Quaderno fiorentino

The curator at Cultura Fonds just got back from a short off duty experience. We mention this for some entertaining ties to the book world.

First, our guidebook was Quaderno fiorentino, with reminiscences about Florence, Italian art mainly of the Rinascimento, as well as interviews with Italian literary figures in a bleak postwar period, written by Luc Indestege in 1951 (In Dutch, published at Davidsfonds). Despite its antiquarian state, the book effuses lively writing, pared to reliable guidelines, still today, to the art of this city.

Luc Indestege (1901-1974) counts as a Belgian specialist on bookbindings, with many studies tied to his name, e.g. on an archive of rubbings of Flemish panel bookbindings by Prosper Verheyden. Indestege is also the father of Belgian book historian Elly Cockx-Indestege, former Head of the Rare Books Department at Belgium's National Library.

The retirement of Elly Cockx-Indestege was marked with a study in three volumes, by Hendrickx F. et al., editors, E Codicibus Impressisque. Opstellen over het boek in de Lage Landen voor Elly Cockx-Indestege (Leuven, Peeters, 2004). Miscellanea Neerlandica series, 20 (ISBN 978-90-429/-1423-0, /1422-3, 1421-6). In 1951, Elly Indestege had just embarked on reading history.
Secondly, we visited the Bibliotheca Medicea Laurenziana. Luc Indestege documents his visit in 1951. But this is how the Laurenziana discloses itself as of 2007: by thematic forays into the holdings, in the shape of small, permanent exhibitions, accompanied by booklets -not exceeding one hundred pages, with color illustration, published by Mandragora, in Italian or in English, sold at 14 Euros.

We mention by way of example the three English titles so far:
Imaginary Creatures. 2007 (ISBN 978-88-7461-098-3).
The World of the Aztecs in the Florentine Codex. 2007 (ISBN 978-88-7461-102-7).
The Shape of the Book from Roll to Codex (3rd century BC-19th century AD). 2008 (ISBN 978-88-7461-116-4).
The Laurentian building, splendid design by Michelangelo, reopened April 1, 2007, after a long period of being closed to the public. Its research facilities were never in cessation. Therefore, the thematic exhibits seem to serve mainly as a permanent reminder of the function this magnificent architecture once had.

PS: The execution of the glass windows, with references to the de Medici benefactors, some dated 1568, is attributed to an Antwerp artist.