Balta Emilio Salice Barbara

Giovanni Armillotta Maria Antonietta Tommasone

Luca Vergura Alessia Rinaldi

Angelica Borazio Anna Piemontese

Daniele Ognissanti Elisa Trotta

Francesca Pistorio Ivana Renzullo

Marco Rinaldi Maria Pia Armillotta

PORTUGAL

GEOGRAPHY

Portugal occupies the western part of the Iberian Peninsula. The countryis crossed by three large rivers that rise in Spain, flow into the Atlantic,and divide the country into three geographic areas: the Minho River, theDouro River, the Tejo River. The Azores stretch over 340 mi (547 km)in the Atlantic and consist of nine islands with a total area of 902 sq mi(2,335 sq km). Madeira, consisting of two inhabited islands, Madeiraand Porto Santo, and two groups of uninhabited islands, lie in theAtlantic about 535 mi (861 km) southwest of Lisbon.

HISTORY

The country of Portugal emerged in the tenth century during theChristian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula: first as a region under the control of the Counts ofPortugal and then, in the mid-twelfth century, as a kingdom under King Afonso I. The throne thenwent through a turbulent time, with several rebellions. During the fifteenth and sixteenth centuriesoverseas exploration and conquest in Africa, South America and India won the nation a richempire .In 1580 a succession crisis led to a successful invasion by the King of Spain and Spanishrule, beginning an era known to opponents as the Spanish Captivity, but a successful rebellion in1640 led to independence once more. Portugal fought alongside Britain in the Napoleonic Wars,whose political fallout led to a son of the King of Portugal becoming Emperor of Brazil; a decline inimperial power followed. The nineteenth century saw civil war, before a Republic was declared in1910. However, in 1926 a military coup led to generals ruling until 1933, when a Professor calledSalazar took over, ruling in an authoritarian manner until 1974. His retirement through illness wasfollowed by a further coup, the declaration of the Third Republic and independence for Africancolonies.

TRADITIONS, MUSIC AND CUSTOMS

Each region of Portugal has its own style of danceand songs with the most traditional tunes.Some of the best examples of the regional dancesare the vira, chula, corridinho, tirana and fandango,where couples perform a lively dance usually to afast beat of hand-clapping, guitars and accordions.Many of these dances reflect the courting andmatrimonial traditions of the area and are oftenpassionate and exciting to watch.

During many of these traditional dances, people dress up in a variety of ways ranging from workingclothes to colourful costumes.

Fado is Portugal’s main traditional music and is a form of song which can encompass anything andeverything but is mainly characterised by mournful and melancholy tunes and lyrics. In 2011, Fadowas added to UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.Theword ‘Fado’ means fate in Portuguese, however given the sad nature of the music, a good way todescribe the spirit of the song is ‘lament’. There are several different theories to its origin with somebelieving Fado to have roots in Moorish songs as well as African-Brazilian rhythms. Portugal isproud of its music and it is best heard in the Fado houses.

VISUAL ART

The ancient cave paintings at Escoural, the Roman township of Conímbriga, the Temple of Diana inÉvora and the typical Moorish architecture of the southern towns Olhão and Tavira are just someexamples of extraordinary cultural gems that can be found in the country. Throughout the centuries, Portugal's arts have been enriched by foreign influences, includingFlemish, French and Italian. The voyages of the Portuguese discoverers opened the country toOriental inspiration and the revelation of Brazil's wealth of gold and jewels fed the Baroque flamein decoration. Portugal has a huge cultural heritage that is just waiting to be discovered…A school of primitive painters headed by Nuno Gonçalves was prominent in the 15th century, andsubsequently Flemish artists interpreted the native style, decorating palaces, convents and leaving arich heritage of religious art. Romanesque and Gothic influences have given Portugal some of itsgreatest cathedrals, which are fantastic places to visit while on holiday

Surrealism is a cultural movement that began in the early 1920s, and is best known for its visualartworks and writings. The aim was to "resolve the previously contradictory conditions of dreamand reality." Artists painted unnerving, illogical scenes with photographic precision, created strangecreatures from everyday objects and developed painting techniques that allowed the unconscious toexpress itself and/or an idea/concept.

