L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, JUNE 30, 2022 www.italoamericano.org 6 NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS Continued from page 4 exclusively utilitarian, they became objects of beauty. That idea, that change didn't only help him go on, but ulti- m a t e l y a l s o e n a b l e d us, remèri of today, to have a career, to open and run our workshops. That's why we have customers from all over the world, which is not a bad thing really, because Venice h a s b e e n c h a n g i n g a l o t . There are fewer and fewer Venetians and even fewer Venetians who row. T e l l u s s o m e t h i n g about your customers from abroad… Plenty of people, also from the US, buy forcole as deco- rative objects. But in truth, there are also plenty of peo- ple who row on Venetian boats. For instance, there are some 150 professional gon- dolieri in the United States, who sail their gondolas and boats on lagoons, lakes, and bays in about 20 states. In Europe, you can find Venet- ian-style rowing clubs in sev- eral countries, and they all use our boats, oars, and for- cole. … A n d w h a t a b o u t Italy? We work for our gondo- lieri, for whom we make oars a n d f o r c o l e , b u t w e a l s o make other types of paddles a n d o a r s u s e d o n b o a t s across the country, especially during regattas. We are the best-established Italian sup- pliers of special oars. How many remèri are there in Venice today? When I started, there was only my Maestro's workshop. Today, there are four, with f i v e m a e s t r i . O f t h e f o u r w o r k s h o p s , m i n e i s t h e largest, as we are two maestri working in it. Of the five, I a m t h e o l d e s t a n d t h e youngest works with me. So, I am the senior remèr, the old one, but I got used to it! I understand I have a certain responsibility on my shoul- ders, even if I am close to retirement… But I won't stop working, you know… Y o u h a v e b e e n t h e p r e s i d e n t o f t h e E l Felze Association since 2 0 0 2 : c a n y o u t e l l u s something more about it? Yes. The association was created in 2002, to gather together all the craftsmen and artists who contribute to the making of gondolas. We chose the felze - the old-fash- ioned booth used on gondolas to protect passengers from the rain or the cold - as a symbol because, under it, we want to ideally bring together all the people who have a role in the life of gondolas: car- penters, blacksmiths, remèri, gilders… all the arts, crafts and workshops that help keep the history and beauty of gon- dolas – and not only gondo- las! – alive. The association also p u b l i s h e d a b o o k , t o which you contributed directly… Indeed. The Corporazione dei Remèri was founded in Venice in 1307. In 2007, we decided to celebrate its 700 years and organized a series of events between Venice and t h e p r o v i n c e o f B e l l u n o , which is the area where, his- torically, remèri would get t h e w o o d f o r t h e i r o a r s and forcole. We organized an exhibit in Venice, at the Arse- nale, and one in the Cansiglio woods (Belluno), where wood for oars and forcole has been s o u r c e d f r o m , s i n c e t i m e unmemorable. Then, we also published a b o o k , L ' A r t e d e i R e m è r i (Cierre Edizioni, available only in Italian), with contri- butions from historians and specialists of Venetian tradi- tions and heritage. I did write the introduction for it, and an article about our workshops today and the meaning of being a remère in the 21st century. You can check out Saverio Pastor's work at https:// www.forcole.com/index.ht ml. Here you will also be able to purchase the book L'Arte dei Remèri, and other beautiful objects created in his workshop. The book is also available through Ama- zon. If you are particularly interested in the history and making of forcole, you'll also find the books Forcole and Forcole, Remi e Voga alla Veneta, available in Italian with English translation. If you want to discover more about the El Felze Associa- t i o n , v i s i t h t t p s : / / w w w . elfelze.it/. A Venetian forcola made in Saverio's workshop (Photo courtesy of Le Forcole. Credits: Piermarco Menini) We remèri have a responsibility towards our city, towards Venice. Our job is important because it's imbued with Venetian history and culture, so I do feel I have to carry it out the right way At work on a new forcola in Saverio's workshop (Photo courtesy of Le Forcole. Credits: Catherine Hédouine)

• Cover