour: rich, glossy and elegant on the one hand; strict, sensible and solemn on the other. Throughout the book, Valentina and Francesca provide creative and fun prompts – many based on famous works of art – which will encourage you to draw or paint on the pages using various techniques. Packed with inspiration from the world's most celebrated artists, including Francisco Goya, Jackson Pollock, Rembrandt and more, you will discover the many meanings of black and just some of the ways it can be used to express your creative passion.Black is a short course in unlocking your creative self – perfect for budding artists of all ages who are keen to try out different techniques and materials and begin their artistic journey.

Many people crave a creative outlet, but more often than not, don't know where to start. In Green, Valentina Zucchi and Angela Leon invite you to nurture your creativity and build your confidence by taking inspiration from works of art that celebrate green – the colour of fertility, abundance and life.Green imparts energy, relaxes, refreshes, cleanses and heals. It is ultimately a colour that belongs to nature and has always been loved by artists. Throughout the book, Valentina and Angela provide creative and fun prompts – many based on famous works of art – which will encourage you to draw or paint on the pages using various techniques. Packed with inspiration from the world's most celebrated artists, including Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, Georges Seurat and more, you will discover the many meanings of green and just some of the ways it can be used to express your creative passion.Green is a short course in unlocking your creative self – perfect for budding artists of all ages who are keen to try out different techniques and materials and begin their artistic journey.

Many people crave a creative outlet, but more often than not, don't know where to start. In Yellow, Valentina Zucchi and Sylvie Bello invite you to nurture your creativity and build your confidence by taking inspiration from modern works of art that celebrate yellow, the most cheerful and inviting of colours.Explore some of the many different yellows that artists have used over the years to give substance to the beauty of light, from precious gold to butterscotch and cadmium yellow. Throughout the book, Valentina and Sylvie provide creative and fun prompts – many based on famous works of art – which will encourage you to draw or paint on the pages using various techniques. Packed with inspiration from the world's most celebrated artists, including Olafur Eliassoni, Vincent van Gogh, JMW Turner and more, you will discover the many shades of yellow and just some of the ways it can be used to convey meaning.Yellow is a short course in unlocking your creative self – perfect for budding artists of all ages who are keen to try out different techniques and materials and begin their artistic journey.

Palazzo Vecchio, which towers over piazza della Signoria, at the centre of Florence, is an iconic building and from the Middle Ages to the Medici family to present day it has been the seat of civic power.Among its most admired features are the marvellous grotesque decorations which animate the walls and vaults of the courtyard and several rooms. Grotesques are a type of wall decoration, in stucco or fresco, often with the addition of gold, that developed in the Renaissance when the vaults of the Domus Aurea in Rome, which were underground (considered grottos hence the name), were rediscovered by artists who drew inspiration from those designs.Palazzo Vecchio’s grotesques are lively, extravagant ornaments, generated by the creativity of artists - among whom Ridolfo del Ghirlandaio (1483-1561) and Marco Marchetti da Faenza (ca. 1526-1588) stand out - and they include, birds, flowers, vegetation and many strange creatures that have a mixture of human and animal traits.

This book provides an insight into the history and beauty of Palazzo Medici Riccardi, one of the most important palaces in Florence. Through its pages it is possible to delve into the events that led to the birth of the building commissioned by Cosimo de' Medici and designed by Michelozzo. The text is therefore a fascinating journey through settings, characters and historical periods, offering useful elements for understanding the history of a palace that is still a legend and for appreciating its famous masterpieces. These include the marvellous Chapel of the Magi, skilfully frescoed by Benozzo and the Galleria degli Specchi from the Riccardi period, with a vault painted by Luca Giordano. The book accompanies the reader in the discovery of all the marvels of the palace, beginning with the façade and the exterior elevations, continuing with the refined courtyard, the garden, the archaeological itinerary in the basement. Then climbing the monumental staircase to reach the "piano nobile" with the Chapel of the Magi, the Charles VIII Room and the other rooms up to the splendid Hall of Bas-reliefs and the Riccardi Gallery.