Surrealist works feature the element of surprise, unexpected juxtapositions and non sequitur;however, many Surrealist artists and writers regard their work as an expression of the philosophical

movement first and foremost, with the works being an artifact. Leader André Breton was explicit inhis assertion that Surrealism was, above all, a revolutionary movement.

Salvador Dalì,The Persistence of Memory

Renè Magritte False Mirror 1928The Harlequin's Carnival

Michele Prencipe Valentina Pacillo

Matteo Quitadamo Giuseppe Basta

Leonardo Salcuni Antonio Prencipe

Giuseppe Borelli Gabriella Palumbo

Anna Clara Castigliego Piercosimo Zino

Lucia Guerra Emanuele Triventi

Michelangelo di LodovicoBuonarroti Simoni (6 March1475 – 18 February 1564),commonly known asMichelangelo was an Italiansculptor, painter, architect, poet,and engineer of the HighRenaissance. He was consideredthe greatest living artist in hislifetime, and ever since then hehas been held to be one of thegreatest artists of all time. A

number of his works in painting, sculpture, and architecture rank among the mostfamous in existence. His output in every field during his long life was prodigious;when the sheer volume of correspondence, sketches, and reminiscences that surviveis also taken into account, he is the best-documented artist of the 16th century. Two ofhis best-known works, the Pietà and David, were sculpted before he turned thirty.Despite his low opinion of painting, Michelangelo also created two of the mostinfluential works in fresco in the history of Western art: the scenes from Genesis onthe ceiling and The Last Judgment on the altar wall of the Sistine Chapel in Rome. Asan architect, Michelangelo pioneered the Mannerist style at the Laurentian Library. Atthe age of 74 he succeeded Antonio da Sangallo the Younger as the architect of St.Peter's Basilica. One of the qualities most admired by his contemporaries was his“terribilità”, a sense of awe-inspiring grandeur, and it was the attempts of subsequentartists to imitate Michelangelo's impassioned and highly personal style that resultedin Mannerism, the next major movement in Western art after the High Renaissance.

The most important works of Michelangelo Buonarroti

The statue of David

David isa masterpiece of Renaissance sculpture created between 1501 and 1504. Itis 5.17-metre marble statue of astanding male nude. The statuerepresents the Biblical hero David, afavourite subject in the artof Florence. Originallycommissioned as one of a series ofstatues of prophets to be positionedalong the roofline of the east endof Florence Cathedral, the statue wasplaced instead in a public square,outside the Palazzo of Signoria, theseat of civic government in Florence,where it was unveiled on 8September 1504.Because of the nature of the hero thatit represented, it soon came tosymbolize the defence of civil

liberties. David is depicted just after his battle with Goliath. His sling isthrown over his shoulder by his left hand and his right hand hangs loosely.The twist of his body effectively suggests to the viewer the feeling that heis in motion, an impression heightened with contrast. The statue is aRenaissance interpretation of a common ancient Greek theme of thestanding heroic male nude. His classic pose and his contrast emphasizedby the turn of the head to the left, and by the contrasting positions of thearms causes the figure’s hips and shoulders to rest at opposing angles,giving a slight s-curve to the all torso. Michelangelo’s David has becomeone of the most recognized works of Renaissance sculpture, becoming asymbol of both strength and youthful human beauty. It was the colossal size of the statue that impressed Michelangelo'scontemporaries, however. the figure has an unusually large head andhands which represent respectively human brain and instrument of thereason . David has been endlessly reproduced and by the 20th century,Michelangelo's David had become iconic shorthand for "culture".

Rome the Last Judgment

It is a fresco byMichelangelo executed onthe altar wall of the SistineChapel in Vatican City. It isa depiction of the SecondComing of Christ andthe final and eternaljudgment by God of allhumanity. The souls ofhumans rise and descend totheir fates, as judged byChrist surrounded by

prominent saints. The work took four years to complete and wasdone between 1536 and 1541 While traditional medieval last judgments showed figures dressedaccording to their social positions, Michelangelo created a newstandard. His groundbreaking concept of the event shows figuresequalized in their nudity, stripped bare of rank. The artistportrayed the separation of the blessed and the damned byshowing the saved ascending on the left and the damneddescending on the right. The fresco is more monochromatic thanthe ceiling frescoes and is dominated by the tones of flesh and sky.The cleaning and restoration of the fresco, however, revealed agreater chromatic range than previously apparent. Orange, green,yellow, and blue are scattered throughout, animating and unifyingthe complex scene.

