​The primary intention of my religious paintings is depicting God’s love for us, a love that can be emanated from Himself or, indirectly, from any creation of Him. God’s love is absolute, regardless of how we perceive it in our limitations. In my work "The Madonna and Her Children" I wanted to represent a realistic young holy Mary loving her Son and loving us as her children as well. I painted her physical features in accordance with the descriptions in Marian apparitions to different saints and lay people as well. Although the colors of skin hair, and eyes differ from one description to another, I noticed how much the “shapes” and other details are actually similar. All the descriptions report the Holy Mary as incredibly beautiful.

Marian apparitions are considered expressions of Mary’s ongoing motherly care for the Church and humanity. United to her Son, Mary is capable of a love that is difficult to imagine here on earth. Here is how St. Louis de Montfort describes her love in his book “True Devotions of Mary"; "she loves them tenderly, more tenderly than all the mothers in the world together. Take the maternal love of all the mothers of the world for their children. Pour all that love into the heart of one mother for an only child. That mother’s love would certainly be immense. Yet Mary’s love for each of her children has more tenderness than the love of that mother for her child."

But how does the Holy Mary love us? First of all, she understands and feels our sufferings more than any other human could, as her martyrdom was longer and greater than all of the martyrs (although hidden to people), according to St. Alphonsus Liguori. Secondly, she shows us the path to eternal life and helps us avoid dangerous pitfalls. So, as she lovingly holds her Son who sleeps confidently in her arms and transmits her the originary love, she invites us under her mantle for protection, direction, and true comfort. The rough background, as well as the raw fabric, suggests the human/earthly nature for our Mother. The twelve stars symbolize the 12 Apostles and the 12 Tribes of Israel. Moreover, the ample circle in which they are inscribed, hint at the divine embrace that accompanies and evokes the one of Mary for Jesus and for us.

​My painting depicting the "Pietà", which I put the finishing touches on last week, has a different backstory. However, there is a direct correlation to my previous work "The Madonna and her Children". As some of you may know, I’m open to requests regarding subjects of faith if they are deeply felt by relatives, friends or just about anybody. I'll then paint these requests according to my interpretation. When I asked my dearest friend Robyn a few months ago (before she passed away) whether she had a favorite religious topic, she reluctantly mentioned (she didn’t want to push me) that she would love for me to paint a "Pietas", a popular depiction of the Blessed Mother Mary holding the deceased Christ crucified. She stressed that she saw a deep connection to my previous paintings, i.e., my painting of the crucifixion "The Glance of Love" and "The Madonna and Her Children".

At first, I didn’t grasp the connection. Then, suddenly, it became clear. In this work, I used Robyn's reflection and I depict the Madonna still holding her Child, her crucified Son, with one hand, and with the other hand still reaching out to us her children as she is in my earlier painting. In my interpretation of this scene, this is not only an invitation for us to follow her Son but also the depiction of a loving mother as she offers her Son to us. Mary, a poor and lowly mother, offered the most important thing in her life, something more important to her than her own life, her only Son. She actively offers her Son to us in the midst of the deepest suffering she has ever experienced. The expression on her face is sorrowful yet loving at the same time. There is no greater love on earth than this act of sacrifice. This is my depiction of a divine love in Mary.  

A circa quattro ore da Chicago, Saint Louis si affaccia timida sul Mississippi sbirciando verso l'Illinois e protetta dal famoso arco di metallo che ne contraddistingue la skyline. Fondata da mercanti di pellicce francesi nel 1764, è ora una tranquilla città del Midwest con un’ottima reputazione nel campo dell'arte, dell'architettura, della musica blues, delle biotecnologie, della medicina e del baseball. I St. Louis Cardinals sono infatti tra le squadre più acclamate della Major League Baseball.

L'America meno conosciuta, poco turistica e vera: Saint Louis è uno stop ideale durante un on the road per trascorrere uno o due giorni tra architettura moderna, baseball ed eventi (non perdete il Blues at the Arch ogni venerdì di Agosto). Ecco allora le principali attrazioni da non lasciarsi durante una visita in città:

​La Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, completata nel 1914 e dedicata a Luigi IX di Francia, custodisce la più grande collezione di mosaici al mondo fuori dalla Russia. I mosaici, che coprono una superficie di quasi 8,000 metri quadri, sono composti da 41,5 milioni di tessere e da più di 7,000 colori.

