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Since 1900, the greatest Tuscan artists used to
come to Versilia for their holidays
wishing to enjoy its beaches, the
coolness of its pinewoods and the sea breeze. Ideal place to be
regenerated and find the right inspirations for new works of art. There
are in fact several architectural works, rich in spires, domes and small
towers, decorated with flowery subjects typical of that period.
With the arrival of squires and borgeoises who were fleeing from the
hot cities of Florence, Lucca,
Siena,… the bathing establishments in the typically Libery style were
"born" in Viareggio and
all this worldly pleasure contributed to augment the value of artists who
availed of the local manpower/craftsmen to accomplish their works of art.
The Grand Caffè Margherita, the "Balena" Bathing
Establishment, the Caffè Concerto Eden and various palaces are all
decorated with enamels, lacquers and ceramics typical of the Twenties and
Thirties.
Galileo Chini, the
painter, having worked in Bangkok and having founded the society
"Arte della Ceramica" (Ceramics Art), gave his contribution
adding an "oriental" touch to lounges and walls of the luxurious
Palaces in Viareggio. Some of those building have today been turned into
expensive hotels and still managed to keep intact many of those works of
art. Among those, the holiday Home of Galileo Chini, in Lido di Camaiore,
which still maintains originally hanging paintings and frescoes in a
gallery-museum, dedicated to the painter.
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