Pencil Matita Pencil sharpener Temperino Ruler Righello Rubber Gomma Glue Colla Compass Compasso Pastels Pastelli Square Squadra Chisel Scalpello Statue Statua Building Edificio Fresco Affresco

Painting Pittura Architecture Architettura Sculpture Scultura Pillar Pilastro

Kitsch is a style of mass-produced art or design using cultural icons.

The term is generally reserved for unsubstantial or gaudy works, or works that arecreated to have popular appeal.

Kitsch originated in the art markets of Munich, describingcheap, popular, and marketable pictures and sketches.The term kitsch defines a pseudo-artistic phenomenon focusedto the object or to the event that has the appearance of the art butnot having the substance of it: it is kitsch the novelty object that

derives from thefalsification and fromcounterfeiting of anauthentic artistic object.One generic definitionadopted in thearchitecture and in thedesign points as kitschevery object whose form doesn’t derive fromthe function. Kitsch is, so, a window on the new world, isanalysis of the present, artistic expressionaccording to a new esthetic, but also an

unfathomable aspect and somehow paradoxical of the humane soul, for which theugly seems begun in the contemporary art the true beauty.

Painting

Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface(support base). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush but otherimplements, such as knives, sponges, and airbrushes, can be used. In art, the termpainting describes both the act and the result of the action. However, painting is alsoused outside of art as a common trade among craftsmen and builders. Paintings mayhave for their support such surfaces as walls, paper, canvas, wood, glass, lacquer,clay, leaf, copper or concrete, and may incorporate multiple other materials includingsand, clay, paper, gold leaf as well as objects.

Oil

Oil painting is the process of painting withpigments that are bound with a medium of dryingoil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with aresin such as pine resin or even frankincense; thesewere called 'varnishes' and were prized for theirbody and gloss. Oil paint eventually became theprincipal medium used for creating artworks as its

advantages became widely known. The transition began with Early Netherlandishpainting in northern Europe, and by the height of the Renaissance oil paintingtechniques had almost completely replaced tempera paints in the majority of Europe.

Pastel

Pastel is a painting medium in the form of a stick,consisting of pure powdered pigment and a binder. Thepigments used in pastels are the same as those used toproduce all colored art media, including oil paints; thebinder is of a neutral hue and low saturation. The coloreffect of pastels is closer to the natural dry pigments

than that of any other process. Because the surface of a pastel painting is fragile and

easily smudged, its preservation requires protective measures such as framing underglass; it may also be sprayed with a fixative. Nonetheless, when made withpermanent pigments and properly cared for, a pastel painting may endure unchangedfor centuries. Pastels are not susceptible, as are paintings made with a fluid medium,to the cracking and discoloration that result from changes in the color, opacity, ordimensions of the medium as it dries.

Acrylic

Acrylic paint is fast drying paint containing pigmentsuspension in acrylic polymer emulsion. Acrylicpaints can be diluted with water, but become water-resistant when dry. Depending on how much thepaint is diluted (with water) or modified with acrylicgels, media, or pastes, the finished acrylic paintingcan resemble a watercolor or an oil painting, or haveits own unique characteristics not attainable withother media. The main practical difference between most acrylics and oil paints is theinherent drying time. Oils allow for more time to blend colors and apply even glazesover under-paintings. This slow drying aspect of oil can be seen as an advantage forcertain techniques, but in other regards it impedes the artist trying to work quickly.