Il seminterrato ospita delle cripte e un museo dedicato ai mosaici, mentre all’esterno sorge una statua in acciaio di 4 metri dedicata alla pace e alla giustizia tra le diverse razze. Papa Giovanni Paolo II visitò la cattedrale nel 1999 e a lui venne dedicata una targa con una sua frase, riportata appunto sulla statua.

È aperta dalle 7 alle 17, mentre le messe vengono celebrate alle 7, alle 8 e alle 12.

​Nelle vicinanze dalla cattedrale, il Forest Park copre più di 550 ettari utilizzati per musei, edifici, attrazioni e uno zoo, il famoso St Louis Zoo. Fate un giro in barca, scattate foto alle cascate e ad una delle costruzioni più antiche del parco, la Cabanne House, eretta nel 1876. Tra i musei vi segnalo il Missouri History Museum e il Saint Louis Art Museum.

​Saint Louis dista circa quattro ore e mezza da Chicago, lo scalo più importante del Midwest e sulla quale atterrano e partono voli diretti dall’Italia. Altre città vicine sono Indianapolis (390 km), Kansas City (400 km) e Nashville (500 km).

I due aeroporti di St. Louis sono invece il Saint Louis Lambert International Airport e il MidAmerica St. Louis Airport.

Si dà per scontato che visitiate una città come Saint Louis, poco turistica e piccola, con la macchina, quindi avrete bisogno di trovare un parcheggio per girarla. Personalmente vi consiglio di cercare un lotto chiuso perché alcuni dei posti vicino ai marciapiedi hanno un tempo massimo di sosta di due ore. Ad esempio, il QuikPark ha una tariffa oraria di 2$ ed è centralissimo. Da lì potete arrivare a piedi al Gateway Arch e al Busch Stadium in meno di 10 minuti.

In every Italian city, the day's rhythm begins at the café. But in Trieste, a city on Italy's north-east coast, that rhythm comes with a twist. Wander into any café here and, in addition to the familiar clinks of cups and hissing of steaming milk, you'll hear people ordering "capo in b": a mini cappuccino served in a glass that's a favourite of Triestini.

It's one of the many reasons why this city sandwiched between Slovenia and the Adriatic in the top ruffle of the boot is unlike anywhere else in Italy.

​"I thought I needed a PhD to order coffee when I first moved here!" said Maria Kochetkova, editor of In Trieste, an English-language magazine for the city's many expats. "Instead of a 'caffé' (espresso), you order a 'nero'; for a cappuccino you say 'caffelatte'." The list goes on. She and her husband, Francesco Stumpo, an Italian from Savona, happily translate Trieste's unique cafe code to help newcomers. As Kochetkova sees it, connecting with the coffee tradition in this city is one of the best ways to truly become a part of Trieste.

Cafes are a second living room for many Italians. After home, this is where social life often unfolds, as people from all generations gather with friends to share the latest gossip and pass the time. But in an already coffee-obsessed country, many people might be surprised to learn that this far-flung border city is commonly considered Italy's unofficial "Coffee Capital". Not only are the Triestini said to drink twice as much of the stuff per year as anywhere else in Italy – an eye-popping 10kg of coffee beans each annually – but it's also home to the Mediterranean's main coffee port and one of Italy's biggest coffee brands: Illy. 

"Coffee is definitely a thing here," said Alessandra Ressa, an English teacher who moved from San Francisco to Trieste 20 years ago. "Instead of just standing at the bar and drinking a quick coffee like in other Italian cities, here we sit down and take our time, we make appointments with each other for caffe. And you never see anyone walking with a to-go cup." 

Ressa added that even when she and other Triestini go caving in the limestone grottoes that surround the city, theybring along a specially designed heater, pot and cups, so they can take a break with a buon caffé (good coffee). "It's a special pleasure."

