Edith Wharton
publishes "Italian Villas and Their Gardens" in 1904. The work includes a discussion of the Villa Conti, now better known as the Villa Torlonia, which is actually a compound of villas in a garden setting that would serve for twenty years as home to Benito Mussolini.
The Ballroom in the Casino Nobile at the Villa Torlonia, where Mussollini entertained.
The Villa Torlonia complex was purchased by the Italian government in 1977 and is now open to the public after much restoration work. The paintings of the Jewish anti-fascist artist and writer Carlo Levi are currently on display there and worth a visit if only for the startling juxtaposition of exhibition and site.
As you may recall I was thinking the other day about Spiegel Grove, the residence of President Rutherford B. Hayes, and remarking to myself on the habit of preserving the homes of one's leaders. They can become, as the Villa Torlonia has to some extent become, the destination -- in the sense of a pilgrimage -- for those committed to the special beliefs or attitudes or symbolism of that leader. Of course I do not mean to suggest that Spiegel Grove is swarming with crowds hoping for a glimpse of the parlor where a Republican First Lady prohibited wine and spirits and served lemonade; but I suppose I am looking ahead (in the event there is a future) to a time when new sites are being selected for preservation. History has a way of attaching itself to the landscape; do we protect the architecture and the look of a given place, or do we let Nature and Time erase the collective memory? Let us not forget that Montecello and Mt. Vernon both fell into virtual ruin before being rescued by visionaries who recognized the potential value of ideological tourism, if not a Sentimental Journey.
On the other hand, I am told there was once a hostess in the enclave of Hyannis Port who had the windows of her dining room painted opaquely with a hypothetical landscape, the view of what one would see out those windows if the Kennedy Compound did not exist. 'Wishful thinking' you might term this approach, but I suppose there are homeowners in the Kennebunkport community who have considered it.
As for Crawford Ranch, I have a slightly more radical proposal which I would be happy to share with future developers; a relatively inexpensive plan which involves some earth-moving equipment and, afterward, salt.
The Ballroom in the Casino Nobile at the Villa Torlonia, where Mussollini entertained.
The Villa Torlonia complex was purchased by the Italian government in 1977 and is now open to the public after much restoration work. The paintings of the Jewish anti-fascist artist and writer Carlo Levi are currently on display there and worth a visit if only for the startling juxtaposition of exhibition and site.
As you may recall I was thinking the other day about Spiegel Grove, the residence of President Rutherford B. Hayes, and remarking to myself on the habit of preserving the homes of one's leaders. They can become, as the Villa Torlonia has to some extent become, the destination -- in the sense of a pilgrimage -- for those committed to the special beliefs or attitudes or symbolism of that leader. Of course I do not mean to suggest that Spiegel Grove is swarming with crowds hoping for a glimpse of the parlor where a Republican First Lady prohibited wine and spirits and served lemonade; but I suppose I am looking ahead (in the event there is a future) to a time when new sites are being selected for preservation. History has a way of attaching itself to the landscape; do we protect the architecture and the look of a given place, or do we let Nature and Time erase the collective memory? Let us not forget that Montecello and Mt. Vernon both fell into virtual ruin before being rescued by visionaries who recognized the potential value of ideological tourism, if not a Sentimental Journey.
On the other hand, I am told there was once a hostess in the enclave of Hyannis Port who had the windows of her dining room painted opaquely with a hypothetical landscape, the view of what one would see out those windows if the Kennedy Compound did not exist. 'Wishful thinking' you might term this approach, but I suppose there are homeowners in the Kennebunkport community who have considered it.
As for Crawford Ranch, I have a slightly more radical proposal which I would be happy to share with future developers; a relatively inexpensive plan which involves some earth-moving equipment and, afterward, salt.
George can have some of my salt if there's any left over after I'm through with Albany.
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