Watercolor

Watercolor is a paintingmethod in which the paintsare made of pigmentssuspended in a water solublevehicle. The traditional andmost common support forwatercolor paintings ispaper; other supports includepapyrus, bark papers,plastics, vellum or leather,fabric, wood and canvas. InEast Asia, watercolorpainting with inks is referredto as brush painting or scroll painting. In Chinese, Korean, and Japanese painting ithas been the dominant medium, often in monochrome black or browns. India,

Ethiopia and other countries also have long traditions. Finger-painting withwatercolor paints originated in China.

BULGARIA

GEOGRAPHY

Bulgaria shares borders with Serbia, Macedonia,Romania, Greece, and Turkey. Two mountain rangesand two great valleys mark the topography ofBulgaria, a country situated on the Black Sea. TheMaritsa is Bulgaria's principal river, the Danube alsoflows through the country.

HISTORY

The Thracians lived in what is now known as Bulgaria from about 3500 B.C. They wereincorporated into the roman Empire. Then the Bulgars, who crossed the Danube from the north in679, took control of the region. Although the country bears the name of the Bulgars, the Bulgarlanguage and culture died out, replaced by a Slavic language, writing, and religion. The Bulgarswere invaded by the Ottoman Empire, which made Bulgaria a Turkish province until 1878. In 1878,Russia forced Turkey to give Bulgaria its independence after the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878);but the European powers intervened limiting Bulgaria's territory.In the First Balkan War (1912–1913), Bulgaria and the other members of the Balkan League fought against Turkey to regainBalkan territory, but in the Second Balkan War lost the war and all the territory. Bulgaria joinedGermany in World War I in the hope of again gaining Macedonia and fought on the side of theNazis in World War II.

CULTURE AND TRADITIONS

Bulgarians may wear the martenitsa (мартеница) — an adornment made of white and red yarn andworn on the wrist or pinned on the clothes — from March 1 until the end of the month. One canthen tie the martenitsa to the blossoming branch of a tree. Family-members and friends in Bulgariacustomarily exchange martenitsas, which they regard as symbols of health and longevity. The whitethread represents peace and tranquility, while the red one stands for the cycles of life. Bulgariansmay also refer to the holiday of 1 March as Baba Marta (Баба Марта), meaning GrandmotherMarch. It preserves an ancient pagan tradition.

Many legends exist regarding the birth of this custom, some of them dating back to the 7th-centurytimes of Khan Kubrat, the ruler of Old Great BulgariaThe ancient Bulgarian ritualof kukeri (кукери), performed by costumed men, seeks to scare away evil spirits and bring goodharvest and health to the community. The costumes, made of animal furs and fleeces, cover thewhole of the body. A mask, adorned with horns and decoration, covers the head of each kuker, whoalso must have bells attached to his waist. The ritual consists of dancing, jumping and shouting inan attempt to banish all evil from the village. Some of the performers impersonate royalty, field-workers and craftsmen.

VISUAL ART

Bulgaria has a rich heritage in the visual arts, especially in frescoes, murals and icons. Tomb artprovides one of the most important sources of information about Thracian lifestyle and culture.Visual arts in the Bulgarian lands experienced an upsurge during the entire period of the Middleages. The earliest of those dates from around the 9th century AD. The Tarnovo Artistic School, themainstream of the Bulgarian fine arts and architecture between 13th and 14th centuries, takes itsname from the capital and main cultural centre of the Second Bulgarian Empire, Tarnovo.

The wall piers and the arches often featured medallion-shaped bust images of saints. During theperiod of Ottoman rule (1396-1878) the authorities suppressed Bulgarian art. Many churchessuffered destruction, and newly built ones remained somewhat modest. In the end of the 18thcentury the Islamic Ottoman empire began to decay slowly. Following the Liberation in 1878, finearts rapidly recovered and came under the influence of European artistic currents such aslate Romanticism.