Coffee is thought to have first arrived in Italy in 1570 when physician Prospero Alpini brought coffee beans from Egypt to sell in Venetian pharmacies. Though the drink was immediately beloved, it aroused suspicion because of its unfamiliar buzzy effects and associations with Islam. Catholics called it "The Devil's drink" and rallied Pope Clement VIII to ban it. But after one sip, the Pope declared it was so good that it should not be exclusive to the "infidels". By the mid-17th Century, elegant cafes were established in Venice and Vienna, and coffee was revered as a luxurious drink, enjoyed by aristocrats and intellectuals. 

Trieste started to catch up with this coffee craze in 1719, when its port was declared tax-free under Austro-Hungarian rule. Trade began with coffee arriving from the Ottoman Empire, and Trieste was soon supplying beans to cafes throughout the Austro-Hungarian Empire – including Vienna's famous coffee houses. 

Giving the city a big boost was Maria Theresa, Head of the House of Habsburg, who goes down in history as the heroine who turned Trieste into a powerful port city. Bizarrely, she never actually set foot in Trieste, but since the Habsburg territories had gone into huge debt during her father's reign, she looked to the city as a money maker. To jumpstart its economy, in 1751 she shrewdly made Trieste open to all religions – a bold move, given that elsewhere, the Catholic Hapsburg family had deported Protestants, required dress codes for Jews and only allowed Catholics to attend universities. Workers and entrepreneurs soon arrived in Trieste from all over the Mediterranean to start companies and build up the shipping and coffee business.

Trieste remains a diverse and tolerant city today. It's home to one of the largest synagogues in Europe, a mosque; and its 19th-Century Serbian Orthodox Church, adorned with gold mosaics and spires, adds dazzle to the historical centre. Wander through the city's streets and you'll notice that the local Triestino dialect can sound more Austrian-German than Italian, with touches of Croatian and Greek.

​And the coffee business continues to thrive. In addition to Illy, founded in 1933, dozens of other smaller companies roast and blend the millions of bags of coffee beans that arrive from all over the world to Trieste's docks each year. "It's great to open the windows when you drive south," said Ressa. "The air from the warehouses is full of the smell of coffee!" 

Each October (hopefully returning in 2022), there's the Trieste Coffee Festival, when roasteries open for tastings, restaurants create dishes spiced with coffee and there's a "Capo in B" championship to name the city's best barista. 

Fortunately for visitors, some of the cafes built in the 1800s that were modelled after Vienna's elegant coffee houses can still be found in Trieste's historical centre. It's a great way to blend in with the Triestini, who casually linger amidst chandeliers and potted palms. These were places where James Joyce would hang out after moving to Trieste in 1904, where political rebels would hold meetings and where American soldiers danced with local signorine during the Allies' World War Two occupation. 

An outside table at Trieste's Caffè degli Specchi, from 1839, is an ideal spot to take in the city's Piazza Unità d'Italia. Locals claim this is the largest seafront square in the world. Arriving here is breathtaking, with one side open to the Adriatic and the rest flanked by a grand Neoclassical expanse of four-storey pale grey and ivory stone buildings. It's a harmonious vision of arches and balconies, with a gold-faced clock at its centre topped by bronze figures who clang it on the hour. As I watched customers slip in and out of the Specchi's red-leather banquettes, I could imagine a Belle Epoque scene of the past, when four cafes filled this square frequented by ladies twirling parasols and gentlemen in top hats.

​Beyond the piazza there's Caffè Tommaseo from 1830, a cosy series of pearly rooms adorned with sculpted angels and waiters in crisp jackets and red ties, and La Bomboniera from 1836, a jewel box of a pastry shop offering such Austrian goodies as Linzer and Sachertorte cakes. The duo are managed by the Peratoner chocolate company, and to welcome visitors they give out charming cards that translate Trieste's curious coffee language. 

Yet the favourite of every Triestino I met is Caffè San Marco, founded in 1914 and located just outside the historical centre. The scene inside is warm and retains its stunning original design, with bronze coffee leaves bordering its ceiling and an antique copper espresso machine. There's a bookstore on site and marble tables full of customers playing chess. Locals consider the owner, Alexandros Delithanassis, a city hero. A former book publisher, he took over the cafe in 2013 and saved it from demise. 

