mariella radaelli

When legendary silent film star Rudolph Valentino died at age 31 on August 23, 1926 in New York City from a perforated ulcer, the announcement sparked scenes of mass hysteria. A hundred thousand mourners lined up the streets outside the funeral home, …

 The Maremma, south of Grosseto, comes to an arty end in Capalbio, a medieval citadel that graces even more Southern Tuscany. Its undulating hills and rosemary-scented scrubland run down to the Tyrrhenian Sea. Two lines of defensive walls encircle the scenic village: …

You can hike for miles in the mountainous Sila plateau through dark woods of pine trees dripping with lichen and moss. With the help of a local guide, you can watch for wolves, boars, and deer as you follow streams, …

Santo Versace enters the Milan cathedral in silence. It is July 22, 1997, the day of his brother’s funeral, the fashion guru Gianni Versace. The mass is at 6:00 p.m. “Donatella clings to my arm; the veil covers her gaze. …

Right at the top of the boot, an aristocratic frontier city lies on a narrow strip of land between the Adriatic Sea and Slovenia. Trieste‘s unique history as a hub for global cultural and commercial exchanges unveils a secret, haunted …

For decades Tessitura Luigi Bevilacqua has collaborated with iconic fashion designers, such as Valentino, Dior and Dolce & Gabbana. A venerable Venetian institution, the small family-run business inspired interior designers and decorators, including legendary Iris Apfel, who had furnished her New York …

Bulgari‘s high jewelry collections are magnificent pieces of cultural significance. For 137 years, the Rome-based luxury house as the master of colored gemstones, diamonds, and details has created an instantly recognizable aesthetic that brought sparkle to la dolce vita, Hollywood …

At age 9, Silvio Falato, now a retired professor of classics from Guardia Sanframondi, wrote an essay on his village that sounds like a love letter. The intro says: “There, it clings to the ruins of an ancient castle almost …

Montalto Uffugo is an ancient town in eastern Calabria that offers a gratifying choice for travelers looking for a lesser-known destination with abiding cultural clout in the region.  Its historic center sits on five hills facing the Tyrrhenian Sea, while downstream …

Antonio Marras does not define himself as a fashion designer. “I don’t walk around with that concept of myself because it is a restrictive and reductive definition. I cannot stand it,” he says from his home in Alghero, Sardinia, facing the …