Giuseppe De Nittis was an Italian painter whose work merges the styles of Salon art andImpressionism. He was born in Barletta in 1846. He came into contact with some of theartists know as the Macchiaioli. In 1867 he moved to Paris and entered into a contract withthe art dealer Adolphe Goupil. Then he returned to Italy where he produced several views ofVesuvius. In 1872 he returned to Paris and achieved a success at the Salon of refused withhis painting “Che Freddo!”. In that same year he was invited to exhibit at the firstImpressionist exhibition, held at Nadar's. The invitation came from Edgar Degas. A trip toLondon resulted in a number of Impressionistic paintings. On a trip to Italy De Nittis tookup pastels, which were to be an important medium for him in his remaining years. In 1884,at age of 38, De Nittis died suddenly of a stroke at Saint-Germain-en-Laye. De Nittis worksare in many public collections, including the Musée d’Orsay in Paris, the National Galleryin London and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

“Driving” by AutoCAD

AutoCAD is a software application for 2D and 3D computer-aided design (CAD) and drafting —available since 1982 as a desktop application and since 2010 as a mobile web- and cloud-based app,currently marketed as AutoCAD 360.AutoCAD was first released in December 1982. The softwareis currently marketed in its eighteenth generation. As Autodesk's flagship product, by March 1986AutoCAD had become the most ubiquitous microcomputer design program worldwide, withfunctions such as "polylines" and "curve fitting" .Prior to the introduction of AutoCAD, most otherCAD programs ran on mainframe computers or minicomputers, with each CAD operator (user)working at a graphical terminal or workstation. It is used across a range of industries, includingarchitects, project managers and engineers, among other professions, with 750 training centersestablished worldwide as of 1994

“Walking” through Daunia

The Daunian civilization developed between the X and the IV century B.C. This populationinhabited Gargano. They used to worship natural elements such as Sun and Water. They wereknown as a peaceful people and mostly involved in agricultural and crafting activities and werealso great artists. Their culture was native. They produced clay pottery. At first they let dry potteryunder the sun, afterwards they started to bake it into kilns. They used to bury deads with theirpersonal belongings. Decorated pottery was used for grave goods Simple pottery was usually usedin everyday life

Crystall Armillotta

Emanuela Lauriola Vittorio Gatta

Marianna Della Torre Matteo Castriotta

Pietro Melchionna Rosita Impagniatiello

Rosy Romagnolo Sara Ruffino

Sipontina Fabrizio Giuseppe Bisceglia

Claudio Gatta

LEONARDO DA VINCI

Leonardo da Vinci(April 15, 1452 – May 2, 1519, Old Style) was anItalian Renaissance polymath: painter, sculptor, architect, musician,mathematician, engineer, inventor, anatomist, geologist, cartographer,botanist, and writer. His genius, perhaps more than that of any otherfigure, epitomized the Renaissance humanist ideal. He is widelyconsidered to be one of the greatest painters of all time and perhaps themost diversely talented person ever to have lived.Born in Vinci in the region of Florence, Leonardo was educated in thestudio of the renowned Florentine painter Verrocchio. Much of his earlierworking life was spent in the service of Ludovico il Moro in Milan. Helater worked in Rome, Bologna and Venice, and he spent his last years in

France at the home awarded him by Francis I. Leonardo was, and is, renowned primarily as apainter. Among his works, the Mona Lisa is the most famous and most parodied portrait and TheLast Supper the most reproduced religious painting of all time

Creation of Adam. Leonardo's drawing of the VitruvianMan is also regarded as a cultural icon, being reproducedon items as varied as the euro coin, textbooks, and T-shirts.

THE LAST SUPPER

Leonardo's most famous painting of the 1490s is The Last Supper, painted for the refectory of theConvent of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan. The painting represents the last meal shared by Jesuswith his disciples before his capture and death. It shows specifically the moment when Jesus hasjust said "one of you will betray me". Leonardo tells the story of the consternation that thisstatement caused to the twelve followers of Jesus.

MONA LISA

Its fame rests, in particular, on theelusive smile on the woman's face, itsmysterious quality brought aboutperhaps by the fact that the artist hassubtly shadowed the corners of themouth and eyes so that the exactnature of the smile cannot bedetermined.Other characteristics found in thiswork are the unadorned dress, inwhich the eyes and hands have nocompetition from other details, thedramatic landscape background inwhich the world seems to be in a stateof flux, the subdued colouring and theextremely smooth nature of thepainterly technique, employing oils,but laid on much like tempera andblended on the surface so that thebrushstrokes are indistinguishable.

