Good Morning
- At July 30, 2013
- By Zia Lucy
- In Paths, Senza categoria
- 0
doing a walk
on the Path of the Gods
in the early morning is priceless!
Artists: meeting Ferdinando and his family
- At July 08, 2013
- By Zia Lucy
- In Positano Art, Senza categoria
- 0
The first impression on entering his shop has been of a man who never wastes time: as soon as he saw me, Ferdinando showed his latest creations, a new line of menu holders, cutting boards and hang bags… if I had a restaurant, I would have bought it all!
Ferdinando is one of the few masters who survived the “IKEA AGE”. He learned the “art” from his father Crescenzo, artisan who instead of studying used to escape from school to the small family factory to help his father Ferdinando, and so on for about five generations that started from the master Giuseppe Parlato, who lived in the Nineteenth century. According to a research made by the same Ferdinando there are some traces of family members dedicated to woodworking since the Middle Ages.
Ferdinando’s curriculum vitae recalls the stories of those guys who, centuries ago, learned the craft in the workshops of master craftsmen: when he was 10, in fact, Ferdinando appeared in the shop to help his father Crescenzo, and then moved to Florence where he learned techniques of restoration,coating and gliding of wood. Back in Positano, he decided to break away from the family and begin a production of restoration and style decor with his wife Berenice: he took care of the practical side, she cared the aesthetic and commercial activities. Subsequently, Berenice separated from the wood craft to carry out another of her passions, the production of ceramics, while Ferdinando, who graduated in Interior Designer, developed projects for many shops on the Amalfi Coast.
Among the successes of Ferdinando we can highlight: the restoration of the vestry in Sant’Andrea delle Fratte in Rome in 2005 and the papal chair located in the diocese of Pompeii in 2008.
Another passion of Ferdinando is pyrography (a technique of engraving on wood by means of a heat source): “as a child,” he says, “I went to the beach with a magnifying glass to affect branches of wood found on the sand”. In addition, among its many resources, should be mentioned rehabilitation projects, exhibitions in Festival of Crafts and pyrography courses for those who want to dabble in this particular technique (worth a try).
In the family, however, Ferdinando and Berenice are not the only artists. Crescenzo and Giovanna, their children have followed the parents’ footsteps by adopting and adapting to new modern needs.
Crescenzo creates wood sunglasses while Giovanna works with her aunt Marina and Berenice in the ceramics workshop.
Well … a family of “full time” artists.
You can find Ferdinando here:
www.bottegadirestauro.com
My Path of The Gods walk
- At July 05, 2013
- By Zia Lucy
- In Paths, Senza categoria
- 0
As a local guide on the Path of Gods (Sentiero degli Dèi) I can tell everyone that it’s a beautiful walk along the Amalfi Coast.
Every day the path seems different and guiding customers from all over the world makes me happy and relaxed. I meet lots of people and they all love what I tell them about the land I live in.
For me the Path of Gods is beautiful at every time and it’s not only about nature and beautiful views: there’s lots of history about this magic land and sometimes the walk looks like a gothic novel, fog and goats all over but when fog goes away, the sun shines and you have a great view of the coast till Capri Island.
Lots of writers fell in love with this walk, one of those was D.H. Lawrence, “Is this the view” he wrote “that from on high along the Path of the Gods, opens to our sight: it is the picture of the great loop of the Amalfi coastline that looks towards the west, towards the Island of Capri, that precipitous coast, steamy, hot, with the crystalline mountains where the gods of today are forsaken and you find a lost self again. Mediterranean, before you”.
No better words could describe the walk along the Path of Gods and every time I show my customers the beauty of this walk, I feel lucky to live here.. where the sky ends into the sea and your eyes can’t capture the difference.
I always suggest my customers to start from Bomerano. Most of the times the bus to go to Bomerano is crowded and hot, the drivers goes fast and you feel you’re dying at every turn, but after experiencing the Amalfi Coast lifestyle (we catch the bus every day since young) you can breathe and relax for a while before starting the walk.
I always have my camera into my backpack and I always take thousands of beautiful pictures that sometimes I download on facebook or pinterest.
The Path of Gods is an easy walk for those who generally hike and do sports but if you don’t move and never hike it could be strenuous because there are rocky steps, so don’t think the walk is flat and comfortable as in Central Park…it’s a mountain path and it goes up and down for 7km.
A good pair of hiking or running shoes is required otherwise you can slip or you can hurt your ankles and knees. Water is another “Must to bring” because if you don’t drink you can feel very bad.
I do the walk on the Path of Gods many times, so if you need a guide do not hesitate to write me a mail: [email protected]
Recent Comments