citylikeyou — La Specola — Florence by Cathrine Raben Davidsen

La Specola is one of my favourite museums I have ever visited. The museum is a branch of the Natural History Museum of the University of Florence and is one of the oldest science museums in Europe, built in 1775 with the aim of gathering the natural treasures collected by different generations of the Medici family, such as fossils, animals, minerals and exotic plants. You really have to go. The displays are stunning and odd, also the Zoological Collection is full of specimens and old taxidermy pieces. On top of that there is also a quite “scary” collection of about 1,400 pieces of anatomical waxworks (made between the end of the 18th century and the beginning of the 19th century).

Website
msn.unifi.it

Address
La Specola, 17 Via Romana, Florence, Italy

Artist Painter Visual Artist

Current city: Copenhagen

Other cities: London Helsinki Tokyo Florence

cathrinerabendavidsen.com

CATHRINE RABEN DAVIDSEN Historical accounts, works of fiction and mythological material combined with personal memory often form the point of departure for the work of Danish artist Cathrine Raben Davidsen. Her activities are characterized by a strong fascination with the material and the urge constantly to experiment with and explore different artistic techniques. From early on she has also drawn inspiration from the history of art and from a variety of textual references associated with Western and Eastern mythology and literature. The traditional hierarchies among art, artist-craftsmanship and design are negated in an artistic oeuvre that ranges wide from painting, drawing and ceramics to costumes and stage design. Cathrine Raben Davidsen (b. 1972) has exhibited widely in Denmark and abroad and is represented in several national and international art collections. Public collections include: SMK, The National Gallery of Denmark, Trapholt Museum of Modern Art, Applied Art, Design and Architecture, Horsens Art Museum and The New Carlsberg Foundation among others. She has created costumes and set design for The Royal Danish Ballet and has received numerous prestigious awards, grants and scholarships. She is educated in Italy, The Netherlands and in Denmark at The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. She lives and works in Copenhagen.

More Places in Florence 19

Florence / Restaurant

Raw food when you are tired of Italian Food.

Florence / Restaurant

Best pasta and food in town! In a very cute setup

Florence / Market

The market here is held every morning (excluding holidays) from 7:00 to 14:00, from Monday to saturday. It's where I shop weekly. It is partly outdoors, with stands of clothing, fruit and vegetables and food, and partly indoors, in the building built in 1873 by Giuseppe Mengoni. Inside the building you can find stalls of food, meat and fish, a couple of bakeries. While all the stalls inside are always the same- the ones on the outside (apart for the ones selling fruits and vegetables) tends to change everyday. Depending on the day you can find vintage clothing, shoes, vintage bags, military clothing, a florist, a stall that sells fabrics, an underwear stall and so on. The prices here are way much cheaper than the San Lorenzo market (the one close to the station) and the quality of the food is better. If you're planning to stay in Florence for a while, grab a tote and do your grocery shopping here.

Florence / Market

This is the oldest market in Florence, it takes place in Piazza Santo Spirito the 3rd sunday of the month (except for August and December) from 8am to sundown (which can be from 4 pm to 7pm depending on the season). All the people that sells in this market are local farmers from Tuscany and the products on display are all made using natural or ancient methods without the use of synthetic products. The products admitted to Fierucola are characterized by their simplicity & originality, inspired by agricultural and artisan traditions, especially those who are disappearing. Everything is produced in small scale, following the seasons. You can find a vast array of things here, from spices, vegetables and fruit, cheese, bread, vegan products, jam and preserves, hand made shoes, dried flowers, wire and straw basket, plants and textiles, flours, fermented beverages, miso, jewelry, pottery and wooden toys for kids. If you don't like this kind of shopping, this event still deserves a visit if you like to do people-watching. This is the place where you'll find most of the florentine people on sunday morning.

Florence / Park

This secret garden, positioned behind San Miniato al Monte, just a few steps away from one of the most beautiful look out points Florence has to offer, Piazzale Michaelangelo. Here is a quaint whimsical hideaway. Coming from my small town roots, completely surrounded by nature; finding this miniature grove was a gold mine. Here, you will find trees, things I immensely love and miss; this slice of nature here gives me a refreshing taste of purity and comfort.