On 24 January we took part in a lecture organized by the "National Rotary Club". At 8.30 p.m. we went to "Regio Hotel Manfredi ". Carlotta Fatonewas the speaker. She told us about jewish people, what happened to themduring the different ages. We were explained how they lived in the RomanEmpire, how they were forced to leave Spain by the catholic sovereigns

Isabella and Ferdinando during the Middle Ages. Then we dealt withNazism. Some people expressed their ideas and asked some questions. Wethought about the hostile attitude and we tried to find the reasons thatcaused it. However nothing can justify that violence. It was veryinteresting, it made us think and we understood how is importantremembering the past.

POLAND

GEOGRAPHY

Poland is located at the heart of the European continent. The country is a meeting place not only for cultures and ideas,but also for conflict and confrontation.Poland's borders have changed many times over the centuries. Its present borders were set after World War II ended in1945. Poland has seven neighbors: Germany, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, and RussianKaliningrad

Poland has a variety of striking landscapes, from the sandy beaches of the Baltic Sea coast in the north and the rollingcentral lowlands to the snowcapped peaks of the Carpathian and Sudeten Mountains in the south. Poland has more than1,300 lakes throughout the country.

HISTORY

Poland is an ancient nation that was conceived near the middle of the 10th century. Its golden age occurred in the 16thcentury. During the following century, the strengthening of the gentry and internal disorders weakened the nation. In aseries of agreements between 1772 and 1795, Russia, Prussia, and Austria partitioned Poland amongst themselves.When Poland regained its independence it became a Soviet satellite state following the war, but its government wascomparatively tolerant and progressive. A "shock therapy" program during the early 1990s enabled the country totransform its economy into one of the most robust in Central Europe, but Poland currently suffers low GDP growth andhigh unemployment. Poland joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004

CUISINE, TOURISM AND TRADITIONS

Polish cuisine and dining table etiquette is a perfect reflection of the warmth in the Polish character. Having a meal withone's family is not just consumption of food - it is celebration. Guests are always welcomed. Breakfasts are generally

heavy with vegetables and cold cuts of meat. Dinners, even more so. Only suppers are a tad lighter, perhaps, keeping intoe with the universal proverb: After dinner rest a while, after supper walk a mile. The Poles are the original potatoeaters and potatoes have been the darling of the Polish kitchens through centuries. Meat is also a mainstay (cold cutsand sausages mainly) and is grilled more or less ceremoniously at the country home, in the garden, or on the front lawn. Seasonal markets and holiday fairs expose travelers to Polish culture and hospitality, restaurants serve up Polish cuisine,and souvenir shops maintain a steady stock of folk crafts and handmade art.

For centuries since the dawn of feudalism, a traditional folk art has thrived in the villages and small towns of Poland.This art, intimately connected with the everyday life and local interests of the common people and enriched by creativeindividuals in each new generation, reflects the uniqueness of each of Poland's regions. Folk art includes not only such standard forms as painting, sculpture and wood engraving, but also decorative art, suchas paper cut-outs, decorations made of straw, painted Easter eggs, and wedding and birthday cakes. Folk art alsoincludes weaving, embroidery, pottery, wooden vessels and household utensils and metal products.Folk art is still very much alive in many regions of Poland. Today, its lasting artistic value and the specific features of itscontent and style give this art a high place in Poland's national culture

RELIGION AND FESTIVALS

Polish traditions through the year include holidays, customs, superstitions, rituals, and celebrations. Some stem from pagan rites ofseasons, but most of Polish traditions are firmly rooted in Catholicism, a predominant religion in Poland. Nowadays, any paganelements still present in the culture take the form of fun festivals and shows. Two Catholic celebrations - Christmas and Easter - arethe most important religious events in Poland. During the holiday season Poles take the time to pray in churches, get together withfamilies, relax and cook and enjoy festive, traditional meals.

