{"product_id":"la-foce-paradise-in-tuscany","title":"La Foce","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cb\u003eDiscover La Foce, the Renaissance villa and classically inspired twentieth-century garden, at the dawn of its hundredth anniversary--once a barren Tuscan estate brought to life through the extraordinary vision and determination of Iris and Antonio Origo.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e In 1924, English-born biographer and writer Iris Origo (1902-1988) and her husband, Antonio, purchased La Foce, a sprawling estate centered around a half-ruined fifteenth-century villa with a dream that was as ambitious as it was audacious. Guided by a deep-seated desire to make a difference, the Origos dedicated their lives to transforming an impoverished terrain into a thriving landscape of wheat fields, olive groves, and vineyards. With English architect Cecil Pinsent, they refurbished the house and designed an elegant terraced garden with box hedges, a rose garden, fountains, and a wisteria-covered pergola.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e The dramatic story of La Foce--from the taming of the wild valley and personal loss to wartime strife--is told by the Origos' granddaughter Katia Lysy, with reminiscences by Benedetta Origo, the couple's elder daughter. The letters and diaries of Iris Origo weave beautifully into a personal narrative of the creation of the property and the people behind it. Newly commissioned photographs by Simon Upton and Matteo Carassale, a foldout annotated view of the property, and a recently discovered cache of unpublished images of the creation of the garden in the 1920s bring to life the rich history of the magnificent property.\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Unity Books","offers":[{"title":"La Foce: Paradise in Tuscany","offer_id":46555591639237,"sku":null,"price":136.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0625\/6679\/3413\/files\/978-0-8478-3624-6.jpg?v=1784323661","url":"https:\/\/unitybooks.myshopify.com\/products\/la-foce-paradise-in-tuscany","provider":"Unity Books","version":"1.0","type":"link"}