Friends in the News

Special contents, videos and news from the Uffizi Galleries
August 2023
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How a director turned the fusty Uffizi into a gallery for the 21st century
April 6, 2022
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The Uffizi in Florence has become the most-visited cultural site in Italy for the first time.
April 4, 2022
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The Insider: Reception highlights Palm Beach gathering for supporters of Florentine museum
March 9, 2022
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“Il Conte Ugolino” donated to the Uffizi
December, 2021
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Valois Tapestries restoration: mission accomplished
October 25, 2021
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20 best museums and galleries in the world
October 21, 2021
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Uffizi finally reopens its doors to the public
June 28, 2021
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Medici Chapels’ Michelangelo Statues Cleaned
June 2, 2021
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Two Long-Lost Renaissance-Era Frescoes
April 2021
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Major Dante Exhibition in Forlì in 2021
March 2021
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Eike Schmidt – Dante fresco by Andrea del Castagno
February 2021
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Boca Raton Museum of Art
January 2021
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I’m Not Your Boring Newspaper
July 2016
Florentine Inspiration With the Miami Flair:
The Restoring, Funding and Teaching of the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery
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Palm Beach Illustrated
July 2016
Art Restart
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Conde Contemporary Art Gallery Reception
June 25, 2016
Miracle Mile Coral Gables, Florida
Event Chairs: Stacy & Andres’ Conde
Program: Laney Lewis, The Fine Arts Conservancy
The Valois Tapestries
Please click here to download the press release

South Florida Opulence Magazine
May 25, 2016
Restoration of Catherine de Medici’s Priceless Valois Tapestries
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Sun Sentinel
Monday, April 25, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery Reception
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Dallas Morning News
Monday, April 18, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery’s Restoration of 16th Century Valois Tapestries Announced at Christie’s
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Star Tribune
Monday, April 18, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery’s Restoration of 16th Century Valois Tapestries Announced at Christie’s
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Wall Street Journal Market Watch
Monday, April 18, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery’s Restoration of 16th Century Valois Tapestries Announced at Christie’s
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AZ Central
Monday, April 18, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery’s Restoration of 16th Century Valois Tapestries Announced at Christie’s
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Yahoo Finance
Monday, April 18, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery’s Restoration of 16th Century Valois Tapestries Announced at Christie’s
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Palm Beach Post
Thursday, February 11, 2016
3 To See Cultural Calendar
Franco Corso Performs As Part of the 2016 Friends of the Uffizi Gallery Brunch
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Palm Beach Gardens & Jupiter Florida Weekly
Week of February 11-17, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Plan Annual Brunch
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Palm Beach Daily News
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Friends of the Uffizi Gallery President Speaks at Palm Beach Reception
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Sun Sentinel Society Scene
Thursday, February 18, 2016
Sydell Miller Hosts Cocktail Reception for Friends of the Uffizi Gallery
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The Spirit Of Capri In Palm Beach
February 26, 2015
Palm Beach
Host: The Siegel Family & Hamilton Jewelers
Program: Italian Week on Worth Avenue: Cocktail Reception presenting the Chantecler Jewelry Collection
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Palm Beach/Miami Social Diary
New York Social Diary
February 19, 2014
“During the Palm Beach Jewelry, Art, and Antique Show, the Friends of Uffizi invited art historian and art dealer Robert Simon to illuminate their more than 125 guests on his fascinating research on rediscovering DaVinci’s “Salvator Mundi.”

Sculpture Gets a Helping Hand
Palm Beach ArtsPaper
October 20, 2013
“Veronica Atkins, widow of the Atkins Diet inventor, has made a $25,000 gift to the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery to restore the Apollo With Lyre sculpture that belongs to the collection of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy.”

Moderni Mecenati al Servizio di Firenze
Il Sole 24 Ore
Agosto, 2013
“Dopo l’attentato all’Accademia dei Georgofili c’e stato un boom di partecipazione di privati all’associazione che sostiene il museo; 8mila iscritti, 112 restauri, una filiale in Florida.”

20th Anniversary of Uffizi Bombing, and “Amici degli Uffizi”
Secret History of Art on ArtInfo
June 19, 2013
“Under the leadership of Lisa Marie Browne, executive director since the organization’s founding, Friends of the Uffizi Gallery has grown outside of Florida, with events held in New York at Sotheby’s and in Nantucket, Cleveland and the Hamptons. ”

A Look Back as the Amici degli Uffizi Celebrate Their 20th Anniversary
Italian Tribune
June 6, 2013
“In 2006, a sister nonprofit, Friends of the Uffizi Gallery, was created in Palm Beach, Florida. The Amici and Friends now work to jointly and singularly fund significant restoration and educational projects, such as the Uffizi’s new Michelangelo Room…”

President of support group visits gallery
Palm Beach Daily News
March 6, 2013
“The reception took place Feb. 4 at the Wally Findlay Gallery and honored Contessa Maria Vittoria Rimbotti, president of the Amici degli Uffizi in Florence and its American counterpart, the American Friends of the Uffizi Gallery.”

A Photoessay on Palm Beach Jewelry, Art & Antique Show
MUSEUMVIEWS blog on ArtInfo
February 22, 2013
“Daniela di Lorenzo, Friends of the Uffizi Gallery at the Palm Beach Jewelry, Art and Antique Show 2013 – Frank J Cunningham for MUSEUMVIEWS.”

