Remembering Spannocchia

With a heavy heart, I recently learned of the passing of Randall Stratton (February 17, 1945-October 26, 2023).  Randall, with his wife Francesca Cinelli—whose Italian grandfather purchased the Spannocchia estate in Tuscany in 1925—dedicated the last 30 years to preserving the historic property and developing it into the unique educational center and agriturismo that it is today.

Randall’s vision for Spannocchia’s future was to balance the old with the new.  Learn from the past to create a more sustainable future. Combine effective traditional methods with newer innovations in agriculture.  Celebrate the estate and the region’s rich history as part of educating the next generation of food, farming, and climate leaders.  Kit and I have twice traveled to Tuscany and experienced first-hand the breathtaking landscape and warm hospitality that Spannocchia opens to interns, students and visitors.

For centuries, artists have traveled to Tuscany in spring to capture the warm light of Italy.  Thoughts of travel there often begin in late winter when months of dreary cold and rain weigh on the spirit.  My own journey to Tuscany began the instant that our artist friend Billyo O’Donnell introduced me to a place called Spannocchia. 

In 2009, Billyo and his wife Peggy were visiting Boomerang Creek when his “Painting Missouri: The Counties Plein Air” collection was on exhibit at the Boone County Historical Society.  When Italy came up in a conversation, Billyo opened his laptop computer and showed me images of paintings he had done during a workshop at Spannocchia which he described as a medieval estate in the Tuscan hills near Siena and Florence.

When I learned that he was organizing a landscape painting workshop at Spannocchia in May 2010, I could see myself there, painting en plein air with Kit.  Over the years, Kit and I have surrounded ourselves with art acquired during our travels as well as works by Missouri artists.  The fact that neither of us had ever applied oil to canvas in our lives mattered not a jot.  If painting were ever to happen, this would be the time and Tuscany the place.

In February, we committed to the trip and began assembling information and the art supplies that Billyo recommended for his painting workshop. I read books by writers and chefs who’ve fallen under the spell of Tuscany over the decades as well as Italian/English phrase books, CDs, dictionaries, travel guides and magazine articles about the region.

As winter moved into spring, we took a sketching and watercolor class and tackled circles, perspective, shading and light.  When Billyo’s workshop packet arrived, we perused art supply stores and online suppliers, diligently assembling items we would need for our May painting adventure in Tuscany. It was quickly clear that we knew nothing about selecting oils, brushes, palettes, easels, mineral spirits, and assorted accessories familiar to experienced artists.  There are literally aisles filled with nothing but brushes of all sizes, purposes and prices.  “Bring only four,” Billyo emphasized.  But which four, we pondered.

On his recommendation, we ordered two collapsible aluminum easels with nylon shoulder holders, into which we added our portable walking poles for outings on Spannocchia’s 1,100-acre, family-owned agricultural estate—900 of which is forested.  

In April, a welcoming letter arrived from the Spannocchia Foundation in Portland, Maine that directs and supports the cultural and educational programs held at Castello di Spannocchia in Tuscany. “Welcome to the Spannocchia famiglia,” Erin Cinelli, the foundation’s Executive Director wrote, and grazie mille! for our membership contribution that made us officially Amici—Friends of Spannocchia.

Reading the accompanying information, we learned that the property includes a 12th century castle tower, rolling fields, chestnut forests, olive groves and vineyards, historic ruins, and hiking trails.  As a working certified organic farm, Spannocchia produces fruits and vegetables, grain and hay for animal feed, wheat and faro, cured and fresh pork, beef, and lamb, olive oil, honey, jam and other preserves.

Cinelli’s letter emphasized that conservation is a central theme in all activities on this anchor property in the Tuscan Riserva Naturale Alto Merse, that is both a wildlife refuge and registered historic site.  At Castello di Spannocchia, we would be joining a global family of Italians, Americas and international guests living and working as interns at the estate—a museum of the rural life of Tuscany, which is now fast disappearing after nearly a thousand years of very gradual and relatively minor change.

As our May departure for Italy approached, I finished planting our spring gardens at Boomerang Creek, organized travel documents and insurance, and packed for 12 days in Italy. Our Tuscan adventure as artists capturing Italian light was about to begin. Inspired by our first trip to Spannocchia, Billyo and I joined forces and organized a painting and writing workshop that took place in the fall of 2013.    

In the decade that has passed since Kit and I last visited Spannocchia, Randall Stratton and the Cinelli family continued to address climate issues that are global and deeply felt in southern Europe today. Thank you Randall for your passionate efforts to build a more resilient Spannocchia.  For information on Spannocchia’s mission and programs, and/or to donate to the organization, visit  www.spannocchia.org/membership.