Easter is a major holiday in Poland that lasts for few days. It's a time when people celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Easter-related festivities begin on Palm Sunday, when faithful bring colorful palms for a mass, and continue all through the Holly Week toend with Wet Monday, known for a rich tradition of pouring water on each other. This period is marked with religious rites.Poland is a strongly Roman Catholic country - you will see religious processions through streets on feast days. One really nicetradition is that of a competition for the best nativity scene or szopka. These resemble Russian palaces more than our traditional criband manger but can be viewed in the Main square in the Old Town during the weeks approaching Christmas. Christmas holidays inPoland are celebrated on December 25 and 26. The festivities have both a family and a public setting. Around this time town squaresand streets are lit with colorful, festive lamps. Every year during the month of December, Christmas fairs are arranged to selltraditional foods, gifts and souvenirs. Christmas Eve (Wigilia), an evening preceding Christmas Day, is traditionally celebrated with afestive Christmas supper. It's a very special occasion, when families prepare 12 types of meatless dishes - one for each of the 12apostles. At midnight a special mass is held in every church, when people pray in celebration of the newly born savior.

.

Johannes Vermeer wasa Dutch painter of the17th century whopainted mostlydomestic interior scenesof middle-class life. Heworked slowly and withgreat care, using brightcolours and sometimesexpensive pigments.He is particularlyknown for the use of

light in his paintings. He painted about fourty-five picturesproduced for a small group of patrons in Delft but we have thirty-seven of them. Vermeer used a limited palette of browns and greys

over which he applied more saturated colours. Maybe “A girlasleep” is the first image he created. Other of his famous andimportant works are “The milkmaid”, “Woman with a water jug”and “Girl with a turban” also known as “Girl with a pearl earring”.

The book “Girl with a pearl earring” is inspired byVermeer’s picture “Girl with a turban”.It was written by Tracy Chevalier in 1999. It tellsthe story of Griet, a sixteen girl of the XVII centurythat lives in Delft, Holland. Her father decoratestiles but he became blind because of an accident inthe factory. She has got a sister and an older brother.One day the famous artist Johannes Vermeer and hiswife Catharina go to Griet’s house. She is told thatshe will work at Vermeer’s house as a servant. Shegoes to the house and she wins the trust of the artist.They become accomplices preparing the coloursand the painter is nearly obsessed with her. ThenVermeer asks Griet to pose for one of his pictures.When Vermeer finishes, they aren’t satisfied of thework. So the painter tells Griet to wear the pearlearrings of his wife. The girl agrees and pierces herears. The moment when Vermeer plugs the pearlearrings is like a love meeting. Catharina discoverswhat happened and gets angry. Griet leaves thehouse and her work. She marries Pieter, the butchershe knew at the market. Twelve years later Vermeerdies and, as he wanted, Catharina gives the earringsto Griet.

There is a film based on the book “Girl with a pearl earring”. Obviously it is quite different from thenovel. The characters aren’t described in detail as in the book. In the romance Tanneke the cooker isenvious of Griet because she has more privileges than her. Instead they get on well in the movie. Inthe book Griet pierces both of her ears on Vermeer’s advice, but in the film only the left one ispierced. The producer chose the actors carefully: Scarlett Johansson, who plays the protagonist, isvery similar to the girl of the picture. Compared to the film, the book is much more envolving.

ty in Silesia in southern Poland. It is one of the central districts of the Upper Silesian MetropolitanUnion with a population of 2 millions people but the population within the city limits is113.162(June 2009). It is located in the Silesian Highlands, on the Rowa River (a tributary of theVistula).

HISTORY

The name of the oldest settlement Chorzow wasapplied to the amalgamated city. The etimology ofthe name is not known. Chorzow is believed to befirst mentioned as Zvesov in a document of 1136 byPope Innocent II as village with peasants, silverminers and two inn. Another place name likelyindicating Chorzow is Coccham, which is mentionedin adocument