Delithanassis has turned the cafe's back room into a place for groups to meet and small concerts and book presentations to be held, giving the establishment a community centre vibe. On my last night in the city, I slipped into the back room and joined a gathering of expats who were from places like England, Finland, Egypt, Australia – even Naples. Inevitably, the conversation turned to coffee, and again and again, I heard something that didn't surprise me: since each of them had moved to Trieste, they had found they were drinking much more of it. 

Italians are masters in many noble fields and endeavors, including the sacrosanct art of drinking coffee. From the vocabulary associated with the beverage and the development of machinery to brew it to a wide variety of coffee blends and some of the world’s oldest cafés, Italy has left an indelible mark on how the world discusses, drinks, and enjoys this celebrated beverage. The enticing flavor of espresso is praised throughout the country and Italians have created an entire science around ordering, brewing and drinking it. Wherever you go in Italy, you can be 100% sure to find a church... and a bar serving coffee.

So, you may ask, what does this extravagant spiel on Italians and their love affair with coffee have to do with the new ownership of The Gelateria Coffee Company on South Grand Avenue in St Louis? Well, you see, the lovely new owners of this cozy café, Andrew and Amanda Fair, are deeply cognizant of authentic Italian coffee culture. Their passion for coffee is revealed through the careful roasting of their beans to the meticulous preparation and beautiful presentation of their cappuccinos and espressos. 

To all Italians in St. Louis - and to lovers of all things Italian - please consider making The Gelateria Coffee Company on Grand Avenue your next favorite place for your morning caffelatte, your after-dinner espresso, or an afternoon gelato with friends. Newly renovated, The Gelateria Coffee Company provides a comfortable yet refined atmosphere. For the few Triestini in St Louis, you'll certainly be surprised that they offer a "capo in b". For those unfamiliar with this Triestine custom, I've provided a video on how to make it. 

The Gelateria Coffee Company is located at 3197 South Grand Avenue, Saint Louis, Missouri 63118. Their hours of operation are Monday - Thursday 8 am - 8 pm and Friday - Sunday 8 am - 9 pm. If you're looking for authentic Italian gelato and coffee, Andrew and Amanda Fair have done a tremendous job of recreating a taste of the old world in our diverse St Louis community. 

The Italian Community of St Louis congratulates the new leaders of our local Comites, including CRISTINA GARIZIO-TINNIRELLO of Torino (Turin) in northwestern Italy, who obtained the most votes. Cristina lives in Chicago and works as an experienced and certified translator and interpreter from English and German into Italian. She graduated from the translation and interpretation program at the Scuola Superiore per Interpreti e Traduttori in Turin, Italy. She then specialized in business, legal and technical translations. In 2011, she obtained her M.A. in Didactics of Italian as a Second/Foreign Language from the Universita’ del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy, and then moved to the United States, where she trained and specialized in teaching her native language to young students (kindergarten through 12 grade) in the Chicago area. Cristina is involved in the promotion of Italian language and culture programs throughout Chicago and the Midwest.

Also elected to the the Comites was Dr. Michelangelo Giampaoli, a native of Perugia in the central Italian province of Umbria and a university professor at the University of Illinois. Renowned academic, Dr. Pietro Lorenzini, professor at Loyola University Chicago, was also elected as a representative. 

Notable losses from the Comites include the following individuals: Mr. Frank Galati of St Louis, Mr. Anthony Gandolfo of St Louis, Mr. Angelo Sita of St Louis, and Mr. Luigi Sciortino of Chicago. 

The Italian Community of St Louis congratulates those who have won the election and is eager to work with our new representatives in promoting authentic Italian culture and especially the Italian language in our region. Moreover, we are thrilled that there are so many newer and younger candidates who deeply understand the situation of Italians living abroad. We are confident that the new members of the Comites will represent Italian expats in the St Louis region and we are excited for this new chapter in our relation with the Consulate of Italy in Chicago. We also thank our Consul Thomas Botzios for his continued support.