Friends of the Uffizi Gallery fund new Michelangelo Room
ArtDaily
February 15, 2013
“The Palm Beach-based nonprofit, Friends of the Uffizi Gallery, along with their sister organization in Italy, Amici degli Uffizi, have fully funded the new Michelangelo Room on the second floor of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy. The project included re-construction of the room, as well as the re-installation of a significant work by Michelangelo, “Tondo Doni,” and works by his contemporaries, as well as a sculpture that inspired him…”

A red (new) home for Michelangelo
Tuscany Arts
January 30, 2013
“The bright red walls of the room also host art works by other painters of the same period – Fra Bartolomeo, Mariotto Albertinelli, Andrea del Sarto, Franciabigio – while the monumental marble statue of Arianna (also known as Cleopatra) lies in the middle. The whole project has been funded by the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery and the Amici degli Uffizi organizations.”

Uffizi increases exhibition space by over a quarter in 2012
The Art Newspaper
January 29, 2013
“More space was also created when the display of works in the Michelangelo room was thematically reorganised. That project was funded by the Palm Beach-based non-profit organisation, Friends of the Uffizi Gallery, along with their sister organisation in Italy, Amici degli Uffizi…”

Restoring Italy’sTreasured Art
Italian Tribune
October 2012
“In 2006, Contessa Rimbotti further expanded the mission by helping to establish a U.S.-based sister organization, Friends of the Uffizi, a nonprofit headquartered in Palm Beach, Florida. The two organizations now work in tandem to raise funds and awareness in Italy and the U.S…“

First American Exhibition of Works from the Uffizi Gallery at the Michener Art Museum
Italy Magazine (UK)
May 1, 2012
“According to Uffizi Gallery director Antonio Natali, speaking live from Italy during a press conference at the Italian consulate in Philadelphia on the 12th of April, ‘these paintings are rarely seen because they are in the secret rooms of the Uffizi…’”

The Artistic Passions of Peter Weller
South Florida Opulence
Spring 2012
“…Weller is..an enthusiastic supporter, sitting on the Board of Advisors for the organization Friends of the Uffizi Gallery….he explains,’Some incredible Americans, Mary Jo Zingale and Lisa Marie Browne, are committed to restoring the beautiful gifts that Italy has given the world…'”

Backstage with Botticelli
The Doylestown Patch
April 25, 2012
“This may be the last time many of the pieces are allowed to travel away from the Uffizi, Carioni said. Many of them had been in storage at the famous museum, but renovation projects underway now will create new galleries and spaces to display them when they return home…”

‘Offering of the Angels’ exhibit brings taste of Italy to Doylestown, Pa.
Lehigh Valley Live
April 23, 2012
“Katsiff says the collection includes oil paintings, paintings on copper and tile and tempura paintings from the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries. He says the paintings trace the life of Jesus Christ — reflective of a time when art and religion went hand-in-hand…”

Sneak preview of “Offering of the Angels” at Michener Museum
Philadelphia Inquirer
April 20, 2012
“’The Uffizi is the world’s greatest museum for the study of Italian art,’ Ahl said. The museum, built by the Medicis in the 16th century, has thousands of works and not nearly enough space to display all of them. None of the paintings and tapestries in this exhibit have been displayed in public in Florence…'”

Florida Exhibit Showcases Significant Renaissance Art
Art Districts
April/May 2012
“’Offering of the Angels’ transports the visitor to the historic realm in which artistic achievement arose from religious devotion and faith, a period of time that found God to be the center of the universe and professions, such as art, that spoke of his omniscience. It’s a journey of faith, and an inspiring journey at that…”

Botticelli in Your Own BackyardClick here to download the PDF of this articleAmbassador: The Magazine of the National Italian American Foundation, Spring 2012“The exhibition made its transatlantic journey through the efforts of the Palm Beach-based nonprofit Friends of the Uffizi Gallery. The organization grew, promoting ‘the Medici family’s long-standing tradition for all of Florence and the world to enjoy its artistic treasures,’ says Lisa Marie Browne, its executive director…”

Wings Over the Museum
Sun-Sentinel (South Florida)
November 17, 2011
“Lisa Marie Browne, executive director of the Friends — who has done her own studies at the Uffizi — pronounces the exhibition ‘a dream come true. We’ve always wanted to bring a Uffizi exhibition to the museum in Fort Lauderdale…'”

Neapolitan Countess Talks Up Uffizi Museum at Sotheby’s Tonight
Bloomberg
January 26, 2010
“Friends of the Uffizi will share its mission with 150 guests attending a private Sotheby’s preview tonight. The works on display will include ‘Jupiter and Antiope’ by Hendrick Goltzius, with a high estimate of $12 million, and a Canaletto Venetian scene estimated to sell for as much as $2 million…”

Contessa Helps to Restore Uffizi Gallery
Italian Tribune
May 7, 2009
“There are many newly restored works in the Uffizi Gallery thanks to the effort and financial support the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery has provided. Their current fundraising efforts are going to the Lacoon Restoration onsite at the Uffizi, under the keen eye of Director Antonio Natali…”

Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, sends a distinguished representative to Cleveland
Cleveland Sun
September 23, 2008
“Contessa Maria Vittoria Rimbotti, president of the international Amici degli Uffizi, or Friends of the Uffizi, spent four days in Cleveland and toured the Cleveland Museum of Art as part of an outreach mission to the U.S…“

The Resilient Uffizi Gallery
Smithsonian
January 2008
“The resilience of the Uffizi is appropriate for the city that defied conventions and saw the birth of the Renaissance. ‘Every room is full of masterpieces, and together they chart, almost decade by decade, how the Renaissance developed,’ says Syracuse University professor Gary Radke, a specialist in Italian Renaissance art. ‘Spend time with the masterpieces, examine them closely and come back again…'”