Finally !!!!!!!

When we came home from Italy in June 2013, due to my impatience, we began to put together a show on the 55th Venice Biennale. That process continued until Friday morning, Jan 17, 2014. I usually change shows a lot between the conception and the broadcast, but this was the world's record. I decided not to do the show several times, and even the past week came to the conclusion that this would be too difficult. The Palazzo Bembo Shows at least had videos in which the artists themselves explained their work. In other shows related to art, I have along side me either Ric, Franc, or Eve. This time I would be on my own, and frankly, although somewhat schooled in the Italian Renaissance, I would have trouble doing a show on the 15th century Italian Art I have seen and studied for twenty years. Although Laura refused to appear with me or even be on the phone during the broadcast, she did spend countless hours with me helping to put together the show, explaining the art, teaching me about what I would be showing, and encouraging me to go through with it. I was rearranging, adding, and subtracting up to 3 PM on Friday, and went into the studio very nervous for the first time in a very long time.

It began with Ellen telling me of a house catastrophe, so I was upset about that at the get go. I looked over my notes which were "voluminous" in comparison to what I usually have. Sometimes I do a show without any notes at all. We began and the show went fairly smoothly although, because I did not have my reading glasses with me, I had a hard time reading. Nonetheless, I did it and it was now over once and for all. In the future I would have a hard time trying to figure out if I should do an art analysis show of any kind, but for now that is it. Now I can turn my attention to other projects and prepare for my renewal of my college teaching which begins on January 28.

Upcoming I will do as my next show on Jan 31 the Nighttime Magic Show about which I was quite excited, and Laura has shown no excitement. I am, however, very excited about simply showing stunning photos of amazing places without much commentary. That will be a welcome change. I can simply talk about the places pictured, and why they presented a nighttime or evening or morning sunrise view that captured my imagination. That is really my favorite thing to do. Then Ric has promised a two-part history of Florence during the 13th - 16th centuries. Otherwise I still have three Then and Now Shows, one on Florence (Part 2), one on Tuscany, and the last on all of Italy. That will be fabulous, because the Florence, Then and Now, Part 1 show that I did during the first year of production is still one of my favorites. After that I have a variety of decisions to make before we head to Italy for new material. I have one on Shopping in Florence that I think will be quite good, as there are many ways to shop in Florence ranging from markets to expensive upscale boutiques, and I pretty much know of them all, or most at least. Then I was thinking about a show on the Streets of Florence focussing on the famous and not so famous. Oh yes, Ric has also indicated a desire to do one on Carsulae, the very obscure but amazing long abandoned Ancient Roman Town which only has nondescript ruins. He knows a lot about that town and can pin point where everything in the town was.

So that's where we now are. I have a website for my college students which you may find interesting, www.profgreenhalgh.com. Have a look but it is very esoteric.