Dr. Jane Fortune
When the World Answered

The Johann Fust Library Foundation and the Boca Grande Art Center are partnering to present Dr. Jane Fortune and her book and video When the World Answered, Florence, Women Artists and the 1966 Flood. The PBS documentary by the same name will be presented in the United States this November. The documentary will be shown and Dr. Fortune will add her comments and answer questions. A reception and book signing will follow in the Houghton Room. Dr. Fortune also serves on the Johann Fust Library Foundation’s Advisory Committee.

When the World Answered

Florence, Women Artists and the 1966 Flood

Florence is a city that never stops giving. This is a story of gifts: of artists and the paintings and sculptures they gave to a beloved city in a time of great need. In the wake of the disaster of the 1966 flood, which damaged countless works of art, the government of Florence called for donations of artworks to fulfill a dream of creating a modern-day Uffizi that would reclaim the city’s place at the forefront of the world’s art scene. And the world answered. Italy-loving artists from as far as Cuba, the United States, and Poland gave works to the city as a gesture of solidarity. Among them were numerous women whose stories and interviews offer a personal look at twentieth-century creativity in Italy. When the World Answered reveals their unsung art treasures and continues the Advancing Women Artists Foundation s quest to reclaim the legacy of women artists in Florence, through publication, restoration and exhibition of their works.