Among villas, hotels, and promenades. Discovering Art Nouveau

Liberty, Jugendstil, Modernism, Secession, Art Nouveau. Whatever you call it, we know we're talking about a beloved style around the world (encompassing many fields, from architecture to jewelry), instantly recognizable for its ornamental touch, embracing nature and flowers (also known as the Floral Style) and for those sinuous, flowing lines that sought a break with the past, even in a window, no longer rectangular but ovoid.

Emilia-Romagna and Marche are rich in New Art and are taking center stage in Art Nouveau Week, a European event promoted here by Italia Liberty and curated by Andrea Speziali. It concludes tomorrow after seven days of touring many cities, including Pesaro, where a tour included villas (such as the one owned by the industrialist Ruggeri, designed by architect Giuseppe Brega) and Molaroni ceramics. But there are many traces of this art in the Marche region; Porto San Giorgio, for example, boasts a considerable number of elegant Art Nouveau buildings.

In Romagna, instead, today at 6 pm, departing from the Grand Hotel Da Vinci, a Cesenatico Liberty tour: maritime elegance among villas, fishmongers, and grand hotels. Tomorrow in Cervia at 6 pm, a meeting in Piazzetta Carlo Pisacane for a two-hour Romagna Liberty walk following Palanti's dream. Reservations: [email protected] | SMS (+39) 320 0445798. Other cities explored included Ferrara with the architecture of Ciro Contini, Riccione with the Villino Serafini, Rimini with the villas of Marina Centro, and Bologna with its historic center entirely in Liberty style, also narrated in two podcasts by Il Resto di Bologna, produced by the editorial staff and available for free online. The complete list of the "gems" available for rediscovering can be found at www.italialiberty.it. Pictured, clockwise: Villa Ruggeri in Pesaro, the Grand Hotel in Rimini, and Villa Melchiorri in Ferrara.

Benedetta Cucci