of 1198 by the Patriarch of Jerusalem. Next, Chorzow ismentioned as Chacrew in 1257 and then Chorzow in1292.In the 12th century, the castellany of Bytom, including theChorzow area, belonged to the province of Krakow. In1179 it was awarded by Duke Cosimir the just to the Dukeof Apole, and since that time the history of Chorzow hasbeen connected to the history of Upper Silesia. The oldestpart of the city, today called Chorzow Stary, belongedsince 1257 to the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchreof Jerusalem. From 1327, the Upper Silesian duchies were ruled by the dukes of the Piast dynastyand were subject to Bohemian overlordship. The Lord of Boheniam Crown elected Polish-LituanianJagiellons Kings from 1490 and Austrian Hobsburgs King after 1526. In 1742, the area wasconquered by the Prussian Hohenzollern in Silesian Wars. The Prussian and then German periodlasted for about 180 years.1922-1939:In the Upper Silesia plebiscite a majority of voters voted to remain in Germany whilethe minority of voters were given for Poland. Following three Silesian uprisings, the eastern part ofSilesia, including Chorzow, was separeted from Germany and awarded to Poland in 1922.GERMAN PERIOD DURING WORLD WAR IIIn September 1939, Chorzow was taken by Nazi Germany. Mainly Silesian uprising veterans andScouts, put up resistence to the regular German forces for three days, most of them were murderedin mass executions. Polish property was confiscated, and Chorzow was promptly re-incorporatedinto German Silesia; the Upper Silesian industry being one the pillars of the Nazi Germany wareffort. There were several enforced labor camps in Chorzow and two branches of the Auscwitz

concentration camp. Chorzow was occupied by Soviet Red Army in January 1945 with thesubsequent persecution of many ethnic Silesian and Germans

ECONOMY

ROYAL IRON WORKS, COALMINES AND CHEMISTRYWith the discovery of bituminouscoal deposits at the end of the 18thcentury by a local church priest,new industrial sectors developed inthe Chorzow area. In the years1791-1797 the Prussian Royal CoalMine was constructed. In 1799, firstpig iron was made in the Royal IronWorks. In 1819 the iron worksconsisted of 4 blost furnaces. Then the modern Lidognia Zinc Works was added in the area. In 1871a steel mill, rail mill and workshops were added. In the vicinity of the Royal Coal Mine, CountessLaura Coal Mine was opened in 1870. in 1898, a thermal power plant was commissioned whichwas, until the 1930s, the biggest electricity producer in Poland. Today, it operates as "Elcho". In1915, nitrogen chemical works were built nearly to produce fertilizers and explosives by newlyinvented processes: from air, water and coal. Today, it operates as Zaklady Azotowe SAAFTER 1945 At the end of World War II, generally the Chorzow industry suffered little damage.This intact industry now played a critical role in the past-war reconstruction and industralization ofPoland. After the war, businesses were nationalized and operated, with minor changes, till 1989. Atthe fall of communism in 1989, the area was in decline. Since 1989, the region has beentransitioning from heavy industry to a more diverse economy. In 2007, Chorzow become part ofUpeer Silesian Metropolitan Union improving its competitiveness, modernizing the infrastructure.TODAY Chorzow used to be one of the most important cities in the largest Polish economic area(the Upeer Silesian Area) with extensive industry in coal mining, steel, chemistry, manufacturingand enegy sectors. Many eavy-industry establishments were closed or scaled down in the last twodecades because of environmental issues in the center of highly urbanized area and also because ofdecades-long lock of investment. But others were restructure and modernized.

Jhon Amon Comenius was born in Hungary in 1519. Hisfame and his doctrines are due not only to the religious lifeas a refugee and the defense of public education, but alsoto his enormous knowledge and his literary innovations. Itis considered the father of modern education. He arguedthat the goal of education was the formation of man. Hesaid that in fact educate is live, what you need to learnbefore they act and to educate that you have to have a clearvision of the goals to be achieved and the method by whichthe instruction must be given. The ideal pansophic(teaching all things to all in Latin) of Comenius expressesthe need for education to be extended to all social classes,but without overloading the mind, but by stimulating the"pursuit of knowledge throughout their lives. Fromeducation should not be excluded not only women, but even the handicapped, even the latter, infact, have a soul that needs to be done to progress through learning. According to Comenius, manmust investigate the nature and learn from her, as beings of nature are appropriate at each stage oftheir development. Comenius therefore divides the course of studies in 4 cycles, each of which is arevival and deepening of what has been treated in previous cycles, according to a trend 'spiral' ofteaching.