Art & Italy: A Marriage Made In Heaven (or Florence)

with Martha Chapman

It’s no secret that Italy is a top European destination for Canadians. We can’t get enough of that wonderful food, wine, scenery and attitude to life. Plus the centuries of art, much of which can be found in Florence.

Or in Toronto. That’s because until June 16th, the Art Gallery of Ontario is hosting an exhibition called Revealing the Early Renaissance featuring over 90 treasures of 14th century Florentine art, many of which have never before left Italy - which made it a perfect setting for a recent private event hosted by CTCPI (the Canadian Travel Council Promoting Italy).

Comprised of various tour operators (Arts & Leisure Tours, Contiki, Globus family of brands, Insight, KompasExpress, Sunquest/Alba & Trafalgar) as well as Rail Europe and the Italian Government Tourist Board, CTCPI strives, as Vittorio LoTauro put it, “To promote Italy - because it is our passion.” Collectively, he informed the audience of some 130 travel agents, CTCPI members are the largest producers of travel to Italy and 1 stop shopping for agents.

The Gallery’s Sasha Suda gave the group a wonderfully personalized backgrounder on the pieces in the collection, which took 10 years to organize and features works from 45 institutions and private lenders. And to bring agents up to date on today’s Italy, Director, North America for the tourist office Eugenio Magnani (“When I tell people what I do for a living they say ‘That’s a job?’“) gave an overview of Italy described by one audience member as breathtaking.

Armed with their new insights, the audience then strolled through the exhibit and nibbled on Italian treats such as Italian cheeses and antipasta (and sipped, naturalmente, Chianti ). The fact that the Gallery was closed to the public at that time made it even more special! A lovely evening, soft-sell and welcoming - and no doubt a great reflection on Italy.